As instructors of combative skills, we must work to break this conditioning in our students. At bare minimum, we should at least be cognisent that it is present. I do not like instructors who instill false confidence as a means of recruiting, or "keeping numbers up." This why I tell my favorite saying to my students that they know enough to get themselves hurt. My meaning is that the false sense of confidence that may develop in the course of practicing martial arts an hour or so 2 days a week may not be enough to prepare one for the reality of a violent encounter. We can practice the moves and develop the physical attributes of a fighter/warrior, but without relinquishing the fear of bodily harm and fully acknowleding and accepting the physical outcomes of applying our techniques, we will always hesitate and freeze when the shit hits the fan. I see it time and time again, students are intimidated by the pace and intensity of the drilling, and this is natural. However, the fear of being struck that causes "over blocking", breaks in structure, and flinching is far easier to train out as compared to the fear and apprehension of injuring others. An even worse condition are the students who can perform perfectly in class, but deteriorate in the unfamiliar territory of the street. This is an inherent danger to formal training in the dojo. Our performance has become "anchored" to the sights, sounds, and smells of the space, the uniforms, and the faces of fellow students. When this is not present, we are left diminished. Think of baseball player in the World Series without his "lucky socks" or any high level athletes pre-game ritual. It seems that we can never be 100% certain that our training or teaching is perfect, but we can continue to educate ourselves and navigate the obstacles to success as students and teachers. Martial arts is a process not a product and instructorship is a journey not a destination. For both the student and the teacher, your work is never done, as evidenced the fact that I have been up since 3:45 working on 4 Eskrima related projects. A very smart and very badass 1,400 year old Greek guy said, "To send the uninstructed to battle, is to throw them away," (Archilochus), so i will keep at it. :-)
Posted on: Thu, 20 Jun 2013 11:33:36 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015