Everyone has potential.
Potential means that you have or show the capacity to become or develop into something in the future. It is not something that falls into your lap. You must exert effort and take action if you want to become or develop into anything more than who you are today. If you want to truly improve and become the best martial artist you can be, follow these five ways to maximize your martial art potential:
Engage your true and genuine self.
Not everyone is confident and some people struggle with learning new things. As I get older, the task of learning new things is a bit more difficult than it was in my earlier years. Do not consider my slight slowness in picking up new skills a negative trait. It is simply who I am at this point in my life, but I make up for it in other areas. What I lack in being a quick study, I make up for with wisdom from years of practice.Take a good look at who you are and be happy about it! Do not beat yourself up over what you lack. Instead, pump up your potential by celebrating your true and genuine self. Seek personal excellence, reach new goals, and most importantly, believe in yourself.
Use your skills and talents.
What are your strengths? What passions do you have? If you are a martial artist who loves children, for example, you can improve your potential by teaching kids all the cool stuff you know. You will be surprised how much YOU learn in the process. Have you considered writing a children’s book about martial arts? Give kids the tools and knowledge they need to grow into incredible young adults. I like inspiring others and I do it through writing. My writing allows me to share insights and information about martial arts and it is a passion. My martial art potential improves every time I write about martial arts because the more I write, the better writer I become. Incorporate what you love to do into your martial art practice. Your potential will explode!
Know that you are good enough.
I have been a writer since I was ten years old. Along the way, many people told me that I was not good enough. It took a lifetime for me to recognize that “good enough” is what I decide “good enough” is. I sent my first magazine article inquiry to a martial art magazine many years ago. Frozen with fear about the rejection I expected to receive, I was surprised when the editor accepted my article, as well as several more articles after that. Then, the editor invited me to become a regular correspondent for the magazine. You might think it was luck, but that is not the way I see it since I am not a lucky person. It happened because I decided that I was good enough and that helped point my potential in the right (or write!) direction. You are good enough to succeed, too.
Take a small risk.
Martial artists must take some risks during training. They may need to learn skills that require punching toward someone’s face or kicking them while sparring, for instance. How do you ensure that you keep control and do not hit your partner in practice? Part of the answer is knowing that you trained long and hard enough to minimize the risk. Taking small calculated risks are a great way to build your confidence. The next time the instructor asks you to take on a new challenge, don’t shy away. Jump up, say “Yes!” to overcome your fear of failure and increase your risk of success. Potential does not grow from winning all the time, but from blasting through fears and overcoming failures through persistence and accepting the small risks along the way.
Forgive and forget.
When you make a mistake, does it loom over you for a long time? Do you feel inhibited to do your best because you made a mistake? One time I was at a seminar and the instructor had us line up in a circle and he asked a very experienced martial artist to stand in the middle. The goal was for each person in the circle to step in, one at a time, and “take down” the opponent in the center of the circle. Anxiety struck! I hate being put on the spot! My peers stepped forward with confidence and tried to throw him or block, and all I could think of was to sweep his foot. Being so much larger than me, I failed miserably in front of the whole group. The martial artist in the center stood there looking at me as if to say, “What are you even trying to do?” All I could focus on for the rest of the seminar was my error in judgement and how stupid I felt! The trouble with this response is that I foolishly wasted precious time. If you do not forgive yourself for the little mistakes or do not move past a bad decision, you stifle your potential. There is no growth and there is no improvement. My last word of advice to increasing your martial art potential is to forgive yourself and forget the past. It is time to move on.
Consider these five options if you truly wish to improve. You achieve and excel through your physical martial art practice as you learn and practice new the skills and requirements. The mental martial art practice ensures that you reach your martial art potential.
- Five Ways to Maximize Your Martial Art Potential - July 1, 2020
- Follow Your Martial Art Heart - June 13, 2020
- Is There a Place for Arrogance in Martial Arts? - July 11, 2018
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