The unspoken skills

The unspoken skills

Martial arts are such a huge topic and everyone is concerned with how deadly they can be and who has the best style and who can beat who and so on.

For me martial arts are so much more. If martial arts are practiced from a young age it can give you a solid foundation not only for childhood but it can also aid you throughout the rest of your life.

Why are these things unspoken?

It is because we normally just concentrate on the physical aspects of martial arts and assume (hate that word) that people will automatically learn the rest over time;

Respect

Discipline

Integrity

Honesty

Confidence

Humility

Of course there are many more things that martial arts training gives you than listed above but you get the idea.

On a personal note I cannot even begin to express my gratitude for learning martial arts and for all the teachers I have had.

They have all taught me something not only about martial arts but about life as well.

To all the students who not only I have taught but also those I have learnt with and shared with. You have all taught me valuable lessons about myself, people and the world.

My childhood was not a normal one and due to certain things I developed a stutter and a lisp glad to say they are not problems anymore . Martial arts helped me to get to know myself and allowed me to push through the boundaries of what I thought I was capable of. I would never have dreamt that I would become a martial arts teacher and make it my profession and for that I feel very privileged and grateful.

Now I have no problem standing up in front of hundreds of people and speaking about any topic, I know I will be nervous but my martial arts training has taught me that I can get through it and do my best.

So why don’t we put more emphasis on the things listed above as these days there does seem to be a lack of discipline, respect, humility etc.

Judging by people’s reaction to Covid-19 and lack of following rules and respecting each other as human beings we have still have much to learn.

So why this blog is called ‘The unspoken skills’

Well I think people take these skills for granted when they do martial arts and don’t work on them or is it a case of just showing off and displaying how good they are instead of fostering an attitude of inclusion and helping each other to become a better version of themselves.

Please help the ones who are struggling with their training and let them see that they can do more than they thought possible.

It is so easy to give up when it gets tough and if you give up when things get difficult it can start to become a habit and you will never achieve anything worthwhile or deal with difficult situation you encounter in your training or life for that matter.

Remember doing martial arts does not mean you are invincible or you believe you can fight everyone around you and win.(apart from me of course)  Joke

What it does give you is the ability to be introspective and learn about yourself and the people around you in a way that if you listen you can develop your character and hopefully become a half decent human being. (I am not there yet but I am learning and working on it).

I wish everyone the best always and don’t forget the human side of your training.

Stay safe

GM Angelo