Fear

I recently saw a meme about fear being something that's not real, though dangers are real.  Fear is a very real thing, and so is danger.  The two aren't synonomous, nor are they always paired.  People fear things that aren't any threat -- and they aren't afraid of many very great dangers, whether through ignorance or naivete or simple denial.  Fear is a reaction, emotional and instinctual, to a perceived danger, so that fear really is about perception.  Franklin Roosevelt had a point with 'We have nothing to fear but fear itself..."  Fear doesn't exist if we don't perceive the danger...  And it's very present even if what we fear is no threat; ask anyone who's frozen on stage because they had to speak to a group -- even a receptive group that asked them to be there!

Danger is something that is there, whether we know it, notice it, or care about it.  It's an asteroid on collision course with the Earth, that nobody's seen yet.  Danger is a predator stalking you, unseen.  It becomes a threat, ready to be feared when we come to notice it.

The big thing is how you handle either, and especially both in conjunction.  Fears have to be examined, to see if the danger is real -- or you'll be driven by them.  Dangers have to be recognized, assessed and prepared for.  Fears help us recognize the dangers around us, and our emotional reactions to fear help us prepare physically for a threat.  (Which can be a trap for a non-physical danger... but that's another thing to think about...)   

The person with no fear is a walking death trap; he doesn't recognize dangers and he doesn't prepare for them.  But if the fears go too far, people become immobilized, because they see dangers everywhere.  The challenge of life is to balance them both... to control our fears so that we don't get trapped while recognizing dangers, preparing for them.

The Socially Awkward Excuse

A topic that came up elsewhere as we were discussing grooming behaviors in certain sorts of predators or domestic violence situations... the "Socially Awkward" excuse for creepy or predatory behavior. Some predators out there will certainly use the "it was just a misunderstanding" line to minimize and excuse there behavior.
I think a key distinguishing line between real awkwardness and boundary shifting/grooming is how the person reacts to confrontation. A really socially awkward person is going to be embarassed, equally uncomfortable as their unintended victim, and make a genuine attempt to adjust their behavior -- or there's going to be a real persistent pattern that supports that they just don't grok normal behavior. Think about someone on the autism spectrum who just can't figure out what's going on; their off-notes are in multiple areas, not just inappropriate touches, for example. Or if there's a cultural issue, it's again going to be persistent across different areas -- not just creepy eye contact or "compliments."
The creep? They'll be aggressively defensive as they fall back on the social awkward excuse -- and blame their victim for not understanding. And the behaviors are all going to be in things like inappropriate touches, "compliments" that aren't, etc. All in that ONE particular area -- sex.

Here's a good article on it...

https://www.doctornerdlove.com/socially-awkward-isnt-an-excuse/

Failure...

It's interesting how concepts pop up at similar times in a lot of places... and the benefit of failure is one that I've seen come up again and again over the last several months.

Failure is a good thing!  Sounds kind of oxymoronic, huh?  How can failure be a good thing?

We learn from failure -- not success.  Successes can reinforce, they can build confidence... but we don't learn from success.  After all, to succeed, we have to already be capable of the skill or concept.  To learn it -- we have to fail.  Failure occurs when we move beyond our comfort, beyond the easy...  when we do something that we can't do -- YET.

If you're trying to get stronger -- you have to move weights (body or iron, doesn't matter) that you can't move easily, and that means you must sometimes fail.  Maybe it's doing another push-up than you did yesterday, another rep on the bench press, or 5 more pounds in your squat.  Maybe it's running that mile a little faster, doing another 10 punches...  You have to move out of that comfort zone, or there's no growth. 

One of our more regular exercises in class is punching x-ray paper; it's an exercise to assess the correctness of the punch, and probably a worthy topic on it's own.  We allow students several practice attempts, then the "final round" is sort of pass/fail: do a bad punch, and you do some push-ups.  That fear of failure is a pressure, and we have to put artificial pressures on people so that they can handle real pressures.  Lots of students find a punch they can do well... and they coast.  That's their "go to" for the exercise.  But, every once in a while, a student decides to develop a different punch. That means that they're going to drop for some push-ups as they practice and develop it... because they will fail some.  In time, though, they'll perfect that punch... if they accept the failures.

