How Martial Arts Helps With Mental Health

How Martial Arts Helps With Mental Health

Martial arts has garnered a reputation for being a great way to stay fit and become physically strong. People who have been practicing martial arts for years have an increased awareness of what their body is really capable of.

These physical effects are what often come to mind when it comes to talking about martial arts, but the mental effects of a martial arts practice are equally as important. The focus and discipline you build throughout your training will benefit you for years to come.

Peace of mind

A lot of people get into martial arts as a form of self-defense. As martial arts student Brooke Crockett writes in our previous blog post, knowing you can defend yourself saves you from a lot of unnecessary stress. Harmful incidents can occur no matter where you live in the world, so having the physical intelligence to handle yourself in a potentially dangerous situation is important. This knowledge also gives you the freedom to move around as you please — whether you're traveling solo or walking home at night alone.

Building self-motivation

Mastering martial arts requires dedication, even more so as you progress. Thrive Global reports how martial arts can foster concentration skills in people, which has a positive impact on their ability to absorb new information. This is especially true of those who struggle with focus, such as those with ADHD. Martial arts can be a positive activity that motivates them to overcome their own difficulties. Psychologists at Maryville University have found links between mental health and learning development, with those who have a healthy mind much more motivated to be successful in what they do. This can explain the reason why we get motivated to push through something as we develop our skills. While it may be a bit difficult to push through with your training at the beginning (particularly if you’re not used to athletic training), you’ll start to become more self-motivated the more you train your body and your brain, and see the benefits.

Working through mistakes

Humans learn well through trial and error. We all learn through our mistakes, but this is especially true for those practicing martial arts. Sparring with your fellow classmates means that you’re bound to make more than a few mistakes over the course of your training, regardless of what level you’re at. Constantly dealing with errors teaches you that mistakes are ultimately learning opportunities, rather than something to be ashamed of.

Takes time away from the screen

We’re glued to our screens more than we would like. In fact, some people still stare at their screens when using machines at the gym or going for walks at the park. According to an article on Self, the jury's still out on whether or not screen time can directly lead to poor mental health. However, there is something to be said about unplugging and fully focusing on the present moment. With all the moving you’ll do each martial arts class, you won’t have much time to look at your phone at all!

Fosters social interactions

One of the best parts about martial arts is that you get welcomed into a community straight away. Evolve notes that team building is intrinsic to virtually every martial arts practice, and the way to truly get better is to spar with different members of your class. The fact that you’re all taking a martial arts class means that you and your classmates have something in common, and the repeated interactions you’ll have over training can be a great foundation for lifelong friendships.

written by Florence Wright for ohiomartialarts.com

Self Defense Article by Brooke Crockett

One of our best students wrote this terrific article on self defense. To download the original article with pics click here.

Original Article by: Brooke Crockett

Reasons Why Everyone Should Take Self-Defense Classes 

As the world becomes an increasingly dangerous place, people are beginning to feel more vulnerable if they are alone and it doesn’t help that the news shares stories of kidnappings or assault on a daily basis. 

Self-defense classes are the best things anyone could take to protect themselves. Whether it is to become physically fit, become disciplined or work on mental health, everyone can find some benefit in practicing at this formal Maumee dojo. 

Practicing at The Ohio Martial Arts Center in Maumee, Ohio for two and a half years under Sensei Hurtsellers’ guidance helped me realize the benefits of self-defense classes. This Maumee dojo teaches numerous disciplines which allows students to expand their knowledge of certain styles. 

This includes Karate, Kung Fu, Judo and many other martial arts styles. Under Sensei’s watch, I learned to better myself as a person. 

These are my reasons why I believe everyone should consistently attend self-defense classes. 

1. A Safe State of Mind 

I attend school at The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. Being in a big city can be overwhelming, and there are horror stories of attacked or assaulted people not only in Columbus, but on campus. 

With the skills that I learned at The Ohio Martial Arts Center, I became more confident in walking by myself at night in the city. Though I don’t recommend anyone does that unless completely necessary, knowing how to get someone off of you that is strangling you or how to get out of a grab from behind while under pressure are comforting skills to learn. 

Since taking these self-defense classes, I found myself scoping out my surroundings more and coming up with an escape plan if anything were to happen. It makes me feel safer and it helps put my family’s mind at ease. 

2. Mental and Physical Stamina 

Mental: At the beginning of each self-defense class, before we even stretch, we sit and meditate. Clearing the mind helps you focus on the practice that you are about to complete and helps you align your body to feel how it is all connected. 

