Practicing Martial Arts makes it easy to understand the four stages of learning that apply in any endeavor. They are as follows,
I. Unconscious Incompetence.
You have absolutely no idea what's going. You flail around, you think it's right, but you aren't sure. At this stage of learning you are just trying to figure out which way the pants go, and think someone gave you a belt that is six sizes too big.
II. Conscious Incompetence.
This is the phase where your realize something is different between you and the teacher. You start recognizing what you need to do - but can not make your body do it. The fun part of this stage is that you set goals for improvement.
III. Conscious Competence.
Stage three is where, if you really think about each facet of a technique you can actually get it right. It's the stage where, with a lot of forethought and careful execution you can begin to mirror your teacher.
IV. Unconscious Competence.
This is what I would call the black belt phase - it's where you can perform movements, execute blocks, strikes and movements on instinct. No thought, just action and reaction. A 1st degree black belt should have their basic techniques built into an unconscious competence.
This is why we so often say that training really begins at the black belt. The basics are not just known, but have become a part of you. It's a foundation on which you can build a martial artist of true strength and skill.
Your challenge as a martial artist is to recognize which stage your individual techniques are in. Moreover, your challenge is to figure out what other areas in life the four stages of learning apply.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Where does a Martial Artist eat in the Northville area?
I've wanted to do a blog entry about one of my favorite subjects for a long time. It's not, I'll warn you, in any way a martial arts related post... but it is Northville related. The subject?
Food.
Jess and I love sampling the fare at as many restaurants as possible. I'm always on the lookout for something new, so I thought I'd share my favorite places with you all in hope that you would do the same.
Most Frequented:
Sushi House, 9 Mile and Farmington Rd. - Farmington, Mi. Not that far away at all, quite honestly the best sushi I have had in the Midwest. Better than 99% on the coasts too. They also have a handful of Japanese and Korean dishes on the menu for the non-sushi person in your family.
Best Place to Celebrate:
Flemings, off of Haggerty Rd. behind Bravo/Cladaugh/Mitchell's fish market. If you want to celebrate an anniversary, birthday or big promotion this is the place to do it. It's mostly a steak house, so veggie-lovers be warned. Great Martinis. This is one of the best restaurants I've been to anywhere.
Best Pizza:
Benitos. They have locations in both Northville and Novi. Benitos has some absolutely wonderful “gourmet” selections. I believe they make their own sauce and cheese daily, and then use all very fresh and high quality ingredients. My favorite? The Portobello - fresh mozzarella, goat cheese, portobello mushrooms, caramelized onions, roasted garlic, Italian parsley, white wine sauce.
Best Asian Specialty:
Shiro, 9 mile in Novi. This place is a great all around restaurant. It's expensive, but not as expensive as Flemings. They do “Japanese with a French flair”. I know it sounds weird, but I had a teriyaki filet mignon, and it was excellent. They also have sushi that is very good, and an impressive menu. Very good service and drink from the bar.
Other Local Places of interest:
Claddaugh, Livonia Michigan. Best fish and chips around.
Bonefish, Novi Michigan. Best fish in general.
Number VI chophouse, Novi Michigan. Best seafood, and second only to Flemings for steak.
Steve and Rocky's, Novi Michigan. Best desert.
J. Alexander's. Best place to bring a large group of people for a “nice” dinner. Good variety, good food, reasonably priced and excellent service.
Diamond Jim Brady's Bistro, Novi Michigan. Best burgers.
Green Cedar, Livonia Michigan. Excellent Lebanese food, and a good place to eat healthy.
Maisano's Italian Restaurant, Novi Michigan. Best Italian.
Box Bar, Plymouth Michigan. Best beer selection. (All things in moderation. :) )
Please add to this list!
Food.
Jess and I love sampling the fare at as many restaurants as possible. I'm always on the lookout for something new, so I thought I'd share my favorite places with you all in hope that you would do the same.
Most Frequented:
Sushi House, 9 Mile and Farmington Rd. - Farmington, Mi. Not that far away at all, quite honestly the best sushi I have had in the Midwest. Better than 99% on the coasts too. They also have a handful of Japanese and Korean dishes on the menu for the non-sushi person in your family.
Best Place to Celebrate:
Flemings, off of Haggerty Rd. behind Bravo/Cladaugh/Mitchell's fish market. If you want to celebrate an anniversary, birthday or big promotion this is the place to do it. It's mostly a steak house, so veggie-lovers be warned. Great Martinis. This is one of the best restaurants I've been to anywhere.