So... go out, try new things... and be willing to fail.

Training Standards

I’ve been a fan of Marc MacYoung for a while.  He’s someone who’s been there, got the t-shirt, and actually bothers to think about violence and self defense.  He’s a former bouncer, a court recognized expert on self defense and violence, and instructor in both communications and martial arts/self defense.  I’m currently reading one of his newer books, What You Don’t Know Can Kill You: How most self defense training will put you into prison or the ground, written with Jenna Meeks.

In it, they quote Martin Cooper, a retired UK police officer and security consultant.  I really like the definition of “winning” in a self defense situation presented:

• You must be be able to act,
• You must stop the attacker,
• You must be cleared of all charges,
• You must “win” in civil court,
• You must be able to emotionally handle the aftermath.

This is what these criteria mean to me -- in brief.

Able to act:  All the techniques in the world are useless to you if you can’t use them in the real world.  As my teacher Joe Manley would say “It’s not what you can think of -- it’s what you can think of IN TIME.”  You have to practice and train in a way that will let you apply those skills under pressure, in the real world.

Stop the attacker:  If the techniques aren’t effective in ending the attack, they’re no good.  This is why so many people say martial arts don’t work in the street…  They don’t do the job.  They’ve practiced missing, they’ve listened to “lies to children” that say that a shot to the nose or groin will stop an attacker, that they skills are ‘too deadly to compete with…”  

Cleared of all charges: If you defend yourself successfully, especially if you’ve hurt someone badly, there’s a good chance that the police may file charges on you.  You need to understand the laws and rules of the use of force where you live and travel and spend time so that your use of force is reasonable and appropriate, and so that you can articulate that to the police (at an appropriate time and place) and in the courtroom. Soundbites aren’t enough; saying “I was in fear for my life” is useless if that fear isn’t reasonable…  Another of Grandmaster Manley’s teachings comes to mind…  “By the time a fool learns the rules, the players have left the field.”  You just might want someone (an attorney) on your side who knows the rules…  well. In fact, a conversation or training on the legal issues BEFORE you need to protect yourself is even smarter...

Win in civil court:  Guess what?  It doesn’t end if the criminal charges are dismissed (or even better, never filed…) -- you can still face a civil trial.  And the rules are different… so what you do when you defend yourself needs to meet those standards, too…

Handle the emotional aftermath:  Being the victim of a violent attack leaves marks -- physically and emotionally.  The ER can stitch up the cuts and bandage the scrapes… but the emotional impact of defending yourself -- especially if you’ve done serious harm to your assailant -- can be a lot harder to cope with.  The stress of dealing with police and courts doesn’t help, either.  But you can learn things that you can be ready to use to help you cope more successfully… and you can get help.

There are other ways to measure success in self defense -- but what I like about this approach is that it deals with both the moment of self defense, and what follows.

Freezes

There are a number of different responses to a threatening situation...  I personally like the model of 4 reactions: fight, flight, freeze, or posture.  In brief -- fight and flight are well known.  Freeze -- I'll talk more in a minute.  Posture is a display response; getting big, showing off, sending a "don't mess with me!" signal. 

So... freezes...  This blog was prompted by this article: https://defensemaven.io/bluelivesmatter/news/commission-broward-sheriff-s-captain-was-dream-like-during-parkland-shooting-zQXTqCVZOkmB5nSWJjxGlQ/

The article describes how a sheriff's department captain on the scene of the Parkland shooting was ineffective, and seemed to be out of touch, in a dream like state.  That's a form of a freeze...

The most basic form of freezing is absolute motionlessness...  Think of the classic deer-in-the-headlights.  It's an instinctive level response, probably a result of the way predators tend to key on movement.  Your body and nervous system is essentially saying "maybe if I don't move, it won't see me and eat me."  Learning to break this sort of freeze is one of the great challenges in martial arts and self defense training.

But that's not the only form of a freeze.  Locking in and repeating ineffective motions or responses is another.  "It worked before -- let's just try again!"  I watched and experienced officer once try the same leg sweep takedown about 6 times without effect...  Or, in the Kyle Dinkheller video, you hear him repeating the same sequence of commands...  Another form of freezing is inappropriate detachment and indecisiveness...  like that captain seems to have experienced.