Sitting down and breathing seems very mundane until you realize how the body unites with the mind. It is through meditation that my mental health began improving. 

The saying at this Maumee dojo is “Be Here Now” and going into the practice with that mentality helps your body get through the physicality of the class and also makes the time fly. By the time class is over, you don’t even feel like a full hour passed. 

Physical: 

Classes at The Ohio Martial Arts Center last between 45 minutes and one hour for adults (17 and older.) Classes start out with a 15 minute warm-up and then move to pad work with partners where students will take turns working combinations on each other in a safe and controlled environment. 

At the end of the lesson in this Maumee dojo, students practice Brazilian and Japanese Jiu Jitsu. This is where we learn how to do a proper choke, manipulate the body and use general self-defense strategies. 

Instructors at The Ohio Martial Arts Center such as Sensei Hurtsellers, his son Joseph Hurtsellers, or instructor Steven Collins will walk around and help people adjust their positions for optimal effect. 

3. The Five Ways to Become a Great Martial Artist 

This is The Ohio Martial Arts Center’s major selling point. Walking through those doors as a new person, you will hear the Five Ways to Become a Great Martial Artist for the first time and you will continue to hear them almost every time you finish a class. 

What makes these so impactful is not only do they help you succeed in this Maumee dojo, but it will help you succeed in life. 

The Five Ways are: 

Patience- You can’t expect to walk in and become Bruce Lee in one lesson. Learning self-defense takes time. Sometimes you need to wait to take that rank test or maybe miss a lesson due to life circumstances. With patience, you will hit your goals. 

Perseverance- “Patience without perseverance is laziness.” This is the quote that is always said when explaining this way to become a Great Martial Artist. You can’t walk into this Maumee dojo, do the bare minimum and expect to be a ninja. Just waiting around will not make you a great martial artist. 

Practice Hard- You need to practice the combinations over and over again. You need to run drills with people so you can use what you’ve learned in a real-life situation. You will never fully succeed if you don’t put in the work and leave sweat on the mats. 

Practice Exactly the Way You Want to Perform- If you drill something long enough and hard enough then it will become second nature. This is why you need to take numerous self-defense classes and not just one. That way if someone comes up from behind, your first instinct isn’t to struggle or run but rather it is to throw an elbow in their face. 

Meditation- Connecting the mind and the body is the most vital step to succeeding in training and in life. You need to listen to your body to fulfill your practice. If you don’t take the time to unwind before your practice, you’ve essentially done nothing to improve your martial arts. 

Martial arts is the best thing that happened to me in my life and I feel like it is an experience everyone needs to go through. I feel safer and more secure in my ability to defend myself. I plan on continuing my practice for as long as I can to help keep myself in shape and to improve my mental health. I owe it all to The Ohio Martial Arts Center of Maumee, Ohio. 

Brooke is a third year student at the Ohio State University with an anticipated graduation of May 2020 and a student at the Ohio Martial Arts Center. She is majoring in Strategic Communication and double-minoring in Professional Writing and Nonprofit Studies. She plans on doing marketing, advertising, or event planning for a nonprofit after graduation. 

Meta-description Reasons to practice self-defense. The Ohio Martial Arts Center is an excellent dojo in Maumee to practice physical and mental health. Learning the Five Ways to Become a Great Martial Artist help you succeed both in this Maumee dojo and in life. 

SNEAK PEAK: Excerpt from "Break The Chain 2"

Here’s an unedited excerpt from Chapter 8 of the completely rewritten “Beak The Chain Volume 2” The book is to be released in the first half of 2019.

Chapter 8. Meditation: The Beginning of Positive Momentum

Meditation is not an exercise to lower your blood pressure  — but it will.

Meditation is not designed to lower your stress levels  — but it will.

Meditation is not designed to strengthen your will  — but it will do that too.

Instead of any of the side benefits; the purpose of meditation is to put yourself in a position where you can reach all of your hopes and dreams.

Look again at the chart below. Notice that the point at the top of the triangle is when the mind is still. It’s this point that you achieve when you learn to meditate.

The Law of Attraction is about momentum. It operates just like gravity. Whichever side of the triangle you are on you will automatically pull you toward the bottom.

So if you are anywhere on the “Dissatisfaction” side of the triangle, you will tend to think and act in ways that create even more dissatisfaction.

