Patience with learning

Patience with learning (All techniques take a while to get done “correctly”).

There is a lot of talk about this generation wanting instant gratification and while this is definitely evident at times, most students understand that it will take a while and don’t mind working towards something.

It’s also important to understand that some techniques and concepts will simply come more naturally and come faster and to keep in mind that when something doesn’t come quickly, it just means you have to be patient.

However, don’t believe anyone who tells you that you can be a self defense expert in no time or that their system is superior so you can learn without wasting much time (as the saying goes “a little knowledge is a dangerous thing” ).

Usually the first move I teach is the horse punch. Now, your first horestance shot is very different from your 1000th and that 1000th shot is very different from your 10,000th. A common mistake I see in students is their “I think I’m doing it right, so now I’m ready for something new” mentality, not realizing that “learning to do a technique isn’t actually practicing that technique.” you can only practice a technique once you’ve learned how to do it correctly.” There is a lot of detail with each move and yes, you could technically “punch” a horse stance punch in the first class. his hands, his posture, his power, etc. is great.

As the techniques get more difficult you will find that it takes more and more time to learn how to do that technique correctly and of course there are always techniques that will come quickly because you can do it naturally and other techniques that will take even longer because you can’t. they come naturally.

As the saying goes “anything worth doing is worth doing badly”. Front kicks aren’t that special because most people can do them without a lot of practice (although a great front kick takes some time).

Often students are so preoccupied with doing a flip or jump technique that they don’t care about improving their basics. They don’t realize (even when told) that their more advanced techniques are not being developed because their basics are lousy.

So be patient and enjoy the “fun” of overcoming obstacles, once you do, you’ll build confidence and go into your next endeavor with a better mindset. After a while, this effect snowballs and you’re unstoppable (if you want to be).