So... how do you know if you're in a freeze?  The deer-in-a-headlights freeze is easy; you start taking damage because you're not moving!  But what about some of the others? That's what the article reminded me of...  because one of the best indicators that you're in a freeze -- even if you're doing something and not frozen like a statue -- is that warm, floaty, detached feeling.  I remember one of the first real use of force situations I was involved in...  I got on scene, and if I had been asked at the moment, I was doing great.  But I was in slow motion, and what I was doing wasn't really effective.  I was in that nice floaty place...

OK -- now we know we're in a freeze...  what do we do?  Well... if you're taking damage -- ANYTHING to stop it.  Scream, yell, cover up, Rory Miller's Dracula's Cape technique...  Ideally, you've prepped this through appropriate training and conditioning.  In those less obvious freezes...  You have to recognize that you're in a form of freeze -- and then you need to get yourself in the game.

Robert Humphries' Warrior Creed

The Warrior's Creed

Wherever I walk, 

everyone is a little safer because I am there.

Wherever I am,

anyone in need has a friend. 

Whenever I return home,

everyone is happy I am there.

Sometimes, I feel the need to remind myself of this.  Jack Hoban's account about how this creed came about is worth reading -- and I identify with it all too much and all too often.

For those of us who choose professions or lifestyles where we deal with violence honestly and realistically -- we have a responsibility not to inflict that on those around us.  If we're not careful, it's very easy for us to justify being complete assholes -- to become a cancer to those around us.  That may mean staying away long to decompress.  It may mean simply manning up, and handling our business -- and keeping it to ourselves.  

Along a related line, I'm due to reread Kevin Gilmartin's book, Emotional Survival for Law Enforcement.  While a lot if it is aimed at cops -- there's definitely value in it for a lot of people in stressful professions and places in their lives. Dr. Gilmartin is a psychologist and a (retired) cop.  He knows what he's talking about.

Blocking is useless...

This is going to be a bit of a rant. 

People will tell say that blocking is useless, that blocks don't work...

OK.  Then why the hell have all of these combative systems continued to include them, for anything ranging from hundreds of years to thousands of years?  Bando's roots trace back thousands of years, but the modern version was gathered by U Ba Than and many others in the 1940s.  They were all combat veterans, and ruthlessly insisted on techniques that worked.  Dr. Gyi has shared the story of how someone brought a beautiful stick system, and claimed it could defeat 10 men at once.  They put it to the test, and it failed.  Now, we don't know what it looked like.  But blocks stayed in the system. 

Joe Manley has consistently taught, for at least 25 years, with a huge emphasis on defense.  On using blocks and parries.  So has Lloyd Davis.  Both were feared fighters, whose skill today is often (I think) underestimated and misunderstood.  They trained champions who trained champions. 

Look at other systems, and you'll find they all have blocks.  Blocks, therefore, must have the potential to work.  So why can't people make them work properly?

Here are a few of my thoughts on it.  Take 'em for what they're worth.

First, let's look at the term: block.  In Japanese, I know, the actual term is really closer to "receiving."  Lots of people try to make a block work by staying there, and flinging their arm at the incoming attack.  Well, you've already got one problem, there; you're behind the curve.  Action beats reaction.  So now your arm has to be faster than their punch.  It might work, if you're fast enough.  But are blocks really meant to be a stationary technique, simply accepting the hammering of the block?

Not the way I was taught.  The start of the block is EVASION!  Moving the target to assure that you're safe, then insuring your safety with the block.  Letting the block punish the attacker for intruding on your space, because you're already safe. 

That lets me segue into the next thing:  timing.  Too many people try to block the attack by waiting for the it to come, then deciding what to do.  Let me bring a new term in: OODA Loop.  In short, Colonel Boyd realized that for us to respond to something, we must first Observe it, Orient on what it is, Decide what to do about it, and finally put into Action.  In practice, in fighting, if we spend too much time trying to figure out what's coming, by the time we can recognize it and decide what to do, we've been hit.  The fix is easy to say -- Movement is movement, and when you see movement, MOVE!.  After that, from a safe place, you can take your time to catch up.  (Yeah, easy to say.  Hard to do!  And it takes a lot of painful practice to achieve for most people.)  Blocking takes place, ideally, when you're already safe.

