Distinctions.

The last article generated some great feedback, but not regarding the main point of the article itself. No, it was regarding my use of the words Teacher and Instructor.
An individual suggested that, to argue a difference between two words that mean, essentially, the same thing makes no sense.

For me that is like saying there is no difference between what it means to be a ‘Dad’ as opposed to what it means to be a ‘Father,’ or what it means to be a ‘Mom’ as opposed to what it means to being a ‘Mother.’
For me it makes perfect sense and getting caught up on semantics is missing the point entirely. The point is that one is all about themselves; making a name, a reputation, everything they do is about self promotion, and a little bit of self promotion is okay, but if it is not coming from a standpoint of putting the student first and getting out of your own way then all the student is there for is to serve as a promotional tool for oneself and their business.

The second part of this is operating from a standpoint of responsibility where one thinks of what would best help the student to grow; knowing that what they have could possibly be something that the student depends on for survival.
It is not about the person at the top at that point, it is about the student and their families, their livelihood, it is also about their attitude, their spirit, drawing out what is within (the word Education comes from the root Educari, to draw out).
There is so much more to being a good Teacher than even that, but ultimately it boils down to a calling in which self gain is not a focus. Can one earn money and be a good Teacher? Sure. Run a business? Absolutely, and it would likely promote itself aside from advertising costs. Word of mouth is a great thing.

For me the word ‘Instruct’ implies placing something within, it is also a bit too clinical for me, rather like Father and Mother, cold and formal.
Many people can Instruct, not everyone can Educate, so if there was a word I would seek to replace from the last article it would likely be Teacher to Educator, although that feels too formal as well. When the individual took offense to the light in which I painted the term Instructor it seemed they took it as almost a personal affront, possibly even on behalf of others that use the term to describe their profession.
I cannot speak for them, but the argument is ultimately purely semantic and pointless as it had nothing to do with the underlying message.
Why is there such an offense? Why place so much importance on words and descriptions? Sometimes they can be useful, other times people confuse the Forrest for the trees.

Titles do not mean much to me. So when they suggested I should change my title I was confused. I am not an Instructor, I do not even like to be called Sensei, often just Dave, David, or Hey You is fine so long as I am helping.
If the attitude of the person is one of service and speaks for itself from a place of responsibility and sincerity then what is the issue? Call yourself whatever you want. Do you identify more with a word or do you identify more with the actual thing? Are you Instructing or sharing? Training or playing? Again, words can be useful, but ultimately titles are not so important.

Humans like to have things illustrated for them, that is human nature, but even then we can only approach things from our own personal angle, complete with bias and judgments, even this post and the last one.
So long as people are thinking more critically then I really don’t care, I did what I set out to do and those seeds will grow.

I am not changing the article. I am leaving it as is. If something struck a nerve and you do not want to face the root cause for that within yourself then so be it. Blame me if you like, I don’t know you, but I do hope you have a great day and continue to be successful.
If something I say is not to your liking, sorry, it is not my job to please you, simply don’t read what I write... Others do.

The Difference between an Instructor and a Teacher.

There was a story I read once in a book called 'Steal My Art' written by Tai Chi Teacher T.T. Liang in which he talks about a student who constantly pushed to receive an Instructor's Certificate.
T.T. Liang gave him the Certificate and wished him luck, but he did this just to make the guy go away, not because the guy actually knew anything as he was more interested in making a name for himself than he was in learning what T.T. Liang had to teach.

This is a sad state of affairs in the Martial Arts and Self Defense Community throughout the world today, although in my view it is nothing new.
You get the guy that trains a couple months in one thing, moves on to another thing, trains maybe a month, then decides they know enough to formulate their own system, not because they actually have any understanding of what they have studied, but because they want what they perceive as recognition, they are drawn to the power and position that go with it... Or at least what they perceive as power and position... They want to stroke their own ego.

The more I train, the more I realize I need more training. The more I discover, the more I realize I don't know anything at all.
Maybe I have no business teaching, but people do ask, and my Teacher had always told me to pass on what I know, not because I wanted to, but because I had the responsibility to do so; being a Teacher is so much more than standing around telling people what to do while counting.
I distinguish between a Teacher and an Instructor, or a Coach. I am not an Instructor or a Coach. I am not going to be standing on the sidelines coaching my Students on how to take another point, those days are gone and, while there is some benefit there, there is far more benefit in being an actual Teacher.

A Teacher is not someone that chooses to be in that position, a Teacher is recognized naturally and sought out, or not, and a Teacher has enough sense to know what they do not know along with enough humility to help their student seek out those answers they do not know elsewhere.
This is not a good business model, indeed, it was never meant to be.
Making money is fine, but helping a person discover and manifest their own inner power and truly transform themselves, those around them, and their lives is far greater a calling. Sometimes the two can go hand-in-hand, and it is a good thing to Teach a business mindset because that is the world we live in, but when it comes to Teaching, even Teaching this mindset, there is a line. You have Clients and you have Students, sometimes a Client may become a Student, but that is their choice.

