5 Black Belt Principles to Thrive in Life
5 Black Belt Principles That Help You Thrive in Everyday Life
- Step by Step
- Strength from the Past
- Not Everything will be Your Favorite Thing
- Failure is Learning
- Pay it Forward
1.Step by Step
One thing is for sure, the adage, “The Journey of 1,000 Miles Begins with a Single Step”, is not cliché. It’s true. Reaching or working towards a large goal, dream or plan is simple. It’s not easy by any means, but simple. You break it down and I mean way down. As in what is the very first step that must be taken. So now you have the beginning, the first step, and the end, the 1,000th mile. Everything else in-between will work its way down the various roads, side trails, obstacles, milestones, all on its own.
You see, you make that first phone call. That leads to step two, a meeting. Which leads to step three, brainstorming, presentation and an introduction to someone who can help you. The path continues in this manner, surprises, curveballs and all, until you reach the goal you’ve set. The average Black Belt journey takes a minimum of three years. Big goals take time. Learning the process of setting goals and breaking them down teaches you to create a habit. Once you’ve gone through the process, setting the next big goal gets easier. You understand the formula and know how to repeat it with patience and perseverance.
Earning a black belt is a very step by step process. You know the belt colors and stripes that must be earned to reach the black belt goal. What you don’t know, however, is which moves or levels will be the most challenging. What will be the obstacles you need to overcome. What about fear or setbacks? They will happen. Just like any goal you have. The ones who reach that final mile, mile 1,000, are the ones who overcome and never gave up. Not always the most talented, but the most committed. How many people do you know who are so smart or gifted but never accomplish anything? Lots, I bet. Don’t be that one. One of the masses. Be the one who did it. The one who reached a goal, who accomplished something they dreamt about. It could be anything. Get out of debt. Get in shape. Create a family. Start a business. Repair a relationship. Raise money for a cause. Travel. It doesn’t matter what mile 1,000 is. It only matters that you take the first step.
- Strength from the Past
Whenever I have those times that I can’t see my way forward or I feel like I’ve failed, I take time to look back and learn from my past accomplishments. I can focus on lessons learned or simply build up my confidence reminding myself I’ve done something difficult in the past, I can figure out how to do this! In 1993 I went to an instructor training camp for my Taekwondo classes. There were probably around 500 or so instructors from all over the US who were learning how to be better instructors and better practitioners. One of the exercises they had us do was to train all week to break a board with a move we had never done before. This took overcoming some fear as well as learning from and working with others. After we all broke the boards, we were instructed to write our accomplishment on one piece and then on the other piece, write an award to someone in the camp who inspired you. I ended up with 7 awards from my fellow campers and peers. I was 25 years old then and I saved those boards for years. I even hung them up in my office so I could remember that I had made an impression on people I respected and that I had something positive to offer the world. It was a great motivator to me at a young age and encouraged me to keep striving to be better.
A few years back I was feeling very discouraged and my son said, Mom. Stop. Look at everything you have done. Don’t you realize what you’ve been able to do? It was a great reminder some 30 years later about those boards. That by looking back, I could find my way forward. It’s a great lesson learned and one I hope to not forget again.
When you are in the middle of a struggle or feel stuck, look back at your success to gain confidence and inspiration to persevere. And don’t feel bad or discouraged. It’s part of life and all of us go through it.
- Not Everything will be your Favorite Thing
I mean who really likes push-ups! But let’s face it. Going from step 1 to mile 1,000 just says pain and suffering! There will be great accomplishments! Things you overcame that will make you proud! Gifts given to the world by your dreams and creations! Amazing things! But in order to get there, you will need to “embrace the suck”. Earning a college degree for instance. Everyone is so proud and relieved when it’s accomplished but all graduates have stories of nightmarish teachers and projects that bombed. Long nights, cheap suppers. On and on. Earning a black belt or any long-term worthy goal is the same. There will be things you don’t enjoy, things you aren’t good at. There will be circumstances and people who get in your way or hinder your progress. Unforeseen events. Or just plain old hard work that is mundane and exhausting.
