What Does it Mean to Achieve a Black Belt

What does it mean to achieve a Black Belt? Why pursue this goal? We pursue many things in our lives and set many goals. Achieving a Black Belt is usually a special goal. It takes years of practice and dedication. Along the way we will learn much about ourselves. We will push our minds and bodies to the limit. I think the pursuit of reaching Black Belt mirrors our human experience. Life is a struggle, we work against challenges and strive to succeed in many things, family, work, spiritual, and personal goals like that of a Black Belt. On the road to Black Belt we learn how to dedicate ourselves to a goal; we can transfer this learning experience to our everyday lives, in work, family, and spiritual endeavors. The struggle of life is what makes it interesting. Sometimes the struggle is self imposed other times we struggle against odds and circumstances we wish didn’t exist. Challenge and strife often times create who we are for better or worse, and everyone will experience it. A life without significant challenge would be boring and without meaning. We all need challenge, we all need to move forward in our lives, when we stand still we become “stale”. Like standing water, we will eventually begin to stagnant, and move backwards.

Working towards a Black Belt can precipitate the evaluation of life goals. Many people set no life goals. Martial arts students will begin to set goals while on the road to Black Belt. Like life our success on the road to Black Belt will be determined by other people. Success in life is often judged by others. If we run a business the success of the business is determined by our customers. If we work for someone else our success is judged by the individuals running the business and individuals we report to.

The requirements for achieving a Black Belt will vary from one organization to another. All reputable organizations will have a very specific set of requirements that must be met before the student is considered eligible for Black Belt. Testing and/or judgment of how a Black Belt is awarded will vary from school to school but in the end, achieving this goal in a good institution will be challenging, difficult, and fair.

There are many advantages to working towards a goal of achieving Black Belt. What it means to reach that goal go hand in hand with the advantages. Black Belt it is a goal reached that was most likely only a far off dream when you first stepped through the door of the dojo. The old saying is: “goals are dreams that have a deadline”. The dream of achieving a Black Belt is no different. At first it is just a dream and then training begins and it becomes a long range goal with the focus on each step along the way. After many short range goals and small steps you reach the point where Black Belt is the next step. All your training becomes fine tuned and you condition your body. It is the peak for that final sprint. The sweat, pain, and obstacles have been over come. You are now a Black Belt. It means you have achieved a goal. You have overcome obstacles, personal, physical, mental and spiritual, everything has played a role.

Achieving a Black Belt means you had the discipline few individuals possess and you were willing to put in the work to conquer something that wasn’t easy. You put yourself to the test and with perseverance, indomitable spirit, honesty and integrity a passing grade was awarded. Some people go in front of judges for gold, silver and bronze metals, some people run races and some people test for a Black Belt. It is a test for yourself, to achieve something special, achieving it means that your struggle has paid off. Pass on what you learned along the way and the meaning of achieving this goal grows beyond just the personal reward. Everyone you contact can benefit and in a small way each Black Belt can enhance the experience of all their friends, family, co-workers and community. Worthwhile endeavors create strong character. True Black Belts have strong character that is one reason they were able to do what it takes to get there.

Achieving a Black Belt is also the beginning of journey. It is not only a journey in the martial arts, but it can also be a journey in life. No one is perfect, Black Belts are not perfect. People with character know this very well. Well rounded people also know that striving for perfection should still be the goal. That is the journey. Take the tools needed to achieve Black Belt and apply them to life. Conquer challenges in everyday life the same way they are conquered on the road to Black Belt. Grow with your experience in the martial arts and life.

Achieving a Black Belt is this: a journey to get there, a journey to stay there and a journey to move forward from there. It also a goal and goals are never ending. The goal and the journey are the challenge. Black Belts in life and the marital arts conquer the challenge and meet the goal. Black Belts give back to the arts and give back the people around them. Achieving a Black Belt means you have and created the strong character needed to excel beyond the ordinary.

Do We Need Martial Arts and The Martial Way?