My Teacher was never a big fan of the business side of things, he would always lament on how much more than a business this was, for him it was a calling, because we kept calling and kept coming around, despite how much effort he expended in trying to make us go away.
I cleaned a wall, then cleaned it again, cleaned the Dojo in order to Train, and I was expected to be at each of the classes, so I would do my Homework at the Dojo; for a long time I basically lived there, besides sleeping, although sometimes we even slept there.

My Teacher's Teacher, John Roseberry Shihan, had refused to Teach him for a while, and when he finally did he would devise some really extreme workouts to completely exhaust my Teacher, both mind and body, in order to make him go away, but my Teacher kept coming back.
Because of my Teacher's persistence, and the persistence of two other Students, John Roseberry Shihan created an International Organization that has outlived him, that continues to carry on his legacy and produce Teachers rather than Instructors, many have only ever heard of it by word of mouth, and that is the way he would have wanted it.

As Teachers we have a responsibility to set our egos aside, sometimes Students stay, sometimes Students go, but my Teacher always said it is not the Teacher who leaves the Student, but the Student who leaves the Teacher, like a bird leaving the nest.
They may continue in the path of Budo, they may end up taking those lessons and manifesting them in other ways, but they will always remember the core of what they are doing, and the core, ultimately, has nothing to do with you or me, as Teachers, it has to do with their manifestation of that inner power... You only showed them the way, you did not give them anything, you did not take anything, you were a stepping stone, nothing more, but that is good enough.

Ego should never enter the picture... If you enter a school and are met by a plethora of self-inflating statements and displays, you can bet you have only encountered a Professional Instructor, not a Teacher.
If they have a cult following surrounding their personality and do not EVER question, then you can bet you have joined a cult, you have NOT found a Teacher... Run.
These are Ego factories that serve to stroke the Ego of the person at the top... Buyer beware.

The Strategic and Savage Mind.

One thing that comes up when studying the works of people like Myamoto Musashi or Yagyu Munenori is that their focus was not on proper technique, but on what would give them the upper hand in achieving their goals...Victory.
It always started with strategy, the circumstances would determine the proper tactics, the goal being to control the circumstances in order to remain several steps ahead of their opponents.

They understood, via experience, what it took and, quite often it was a messy ordeal that required more of a savage, yet strategic, sort of mindset rather than perfect technique.
One would be hard pressed to find this sort of person in a modern Dojo prancing around in clean white go working requirements for their next colored piece of cloth... These sort of things carry little meaning for someone that has been in situations where they actually have to fight, tooth and nail, for their next breath.
There are exceptions, of course, but generally arts like Karate have become nothing more than a peculiar pastime where students march up and down a floor in neatly pressed Gi punching and kicking air or playing games of tag with one another calling it Kumite.

Most times, if one were to ask about the strategy of a given Karate School, no practitioner would be able to give a straight answer, let alone how tactics within each Kata outline specific strategy of said Kata not how these outline the school’s overall strategy.
There are some out there who can, but overall there is very little written on it as far as Karate is concerned and most get their strategic education from Japanese Swordsmen, which is not necessarily the same thing (although these can yield some insight into how one should think strategically).

Some study Judo in order to better understand, some study Kendo, some study Jujitsu, all of which are great additions to a core art, but one has to remember that Karate is Karate and all of these have different approaches to achieve different strategic ends, albeit with SOME overlap.
Yes one can say that the end is victory, but in a strategic mindset the way to victory is dependent on the moment, this is true, but understanding tactics provides a clear picture of what one needs to do should a situation change in a certain way.
Ultimately none of these matter when all is said and done, one has to abandon the idea of schools and styles in the heat of the moment otherwise become bogged down and overloaded.

The point of understanding tactics and strategy is not to be mired in the mess of Tradition, but to know something so deep that it no longer requires conscious thinking, it is part of you and you know how and when to deviate from one method to another without having to think or assess.
Shu is where we start, Ha is where we learn, Ri is where we get savage and break away from all of it and apply.

In Karate we are not following this and most methods are actually counter productive when it comes to fostering this mindset - we have lost our way in the name of preserving Tradition, becoming even more lost when our minds are more set in an ‘us’ versus ‘them’ attitude.
Do we really even know why something is done a specific way when we say ‘this is how WE do that?’ Doubtful.
It is nothing more than a story we tell ourselves in order to defend our own position because it makes us feel great to be part of a Tradition.
Ego stroking aside, when we have to defend ourselves or our families our assailants are not going to care.

