Persistence Pays Off

Water cuts through rock, not because of its power, but because of its persistence. In Martial Arts, as with all things in life, sometimes we feel like we are in a constant state of repetition. We practice the same form, the same life skills, and the same material over and over again. On the other hand, sometimes we feel like we have so much to learn and don’t know where to start. On both sides of the coin, persistence pays off.

Repetition:

Bruce Lee once said, “I fear not the man that has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times”. We get better when we continue to practice the same material over and over again until we become an expert. Because we are human, no one will ever be perfect every time they do something. But we can strive for our own sense of perfection- doing the best to our ability. 

If you want to be great at something, even if you feel like you have practiced it an endless number of times, persistence pays off. If your goals are to become a black belt someday, you have to learn every single move in every single form. You will have to practice it again and again until you get it almost to perfection. If your goal is to become a World Champion, the same is true. You must practice your form over and over until it is the best it possibly can be. If you want to achieve greatness, you must persist.

Advancing:

On the other hand, maybe you have been training for awhile in taekwondo and you become an advanced rank. Or maybe you just became a red black belt. When achieving higher ranks in Martial Arts, training intensifies. The material gets more difficult to learn and remember. You may start to feel that you are not learning as fast as your fellow students or that you are not as good as they are. This is not the moment to get discouraged and definitely not the moment to quit. This is the moment to persist. 

You put in the time and effort. You dedicated yourself to becoming a black belt, or even a higher degree black belt. We do not give up on our goals just because things get hard or we become self conscious about our abilities. If in this hard time you decide to show up more and work even harder, you will be rewarded. You will realize that you are capable of more than you ever thought you could be. If you persist, it will pay off.

Whether it’s on or off the mat, in life or during class, persistence pays off. If you set your mind to doing something and are willing to put in the work to get there, you will thank yourself for it. In life there will always be new things to learn and times where things feel repetitious, but we must persist. At Mueller’s Martial Arts, we will help you cut through that rock.