Finally...  I think there's an issue about committing to actually developing the skill.  It's easy to try something once or twice, then jump on the "It doesn't work" bandwagon.  Developing skillful blocking is hard, and you will get hit sometimes as you work on it.  Lots of people don't want to get hit, they don't want to submit their ego to the learning process.  It's not fun!  But the results are worth the pain. 

So... to summarize... Why the hell did all of these combative systems maintain blocking and defensive techniques if they don't work?  Or, maybe, are they not working because we aren't doing them right?

Special Seminar Announcement

All,
It's been a while since either Jim or I have posted on this blog, but I wanted to make sure you were aware of a special seminar that we'll be hosting with Grandmaster Dr. Maung Gyi, the chief instructor of the American Bando Association (ABA).

This is a one-day seminar on the Wizard system, focusing on empty-hand techniques.    The Wizard system of Bando focuses on a high level of flexibility, mobility, and dexterity, building on the principles of deception to defend against multiple attackers.

On March 23rd, Dr. Gyi will be teaching an open seminar on this topic; the cost is $75 (or only $50 if you are an ABA member).

Where:   The New Baltimore Firehouse Hall

               5303 Lee Hwy

               Warrenton, VA  20187

When:  Saturday, March 23rd, 10:00am - 4:00pm

You can register on-line  by clicking on the following URL - https://adobeformscentral.com/?f=72qhfoaDHKyu3U0X8nPYQw.  

Thanks!

Debby Kirkman

Timing of Responses

Something we've been practicing lately...

Defensive responses are required at different times during a fight, whether it's sparring or "for real".

If you've got lots of time, and are at long ranges, you can do all sorts of things.  Some of them are pretty fancy, some are fairly simple.  But the common trend at that point is that you have all sorts of time.  Maybe you just plain leave; maybe you do some sort of evasion and counter attack.  Maybe you just punch the other guy in the face while he's trying to cover the ground to hit you...

More typically, we fight at middle ranges.  Not quite able to hit the other guy unless you take a step or otherwise close the gap.  At that range, we've still got a lot of options.  It's the heart of where our club trains.  As soon as they move, we move and counter.  There's time here to block & counter, using patterns we practice.

Sometimes, we miss the signs.  Maybe we've let the other guy steal a bit of distance.  Maybe we've just missed it.  But we suddenly see the attack, and we still have a moment to respond before we get hit.  That's where our emergency techniques come in.  We pull back and kick, or cover and strike.  But we've still got that beat of time before we take damage.

And sometimes -- we're taking damage before we know something has happened.  We've practiced a drop-step technique.  The idea there is simple: damage is happening, we don't have time or maybe even faculties to do an evasion and counter-attack.  So, we cover as best we can, simultaneously strike-blocking, aiming to disrupt that attack and buy some space and time to recollect and shape a better response.

The Day the World Changed

Ten years ago, the world changed.

Ten years ago, terror came into our homes, and things that had been the realm of subject matter experts and news reports became real.

Ten years ago, we learned how vulnerable we could be -- and just how much people can step up to meet a challenge.  Police officers, fire fighters, security personnel all did their jobs under conditions no one could have envisioned, in New York City, and at the Pentagon.  "Ordinary" people -- office workers, travelers, people who had been minding their own business on the streets -- also rose to the challenge, in NYC, in Arlington, VA, and in the air over Pennsylvania.


Remember them, remember their courage, and remain vigilant so that those who strike at the most vulnerable from hidden locations never again succeed.

Stances

Stance:  the positioning of the body for combat.

Steps are transitions between stances; stances are where you end up after steps.  Confusing, huh?  In Bando, we have two categories of stances, formal and combat.  Formal stances are rather strictly defined postures used to learn and categorize weight shifts, directions, and body alignment.  They provide the structure to support techniques.  Dr. Gyi  would say "You cannot fire a cannon off a bamboo platform."  In Bando, we have three main formal stances, each with three variants.