The Martial Way in modern times may seem, to some, to be unnecessary. We no longer need to defend a village against aggressors and wars are no longer fought with swords, shields, spears, and the like. Regardless of what some people “selling” self defense might lead you to believe, it is pretty unlikely you are going to meet that fabled “street fighter” and engage in combat. Unless you live or work in an area that is plagued with high crime, chances are very good you will not run into a “mugger” in the near future. Also, most criminals are not going to wear a sign that says – “I am here to harm you now”. If you are unlucky enough to be targeted by a professional criminal the attack will be done and over before you even have a chance to react. The “pro” will pounce on you like a cat and then be gone. All predators, human and animal, will not put themselves at risk. They will stalk and attack when the prey is unaware; if the prey becomes aware they will give up the attack. This is the end of the self defense lesson. I will leave that discussion for another time. Here I am laying the ground work for a discussion on motivations and reasons to follow the Martial Way in modern times. I would like to leave behind discussions on “self defense”. Too often people speak of physical self defense as if it is a necessary life tool. While I am certainly an advocate of learning physical self defense, the truth is: most people get by fine without it. The Martial Way can, however, provide many benefits in modern life if applied in a meaningful manner and without the fantasies portrayed in movies and self defense ads seen in every M.A. magazine.

We have many challenges in modern life. Many people have anxiety and take a variety of prescription drugs to combat and alleviate stressful feelings. [The CDC numbers indicate 118 Million prescriptions a year are written for antidepressants, in the United States.] Anxiety disorders top the list for mental disorders in the U.S. [Also per the CDC]. For advice on treating stress, anxiety, depression, and other emotional issues people should always seek the help of a mental health professional and/or a physician. However, the Martial Way offers another option to cope or add to an already medically suggested course of action. In fact the American Psychological Association claims relaxation and breathing techniques are often used as successful treatment for panic disorders. Many martial arts incorporate breathing and meditation as part of a training regiment. Exercise is also often suggested as away to help with everyday stress and the Martial Way includes great exercise. It is easy to see that M.A. practitioners have an extra tool available to meet modern life’s challenges.

To face life’s challenges with the outlook of predicting your success is a part of the Martial Way. A warrior would never enter into battle with defeat as their mind set. A warrior may have been ready to die in reaching success but that was not defeat. If we apply the warrior mindset to our own daily endeavors we can effectively reduce the amount of stress we have. Much of today’s stress is created by our own minds and the thoughts of failure we interject to any task or challenge. What if we loose? What will happen? Facing these questions is essential and how we answer these questions will determine our mindset when we enter into “the game”. If the end outcome is not what we desired are we prepared to just give up? If we are committed to the Martial Way we will not give up. We will learn why the outcome was different than what was expected and take that experience forward. The true practitioner in The Martial Way will incorporate the experience into the learning process and pick up “the banner” and begin again. This is honor. As long as our effort was true and we applied our best knowledge there is no failure. Enter into a challenge knowing you will put forth your best effort and know that each step is a learning step and the fear of failure lessens. As the old warrior did not fear death do not fear failure since there is no failure if your intentions are honorable and honest. If you know you took the effort to prepare for the challenge and worked with integrity and indomitable spirit to achieve your goal there is no reason to fear an unexpected outcome. Many times new opportunities and “doors” are opened when one opportunity ends and/or an unlooked for outcome occurs. Defeat is never an option when we have applied ourselves with honor. New learning experiences are the only outcome of an honorable effort.

With the fear of failure removed the feelings of anxiety in general will also be removed. Without the fear of failure anxiety has no place to “sneak” into our thoughts. This also creates a greater level of concentration, since without anxiety we can focus on the task at hand. Our minds will not be preoccupied with thoughts of “what if”. Freedom from this type of stress will help keep us healthy. The CDC tells us stress can have many ill effects on our bodies. The Martial Way in the modern world is a survival tool just as it was in ancient times. Here I have discussed only one way M.A. can help us in our everyday lives. There are countless other advantages when we make the Martial Arts a way of life. If you are already a Martial Artist take inventory of the advantages the art provides for you. If you are not involved in the Martial Arts, jump on in, the water is great!