Respect Starts With You

Two of the keys in Fang Shen Do success, or perhaps success in any endeavor, is Accountability and Self Discipline. Too often we see that these important attributes are not present or are not being taught to people in general. I could pick several examples that I have seen where people seem to spend more time and energy to shirk the responsibility, than the actual effort the endeavor would take. As we teach our students in the Junior FSD class, there are three types of discipline: there is self-discipline, there is good discipline, and there is bad discipline. The most important discipline is self-discipline.

Self-Discipline: the ability and will to ensure that you are doing what you're supposed to be doing when you are supposed to be doing it, without any outside influence or guidance.
(this is critical for adults as well as our junior students)

Unfortunately, our mind is very quick to come up with reasons why we should not do what we know we should do. For example, we know that we should go to class and work out because that is what is necessary for a healthy lifestyle. We look out the window, and it's snowing...(or even worse… they are calling for bad weather).  As Sijo often tells us: our mind, in,stinctively runs towards pleasure and runs away from pain, so it (the lazy part of our mind) pipes up and says

"The weather is too bad to drive today... I should not go to class"

The disciplined, driven mind is quick to override this lazy talk and says :

"That is not true!! All we have to do is leave a little earlier, and drive a little bit more careful, but there's no reason not to work out because of the weather. After all - the white sash concept is punctuality and focus, so I should be there early anyways."

Coming back to Accountability, this is one of the key ingredients for success in Fang Shen Do and many other professional efforts. As professional winners in life, who use the martial arts as a vehicle to success both physically and mentally, we must resist the temptation to blame our temporary lack of success on anything else, but our actions.  To do this would be giving into the victim mindset and almost gives ourselves permission to give up!!

Someone once said that a person may fail many times, but they are not a failure until they blame it on someone (or something) else.

When I heard this quote, I completely agreed with the sentiment.  It is a true Fang Shen Do (way of survival) student who chooses to accept responsibility, hold themselves accountable and then take positive steps to resolve any issues.

As I have often told the students, I truly enjoy testing them for their next rank. It is a real pleasure to see your students growing in the system and obtaining all the benefits that Fang Shen Do has to offer. What I do not enjoy, is when I ask a question and the first thing that the student says is "You never taught that to me."

When I hear this, I ask them "Did you read your student outline?".... “Do you have Sijo's book?" ...." Did you practice a little bit each day before your test?"

Usually the answer is no to at least two of these questions. That one realization, if it is corrected, is a critical part of the testing.  I'm not trying to be overly-critical or not accept MY responsibility as a teacher: what I am trying to do is show the students that they have responsibility with their own success. The earlier a student understand this, the more successful that they will be at many different things.

One of my favorite examples of this is the wearing the sash. Often I will ask a (younger) student "Where's your sash?"

On occasion the response I get is "My mother could not find it..."

To which I reply " Is it your mother's sash? "

To conclude, I encourage all students to evaluate their words and thoughts when they find themselves blaming outside sources or circumstances on their current situation or predicament. What you do today, will make a difference. Always remember, you are the architect of your own success through your efforts, actions, thoughts and deeds.

This topic and everything I have learned and applied from it has come from Sijo.  I highly recommend, if you want to make an immediate change in your life, that you attend Sijo' Focus on Results seminar.

Train hard!!

Posted in: Personal Development