Best Pizza:
Benitos. They have locations in both Northville and Novi. Benitos has some absolutely wonderful “gourmet” selections. I believe they make their own sauce and cheese daily, and then use all very fresh and high quality ingredients. My favorite? The Portobello - fresh mozzarella, goat cheese, portobello mushrooms, caramelized onions, roasted garlic, Italian parsley, white wine sauce.
Best Asian Specialty:
Shiro, 9 mile in Novi. This place is a great all around restaurant. It's expensive, but not as expensive as Flemings. They do “Japanese with a French flair”. I know it sounds weird, but I had a teriyaki filet mignon, and it was excellent. They also have sushi that is very good, and an impressive menu. Very good service and drink from the bar.
Other Local Places of interest:
Claddaugh, Livonia Michigan. Best fish and chips around.
Bonefish, Novi Michigan. Best fish in general.
Number VI chophouse, Novi Michigan. Best seafood, and second only to Flemings for steak.
Steve and Rocky's, Novi Michigan. Best desert.
J. Alexander's. Best place to bring a large group of people for a “nice” dinner. Good variety, good food, reasonably priced and excellent service.
Diamond Jim Brady's Bistro, Novi Michigan. Best burgers.
Green Cedar, Livonia Michigan. Excellent Lebanese food, and a good place to eat healthy.
Maisano's Italian Restaurant, Novi Michigan. Best Italian.
Box Bar, Plymouth Michigan. Best beer selection. (All things in moderation. :) )
Please add to this list!
Friday, June 19, 2009
5 Ways to Learn Faster
You might find it surprising to know that I am not now, nor have I ever been, a naturally gifted martial artist. In fact, the opposite is probably true. Woe was the poor teacher who gave me my "introductory" lessons. A solid hour of working on a single stance and a single step can drive even the most patient of people to the brink - particularly when the student is still confused at the end.
To this day, in classes with my peers, I am among the most bewildered. I rarely seem to "get it" right away, and consequently spend the first class on a new subject frustrating my poor teacher. (Some things never change.) However, I can say with confidence that I am usually at the front of the pack by the end of two or three classes - and as evidenced by various medals, degrees and well performed techniques, I eventually "get it" better than most.
What's my secret?
I practice more. Or, better said, I leverage small bits of time to create big improvements in my practice. Here are some ideas:
1) Visualize. I'm always thinking about my techniques. In the shower, before I go to sleep, driving in my car, spacing out at my desk... I use what I like to call "focused daydreaming." What do I visualize?
a. My teacher doing the technique.
b. Me doing the technique piece by piece, at first incorrectly and then getting better until I'm doing it perfectly.
c. Me using the technique while sparring.
d. Me using the technique while defending myself.
e. Someone else correctly performing the technique on me.
2) Practice in class. I'm always surprised to see students standing around during a class. If you are waiting in line for your turn at the target, don't talk to the person next to you, practice the technique.
3) If the teacher is talking, I'm listening. I do this two ways - one, if the teacher is explaining something I never interrupt to ask a question, or add my own understanding. I just keep my trap shut, and look for any new little gem of information that might improve me. Two, I eavesdrop when other students are asking questions and the teacher is explaining things to them. Many times I learn something about my problem, by listening to someone else solve their problem.
4) I practice my weakest techniques first.
5) Mindful practice. I never perform an action without thought. I am always trying to think about every little detail of what I'm doing - to put each toe in right place, to be careful where I'm looking, where is my balance etc. I am hunting for anything that might need improvement, and once weakness is found I attack it.
To this day, in classes with my peers, I am among the most bewildered. I rarely seem to "get it" right away, and consequently spend the first class on a new subject frustrating my poor teacher. (Some things never change.) However, I can say with confidence that I am usually at the front of the pack by the end of two or three classes - and as evidenced by various medals, degrees and well performed techniques, I eventually "get it" better than most.
What's my secret?
I practice more. Or, better said, I leverage small bits of time to create big improvements in my practice. Here are some ideas:
1) Visualize. I'm always thinking about my techniques. In the shower, before I go to sleep, driving in my car, spacing out at my desk... I use what I like to call "focused daydreaming." What do I visualize?
a. My teacher doing the technique.
b. Me doing the technique piece by piece, at first incorrectly and then getting better until I'm doing it perfectly.
c. Me using the technique while sparring.
d. Me using the technique while defending myself.
e. Someone else correctly performing the technique on me.
2) Practice in class. I'm always surprised to see students standing around during a class. If you are waiting in line for your turn at the target, don't talk to the person next to you, practice the technique.