If there is an area in your life that you are currently not pleased with, how do you fix it?

Depending on how far down you’ve slid on the triangle your problem might be hard (if not impossible) to change. Think of the triangle as mountain. From the dark side of the mountain you have a lot of climbing up to do. You also can’t even see the sunny side.

Almost all self development work and goal setting is done from the dark side of the mountain. It’s for this reason that most of these methods have little success. When you work from the dark side you are fighting gravity. You are literally fighting a universal law.

If you are in a place you don’t want to be, before you can see improvement you must put yourself in a position where gravity is no longer working against you. You need to be in a spot where you you are perfectly balanced.

From a place of balance you can make an easy choice. The choice is simply taking an easy step toward what you want. If you move in the direction of what you want from the top of the mountain the force of momentum will be working with you.

Moving toward your goals when your mind is balanced makes all the difference. Everything gets easy when you start at the top of the mountain. Things are hard when you start at the bottom of the wrong side.

Meditation is like a ski lift that will take you to the peak of the mountain. Meditation brings you to a place where you can choose to put  momentum on your side.

So Many Books

There have been so many books and lectures on meditation. But so few understand this basic idea of momentum. Without an understanding of momentum meditation is reduced to just another exercise to reduce stress.

Meditation lays the foundation for all success.

Meditation is not a tool to develop will power. Instead it is the tool that will render “will power” inconsequential.

You need massive amounts of will power to climb UP the hill. You need practically none when you are moving downward.

The simple choice you make after you have used meditation to still your mind enough that you rise to the top of the mountain makes all the difference.

 —-

Imagine you are going to a dinner party. At that party there are different with strong opinions. There are religious people, there are political people, there are people heavily involved in social justice.

What is your goal when you go to the party?

Is your goal to win one of them over to your religion, politics, or cause? Or instead is your goal to enjoy the party and have a great time?

If your goal is the latter of the two; then what subjects would you talk about?

You would only bring things up that everyone could agree on. You would only bring up things that everyone has in common. You might choose to be silent for a while until you figure out where everyone is coming from.

In this example; the strong opinions at the party represent your negative beliefs. Instead of trying to change your negative belief you learn to be silent; and then focus on something you can find harmony with.

When you meditate you are learning to still your mind; and as you do you are gradually learning to deactivate your own negative thoughts and beliefs. When your meditation is finished you will put yourself in a position where it’s much easier to find thoughts of satisfaction.

It’s so frustrating to me as teacher to watch students meditate and then go right back to choosing the same thoughts and actions they chose before the session! The only reason I can imagine anyone would do this is they don’t understand what meditation really is. They don’t understand this concept of raising your level of vibration until taking a step toward your goal is now possible.

It is said: “Meditation is the foundation of all true Martial Arts.” (We say this at the beginning of every class). But seldom do students question what a foundation is. Simply put; a foundation is something you build on!

You meditate to raise your level of consciousness so you become aware you are sitting on the peak of the mountain. You are in a place where ANYTHING is possible. You can then easily take steps in the direction of what you want.

But it would be even more correct to say. “Mediation is the foundation of all success”.

Man On Wire

I just walked a tight rope. 

It was between two hundred story buildings. One slight mistake and I fall a thousand feet and die.

Actually I didn’t do it — I watched another guy. 

It was a video of something he did back in the eighty’s on Netflix. It’s called “Man On Wire”. It’s about a french tight rope artist named Philippe Petit. He spent a lifetime practicing for this moment.

Even though I was only watching a video I got scared. So scared my hands started to shake. I felt it in my body.

I was losing balance; all from watching a video from 30 years ago.

Fear- this uncomfortable feeling. This nervousness. This shake. What is it?

It always means the same thing. It means that I am focused on what I don’t want. And what focus on tends to be more likely to happen.

Don’t get me wrong; it’s not like suddenly I’m going to fall 100 stories after watching Netflix. But I do feel all of the sensations that would make me fall. I lose balance, concentration, and even control over my body when I’m afraid.

If I were on a real tightrope- I’d be dead.

I’m glad every day life is not so dangerous. We live on the ground.

But we face many other kinds of tightropes in life. We get scared about money. We get scared about health. We get afraid that something might happen to someone we love.

And every time we feel fear we feel terrible.

Want to know what makes you afraid?

Something Bigger is calling you. This Bigger thing might be God- I’m not sure. This bigger thing (I call it “Source”) is always calling to you. Wanting you to join IT.

