Teachers like teaching. We like to impart our knowledge and passion in the dojo and it’s the greatest feeling ever when a student succeeds. For some there is very little financial incentive to being a teacher or running a dojo, we just want our students to surpass us.
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In order to be successful, many people believe, you must be passionate. Passion makes challenges enjoyable. It bestows the stamina necessary to excel and to keep going when things get tough.
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Progress comes to those that train, that practice. But you can’t convince students to come to the dojo if they are not committed.
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This raises the intriguing question of motivation. If there is no real relationship between achievement and attitude, then what motivates students to achieve success?
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The answer is that it comes from within. What sets students apart is self-belief about their own strengths and weaknesses.
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Passions play a big part in our lives. In the beginning, karate was your one true passion. The dopamine levels skyrocketed, the enjoyment you felt from training helped remove the stress of everyday life.
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For years you are dedicated to this passion. You loved every single bit of it and you believed your path was unchangeable. Karate was it. No one or nothing would drive you away from the path you had set for yourself.
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Then one day a question arises…… “Is karate still my passion?”.
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You were caught off-guard by this thought. By letting go of this passion you would let go of years of hard work and dedication. Fear, confusion, anxiety… all entered your mind.
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You had to answer this question:….. “Is my passion still… a passion?”
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“Karate may be referred to as the conflict within yourself, or a life-long marathon which can be won only through self-discipline, hard training, and your own creative efforts.” – Shoshin Nagamine
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For the Japanese, passions represent a meaningful activity which serves as a counterbalance for their day-to-day life. Their “Ikigai” (reason for being, a sense of purpose).
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Passion is when you feel the energy. It’s more than just enthusiasm or excitement, passion is ambition that materializes into action, to put as much heart, body and soul into something as humanly possible..…… “The most powerful weapon on earth is the human soul on fire.” – Ferdinand Foch
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Great martial artists are great because of their passion. Follow your passion.
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