Post-Promotion Humility

After a big week of Promotion nights, I take a few minutes every Friday and reflect on the past weeks events, and if any changes could have been made. “Tweaking”, we call it. We often learn that things we thought would work didn’t, and things we were worried about, went very well. Nothing is ever going to be perfect, but we can always strive to make it even more awesome for the next time.
We now know that we may need to block out more time, have more available seating, and resolve a small parking issue. Nothing earth shattering. Over the years we have streamlined the promotion process, and I have to admit, I was very pleased with how efficient the nights were!

I love my job. When someone asks me what I do for a living, I say I have fun working with my kids. My kids. Not my students, not the yellow belts. My kids. I try my best to take the time out of every class to chat with a few of them. Find out how they are doing, how school is going, what they ate for lunch. It does not matter to me if they are shy, nervous, bold, brave, disabled, blind or outgoing. I want to learn everything about them. It helps me stay grounded, and gives me humility when I think I have it all covered. Promotion nights to me are the times when families come together to watch their child promote, succeed, and overcome challenges. I have seen parents cry, laugh, cheer, and wave banners. It can get a little crazy in the parent seating area sometimes! 

We work very hard to make it a “different” type of fun. When the week is over, complete and utter exhaustion sets in right around 12:00 on Saturday. Our brains are mush. Our bodies are hurting. We are looking for a nice sunny vacation. But then, on Sunday night we remember why we do what we do and pick ourselves up and set up a brand new rotation for the following Monday. New forms, katas, kicks, punches and drills. Exciting stuff! Games, goals, sparring drills, and ASAH Shark silliness. We set our yearly calendars to promotion weeks. It is a goal for us, just like it is for the kids. And for the adults also!

Last week something wonderful happened at one of the promotion nights. One of my kids was very nervous about performing an advanced kata called Tiger. This young woman has been through a lot since the day she came into this world. Over the last five years I have watched her grow and blossom into a lovely, smart, caring, BRAVE person. A front kick five inches off the floor was a huge challenge for her when she first walked into my studio. She never gave up, always tried harder; she sets goals for herself and achieves every one. She earned her Junior Black Belt alongside the rest of her class with zero complaints. With a smile on her face the entire time. Now, if you have tested for your Black Belt, you understand how tough it can be. She pushed the other kids to keep going when they wanted to give up!
Last night, she admitted to me that Tiger kata can be intimidating. I agree! She felt she needed a guide next to her for balance issues. I have to admit, I was nervous, I haven’t performed Tiger in front of a large group in a long time. When it was her turn to perform, I stood right next to her, we did the kata together. And when it was all over, I felt my heart burst out of my chest. I have never been so humbled to the point of tears. I am so incredibly proud of this young lady. A standing ovation, cheers, cow bells were ringing - it was overwhelming. One simple phrase “Thank you Miss Anne” and a HUGE smile on her face made it the best night ever. That was more than enough.
Jenna, you are my inspiration. Thank you for grounding me this week, helping me overcome my personal challenges, and making promotion night at 7:00 Thursday, February 21st the most inspirational night of the year. You ROCK! I wish you success in everything you do in your life. Thank you for being a part of my fun job, and my life. You made me remember why I do what I do and why I love it.

P.S. Tiger kata ROCKS! Chhhh……

Miss Anne
Instructor, Action Karate Newtown

EYE ON THE PRIZE

The air on the Santa Monica pier is usually alive with the emissions of countless biological organisms, giving it that fresh, faintly fish-smelling sourness that lets you know that you're in the midst of life. And this despite the fact that tons of raw sewage are dumped there into the Pacific every day. So, it was a natural choice a few Saturdays ago to head down to the sea for some lunch and some air.

As I got toward the end of the pier, I noticed a large barrel by the door of one of the restaurants. As I got closer I could see that the barrel was full of live crabs, clawing, clanking, crawling all over each other. I looked around and saw no one near the barrel and I thought to myself how could anyone leave a barrel full of crabs outside? Wouldn't more than one of them with aspirations of sweet freedom crawl out and take a headlong dive a la Greg Louganis into the deep blue? This was bad business practice I said and I went inside to tell the manager I thought so.

I found the honcho and began laying it down. What were you thinking? A bucket full of live crabs near the water? I told him he was a fool for leaving so much of his business to chance, and at the sound of these words, the man perked up and began to fire back.

"You're the fool," he told me calmly. "Go outside and watch those crabs!"

I wondered what he was talking about. Perhaps there was someone outside watching the beasts to make sure they wouldn't crawl away; some young teenager perhaps in need of a summer job to pay for his martial arts classes. Or perhaps there was a clear lid on top of the barrel I had missed in my earlier observation.

But as I got outside, I looked and there was no one watching and no lid over them. But what I did see was remarkable. In the orgiastic clambering, if one of the animals attempted to crawl over the side of the barrel, the others around it would latch on and pull it back down into the abyss of crab Hades. None of the crabs could get out because the others made sure to it; it's in their nature.

There was a lesson to be learned there on that pier. There are crab equivalents in my life, I thought. There are those around me that try to pull me back down when I have my eye on the prize; the kind of people who, not always intentionally, draw me away from the goals I've set for myself.

