| Every martial arts instructor’s goal is to develop | | | | as a student of the martial arts and how important |
| black belt students. Our dream is that each of our | | | | they are to you. |
| students will one day earn this honor. Unfortunately, the | | | | Self-defense, exercise for better health, confidence, |
| reality is that not everyone will succeed. While there | | | | and family time are among the benefits that probably |
| may be numerous reasons why an individual deviates | | | | rank very high on your list. Time management skills will |
| from his/her path to reach Black Belt, most of them | | | | help you attend your scheduled martial arts classes |
| are direct opponents (or enemies) of student | | | | and continue your training. |
| commitment. | | | | There may be instances during class when the |
| Can you remember instances in your life when you | | | | material or techniques are dif?cult to learn. This can be |
| had good intentions of following through on a goal but | | | | discouraging and may make you re-think your ability to |
| somehow it didn’t get done? This happens to all of | | | | achieve Black Belt. But every Black Belt has had to |
| us from time to time. Whatever initially causes a | | | | overcome these obstacles, and you can too. If you |
| student’s commitment to becoming a Black Belt to | | | | are having trouble, see your instructor as soon as |
| waver, it is very easy to allow additional factors to | | | | possible. |
| compound the problem and jeopardize his or her | | | | Often, a little one-on-one advice can go a long way. |
| continued progress. This in turn leads to further | | | | Practicing at home or with a fellow student can also |
| decreased commitment. It is actually a vicious cycle of | | | | make the learning process quicker or easier. Here’s |
| cause and effect. | | | | a simple tip I learned during training that you can also |
| It will be easier to stay committed to your Black Belt | | | | try: teaching! When you break down a technique to |
| goals if you can recognize in advance what has the | | | | show it to someone else, the technique often |
| potential to steer you off the track. Being aware of | | | | becomes clearer to yourself. Try it sometime. |
| the possibility will allow you to consciously re-focus and | | | | While many students can attend class or work out |
| re-establish your commitment to becoming a Black | | | | everyday, other students suffer from student burn- |
| Belt. | | | | out. It is important to train at a pace that will optimize |
| No matter what we do, there are only 24 hours in a | | | | your progress. How much? The martial arts is an |
| day. It is not difficult to run out of time to do the things | | | | individual activity and only you can determine your |
| that we have committed to do. Time management is a | | | | optimal work-out time. Just be aware that you can |
| crucial skill that all people should learn in order to | | | | overdo even a good thing. Remember, an apple a day |
| balance and prioritize their commitments. By doing so, | | | | will keep the Doctor away... but if you eat two dozen |
| you will find that there can be sufficient time to honor | | | | apples a day, you will probably need the Doctor! |
| your priorities. Think of the benefits you are receiving | | | | |