Thoughts? I’m in agreement with this. He starts with the Henry Ford quote: If you believe you can or believe you can’t, you’re right.

There is much talk about respect in the martial arts and in growing younglings. All too often this respect focuses on following directions – sit still, be quiet, eat your dinner – but it goes much further than that. Though it goes deeper, the concepts aren’t difficult. They do speak volumes about you and your […]

“Sodose [kneeling stance] is hard enough without adding squats. Your friendly neighborhood martial arts instructor is more than willing to give you all the repetitions that you will need for your physical conditioning. Don’t assign yourself extra work on top of it.” – Northwind Haidong Gumdo Master Bruce Burns (https://nerdpossehaidonggumdo.wordpress.com/2018/04/26/sodose-rant-more-pt/) The post linked above is […]

Don’t live in the past! Well, that’s actually what I hear when I listen to Bruce Springsteen’s song with that title. It struck me a few years back, at least a decade, when I attended a high school reunion. While we having the main dinner event, a couple classmates (who aren’t too bad about this […]

That’s close enough, right? That was the question I asked a student last night. When I did, I got this really funny look including a wrinkled up nose and a rather emphatic “No!” So, I asked “Why not?” The response to that was “Because it’s not right.” Where is this going? Well, it started back […]

Over the past couple years, I’ve learned more about the poor behavior within the martial arts than I ever wanted to know! I’ve had my own horror story of being homeless after believing that I was going to become part of an organization that would lead toward a huge goal that I had. I also […]

Rene: “I just–I screwed up. You know, Oliver was right to kick me off the team.” Dinah: “You were in an impossible position.” Curtis: “Yeah, and when you’re in an impossible position, that’s why there’s a team, D. Just like Dig said.” — Arrow (6×09): Irreconcilable Differences So, this was going to go the way of […]

Do what Works I was originally going to title this: “Don’t try new things,” But of course that would send the wrong message. When I was a kitchen designer my biggest problem is that I didn’t want to do things the same way. If I found a good way to solve a design problem, I […]

Okay, the audio is poor but it says a lot! This is out of New Zealand but applies everywhere! I agree completely with his graphic about successful athletes. I also hope that people will start viewing the martial arts as more than just a sport but a way to teach the points he mentions! The […]

When I started training in the martial arts, I found that learning techniques came quickly. The coordinated movements seemed to fit together with decent balance. The flow of techniques in drills – stances to kick to stance to punch – helped develop them further. This is the start of developing discipline and focus. This was […]

Forms…stay in the moment! “Forms are memorized. Don’t let the next memorized move take your attention away from your current move. Always watch your target. Watch the kicks! Watch the cuts! This goes along with don’t practice dying. Unless your current threat is eliminated, you can not know the next threat. If life was a […]

I had never planned to be a martial artist, let alone a teacher! I am only an average athlete, so a physical endeavor was not part of my future. That said, my enjoyment of the Green Hornet and Kung Fu television shows caused to join a class. This was January 1981. A couple years later, […]

Lessons learned from The Hero Round Table talk attempt are pretty obvious (once you see the video). I am very grateful to Matt Langdon for the opportunity. He let me have my first speaking chance. This was an outstanding experience and education. All of the speakers were welcoming and supportive from a wide range of […]

With our semi-annual seminar coming up in a month, I’ve heard the same complaint AGAIN – “I can’t afford [blank] to go.” This typically is filled in with hotel but I’ve heard a few others as well. So? What is the value of your training? The piece about shows what I spent for the Memorial […]

So, you’ve been training for quite a while and know all the basic movements. You work hard to make the basics correct. Now, as you work on your patterns, techniques aren’t fitting. Are you doing techniques differently than during basics? Why? Have you found the combinations that are the same in different patterns? Have you […]

Over the past weeks, I’ve had several conversations about vacations and how they fit (or don’t) into your job. These have all come about by another’s initiation, not myself, asking if there was such a thing as a job that you didn’t need to take a vacation from or wanting reassurance that if you love […]