We all want out of the bucket; in fact we go through great lengths to make sure that someday we will. But we all have crabs around us; boyfriend or girlfriend crabs, mother, father crabs, best friend crabs; the people who call us up to go out to a movie when it's time to train. And maybe it's in people's nature as well, after all, no one wants to go to a movie alone.

Then I realized there isn't much I can do to minimize my contact with some of those people around me because they're so close to me, but what I can do is keep my eye on the prize, stay focused on my vision and stick to the flight plan like I talked about before. The crabs may get their claws on my body, but if my mind can escape their grip, then the body will soon follow.

The grip of prying claws may not be easy to escape, but there are great rewards beyond the boundaries of the confining barrel. If you are able to identify those who are keeping you back, and free yourself from the allure of slacking off, you will find a vast ocean waiting for you to escape into as well.

Action Karate Newtown Awarded Business of the Year

Action Karate Newtown has been awarded Business of the Year by the Newtown Business Association for 2012! Chosen by the Board out of over 250 businesses in Newtown. 

This distinguished award is to honor and recognize an exemplary NBA business. The companies members had dedicated, time, support, and participation, in an effort to help the NBA as an organization, in turn supporting the NBA's mission of promoting Newtown as an ideal place to live, shop, and work.

To celebrate this accomplishment, we are offering a $20.12 Deal for NEW students. You will receive a First Lesson, Uniform, and a Free month of class. If you enroll during your month, you will receive a discount of $20.12 on your tuition for the first 9 months! 

ATTITUDE IS EVERYTHING

There are only two ways to change your own attitude:

1.) Change your physiology: practice being in slumped position. Then go to good posture. …clapping jumping…fist pump, etc.

2.) Ask your self the right questions - What am I happy about this week? What am I proud of?

The process of human change begins within us. We all have tremendous potential. We all desire good results from our efforts. Most of us are willing to work hard and to pay the price that success and happiness demand.

Each of us has the ability to put our unique human potential into action and to acquire a desired result. But the one thing that determines the level of our potential—that produces the intensity of our activity and predicts the quality of the result we receive—is our attitude.

Attitude determines how much of the future we are allowed to see. It decides the size of our dreams and influences our determination when we are faced with new challenges. No other person on earth has dominion over our attitude. People can affect our attitude by teaching us poor thinking habits or unintentionally misinforming us or providing us with negative sources of influence, but no one can control our attitude unless we voluntarily surrender that control.

No one else "makes us angry." We make ourselves angry when we surrender control of our attitude. What someone else may have done is irrelevant. We choose, not they. They merely put our attitude to a test. If we select a volatile attitude by becoming hostile, angry, jealous or suspicious, then we have failed the test. If we condemn ourselves by believing that we are unworthy, then again, we have failed the test.

If we care at all about ourselves, then we must accept full responsibility for our own feelings. We must learn to guard against those feelings that have the capacity to lead our attitude down the wrong path and to strengthen those feelings that can lead us confidently into a better future.

If we want to receive the rewards the future holds in trust for us, then we must exercise the most important choice given to us as members of the human race by maintaining total dominion over our attitude. Our attitude is an asset, a treasure of great value, which must be protected accordingly. Beware of the vandals and thieves among us who would injure our positive attitude or seek to steal it away.

Having the right attitude is one of the basics that success requires. The combination of a sound personal philosophy and a positive attitude about ourselves and the world around us gives us an inner strength and a firm resolve that influences all the other areas of our existence.

FEBRUARY NEWSLETTER

If you haven't had a chance to yet, you can check out the Action Karate Newtown monthly newsletter on our blog for updates and announcements. You can also pickup a copy in our parent area during class. ASAH!

WHAT IS TACT?

Everyone has been taught that honesty is the best policy. The truth is not always pretty, however. Sometimes the blunt truth can be extremely hurtful. Tact is the ability to know how to express the truth in carefully worded terms to avoid hurting others’ feelings. If you must make a statement that could upset another person, then use the skill of tact to say it in the least hurtful way. Tact will also help you to avoid insults and rude replies.

As a martial artist, you should use tact as a natural part of your everyday manners. It’s the responsibility of every martial artist to protect others, and that includes their feelings. Feelings are extremely valuable to people. It is important that you always protect those feelings by learning and using tact. Let’s explore some examples of tact and how to use it correctly.

Example 1: One of your classmates invites you to his birthday party. A rude reply: “I don’t like you, so I won’t be there.” A tactful reply: “I won’t be able to make it, but thank you for the invitation.”

Example 2: Your friend asks you, “Do you like my new shoes?” A rude reply: “Those shoes are ugly.” A tactful reply: “They’re not my style, but they look good on you.”

Example 3: You are visiting a friend’s house and his mom serves meatloaf, which you do not like. A rude comment: “I hate meatloaf.” A tactful reply: “I do not usually eat meatloaf, but thank you for offering me dinner.”

In each situation above, there is the potential to hurt the other person’s feelings. By making a tactful reply, you demonstrate good character. You should choose the tactful way to respond all of the time. Remember, you need not lie to be tactful. You are tactful because you care about others’ feelings, and you want to avoid hurting or offending them.

People who use tact tend to have more friends and they are better leaders. They attract people because they make others feel good. If you want to be a great friend and leader, then you should always think about using tact when speaking with others.