Blog
Nurturing a Baby
There are times when Instructors might feel teaching beginners, in the martial arts, is a mundane job by having to go over the basics. Good instructors see things differently. It's about challenge to get the point across to these very important people. Beginners are new and have special needs, and need to be 
nurtured just like a newly born child needs a parent. But there is also another underlying factor for the Instructor; the thought process in which a technique needs to be explained to get the point across to the beginner.
During a BJJ class of beginners, the other day, it struck me. The thought process of going over the basics by verbally explaining the techniques is the very same process of proof reading a document. Proof reading can be done by reading it out aloud to yourself to see if you can pick up any errors or see if it makes any sense. I thought, ‘wow’, this is really enjoyable. I mentioned to the students how I also had learned something by doing the very basic stuff with them because I can see unfolding bits of the puzzle as I was explaining the techniques. They also said, 'wow' (trust me, I'm having a giggle here).
The bread and butter stuff sometimes seems to get put on the back burner because we always want to be excited with new ideas and ‘toys’ not realising the basics which are taught to beginners are more important than the higher level stuff because they are the foundations that hold the art rock solid.
GA
It’s Not a Lie if You Believe it
We live in a society where we can get almost anything. However, people in less fortunate circumstances don't expect much and have to work hard to get what they want. That is why, in the martial arts world, we are experiencing a belt frenzy because people forget that belts (ranks) are about participation and accomplishment as a reward for their time and effort. It's fast becoming that people, in the martial arts, expect belts without having to do much. You can forgive students for thinking that way but not Instructors or Black Belts.
The BJJ philosophy is don’t ask for a promotion because the only belt you will get is a belting. One young BJJ white belt last year kept asking me when was he going to be graded. I said, “You have 23 hours 
training. Your mate has done 43 hours and he’s not even ready for promotion. Now you tell me when do you think you should be graded."
There are some Instructors, of various disciplines, who like to get in on the act (BJJ) but not having to do the work. They have contacts and can weasel their way around the system to get their belts in return for favours. It is better these fools stay home and help mum or the wife with the ironing. They may impress their students but not everybody else. They should do a risk assessment before making claims because, if found out, that may also reflect on everything else they have done in the past. Now I know where they get their thinking from – to quote George Costanza (SEINFELD), "It's not a lie if you believe it."
Amazingly, those who don’t ask for gradings are the ones who work really hard and the ones who do ask, do very little. Clearly, there are some issues here.
GA
Keep Looking
As an Instructor I need to remind students that no matter how many times they have seen something demostrated, they should be looking at it with much more intensity. I personally have never failed to pick up anything new by watching the same technique over and over again. It might be only minute detail but that is enough to gratify me for the rest of the day. This little difference is called development and that is what makes you better at what you do.
To demonstrate this point to students, I talk about a technique having 100 little steps from A to B; a beginner will possibly see 2 or 3 moves. The more experienced will see, say, 5 or 6, and so on it goes as we move up the experience ladder. I ask students what they should be doing is try and find something they have not noticed before in the equation – rumour says it can be accomplished by listening, looking and doing. If we achieve this mindset through our martial arts, just think about about how well this translates with school or our work.
Development stops when the student ceases to want to learn more. This usually happens when they feel they know it well enough and no longer have to look or listen. It’s like a 100 metre sprinter who doesn’t feel the need to listen to their coach anymore because they know how to sprint. Training is about observation, doing, trying, analysing and repeating. Many times I might do something in a certain way because it feels right but subconsciously I might not be totally aware of all the little steps from A to B. It is when I breakdown it down and explain the moves from what I just did.
GA