This bigger thing is your hearts Desire.

I like using a capital “D” on the word “Desire”. Because maybe God and your hearts Desire are one in the same. I don’t know.

Fear (anxiety, anger, frustration, depression — call it what you like) all happens when you disagree with SOURCE. SOURCE is calling you toward your Desire — and on some level you believe something about your Desire that is untrue.

Source sees your health; but you are fearful of a diagnosis.

Source sees your wealth; but you are wondering how you are going to pay the bills.

Source sees love; but you are angry and blaming others.

Source already got where you wanted to go and is standing over there on the other side calling to you. Asking you to join It.

But you stubbornly refuse. 

Source pulls — you pull back- and the stress of this fight hurts! That’s why you feel awful during these fights. And that awful feeling is your indication that you are doing something wrong.

Try it for yourself. 

Pick a fight with Source right now — only for a moment.

Imagine yourself at the top of a 120 story building; standing on the edge — one foot stepping onto a tightrope. Imagine what it would look like, how it would feel. 

If you imagine vividly you will feel fear. That fear is showing your disagreement with Source.

You say: “No way — I’m going to die”!

Source is on the other side of the tightrope saying: “Come over here to this other building; you are safe, I’ve got you- and this walk is AWESOME!!”.

In every situation each time you feel ANY negative emotion or stress it’s because of this argument. Every negative emotion always means the same thing- you are literally picking a fight with God.

The more you fight the more exhausted you become. The less productive you are. The more mistakes you make.

The trick is to stop fighting. To do everything you can to go where Source is — and source is right there — waiving for you to come on over and be with It.

Become a master of asking and answering this simple question:

“What does Source think”?

The question is powerful. It leads directly to where Source is. It leads directly to what Source is doing.

When you think a thought that makes you happy, grateful, eager or loving; you are thinking just like Source. How good you feel shows you how well you are doing.

Think like Source long enough and you will see the evidence of what Source knows. Life begin to give you more and more joy- less stress, less fatigue and more good.

So your work is to appreciate, to love, to be grateful, to notice the things you enjoy. 

You constantly remind yourself of what you want and why you want it. You never ask how- because “how” isn’t your work — it’s Source’s job. “What” and “why” is your job — nothing else.

Here’s another way to pick a fight with Source; start asking “how”.

Do this now: Think of something big you really, really want to happen. Something major, something that would be a game changer.

Now think about “how” you will get it. Ask yourself “how” four or five times and really think about it. Try and come up with your own plan. Your own strategy.

Can’t you feel the stress? Can’t you feel the tension in the back of your neck around your eyebrows and face?

That stress is another sign that you’ve started a fight. You are arguing with Source over who’s job is who’s. When you try and steal someone else’s job it always causes stress. Especially if They are a lot bigger than you.

To master this work you must put your focus entirely on “what” you want and “why” you want it. Do not deviate from it. Put one foot in front of the other. 

“Easier said than done” you say.

It’s true; this is not easy. It’s a skill. 

This skill must be practiced. You’ve got to practice it thousands and thousands of times. Even when you master it you will lose balance sometimes.

But if you practice enough you will know it IS possible. 

You can get so good at this that even when you lose balance you will get it back. You will get back in balance so quickly you never completely fall. 

Stay on the rope long enough and you will cross.

“If one man can do it another can too”.

If one man can so refine and practice his thinking that he is able to walk a thin rope a thousand feet in the air- ANYTHING is possible.

The only difference between him and you…

 … is a lifetime of practice.

How To Tip Over Dead

How To Tip Over Dead

If they really knew me would they still follow?

I get scared..

Say stupid things.

Just like them.

They come to me seeking knowledge. They want me to tell them how to be free of their weakness. How to be fearless. How to stay focused.

But I screw up a lot.

If they knew how much would they still listen?

I tell them I wrote my book for me too. But I wonder if they believe me. They see the dojo, and hear about my accomplishments, then they put me on a pedestal.

It’s a pedestal of clay.

I’m just a guy that’s working on this stuff. I’ve still got my fears. My petty grievances. My addictions.

But I’m better today than I was ten years ago. Maybe I’ll keep getting better.

Maybe one day I’ll master all this stuff I teach. Right at the end of my life I’ll be perfect and at exactly that moment I’ll…

… know.

Until then I’m going to keep hacking away.

 — -

I remember way back in high school in a philosophy class a kid asked: “How do you know who you really are?”

