“How dare you say that to me!! Fat?! Out of shape?! If I wasn’t eleven years old I would—“ That was all in my head. I was outraged. And I was hurt. There was a young and inexperienced instructor teaching the karate class, and he saw me struggling on a technique. He came over to help, and in frustration, I …
You’re on TWO Journeys, Not Just ONE?
You realize you’re on two separate journeys, right? You start taking martial arts, and you decide to train hard, learn to defend yourself, and work towards earning your black belt. Ahhh black belt, the quest, the goal… the destination. You’ve begun your first journey. The journey of achievement. And it’s going to be awesome. You’re going to have to push …
Our First Black Belt Little Leader!
I am proud to announce that this past weekend, we graduated a student to black belt that started with us in our LITTLE LEADERS program when he was 3 years old! I remember watching his first few classes… He wouldn’t get on the practice floor. He held onto dad’s leg for dear life. When he finally got comfortable, he refused …
When It’s Tough, We Get Tougher ❤️
“Thank you sir, may I have some more, please?!” “It hurts goooood!” These are some of the fun phrases we shout in class as students are working hard stretching, training, and practicing martial arts. It’s important to me that we teach our students that achieving anything great is going to be tough. You want to be a black belt? You …
Sorry, I Can’t Teach You
Several years ago, my son Judah decided he had an interest in playing the violin. “Hey Dad, can you teach me how to play? I’d love to learn!” I started playing the violin in the 2nd grade, and have played ever since, so it was only natural that he would ask me. I’ve taken breaks during my life of course, …
Discouraged About Your Progress? Read This [90-second read]
Ever had a week that was busy, crazy, you were hustling and pumping, and you knew that you were moving the ball forward… but when you stopped and looked back, you couldn’t figure out what you ACTUALLY accomplished? Welcome to every human, EVER, right?! Sometimes, this is also how it feels with our martial arts training. We come to class, …
9 Leadership Life Skills Our Kids Need to Learn!
Taught by the right instructor, martial arts classes can be SO much more than just kicking and punching and self defense. My instructor changed my life with these lessons, and I strive to do the same for my students. Here are 9 LIFE SKILLS that we teach in our classes on a weekly basis: Hurry up and fail! Often, the people …
Give it to the Scariest Student
Scary students. That’s what I want. Mean. Intense. Kind. Compassionate. Monsters. Yes… yes, I do. And the red stripe this week went to… the scariest student! In every class, we finish by recognizing one student with a red stripe on their belt, the “attitude of the day” stripe. We present it to someone that we feel made the most progress …
Teeth Brushing on Vacation
I’ve decided that when I’m on vacation, I’m going to stop brushing my teeth. No toothbrush. No toothpaste. No floss. But it totally makes sense, right? It’s VACATION!! You Don’t do anything on vacation!! When I’m home and working, I always have to brush my teeth. I wake up, I brush. There is never a morning that you want to …
Everything is Difficult in the Beginning!
Remember these 6 words: Everything is difficult in the beginning! It’s always important to remember that as you’re learning a new skill, as you’re learning a new technique, it’s possible you’re always going to be bad at first. Maybe you’re one of those people that are super talented and can pick something up immediately. That’s awesome! I’m not one of those …