Master Mikeal 'Bear' Smith's Posts - Goju-Shorei Systems2024-03-29T07:15:23ZMaster Mikeal 'Bear' Smithhttp://gojushorei.ning.com/profile/MasterMikealBearSmithhttp://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/2796886732?profile=RESIZE_48X48&width=48&height=48&crop=1%3A1http://gojushorei.ning.com/profiles/blog/feed?user=1cqire659m9h&xn_auth=noHow Dare I Have a Bad Day!tag:gojushorei.ning.com,2011-03-04:4710891:BlogPost:21062011-03-04T20:27:42.000ZMaster Mikeal 'Bear' Smithhttp://gojushorei.ning.com/profile/MasterMikealBearSmith
<div class="mbl notesBlogText clearfix"><div><p>A friend and teacher of mine does a free class for a group of people who are so called disadvantaged; Down’s Syndrome, many other issues, etc., well…. you get the point, and sometimes I’ve helped out.</p>
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<p>So one day I’m having the proverbial bad day; missed a three foot putt, dog ate my homework, cutoff in traffic, nobody gets my sense of humor, etc. etc. etc. and I walk into the training center while this class is going on. Out of the…</p>
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<div class="mbl notesBlogText clearfix"><div><p>A friend and teacher of mine does a free class for a group of people who are so called disadvantaged; Down’s Syndrome, many other issues, etc., well…. you get the point, and sometimes I’ve helped out.</p>
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<p>So one day I’m having the proverbial bad day; missed a three foot putt, dog ate my homework, cutoff in traffic, nobody gets my sense of humor, etc. etc. etc. and I walk into the training center while this class is going on. Out of the blue come yells of my name, in a way which is sometimes hard to understand, along with big grins; they call me Kung Fu Guy. I have no clue as to why since I’ve never studied Kung Fu and the place they are at doesn’t teach it either; regardless, I like it. Long story short; they’re having fun and doing things some of us can’t even do. They are doing these things with physical and mental issues that you wouldn’t wish upon an enemy. They do these things like it is last time they will get to do them, and sometimes it is, with grins on their faces and big hearts. After a few hours, I leave the training center with a big grin on my face and thinking, “How Dare I Have a Bad Day!” and thank those folks for straightening me out.</p>
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<p>Respectfully ~ Master Mikeal “Bear” Smith</p>
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</div>I kinda like these.....tag:gojushorei.ning.com,2010-04-14:4710891:BlogPost:4132010-04-14T20:32:16.000ZMaster Mikeal 'Bear' Smithhttp://gojushorei.ning.com/profile/MasterMikealBearSmith
<div>"Unless you change how you are, you will always have what you've got."<br></br><br></br>“The challenge of leadership is to be strong, but not rude; be kind, but not weak; be bold, but not a bully; be thoughtful, but not lazy; be humble, but not timid; be proud, but not arrogant; have humor, but without folly.”<br></br><br></br>"Success is nothing more than a few simple disciplines, practiced every day, while failure is simply a few errors in judgment, repeated every day. It is the accumulative weight of…</div>
<div>"Unless you change how you are, you will always have what you've got."<br/><br/>“The challenge of leadership is to be strong, but not rude; be kind, but not weak; be bold, but not a bully; be thoughtful, but not lazy; be humble, but not timid; be proud, but not arrogant; have humor, but without folly.”<br/><br/>"Success is nothing more than a few simple disciplines, practiced every day, while failure is simply a few errors in judgment, repeated every day. It is the accumulative weight of our disciplines and our judgments that leads us to either fortune or failure."<br/><br/>By J. Rohn</div>A thought regarding the "Warrior's Mentality"tag:gojushorei.ning.com,2010-03-27:4710891:BlogPost:3502010-03-27T17:32:42.000ZMaster Mikeal 'Bear' Smithhttp://gojushorei.ning.com/profile/MasterMikealBearSmith
<div>You can physically train to be a martial artist and practice martial art philosophies in life but there is something within each of us that either prevents or allows us to actually apply, in reality, a warrior's mentality to physical actions; this allows us to walk through the proverbial "valley of death" or, as some would say, "today is a good day to die". Those without so called martial training can be warriors as well; try stopping a mother from protecting her children and most likely…</div>
<div>You can physically train to be a martial artist and practice martial art philosophies in life but there is something within each of us that either prevents or allows us to actually apply, in reality, a warrior's mentality to physical actions; this allows us to walk through the proverbial "valley of death" or, as some would say, "today is a good day to die". Those without so called martial training can be warriors as well; try stopping a mother from protecting her children and most likely you will be facing a fierce warrior.<br/><br/>Note that the willingness to die is an attitude or mindset, not a desire, and is wasted if not used for an honorable cause or reason which is defined by each of us and by the morals by which we live.</div>Just a Thoughttag:gojushorei.ning.com,2010-03-11:4710891:BlogPost:2822010-03-11T02:30:00.000ZMaster Mikeal 'Bear' Smithhttp://gojushorei.ning.com/profile/MasterMikealBearSmith
<p align="center"><span lang="EN" xml:lang="EN"><strong><font size="2">Can’t We All Just Get Along?</font></strong></span></p>
<p align="left"><font size="2"><span lang="EN" xml:lang="EN">Speaking for myself, and perhaps others, I have tired of hearing the derogatory banter between “Traditional” martial artists and “MMA” fighters and somewhere in between “Reality” practitioners. I challenge any to show what they do is “pure” in that there is nothing that has been changed, added and or removed…</span></font></p>
<p align="center"><span lang="EN" xml:lang="EN"><strong><font size="2">Can’t We All Just Get Along?</font></strong></span></p>