The kids in that class thought I was stupid. They already knew who they were — so they said.

But I’m proud of where all the questions have taken me.

So maybe it’s all about just asking the question? Keep the questions going and keep getting a little better every week.

Maybe that’s the only difference between a Master and everyone else. The Master questions who he is. Works at it. Tries to find out. Tries to get figure things out.

Maybe everyone who keeps asking is the Master.

I don’t know. Maybe I never will.

Maybe one day I’ll understand all of it. Know who I am totally. Be fearless.

You’ll know when that happens.

Because that’s the day…

… I’ll stop writing.

And tip over dead.

"Why" You Should Never "How".

 

They say: "The answer is nothing - the question is all."

They're right.

The single hardest thing to accept is you will never know "how" any of it works.

There's an obvious reason you'll never know how life works. Life is not happening TO you - life IS you.

Asking "how" is like asking the eye to see itself. You will NEVER see your own eye directly. But if you try you might run into something!

How do the planets revolve around the sun? How do trillions of particles bind themselves together to form things we call objects and appear "real"?

How will you get the money for next months bills?

These are all the same question at their core. They can never be answered.

The reason they can't be answered is they are based on a false premise. The premise is that you are separate from the Universe. It's as if you think you are a VISITOR here.

When you start with a false premise the harder you try to figure it out the more you cut off the good that is your birthright. Then you start running into things!

You start over thinking, over planning, and over worrying. You forget to live the only place you can this very minute. You forget to live in the present.

"In the NOW there is no HOW!"

---

I don't know how things work but I do know this; the Universe does a pretty good job on its own. When we see ourselves as separate we start to try and control things, we try and manipulate things. In other words we muck things up!

I love the Richard Bach quote: "Imagine the Universe in all of it's perfection and no this... The Universe has already imagined itself better than you."

Leave the Universe alone and things will tend to work out for you. I promise.

Try to control it. Try and be in charge of it. Try and define it and there's a good chance you will miss all the perfection that's coming to you all the time.

Every time you ask yourself how you are going to do something you close yourself off to the endless possibilities. You block your ability to see opportunities. You create worry, fear, and a whole host of negative emotions.

Negative emotion always comes from the same place. It comes from loosing our connection with Source.

Negative emotion blocks our good.

---

People say to me: "I can't just lay around all day - I have to get out and get real work done!"

I say: "When you feel no negative emotion you will feel eager, excited, and work much harder!"

The difference is that when you feel positive you will be open to all the POSSIBILITIES that are being offered to you!

There is an old joke about a man in a flood. He's standing on the roof of us house as the water continues to rise.

A canoe comes by to pick him up and it's owner says: "Get in".

"No thank you - I'm waiting for God to save me" - says the man on the roof.

The water rises higher. This time a boat comes by. 

The captain of the boat says: "Get in."

"No - I'm a man of faith. God will save me." Says the man.

The water rises more.

Finally a helicopter hovers over head and throws down a ladder. 

"Climb onto the ladder" Calls out the pilot over the intercom.

"No" says the man. "I'm a man a faith - I believe in the power of God"

And so the water rises and drowns the man.

The man ends up in heaven and is standing in front of God.

"God" he says - "I've always been a man of faith. I trusted you; but you didn't save me. Why?"

God says in frustration: "Are you kidding... first I sent a canoe, then a boat, and finally a helicopter....!"

---

When you finally accept that you an never know how it takes the pressure off. You don't need to know how. Asking the question of "how" blocks you from seeing the fact that things are already happening.

The opportunities are all around you. Just shift the question.

Instead of asking "how" start asking "why".

Why does the sun come up? Why do the planets rotate? Why does my heart beat?

Why do I need to get up and work so hard for my family?

The answer has been the same for all eternity.

The answer is ...

Because of Love.

That's all for today.

... I've got a helicopter to catch!

Yin and Yang

Depression.

You don't know which way to go. Both choices suck. You feel trapped.

But you aren't trapped.

If only you knew the way out? 

But you DO  - you just needed someone to tell you the way. 

---

You're probably like me. You probably say: "I don't have a choice."

You see pain in both directions.

But here's what you need to know. One direction is a tiny bit LESS painful than the other. It's the LESS painful direction that will light your path out.

Because if you make the choice that's less painful you will be in a slightly different place. From that new place you can make another choice. Do the thing that hurts a little less.