Combat stances are less formal and more fluid.  Again, there are two main types of combative stances.  The first is your personal fighting stance.  This is your "ready position" for fighting.  I often describe it to students as an "idling car at a red light."  The engine is running, the car will go -- just as soon as the light changes.  I teach my students certain key elements that must be present in the fighting stance principles of hand position, which hand leads, and so on.  The second form of combative stance is the functional application of the formal stances.  They're not quite as technically perfect as the formal stances, but they should be recognizably related to them.

Ian Abernathy wrote a very good article about the principles and development of stances in training.  I encourage you to read it.  Ian Abernathy: My Stance on Stances  One of the key ideas in it is to understand the role of stance and stance training, and how it relates to functional fighting.

What happens when two AREN'T tangoing...

There's no one sort of violent attack; violence occurs a spectrum.   However, it's important to distinguish violence from what Rory Miller calls a "monkey dance."  A monkey dance is about status, not really hurting someone.  There are unwritten rules in a monkey dance, and you violate those rules at the risk of social sanction.  The college jock who beats the stereotypical nerd senseless doesn't gain status; he's laughed at.  Here are two examples of monkey dances getting stopped short...  There may be inappropriate language in either; view at your own risk or turn your speakers off.






In both cases -- you see the Monkey Dance building, and then one of the people stops playing.  I'm not justifying or defending the actions of anyone involved; I don't know enough of the circumstances.  But in both, you see one person escalating, putting on a show.  Then the other person has enough -- and stops the whole dance.

If you remain calm, and recognize when a Monkey Dance is starting, you have opportunities to stop it.  You can escalate to more force, quicker, and end the dance that way.  It's sometimes the right thing to do.  But... you're not limited to pulling out the big guns, either.  You may be able to disengage or defuse the situation without force, too.  And it's important to at least make the effort -- when it is safe to do so.

Presence

"Simply by your presence, you can effect change."

Some years back, my teacher, Joe Manley, brought this motto to our class, and it's been on my mind lately, what with a seminar coming up and a few comments folks have made in my presence.

For many years, I avoided missing class for a simple reason: I was absolutely sure that the one class I missed would be the class that had the lesson I absolutely needed. 

We'd often repeat material over the years, and sometimes it would get frustrating.  After all, how many times can you work on the front kick?  Well... I don't know.  I'm still working on it, and working on getting it right.  So I guess the answer is "at least one more time!"  Working with Joe would break out a new piece or new element or just tweak something, and my kick would get better.  Joe would address this issue with a story from his own training...  He would go to train with Dr. Gyi, and they'd work on something... and it'd be the same thing they worked on last time.  It finally dawned on Joe that if they were still working on it, it must mean that they don't have it right yet... and he began to focus his training on getting it right -- and Dr. Gyi could finally move on!

Let's look at that motto again... "Simply by your presence, you can effect change."  Presence.  What's that mean?  Being there.  Effect.  The dictionary definition is interesting.  It can mean the result... or it can mean that you've altered the result.  Change.  Change can be the result -- or the process of becoming different.

Simply by being there, you both bring about alterations --- and you alter the outcome of the activity.

Don't fall into the trap of "I already know that" or "I don't need that lesson."

Seminar Announcement

On January 29, 2011, Piedmont Bando of Northern Virginia has the honor of hosting Bando Grandmasters Joe Manley and Lloyd Davis for a seminar on the fundamentals of Bando and free sparring.

The seminar will be held at the Manassas Battlefield Holiday Inn on Balls Ford Road in Manassas, beginning at 10 AM.  The seminar fee, to cover costs, is $70 for non-ABA members, and $60 for ABA members in good standing.

Contact us if you have any questions.

What are you preparing for?

Martial arts training has become quite common today.  Ranging from thinly veiled daycare programs through MMA competitors up to professionals who must use violence on a daily basis.  Take a moment, and think about why you're training.

Some people train because they've got friends doing it, and the class is a social event.  Others train to compete, whether in traditional style tournaments or MMA.  Still others train because they've experienced violence, and want to be ready if it ever happens again.  There are people who train because they train; they enjoy the physical challenges and wouldn't know what to do with themselves if they weren't training.  And some people train because they have every reason to expect to need effective skills in using force.  (Let's not even consider the people who train because someone makes them...)