<p align="left"><font size="2"><span lang="EN" xml:lang="EN">Speaking for myself, and perhaps others, I have tired of hearing the derogatory banter between “Traditional” martial artists and “MMA” fighters and somewhere in between “Reality” practitioners. I challenge any to show what they do is “pure” in that there is nothing that has been changed, added and or removed since conception of whatever style or system they study. If you study the martial arts you will find a general consensus that everything that is done today under the banner of martial arts started with ancient people hitting or throwing something at their enemy in defense or to conquer. While there are many opinions as to what is sport, reality, or traditional, all three have crossed paths with each other in some form or fashion.</span> <span lang="EN" xml:lang="EN">The real debate seems to be that some people, on all sides, are so closed minded and or arrogant that they can not accept other things for what they actually are by separating sport, reality, and traditional from each other. I say, enjoy watching or doing sport, train for reality, enjoy doing traditional or even do all three; it is your call, but it is also the choice of others to choose their path as well. It is natural to find fault in things that are not done the way you do them but it is not a reason to outwardly attack something different. If you find yourself disagreeing with what you see or if it is contrary to your beliefs don’t do it, don’t teach it, but don’t attack it. Use it as a learning tool to better yourself or just plain ignore it. Remember, as we all know, it really is not all about the style or system but rather the person applying it.</span></font></p>
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<p><span lang="EN" xml:lang="EN"><font size="2">Respectfully,</font></span></p>
<p><span lang="EN" xml:lang="EN"><font size="2">Master Mikeal ‘Bear’ Smith</font></span></p>New Year’s Resolution for All Martial Artiststag:gojushorei.ning.com,2010-01-01:4710891:BlogPost:1842010-01-01T17:34:09.000ZMaster Mikeal 'Bear' Smithhttp://gojushorei.ning.com/profile/MasterMikealBearSmith
Your Instructor owns and operates a school for you; yes you. If you walked up to the school next week for class and the doors were locked and a sign read “Sorry We Went Out of Business” what would you do? First you’d be mad, then you’d wonder why, and lastly you’d ask yourself “what am I going to do now?” I know these things because I’ve experienced them first hand. There is a fourth question that rarely gets asked. That is; “what could I have done or should I have done to help prevent…
Your Instructor owns and operates a school for you; yes you. If you walked up to the school next week for class and the doors were locked and a sign read “Sorry We Went Out of Business” what would you do? First you’d be mad, then you’d wonder why, and lastly you’d ask yourself “what am I going to do now?” I know these things because I’ve experienced them first hand. There is a fourth question that rarely gets asked. That is; “what could I have done or should I have done to help prevent this?”<br />
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Remember…. your Instructor is always agonizing over how to pay the bills and support their family. Sometimes that means closing the school and taking a “regular” job; they don’t want to because teaching Martial Arts is their passion, but passion does not feed their children. A great Martial Art school is symbiotic in that it requires an Instructor who thrives on Students who love to learn and train and Students who thrive on an Instructor who loves to teach and give.<br />
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Below are a few answers to that fourth question:<br />
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~ Pay your dues on time<br />
~ Buy your gear and gifts from the school<br />
~ Get your friends and family to experience the Martial Arts with you<br />
~ Participate in membership drive programs or incentives<br />
~ COME TO CLASS!<br />
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So now you have some other resolutions besides getting into your swimsuit by April.IN CASE OF EMERGENCY BREAK GLASS!tag:gojushorei.ning.com,2009-12-28:4710891:BlogPost:1592009-12-28T16:42:10.000ZMaster Mikeal 'Bear' Smithhttp://gojushorei.ning.com/profile/MasterMikealBearSmith
As you may or may not know, I’m a confessed seminar junkie. Below are some of my thoughts regarding participation in seminars. Also published in Black Belt Magazine, fightcon.com, usadojo.com and tangsoodoworld.com<br />
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IN CASE OF EMERGENCY BREAK GLASS!<br />
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Is your school, system, or style in a state of emergency? It could be if some of the following rings true. The title, IN CASE OF EMERGENCY BREAK GLASS, is in reference to what I like to call the “glass bubble” in which some of the most competent…
As you may or may not know, I’m a confessed seminar junkie. Below are some of my thoughts regarding participation in seminars. Also published in Black Belt Magazine, fightcon.com, usadojo.com and tangsoodoworld.com<br />
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IN CASE OF EMERGENCY BREAK GLASS!<br />
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Is your school, system, or style in a state of emergency? It could be if some of the following rings true. The title, IN CASE OF EMERGENCY BREAK GLASS, is in reference to what I like to call the “glass bubble” in which some of the most competent Martial Artists live.<br />
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When was the last time you honestly endorsed, to your students or friends, participation in a seminar or tournament? I’m not talking about one in your own school or organization which benefits you directly in a financial or political way. I’m talking about the one which allows you and your students to grow by observing things from a different perspective. By breaking the glass, you’re showing your students that you care about their development and that you are secure in what you do as an instructor and what your system has to offer.<br />
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Throughout the Martial Arts industry there are promotions of this system or that style, all professing to be the best. In many cases the core and the basics are pretty much the same. That being said, why should you break the glass, take off the blinders, or open your mind? Well you might learn how to present something in better fashion. You might remember something you forgot years ago but which is actually important. Maybe you will actually see that something really doesn’t work if applied outside of the sterile classroom environment.<br />
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The most important effect will be the nature of the learning experience for you and your students. If you keep an open mind and try to learn something new, learn something old in a new way or learn something that supplements what you already do, you’ll improve and you’ll have some fun doing it. Don’t forget the fringe benefits: making friends, networking and supporting the Martial Arts community.<br />
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So do a little soul searching, be the Martial Artist you claim to be, quit being insecure, stop worrying about the next guy making $10 more than you next weekend, and break that glass.<br />
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Master Mikeal ‘Bear’ Smith<br />
Reno, Nevada