| For most students studying martial arts and self | | | | And that one thing is crushing or beating you |
| defense training, there is a critical, life-threatening | | | | down and getting what he wants from you. |
| mistake that they're making. This mistake is so | | | | That ""thing"" could be to: |
| important that, if not corrected, you could find | | | | - win the argument you were having |
| yourself worse off in a self-defense situation than | | | | - get your money |
| someone who never studied martial arts and | | | | - get what you were protecting |
| self-defense at all. | | | | - make a point or statement (as in the case of |
| This critical mistake is part of what I call, the | | | | terrorism or workplace violence) |
| Karate-Myth. It, along with a host of other | | | | - make you suffer, or... |
| ""false-beliefs"" can not only render all of your | | | | - take your life! |
| hard work, study, and martial arts and | | | | |
| self-defense training completely useless... | | | | So what is this grand mistake? I think you have a |
| ...It can get you broken, maimed, or killed in a | | | | pretty good idea by now, don't you? |
| real-world attack from a criminal attacker who | | | | The mistake I'm talking about is wrongly believing |
| isn't going soft and slow like your training partners | | | | that training in either the martial arts or a |
| in your martial arts or self-defense class! | | | | self-defense class without the knowledge, |
| And you know what? | | | | understanding, and experience of what a real |
| Its not just a mistake that students are making. | | | | self-defense situation is like... |
| This mistake is being made AND passed-on by | | | | ...will allow you to effectively defend yourself |
| so-called self-defense experts and martial arts | | | | against a street punk with real knife, or a 280 |
| black belts too! | | | | pound drunk dock worker who has you in a |
| Let's get something very clear before I let you in | | | | bone-crushing bear-hug and squeezing the very |
| on my little secret. And that something is this... | | | | life out of your lungs! |
| ...It doesn't matter_ | | | | Don't get me wrong. I'm not suggesting that you |
| - how well you think you know a martial arts | | | | go get into a bunch of fights, or walk through the |
| technique, or... | | | | worst parts of town looking to get mugged so |
| - how good you are at doing that self-defense | | | | you can get real-life self-defense experience. |
| move in class. | | | | But, you can at least make sure that the person |
| | | | | you're training with - that you're learning |
| All that will matter when the | | | | self-defense from - HAS the experience and |
| rubber-meets-the-road and you're face-to-face | | | | knowledge you need. |
| (or worse) with a brutal attacker who wants you | | | | You must find a teacher, mentor, or master with |
| dead is... | | | | real-world experience or your training will end up |
| ...CAN YOU DO IT THEN?! | | | | being like the "blind-leading-the-blind!" If you don't |
| You must realize something right now, and make | | | | know what you need, you have to find someone |
| no mistake about it. You must understand that, | | | | who does. And, if you don't have the experience, |
| unlike most people in your life - unlike your mom, | | | | you MUST find a teacher who does. |
| significant other, or fellow martial arts or | | | | A street-fighting self-defense situation is not the |
| self-defense students... | | | | time to find out that what you've been spending |
| A real attacker: | | | | your hard-earned time, money, and effort on... |
| - doesn't care what color your belt is | | | | Doesn't work! |
| - doesn't care how many techniques you know | | | | In a future article I'll be discussing how you can |
| - isn't impressed with the names of the people | | | | know whether the program you're in is worth |
| you've studied under | | | | anything or not - even if you don't have any |
| - isn't going to help you do your technique | | | | real-world fight or self-defense experience. But, |
| correctly like your friend in class does - and a ton | | | | for now, you can do some basic homework by |
| of other things you might use to impress others | | | | checking out some news stories and finding out |
| with your skill and "knowledge." | | | | what some of the common attacks are that you |
| | | | | may have to defend yourself against. |
| He only cares about one thing and one thing only. | | | | |