Unreasonable Goals with Momentum
We are not usually invited to make unreasonable goals. When we learn the process of setting goals and achieving them, we become unimaginably powerful. While we can and should be setting goals throughout the year, this is a great time
Thankfulness
With Thanksgiving last week, I’ve been thinking and talking a lot about the practice of being grateful or thankfulness. The challenge of the week in the dojo is to spend at least one minute each day thinking about the things
Power of 1%
Today is Voting Day. No matter what your political views are and whether or not you feel any power over the outcome, you are probably very happy for this election season to be coming to a close (specifically if you’re
Respect
The spiritual meaning of namaste is The Divine in me bows to the Divine in you. When a yogi bows with hands pressed together, this is a physical expression of respect that transcends the ego. This is what all bows
Perspective from Martial Arts – The Lost Year
We are now entering the 9th month of Covid-19 in the US and the 6th month since California announced a stay at home order. Many people have died and everybody’s life has changed. It seems like our entire world has
Do I like the person I am?
I like the question of the week, "Do I like the person I am?". It gives me some insight into how I have changed over the years. When I was younger I didn't like myself. It seemed like other kids were
Breathing with a mask
Returning to the dojo means breathing with a mask, and some of us find that difficult. What can happen is a feeling of breathlessness, of not being able to breathe enough. This feeling is called dyspnea by scientists and clinicians,
Martial Arts in Troubled Times
I had planned on talking about forgiveness in this newsletter, but I’m finding it to be an increasingly difficult topic to navigate these days. I’m not going to tell you to forgive anybody, nor will I attempt to tell you
Emotional Content
A student asked me about what I meant by emotional content last week and as it is an important concept in martial arts, I’m seizing the opportunity to discuss it at length here. As Bruce Lee famously mentioned in Enter
Thriving
Over the last few weeks I’ve been talking a lot about thriving and the idea of turning challenges or problems into opportunities. I believe that this is one of the most valuable things we get from our practice of martial