Keep duplicating the process. Keep choosing what hurts the least.

Pretty soon you will notice that the choices you are making no longer hurt. You will notice that the choices you make might even feel good!

When that happens you are FREE!

But more than free - you now know how to never be trapped again!

---

I was so angry at the guy.

I wanted to punch him in the face!

... or I could curse him out!

Cursing felt better! (Whew - this system has already saved me from prison!)

OK - I'm going to tell him off now...

... or I could write a letter!

OK writing feels better.

So I can sit down to write that letter...

... or I can go for a walk.

The walk feels better. I'll walk

I can just walk...

.... or I can listen to some music while I walk.

... the music feels better!

And pretty soon I've got my mood back. That guy no longer has the power. I am the one that gets to choose.

---

So why don't we do follow our joy all the time? We think it's our problems that are pulling us back. But if we keep going back to the Yang we've given up our power.

I think we are simply out of practice.

Because throughout your life there have been many times were taught to force yourself to do things that made you feel worse. That's how we we're raised. 

We had to believe in someone else's god, follow someone else's rules, read what someone else wanted us to read.

We we're "good" boys and girls. They even gave us stars!

It wasn't their fault. They didn't know what society was doing to us. They were just doing the best job they knew how to help us turn out OK. (And end up just as powerless as they often felt).

But in helping us turn out OK they led us away from our joy. 

Because freedom and joy are the same thing.

So we gave up our own good feelings we gave up our power.

---

But it's not too late.

You can win the game of life back. You can feel better. You can really live again.

Now that you know what to do.

What will you do as soon as you finish reading this? I bet there is a choice slightly better than another.

You can get your power back. You can get back your joy.

Starting today.

Dodging Skunks!

We almost got sprayed!

He was the size of a large cat. In fact I thought he was a cat; but the way he was lumbering around it didn't look right.

Then I saw the white stripe.

Then I smelled him!

Had we been one minute earlier we would have been sprayed for sure.

He lumbered across the driveway and under the cover of the branches of the pine tree by the garage door.

No way to get to the car except by passing right by his hiding place.

---

We had to come up with a strategy. We waited a few minutes; then I told Sempai we would go on a count of three.

"One..."

"Two..."

............... "You go first!" I blurted out.

Then we both started to laugh. 

"OK" I said - "we're not sissies. Let's do this!"

We held hands and this time on "three" we raced as quickly and quietly as we could, hugging the opposite side of the drive, past the tree and into the garage!

Whew! We made it safe, sound, still smelling fine.

---

I got to thinking about the little beady eyed guy with the stripe. How much fun he had given us. What an adventure. What a memory.

Dealing with him was the best part of my day.

Funny thing was he WAS a threat. But we never hated him. We never wanted revenge. We never felt the need to turn others against him.

I started thinking about all the other "skunks" in my life. The people who are hard to get along with, those who have hidden agendas, those who are unfair.

They do have a couple things in common with the furry guy. Just like him they might be doing something that gives us trouble - even damages us - but just like him - they just don't care.

Get mad at a person who bothers you and the only one you hurt is you. Heck; most of the times people are so self absorbed they don't even notice you. Don't realize the harm they are doing.

But it's easy to forgive an animal. Harder with people.

---

But what if we looked at everyone the way we look at animals? Some animals are dangerous and need to be dealt with. The same with people. (That's why a lot of people learn martial arts).

But most of the troublesome people in our lives are not attackers. They are more like skunks. They are unaware of us. Unaware of how they might damage us.

Animals are easy to laugh at.

It would be nice if we could laugh at people the same way too.

What is it that makes us look at people so differently than animals? I'm not sure. Maybe it's something inside of each of us. Something we need to work on.

But wouldn't it be great if we didn't see our "enemies" villains?

Wouldn't it be great if we could see them as they really are.

Lumbering skunks with beady eyes. Hiding under a tree. Keeping us out of the garage.

Then even some our problems would stop being problems; the would be an ADVENTURE!

Some of our problems might even be the best part of our day.

Why I meditate... and you should too!

I had fallen off the toboggan and sliding fast. I couldn't see what was coming so I just grabbed onto my head, tucked my chin, and hoped for the best.

Finally I came to a stop just barely missing a couple of trees and a snow bank.

Man was I lucky!

---

When negative thought momentum starts we're not always so lucky. Sometimes we hit trees. Sometimes we hit things even worse.

