Guilty until Proven Innocent

How often do we feel like giving training a miss because we couldn't be bothered?  Not many times, I hope.  But the thought has passed my mind but I always seem to overcome negative feelings when it comes to martial arts.  After missing out 2 months of training, beyond my control, I see how more important it is not to miss out when you don't have to.  I told students, the other night, 'if time or bad weather are your only excuses preventing you turning up to training, then I envy you'.  I wish had that choice right now (but that's about to change shortly).

I  love the look of guilty faces that come into class after their missing person report has been filed.  Whatever, the excuse, it's great to see them again. People, understandably, do go through slump periods but there are consequences to go with them.  Every delay now will mean a longer delay later. I wish there was an easier way out of this!  Some students, feeling guilty, will even punish themselves.  Some time ago, a student called to say he would return to training and admitted another hobby got the better of him (golf on the Gold Coast).  To this day, I am still tyring to work out what he was trying to say, 'if I come to training tomorrow (which was a grading night), make sure you don't grade me'.  He said this several times.  I assured him that was not going to happen.  Well, he didn't show up, ever!  Maybe, he was punshishing himself (he should've let me done it for him).

Training should not be a chore and time should be put aside to ensure you do not miss out classes.  It all comes down to time management. Solutions are better than excuses. 
GA