Archive for category: Blogs

There may come a time when some people want to give up their passion because they lose focus and forget why they took it up in the first place.  Long standing martial artists will always remember the original reason for taking up the martial arts.  People of my vintage will often say it was because of the Bruce Lee movies in the ‘70s.  My reasons were based on school yard bullying; I was tired of coming out second best because most of the bullies were usually stronger and faster than me.  After a few months training I went and saw the Bruce Lee movies; this was the deciding factor the martial arts would be my lifelong ambition.

Students need to remember the reason for starting up the martial arts in the first place and should always cherish that decision.  Martial arts promote a positive and healthy lifestyle as well good friendship.  The martial arts had a positive influence in my teen years upbringing, I said NO to drugs, NO to smoking, NO to bad company and I said NO to quitting.  Many people since, have followed my lead.  However, quitting may be lead to negative lifestyle changes because the quitter starts to look for something else.  This is when kids are most vulnerable and may end up doing something unfavourable. 

There a few things that needs to be sorted out after promotion to Probationary Black Belt (Shodan-Ho).  There is a 12 month period in which you have to show cause you are worthy to retain that belt.  During that time you need to act like one, perform like one and speak like one.  This is the bridging period from coloured belt to black belt. 

Nearly a Black Belt is not a Black Belt as some people might think.  The people around you may regard it as ‘fail’ and it doesn’t matter what excuses you give them because they will have their own opinions about why you may have quit.

Those who receive their 1st Degree ranking after their probation should keep in mind ‘the best part of getting a Black Belt is being a Black Belt’. It's only 'fail' if you quit'.
GA

We’ve all seen vows take place at weddings especially the 'I do' bit and then it’s all over and done with but nobody thinks, at the time, how much time and effort has gone leading into this moment.

Tournament is usually a one day event and competing may only be a matter of minutes.  The most important part is the preparation and training leading up to the event. 

I hear some students say, ‘I am not ready’.  Does that mean they are not willing, or does that mean they are not ready to take on the extra training?   In martial arts competition there is no such thing as losing as long as you did your very best.  But there is an upside to this.  Stepping into the arena is an opportunity to test your skills and gain experience that only competition can provide.  I notice the incredible improvement in students who put their hands up to compete.  Not only does their sparring and kata improve but overall skills and confidence.

I was talking to Billy ‘the Kid’ (World Champion Boxer) today about how many people out there are willing take on everybody as long as they don’t have to step out the front door of their school.  It’s best these people, especially those who have never competed, to keep quiet and maintain a low profile because it is a small world. 

Whilst competition is not for everybody I do encourage students to at least, just the once, experience that arousal and adrenalin when confronted outside the norm of their surroundings – call it a little preparation for that shocking street encounter should it ever happen.  Those who don't compete should look at becoming skilled coaches and motivators to assist those who want to 'take on the world'.

Letting students know they have the potential is all it may take for them to say, ‘I do’ when asked, ‘who wants to compete.’
GA

Congratulations to our fine young outstanding athletes last weekend at the recent AMAC championships:
Etan Foo, Siddarth Warrier, Jake Mountford, Alex Piotrowski, Kyle Welevita.

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

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

How many times have you picked up something and you didn’t know what it was or couldn’t find the directions on how to use it.  So why did you buy it in the first place?  Shopping is a form of therapy and coming home with something is a sense of accomplishment, empty handed is a sign of failure for many people.

Specials!  Everybody likes a bargain so they’ll buy something they don’t need because it gives them something to talk about the next time they are sitting with a friend at a coffee shop.  Fuel  docket savers; you want to save money, don’t spend money.  Spend $10,000 on junk and you earn a free flight then you have no idea where to go.

Junk is something you bought a few months ago and you wish you had never bought it. There are better ways to spend money.  To quote, John Will, ‘there are two things worth spending money on – good food and knowledge'.  I agree whole heartedly with this.  At least these things will not be something taking up what precious room left in the house and gathering dust, and you won’t be regretting it in 6 months time.

Good luck with Clean Australia Day.
GA