Thought momentum works like this. You start with a thought (usually because of something you see) and then you repeat it in your mind. You repeat it again and again and something terrible can start to happen. Pretty soon the thought starts to repeat itself -  whether you like it or not!

When repeated, thought begins to take on a life of its own. You can't even stop it if you wanted.

You've been doing this all your life. The emotions you feel and the events you attract are nothing more than the momentum you've generated from many yesterdays. 

Since most of the thinking you do is based on what you are experiencing today you are caught in a loop. Negative thought brings negative results, negative results bring negative thoughts. Now you are in an out of control spiral.

You've got to find a way to stop negative momentum.

Because if you don't - you will crash!

---

The reason I meditate is it allows me to still my mind. When the mind is still momentum stops. When momentum stops I've created a space. In that space there is room for something new; something better.

When you meditate you don't even have to replace negative thoughts with good ones. All you have to do is stop the negative long enough. 

Stop negative momentum long enough and it looses it's power. With no negative momentum you will automatically start to feel good and entertain positive thought. Hold onto positive thought long enough and IT begins to generate momentum too. This is where real confidence comes from.

How do you know if you are meditating properly? How do you know if you are doing it long enough?

Here's what I do.

I wait.

I wait and notice the wandering of my mind.

Usually at first - during the first 10 minutes or so - my mind wanders back to the negative momentum I've created in the past. Negative worries, fears, resentments pop up.

When they do I simply turn my attention back to my breath. (I usually count my breaths)

But depending on the day as I continue to meditate and go back to the breathing at some point my mind begins to wander... but in a different direction.

When my mind wanders towards kindness, eagerness and fun I know I've gotten where I wanted.

I still treat this positive wandering like all wandering. I simply go back to the breath. (One of the worst things to do is to interrupt your meditation by trying to capture the good ideas that come up - they only are present because your mind is still. Trying to capture them is like trying to catch soap bubbles).

Sometimes I end up just feeling joy with no wandering thought. Sometimes I can hold this joy for long periods of time.

But when my negative momentum stops - and I begin to feel positive emotion I know I've meditated long enough. Then I only sit as long as it feels good.

As you meditate over several weeks you will notice life improves. You will notice many things that used to bother you simply go away. You will start to notice some of your goals coming to you naturally.

---

Positive emotion lets you know you've stopped negative momentum. 

When you've stopped negative momentum you won't have to worry about hitting trees!

Easter Egg Hunts

I remember the whole house smelled.

No one found the last egg!

Our tradition was to play the hotter/colder game until all the eggs were found. One got missed. (It was in the couch.)

---

The hotter/colder game is a great way to live life.

Life causes you to have desires. Those desires are held by the Universe, your unconscious, the Divine... whatever you want to call it.

Each time you make a choice the Universe will whisper to you...

... hotter, hotter, hotter....

or

... colder....colder............. still colder.

I've spent years in the cold... I'm an expert!

Except the Universe doesn't use the words "hot" or "cold". The Universe talks with feelings.

Good feelings equal "hotter". Bad feelings equal "colder".

Let's play right now.

Should I choose to hate?.... COLDER

Should I choose to love? ... HOTTER

Should I brag? .... COLDER

Should I complement? .... HOTTER

Should I eat a large order of fries?.... COLDER

Should I go for a run?.... HOTTER

But of course these are easy... the game is usually much more subtle. Because hotter and colder is always relative. For example if you are starving which would feel better? Eating a large order of fries or going for a run?

Hotter and Colder is always based on where you happen to be. But it doesn't matter where you are... the only thing that matters is your direction.

The thing to remember is the path that feels better is always the path to your goals.

As one of my favorite authors puts it:

"There are no happy endings at the end of unhappy stories."

So get out and start playing. Don't overlook a single clue.

Otherwise just like that egg left in the couch

... your life will start to stink!

Hard Work AND Mindset.

Four minutes that could change your results for the better!

For Information on my book click here.

Trump, Clinton and Fantasy Football

---

Trump, Clinton and Fantasy Football

They all looked at me weird.

A few looked angry.

Some thought I was for Trump. Others thought I was for Clinton.

… I was after wings and beer.

Smokey Bones had sent an email earlier in the day. “Come in tonight — eat the wings and enjoy the debate with us!” — It said.

I honestly had to think for a minute to remember who was running. But the idea of sitting at a bar — watching the Falcons and Saints on one TV — and listening to the debate on another sounded fun.