Nobody's purpose in training is superior; they're all merely different.  But that purpose will shape how you train.  A sport karate competitor has to train to understand, use, and apply the rules of the event.  A rape or domestic violence survivor's training may be very different -- and may have to be conducted with great sensitivity and care.  A cop, correctional officer, or soldier may train differently from each other -- and very differently from the guy who's simply "doing" martial arts because it's more interesting to him than bowling or going to an ordinary gym.

Think about why you're training.  Then assess how you conduct your training.  If the two aren't in harmony, you're not going to get the results you want.  If you're training to be able to effectively impose force on a resisting or combative subject in the streets -- you have to have partners who do that, and you have to do things like scenario training.  If you're training to win the next MMA event -- you need to spend time working on the various aspects of that game.  Including the conditioning  necessary to last through your fight!  And so on.  If there's a conflict between your training and your goals, start looking for weighs to fix it!

Minor housekeeping note

Readers may notice that the tone or voice of posts and comments under Piedmont Bando change occasionally.  Nobody here suffers from multiple personality disorder.  Instead, all of the instructors of Piedmont Bando have the ability to post and comment here under the main name.  So, sometimes it might be Jim, sometimes Debby, even occasionally Tristan...  If you're curious who wrote what -- ask us!

Training Responsibilities

Training mirrors life. When we begin training, our responsibilities are few.  Show up, follow directions, practice on your own.  As you advance in training, your responsibilities grow.  You may be asked to greet new students or assure that the facility is cleaned and prepared for class.  You might be asked to instruct new students or lead warm ups.  One day, you may find yourself responsible for a class or club.  Seems like it's a simple idea.  The teacher teaches, the student learns.  But there's more to it than that.

Let's start by looking more closely at a student's responsibilities.  To simply say show up and train is to almost trivialize it.  Students have the responsibility to show up in class.  To focus on class, and listen to the instructor and participate with integrity.  Why do I use integrity?  Because it means wholeness, not just honestly.  When you're in class, BE in class.  Bring the required equipment.  Pay attention; leave outside matters outside.  Don't chat about unrelated matters, don't disrupt class by being a what-if monkey..  Give an honest and intent effort to the exercises and drills.  If you've been training for months, and still can't do any more pushups than your first night... something's wrong.  You may be asked to assume other responsibilities, like unlocking the training facility, greeting or teaching new students.  You should be trying to bring a few new faces around... how else are you going to be sure to have playmates?!  If you're not specifically assigned something, and it needs doing -- step up and do it!  Unless it's something you don't know how to do or shouldn't do for some reason.  A visitor should never feel ignored or unwelcome, for example.  Every student can at least say "Hi, let me get the teacher for you."

But the responsibilities don't stop and start at the training hall door.  In my classes, we don't spend huge amounts of class time on pure fitness type exercises.  We don't have that much time, and I'd rather spend it focused on improving your skill, not your endurance.  So you have to spend some time outside the training hall to develop your phsyical fitness.  And you have to practice outside of class -- so that we don't have to spend class after class after class on the same material.  My teacher used to tell us how he'd go to see his teacher, and they'd work on the same move, again and again, from one session to the next.  My teacher finally realized that the reason they kept covering the same thing was because they didn't have it right yet! 

A teacher has responsibilities, too.  The teacher has to attend class, too!  There's no class if there's no teacher, just as there's no class if there's no student.  The instructor's primary responsibility is to be ready; have a plan, both for a particular class and for several months down the road, and to see that the training is accomplished safely.  The teacher should have some idea and plan to help each student reach their personal best.  The teacher also has to practice -- or the students will surpass the teacher!  That doesn't mean that a teacher's time is spent repeating the same basic drills or that a teacher who can't recall a particular form or kata on the spur of the moment is irresponsible.  Nor does it mean that the teacher should be bringing huge stacks of detailed lesson plans, or notes handouts.  But a teacher who consistently spends no time on training or preparation until they walk in the door...  They're probably being rather irresponsible.  There's plenty more here (like being able to be humble enough to recognize when you're not helping a particular student by your teaching)... but I'm going to move on.