3) If the teacher is talking, I'm listening. I do this two ways - one, if the teacher is explaining something I never interrupt to ask a question, or add my own understanding. I just keep my trap shut, and look for any new little gem of information that might improve me. Two, I eavesdrop when other students are asking questions and the teacher is explaining things to them. Many times I learn something about my problem, by listening to someone else solve their problem.
4) I practice my weakest techniques first.
5) Mindful practice. I never perform an action without thought. I am always trying to think about every little detail of what I'm doing - to put each toe in right place, to be careful where I'm looking, where is my balance etc. I am hunting for anything that might need improvement, and once weakness is found I attack it.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
You'll See It When You Believe It
The human mind processes thousands of bits of information in it's conscious in an instant. The sub-conscious mind processes millions at the same time. What does this mean? It means that over the long haul, your sub-conscious mind has infinitely more power over your state of being than does your conscious mind. The conscious mind has to be deliberately controlled, purposely focused, willfully directed – whereas the subconscious will function and have its effect automatically.
This is why people say, “Positive thinking doesn't work.”
Now, I think it probably goes without saying that I’m an optimist – a positive thinker. But in some way, I have to agree with these pessimists. They are actually right, in a manner of speaking. Why am I siding with these naysayer? Because what is a thought? A thought, whether positive or negative, is a product of the conscious mind. That means that it requires willful, deliberate, controlled effort to think positively – but if that positive thought is contrary to what is negative in your subconscious mind, you will have no long term success. What I’m saying is that, eventually, your conscious mind will become tired of fighting against your subconscious, and you will lose the ability to affect your state of mind for the positive. The subconscious, because of its greater capacity for processing, will always win out over the conscious.
Let me give you an example:
I heard a speaker once, Jason Bidwell, share his experience in this area. He said, “My dad left before I can remember, and my mother really didn’t want a kid around. She bounced us from house to house, place to place, boyfriend to boyfriend. I was constantly in an environment where I was being told, ‘Your worthless, stupid, and your never going to do anything with your life.’”
“Well, when I got to be about 17 I said, ‘Enough of this!’ and I left home to make my way in the world. I told myself I could be anything I wanted, do anything I wanted to do, and I set out to prove my mother and her boyfriends wrong.” And so he did…… for a while.
“I began to build a company, and we were doing great. It was a landscaping business, and in a couple years we were really on top. We had several trucks, all painted proudly with my name, dozens of employees and a nice office. But as we grew, and the closer I got to real success, I began to feel unhappy. Pretty soon I found myself blowing off important meetings, not taking urgent phone calls, and before you know it my business was bankrupt, and I had nothing.”
“Not only did I follow this cycle once, but I managed to do it three times. The next two times I built a million dollar company, and a multi-million dollar company. I had everything – the Ferrari, the huge house, a beautiful girlfriend. Eventually though, I always sabotaged myself, and ultimately I wound up living on the streets.”
From a Ferrari, to being homeless.
“After living homeless for a while (and he talked a lot about the horrors of shelter food) I realized I had to get my life back together. This time I wasn’t shooting for the moon, I just wanted some stability. So I began to look everywhere for answers. I looked at Church, seminars, books – anything, trying to piece together the bits of my broken life. Finally back on my feet, I shared my story with a man who became my mentor. He told me, ‘Jason, self sabotage is nothing more than you continuing to be who you believe you are.’ You see, despite all my efforts trying to prove everyone wrong about me, deep down I believed what my mother and her boyfriends said. I truly believed I was never going to be anything. Once I changed that, I never had a problem staying on top again.”
This is why I say, “You’ll See It When You Believe It.”
Your beliefs are what make up your subconscious mind, or better said your self image. I once asked Master Jung what made him a two time world champion… what did it really take? What he told me was basically, “I deserved it.” Perhaps Master Hafner put it better. In a group of school owners someone asked him, “Sir, what was the big thing that happened when you went from having 200 students in your school to have 1200?” His answer? “I began to see myself as a person who had a school of 1200 people.”
But beliefs do not have to be grand. In fact, I think no grand belief can exist without hundreds of supporting smaller beliefs. Let me give some examples of beliefs I’ve changed in my own life that I would consider to be “supporting beliefs.”
From: I can’t wake up before 9am and function.
To: I am a morning person!
From: This mess has a system to it, I can find anything I need. (load of crap)
To: I am HYPER organized.
From: If I’m not the best, I don’t want to do it.
To: I will rise to the top of any group I’m in, if I stick it out like the tortoise.
So the key to positive change isn’t really positive thinking. It’s understanding and affecting your beliefs, so that positivity takes over your subconscious and “bubbles up” into action. I would encourage you to take stock of the beliefs you have that may be limiting you, and replace them with new beliefs that are empowering.