My Achilles heel was board breaking. It was required for practically every belt and it was one of my biggest weaknesses. There is so much more to overcome than people may realize. I mean, you are putting your fist or foot through a 1 inch piece of solid wood. Your technique and accuracy need to be spot on and your confidence has to be on point. It took me years to overcome the obstacle of the boards! However, with every failure, I learned something. And with each success, my confidence soared. As an instructor for many decades now, I lean on this knowledge to help others become successful when something seems too difficult or too intimidating. I also am empowered by the lesson I’ve learned to never give up. I know that consistency and commitment lead to results. On the days when I feel like I’m falling two steps behind, I remember, just focus on the one step forward. Everything will progress.
- Failure is Learning
No one is exempt from failure. We are all aware of that feeling on many levels. Some failures have some minor consequences while others can be life changing. Some are personal and some effect those around us. As a business owner, I am very aware of how the decisions I make may affect my team. We talk about strategies ahead of time if your great new idea fails. What will be our next move? What are the consequences and are we prepared to handle them? It’s a strategy I’ve learned through the years that helps decrease the fear of failure. Looking fear in the eye, so to speak, and saying, I have a plan.
We aren’t always so lucky though. Sometimes failure is a surprise to us or was not something we considered would happen. When you fail at something, not if but when, it’s important to look into it and see what you can learn from the experience and how to not repeat it. I learned very early on as a Martial Arts Tournament competitor to not underestimate my opponent. Going in to a match overconfident for example was a failed strategy. Even as a 12-year-old young girl, I knew my mistake when the other guys hand was raised. Kicking myself and vowing to never do that again! I still have the image of my instructor looking at me and shaking his head as if to say, “Really?” Lesson Learned!
There have been many martial arts lessons through the years that have taught me the value of learning from failure. If I didn’t learn, the option might be to quit. If I hadn’t learned how to conquer board breaking for instance, I would never have advanced. As a teacher, I am constantly encouraging students who feel defeated to find a way through. Each time I help guide a student through a failure, help them learn from it and get them moving forward, I can’t help but share in their victory. No one earns a black belt and says, “That was easy.” They may shine on testing day, but the years and hours of training were not easy. Every student experiences failure along the way. The ones who make it to black belt are the ones who learn from it and persevere. The others quit, fail to reach the goal. The black belts learn, and move forward.
5.Pay it Forward
There is an expectation in most martial arts realms that once you reach a certain level of proficiency, you should teach. I strongly disagree with this. Not everyone is a “teacher”. Some people are naturally gifted in this regard, and others seek out educational opportunities to learn how to teach. True teachers are always working on their craft. Looking for better ways to communicate, as well as new and exciting lessons and methods to keep their students engaged. So, to say that when you earn a black belt you should then teach to pay it forward is a misguided thought.
However, a black belt should have character, patience, empathy and respect for new and old students alike. These are the qualities that should be paid forward. To demonstrate by example how to train with dedication or to show patience with a beginning student. Also, all of the lessons learned on the journey to black belt such as courtesy, integrity, and confidence should be demonstrated as a lifestyle outside of the dojo. Black Belts aren’t perfect. I should know as an ever-current work in progress, but a black belt attitude is one of helpfulness and perseverance. Confidence and humility. Power and grace. These are the ways a black belt can Pay it Forward. The symbolism of the color black is one of calm and peace. Like looking into the night sky at the stars. If you can impart to others your own personal insights by example, then you are leading like a black belt.
To conclude, following these 5 Black Belt Principles in life will help you thrive. What a wonderful thing to be able to say, “I’m thriving!” And if you can’t, start looking at how you can begin implementing these principles today. One step, it’s all it takes.
Master Amanda Olson’s Martial Arts Academy, INC Johnson City, TN 37604
olsonsma.com