What does each Kata bring to the table? What are they each trying to tell us? Which Kata show us how to enter? Which show us how to respond if a person does a specific thing to counter? Where does Kata lack in vital information and where do we find that information in order to make up for what is lacking?
Karateka of old were not static in their approach and they did not name techniques the way they are named now.
They had descriptions like ‘man carries water’ to describe specific principles and there was no one proper way to employ these principles because everyone is different and plans never survive their implementation when the rubber hits the road.

One has to continuously analyze (Bunkai) in order to apply (Oyo) while being prepared to vary (Henka) when an opponent does something not necessarily expected.
The overall strategy remains the same, the tactics employed are not altogether changed, in essence, but in application and there will be NOTHING pretty or stylized about any of it.

What are the strategies of Goju Ryu? Does it matter? Strategic thinking does, strategic awareness does, but the school does not.
If you are primarily a thrower then you are going to employ tactics to that end and any striking you utilize will support that, this is where it ends.

Karate is, primarily, about striking, any other aspect is in support of that or secondary to it.
However, such a statement is too much of a blanket statement and does not account for the individual, whom will ultimately come to their own understanding through training and experience.

This should be encouraged. To show the strategy and use this as a point of departure down the path of true self discovery and actualization, where strategic thinking permeates all aspects of life.

Context, Concept, and Mechanics.

When we finally get beyond ways of thinking and training that are set in concrete standards of classification and can get beyond any sort of stylistic notions we may truly begin to find what is useful within what we are doing.
Approaching from a conceptual standpoint, with an open mind, yet grounded in context with respect to basic laws of motion nd the focus/intent behind each within said context will do FAR more for understanding than approaching from a technique oriented mindset for the sake of technique and style preservation alone.

Because 'Sensei says' is far too often a mantra in Dojo that purport to teach self -defense and this really does a disservice to students who leave thinking they have any understanding at all when no real explanation has been given... No real instruction has been rendered.

Going through mindless repetitions of choreographed drills only does so much and really only shows that one can memorize choreographed drills.
When these drills become more important than actual skill you can rest assured that you are no longer studying a self-defense oriented system.

Are we thinking about the mechanics behind what we are told is a punch or are we just accepting this at face value?
Look at a punch in context, what does an effective punch look like? We would be drawn more towards boxing style punches as effective and start to realize what we are doing is not necessarily inclusive of effective punching mechanics.
This is true of we are only taking certain aspects into account, forgetting the chamber hand, body alignment, and footwork, nevermind the formation of the fist, which can also seem like a grip.

Context, concept, and mechanics are more important than rote memorization of technique names and choreographed drills.
As Karateka we need to get out of this trap and start growing in order to make Karate what it once was.

Building Bridges between Chaos and Order.

I have been absent from writing here for a while as I took some time to think, learn, and grow in the wake of Shihan Roseberry's death.
My practice has continued, my teaching has continued; these last few weeks have been full of insights as far as Karate is concerned as well as life in general.

To start off I would like to just dive right in...

Life is seldom neat, life is seldom orderly or categorized. Each person walks their own way, at their own pace, with their own attitude.
Why should there EVER be a one size fits all approach to anything? What does it mean to do something correct? Why is THAT way correct and THIS way incorrect? Yes, there are universal principles across the board because we all have two arms, two legs, one head, a neck, and a torso, but it gets complicated after that.
Do we seek to be defined by what we do or do we seek to define what we do by who we actually are? Who are you? Do you even know?

When training, do we think of Jodan Uke as a block or as something else? Why? Is it because we are told this is how it is based on what we have come to call it? How did this come about?
In a time, not long ago, there were no names, no techniques, just principles, and they had variations from person to person based on things like body type, taking into account injuries or other sort of mobility limitations.
In short, things were not so neatly packaged in a commercially branded box for consumption by all with the actual meaning of things completely lost, but not forgotten.

Yes, the path does have to begin somewhere. Yes, there IS a proper way to do things and YES learning at the feet of a Teacher IS REQUIRED (you cannot just pick this stuff up on Youtube or via Video at any given time and actually think you are following the way).
HOWEVER, that being said, do we continue to walk a rigid cobble-stone path or do we take what we learn and dive deep within ourselves to learn what is there? Do we even know how to do this? There are some that do and, giving respect where it is due, we can learn A LOT from people who spend their time focusing on principles in ROLLING practice utilized in Brazilian Jujitsu, among other arts.

Keep it simple. Keep it practical. These are the words of Shihan Roseberry. Do we simply mouth the words as a Mantra we do not fully understand or even practice or do we put those words into practice as actual principles to live by?

The idea is to actually forge ahead, to grow, to meet yourself at every turn, to overcome that and become better, to incorporate what is there, to brave the chaos inside in order to bring out the best of ALL aspects of yourself.
Not simply to carry on a cookie-cutter Tradition, a dead Tradition is not a Tradition at all. It is simply going through the motions.