The next time you feel sad, frustrated, angry or over whelmed, ask yourself, “What would I have to believe to feel this way?” You might have to believe that the situation was outside of your control, that there was nothing you could do to affect things for the positive, you might have to believe you were helpless. Then you might say to yourself – “well I don’t believe I’m helpless, I believe that I can affect a change here!” Then you’d be on a road to a happier, healthier Black Belt kind of world.
This is why people say, “Positive thinking doesn't work.”
Now, I think it probably goes without saying that I’m an optimist – a positive thinker. But in some way, I have to agree with these pessimists. They are actually right, in a manner of speaking. Why am I siding with these naysayer? Because what is a thought? A thought, whether positive or negative, is a product of the conscious mind. That means that it requires willful, deliberate, controlled effort to think positively – but if that positive thought is contrary to what is negative in your subconscious mind, you will have no long term success. What I’m saying is that, eventually, your conscious mind will become tired of fighting against your subconscious, and you will lose the ability to affect your state of mind for the positive. The subconscious, because of its greater capacity for processing, will always win out over the conscious.
Let me give you an example:
I heard a speaker once, Jason Bidwell, share his experience in this area. He said, “My dad left before I can remember, and my mother really didn’t want a kid around. She bounced us from house to house, place to place, boyfriend to boyfriend. I was constantly in an environment where I was being told, ‘Your worthless, stupid, and your never going to do anything with your life.’”
“Well, when I got to be about 17 I said, ‘Enough of this!’ and I left home to make my way in the world. I told myself I could be anything I wanted, do anything I wanted to do, and I set out to prove my mother and her boyfriends wrong.” And so he did…… for a while.
“I began to build a company, and we were doing great. It was a landscaping business, and in a couple years we were really on top. We had several trucks, all painted proudly with my name, dozens of employees and a nice office. But as we grew, and the closer I got to real success, I began to feel unhappy. Pretty soon I found myself blowing off important meetings, not taking urgent phone calls, and before you know it my business was bankrupt, and I had nothing.”
“Not only did I follow this cycle once, but I managed to do it three times. The next two times I built a million dollar company, and a multi-million dollar company. I had everything – the Ferrari, the huge house, a beautiful girlfriend. Eventually though, I always sabotaged myself, and ultimately I wound up living on the streets.”
From a Ferrari, to being homeless.
“After living homeless for a while (and he talked a lot about the horrors of shelter food) I realized I had to get my life back together. This time I wasn’t shooting for the moon, I just wanted some stability. So I began to look everywhere for answers. I looked at Church, seminars, books – anything, trying to piece together the bits of my broken life. Finally back on my feet, I shared my story with a man who became my mentor. He told me, ‘Jason, self sabotage is nothing more than you continuing to be who you believe you are.’ You see, despite all my efforts trying to prove everyone wrong about me, deep down I believed what my mother and her boyfriends said. I truly believed I was never going to be anything. Once I changed that, I never had a problem staying on top again.”
This is why I say, “You’ll See It When You Believe It.”
Your beliefs are what make up your subconscious mind, or better said your self image. I once asked Master Jung what made him a two time world champion… what did it really take? What he told me was basically, “I deserved it.” Perhaps Master Hafner put it better. In a group of school owners someone asked him, “Sir, what was the big thing that happened when you went from having 200 students in your school to have 1200?” His answer? “I began to see myself as a person who had a school of 1200 people.”
But beliefs do not have to be grand. In fact, I think no grand belief can exist without hundreds of supporting smaller beliefs. Let me give some examples of beliefs I’ve changed in my own life that I would consider to be “supporting beliefs.”
From: I can’t wake up before 9am and function.
To: I am a morning person!
From: This mess has a system to it, I can find anything I need. (load of crap)
To: I am HYPER organized.
From: If I’m not the best, I don’t want to do it.
To: I will rise to the top of any group I’m in, if I stick it out like the tortoise.
So the key to positive change isn’t really positive thinking. It’s understanding and affecting your beliefs, so that positivity takes over your subconscious and “bubbles up” into action. I would encourage you to take stock of the beliefs you have that may be limiting you, and replace them with new beliefs that are empowering.
The next time you feel sad, frustrated, angry or over whelmed, ask yourself, “What would I have to believe to feel this way?” You might have to believe that the situation was outside of your control, that there was nothing you could do to affect things for the positive, you might have to believe you were helpless. Then you might say to yourself – “well I don’t believe I’m helpless, I believe that I can affect a change here!” Then you’d be on a road to a happier, healthier Black Belt kind of world.
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