Respect, Focus, and Discipline In Martial Arts

By Robert Van Valkenburgh

Kogen Dojo

. http://kogendojo.com/

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Respect, Focus, and Discipline In Martial Arts

Children's martial arts are often thought of as an extracurricular sporting activity, akin to soccer, lacrosse, or gymnastics. It is true that these activities all offer common physical benefits, such as a greater level of fitness, flexibility, or general athleticism. It is also true that some martial arts are more sport than self-defense. A truly self-defense focused martial art program for children, however, teaches essential life skills, such as respect, focus, and discipline, before the physical training even begins. For this reason, the right children's martial art program should be considered as practical life training, not an extracurricular sport.

Perhaps the most important thing martial art teaches is respect. Respect is the first step to true self-defense. Simply put, respect is considered a combination of humility, etiquette, and integrity. These manifest as the ability to remain gracious, compassionate, and composed at all times, even in the midst of conflict. A child who knows how to be respectful and composed, even in the face of conflict, has a much better chance of overcoming that conflict either by deescalating things before they start or as they begin to get heated, or by maintaining a clear head throughout an inevitable physical altercation.

Another valuable skill that a self-defense based martial art school teaches children is focus. Martial arts cannot be learned, especially safely, without first instilling a sense of attentiveness and focus. Before any physical training can or should occur, the instructor must have the children's undivided attention. The child's ability to focus on the task or lesson at hand becomes an invaluable life skill that carries over to the rest of his or her life and goes hand-in-hand with respect as a self-defense principle.

Beyond respect and focus, children must, if they are to truly learn self-defense, learn discipline. Without discipline, respect and focus fall short and whatever lessons are learned in class will not carry over into practical application. Beyond physical discipline, however, self-defense based martial arts teach children mental discipline, in the form of patience during the lesson or empathy for one's partner when performing potentially injurious techniques. Discipline is the ability to be respectful and focused in spite of all internal or external distractions.

Martial arts are more than an extracurricular physical activity for children. Martial arts teach essential life skills, such as respect, focus, and discipline that transcend the physical activity itself and carry over into the child's life at home, at school, and beyond. The primary goal of a self-defense focused martial art academy should be to shape children's lives in such a way that they are kind, considerate, and upright individuals who are able to resolve conflict before it even begins, but who are also able to handle themselves if a physical altercation is unavoidable. Beyond simply a sporting activity, self-defense based martial arts teach a child how to live well.