A couple things to impliment...

1) Forget the names of techniques or stances and zero in on the principles behind them, not just looking at one single aspect (ie; the arm), but taking the WHOLE BODY into account and really digging deep into those mechanics (Taisabaki).

2) Implement a practice that forces you to move without thinking, see how you respond and start to put things together in a Kata that is YOUR Kata. Utilize other Kata as Teaching aids, guides for proper movement and function. Gage your progress by how you respond spontaneously and whether or not it is in-line with what Kata and your Teacher have been teaching you.

3) Utilize your heart and mind as one. Practice bag work, utilize your heart and mind in each strike so that each strike can be a knock-out strike. Each movement can be devastating.

This is nothing new. This is nothing special. It is just getting back to the roots of what we actually do, at least in my own opinion, based on my own observations in regards to the state of things both within myself and in others.

Take it for what it is or leave it. The choice is yours. 

Blunt Force Trauma.

If one does not begin their training until later in life can they make a claim that someone is their lifelong Teacher? If they had spent their time speaking very unflatteringly of their Teacher and others within their lineage, in private, would they be able to claim themselves as true to a teaching they claim someone else is also not following?
If some central tenants of a Teaching are to 'keep a disciplined mind' would it be considered a breach of that teaching for someone to freak out over something trivial and to behave in a manner unbecoming someone within a school that touts Courtesy and Manners as part of its' school name and central teaching?


There have been many unflattering things said in private, while presenting a different face in public, although most seem aware of a certain loss of trust and a certain pencheant for the dramatic on the part of the other party.
Certainly aware of the artful embellishments of this party when they write out what they have to say.
A person that can, like a chameleon, move from circle to circle and insinuate themselves into things with skilful use of words, charisma, a skill for making connections with people, sometimes at the expense of other people.
It is a wonder they ever had the trust of their Teacher at all, for the face they present in public is different for each circle and FAR different than the face that is presented in private.


I suppose that is par for the course, however, it is best to be wary of people like these, for they are only out for their own gain and will stop at nothing to gain at the expense of those around them.
They will place themselves in positions of high esteem with a lot of pull and use that pull to do whatever is best for them, they will make threats, they will also follow through with some of those threats if it benefits them to do so, sometimes it doesn't and they will switch strategies.


One person I know if likes to talk a big game, they sometimes put down the skill of others, even though they barely had any skill of their own when they COULD actually train.
They are great with words, and therein lay the possible reason they did not have the full trust of their Teacher and the reason they barely spoke. This person was only continuing with their partnership because it was an investment, not because they actually cared or acted in the same spirit as a man who would often place the wellfare of others above everything else.
Some within the Dojo could not afford dues and were feeling that they could no longer train because, unlike their Teacher, this person was more business minded and less compassionate.


A lot of talk and zero follow-through in regards to ANY of the central Teachings, with even less skill in ANY of the aspects of training on the floor.
It is a shame that these types are even able to make it through the door, but again, anyone can step on the floor, not everyone can actually walk the path laid out before them.


That is all.

Common Sense.

There are cults in the Martial Arts; personality cults around which small followings grow in which worship is in the form of someone presenting themselves as having something others do not... The one true way.
This tends to appeal to that part of the psyche that needs to feel special, privy to information no one else has, part of something greater than the self, and this is normal human behavior, but it is a huge flaw, a weakness upon which these sorts of people prey.


Certainly they may not make any money at these things, but it does make them feel greater than they actually are, charimsatic attention seekers that they are, they really cannot help themselves and, more often than not, will never recognize that there is a problem (believing their own stories so whole heartedly that, even when they are shown the truth, they have justifications ready to reinforce the story when it is shattered).


There is NO one true way. A correct and original way are not the same thing and what is correct for one person is not necessarily correct for another.
There is NO pure way, each walks the path in their own way, this is why variations pop up, sometimes from the Teacher, sometimes from insight, but no one EVER does things EXACTLY as their Teachers have done, it is simply not possible.


One can usually tell when someone else is a part of something like this, they make claims, they argue against someone else's claims with their own claims, but they seldom actually back up those claims, simply saying things like, 'If only you knew who I knew.'
Basically a cop-out, but they reinforce their own story in their heads this way and do not elaborate further.


My advice? Stay away from groups like this and, if your curiosity gets the better of you, keep a reasonable mind about your shoulders, remain a true skeptic, take what is useful and remain honest about the rest, do NOT give your mind and heart over to these people.
Often they speak very well, they have stories they share, most of which are embellished, but in the end, none of them really have any idea what they are talking about and, when one looks more closely at the information they provide they will find gaping holes... Heed these red flags.


Stay safe in your practice. The best self defense is simply having common sense.