There's another type of responsibility to consider:  Who is responsible for your training?  One of the hardest lessons, but biggest keys to growth is accepting that ultimately, YOU and YOU ALONE are responsible for your training.  Your teachers can put the information out -- but it's up to you to actually work with it and make it yours.  And -- eventually, it becomes your responsibility to seek out the training you need.  You might identify these needs through your own practice and even get guidance from your teachers -- but at some point, the spoon feeding has to stop, and you have to seek out what you need.  And you have to be responsible for your own development within the martial sciences.

The Challenge of Teaching (part II)

You spend years training, and you finally earn your black belt.  One thing leads to another, and you find yourself running classes more and more often, or you start a club or school of your own.  You're going to get plenty of training in now, right? 

Got news for you...  Getting your own training in is one of the greatest challenges of teaching.  If you're teaching the class, who is going to look at what you're doing?  If you're teaching the students various things... when do you advance your own knowledge?

Teachers have to spend a lot of time that students don't see preparing for class.  This includes things like putting a lesson plan together, and making sure the facility and gear is available and ready... but it also has to include your own training.  I practice something for at least a little bit, every day.  I don't feel I practice enough!  There are things I can work on while teaching, like if I'm sparring a student, I can practice evading just enough...  but there's a limit to how much I can practice that way.  And there's a limit to how much the students may push me all too often!  So a teacher also has to find time to advance their own training by working with others who are able to review and correct them. 

The Challenge of Teaching (part I)

There's a great challenge in being a teacher.  You have to find a way to present the lessons you were taught faithfully, but still adapting them to the needs of the students today.  And their ability to understand them...

That's one of the big challenges for a teacher.  I can take a brand new student, and try to teach them to the level that I'm currently at.  I can try to teach them all the nuances and elements that have taken me decades to learn, acquire, and assimilate.  Of course, that means that the student will take many hours to learn even a single punch...  And a lot of students just don't have that sort of patience.

Or, I can try to give them enough to get them started... without overwhelming them, and recognizing that it won't be perfect.  Now, they'll learn that first punch -- and maybe several -- in a single lesson... but there'll still be a lot of work to do.  And sometimes, the students develop an "I already know this" attitude when you revisit and refine the material.

In my classes, I try to find a balance.  I try to teach a student a couple of punches and a couple of blocks in their first lesson.  I make it clear that they're not "learned" yet, that there's lots more to refine, too.  But I'm also trying to give them enough tools to join the regular class...

Competition

Why do I take students to competitions?  Sporting events have rules, and they aren't like a real fight.  I'll say that again: a sporting event, even MMA, is not like real street violence.  But I still think it's worthwhile for students to participate in competitions.  Why?

Well, first, it's fun.  I don't know about anyone else, but I like to win things and to see how I can do with against other people that I don't see everyday.  Sometimes, it's neat to see how my training is progressing compared to a buddy or friend that I see around.  Winning a trophy is an ego stroke.  Losing to someone I thought I should have beat is a motivator to train harder.

But I'm not a fan of doing things in training that don't serve a better purpose than just having fun.  And competitions definitely serve other purposes, too.  They're a different form of pressure.  We know that under pressure, the mind goes blank.  The more different forms of pressure we can be exposed to, the less likely we are to go blank under a new situation.  Or at least not completely blank.  So participating in a competition is also a gauge about where my students (or my own) training is setting with regards to handling pressure.

We also learn other things from competition.  We learn about sportsmanship and character, and how to handle different developments in life.  For example, I recently took some students to a tournament.  Along the way, a mistake in scoring was made, and one of my students was improperly awarded a place too low -- and another person was elevated.  I was able to get things straightened out -- but how the students reacted to the situation (and when) gave insight into their character.  We get a chance to practice handling an unfair result, sometimes, too.  I've seen tournaments where the odds where stacked in the favor of one school or another, for one reason or another... 

But it's important also to separate winning trophies and awards in a tournament from performing well.  I was taught that it wasn't the trophy that measured whether or not I succeeded -- it was my teacher's assessment.  Had I put his lesson's into play as I fought?  Did I perform the form well?  If Joe said I did -- I knew had, regardless of what some judge said or thought.  Victory was employing my teacher's lessons -- not winning the trophy.