Do you want just a little tiny bit of that awesome martial arts wisdom that martial artists seem to enjoy?  Are you a martial artist who is still struggling with a good, positive mindset?  Either way, you are deserving of all the wisdom, grace, and power that martial arts has to offer.  If you are not sure where or how to find it, then read on.

First of all, wisdom doesn’t come from martial arts.  In fact, martial arts has nothing to do with wisdom.  It is a physical activity and a mental work-out too, but as far as getting wise from learning it, well…no.

Being wise sort of means having some years under your belt.  At one point in my life, if you had called me wise, I would have been offended!  What?  I’m not old enough to be wise!  Now, I’m there; at the age and place in life that I better darn well be wise.   I’ve learned a whole lot about martial arts and wisdom that I can share with you, so you don’t have to go through the trouble and effort of figuring it all out.  A free pass to the wise master in you.

You might be wondering how martial arts enters into the wisdom picture. Martial arts are simply a conduit for the way I choose to funnel wisdom into my life.  I’ve been through incredible life experiences where I’ve been able to apply my martial arts vision and beliefs to overcome personal obstacles.  I use my martial arts mindset, the same thought process that helped me learn karate skills and achieve my black belts, to achieve success in life.  If you apply some of this to your life, you will start to live with a bit of martial arts wisdom.  I can sum up martial arts wisdom in a nutshell, in one simple step:

Approach each obstacle and challenge in life as if it’s meant to happen.

Say you get a flat tire on the way to work.  That’s awful!  That stinks!  Now you are going to be late and you have to wait for help and the whole day is starting off on the wrong foot.  Right?

Wrong.

Applying a good martial arts mindset and a little wisdom, you will realize that this is not an absolutely terrible thing.  There are times in life when “flat tires” are meant to happen, especially when you don’t have time to stop and deal with a flat tire!  You’ve been rushing around like crazy, so guess what?  Fate gave you a flat tire.  You do not even realize how many lessons you will learn in that little bit of “flat tire” time. Now you must wait.  Now you must be patient.  Now you must slow down.  Now you must take a minute to assess. Now you must think. Now you must put other things aside. There is a reason you have a flat tire and it has nothing to do with a tire.

While you are sitting there, idle, with your flat tire, give life a little thought.  What’s been going on?  Are you happy?  Are you excited about life?  What great things are in store for the day?  How can you make a difference?  Who can you help today?  What are your goals and needs?  Nothing has changed.  Everything is still waiting for you.  A delay is not going to change the path of your entire life.  A delay is sometimes meant to happen.  A delay does not necessarily take time away; on occasion it actually gives you time.

I had a friend whose husband was an airline pilot.  He was scheduled for a flight, but at the last-minute his flight was changed and he got assigned to another.  He was upset.  He had plans scheduled around his flight.  Family stuff, commitments, a responsibility or two, all waiting at the other end of a flight that got rescheduled.  Another pilot ended up getting his flight, instead.  He spent time waiting to be assigned another flight being disappointed, even disgusted, that he had to rearrange and reschedule everything that was already in order.  If he had a little of the martial arts wisdom, a realization that each obstacle and challenge in life is meant to happen, then perhaps he could have just figured out how to be flexible and fill his time in a good way.  Instead, he spent the time angry, just waiting on that next flight so he could get things back in order.

He did not realize that things were in order, just as they were meant to be.

His original flight, the one he missed and fretted over, the one he wanted to fly, was later part of a monumental, life changing, disastrous event that occurred on September 11, 2001.

He was not on that plane for a reason.  The delay this time worked in his favor.

There are times in life when you simply will not know or understand why a change happened or an obstacle suddenly appeared.  You do not need to know that.  What you do need to know is that each obstacle and challenge that you face is meant to happen for a reason.  There will be times when you feel out of control, devastated, or even in despair; but, realizing and accepting that there is a reason can help you cope better.

When I started karate, I could barely fit it into my schedule.  Why does it have to be so difficult for me to get to class, I lamented.  Now in retrospect I can see that I was never meant to rush what would become one of the most powerful influences in my life.  Something that important is meant to take a good long time to take root.

When I had to break those two boards in my green belt exam, it took me three times.  Why three?  Was it to embarrass me, humble me, or shake my confidence? If I had looked at it more closely at the time, with a little wisdom, I would have appreciated the fact that the board break was not guaranteed, and that one day it would be an important message for me to share with others.  Because of three attempts, I completely understand what you are going through when you feel like you can’t break through the boards life sets in your way.

When I had to move away from the dojo where I learned and taught karate for so many years, I was a little heartbroken.  It, to this day, is still the only karate center I’ve ever known.  I had no idea that the move would open up an opportunity for me to start a karate program with my family that now benefits a whole community of people.

Martial arts wisdom will manifest when you change your mindset from grumpy and angry about that flat tire, to accepting that there is a reason for it.   When your help arrives, give him a smile.  Thank him for his time.  Hopefully he smiles back.  Then, as you are on your way, you’ve accomplished a few wonderful things.  You’ve reminded yourself that life is short and you may as well take advantage of the delays you are given.  You even made someone else, in the midst of his day, realize that his job is not all that bad, because you gave him a thank you and a smile.  Then off you go to your day, with a well-needed, unintended break, that you had never planned that may some day be explained as a significance or turning point in your life.

Each martial arts skill or technique is like an obstacle that is meant to happen.  You cannot possibly understand or be proficient at every technique, whether you are at black belt level, or just learning.  The obstacle is not a negative thing; it is what pushes you to learn and improve.  You don’t look at it as if it is something dreadful; it just is.  One step at a time, and you face it and tackle it and are happy that you gave it a chance.  It is a challenge, but you accept it and make the best of it.  Flat tire or new karate technique, martial arts wisdom dictates that there is no difference.  Treat them both the same way and you will not feel as if any obstacle has the power to change the way you feel about your day.

Martial arts wisdom, in a nutshell, is your choice.  If you choose to wallow in misfortune, question every burden, and waste precious time, then you will never understand or internalize wisdom.  I used my martial arts as a way to develop wisdom, along with my experiences.  I’ve never seen anything as effective as martial arts in strengthening wisdom, as if wisdom is just another technique to practice or another muscle to build.

I’ve set it all out here.  It’s a simple plan.  Treat every obstacle and challenge as if it’s meant to happen, because it is.  Stop fighting it.  Control your anger.  Subdue your concerns.  Maybe that flat tire will be a story you end up telling to a bunch of blog readers some day.

Wisdom, power, and grace, all come from a deep understanding of self. Martial artist or not, now you know how to apply wisdom to your life.  Are you willing to accept that challenge and allow it to happen; or, will you continue to deny that there is a valid, solid, useful reason behind every obstacle you face and make yourself miserable, anxious or upset because of it?

Please choose wisdom because that is the best way to Win at Life.

Andrea