“I’m here to watch the debate like your email said.” I told the bartender.

She looked dumbfounded. “What email?”

“Never mind — Could you turn the volume up so I could hear it?”

“No- the volume doesn’t work on the TV” She said.

So there I sat — trying to read the captions while keeping an eye on football on the next TV and checking my Fantasy score.

I love fantasy football.

But what was weird was the feeling in the place. The huge dinosaur in the room. Everyone had a STRONG opinion of who should win- but everyone tried to HIDE it.

It was like watching Tiger Woods putt at the Masters. Some want it to go in, some don’t. — But everyone shuts up.

As for me — I don’t care if the ball goes in or not. I like to watch the game.

---

What I’m going to say is going to make people mad. Most of the people at the bar last night would be mad. You might even HATE me!

When I was a little boy I asked my Mom why there were so many orange cones on our road. 

“Honey” she said, “They always do this during the election years- it helps them get the votes.”

My Mom had some wisdom.

Ask any American voter if our leaders lie. The “yes” answers would be staggering. Ask them why they still vote and they say something like: “They ALL lie — I vote for who I think is lying the least.”

… Seriously?

How can you know who’s lying the least if someone is lying in the first place?

For nearly 50 years I watched politicians use half truths to mislead, tear up our infrastructure, crush small business, prop up there supporters with tax money and illegally disregard our constitution. (Of course they had lawyers who told them what they were doing WAS legal). — — In American it’s always legal if you pay enough.

Then they build statues of each other, all the while calling themselves: “public servants”. 

I think my definition of servant is different.

I’ve had enough.

I don’t vote. 

Voting is time I will never get back. 

It’s like the eighties movie “War Games”: “The only way to win is… NOT TO PLAY”.

The only change in the world that has any impact is the change you make in YOU. No one else is going to make things better.

Never have… never will.

It was unfair to ask any of them to do it for you. It’s unfair to think anyone will — or even could. Making the world better is YOUR job.

You make the world better by building a better you. Then you share some of your good with others. The whole world rejoices when you find your joy!

If you’re going to play in a world of fantasy I recommend football. 

…Go Bronco’s! … Dang that new quarterback looks good!

Because in football the players don’t hit each other nearly so hard.

Three Lies That Will Ruin Your Life

Our society allows for certain lies.

You can break any promise you make to others or yourself by using one of societies lies. These lies are used so often they are considered "norms".

As long as you are willing to use a "socially acceptable lie" you will never hold yourself accountable. You will fail. You will also hurt a lot of people in the process.

Keep your promises. No matter what.

No excuses.

Is Your “Why” Your Excuse?

I’m lying in bed. My throat is dry. I feel dehydrated.

I could really use a glass of water.

But I feel like I’m too dehydrated to get up. I’ll just close my eyes and go back to sleep.

We all do that.

We all use the reason we should do something as the reason NOT to do it.

I should get in shape first… then I can start working out.

I will pay off all these bills… then I can start saving.

I feel lonely… I’ll wait until I feel better before I go on a date.

But it never works like that.

We all make excuses. We’ve learned a strategy to avoid mistakes. We’ve learned how to put things off. The ultimate procrastination strategy is using what you want as the REASON to NOT get it.

Come up with a reason not to do something and you kill action before it’s born. Come up with enough reasons not to take action and you will die.

Less action equals atrophy.

Less action leads to no action.

No action leads to death.

It takes energy to create energy. It’s the tiny little actions that move you toward your goals. A tiny action now leads to another action and another. Each action compounds and grows. Pretty soon you are doing so much that people can’t understand how you could get so much done. How can you be so healthy? How can you be doing so well financially? How can you be in so many good relationships?

Then people judge the energy you’ve created based on the zero energy they are stuck in. They say: “Sure it’s easy for you… look at the kind of shape you’re in.” Or: “Of course you can do it; look at all the money you’ve got.”

But the avalanche always starts as a snowball. You don’t need to be an avalanche. Just be a snowball that rolls a little. Roll a little and watch what happens.

Things don’t improve on their own. Leave them alone and they get worse.

You don’t have to water the weeds. You don’t have to work to get fat. It takes zero effort to destroy a relationship.

Do nothing long enough and you will want to kill yourself. Wanting to kill yourself is your bodies way of telling you you are ALREADY killing yourself. You kill yourself a little at a time every time you decide not to take action.

Start now.

A year ago I didn’t want to write. I didn’t like writing because I sucked at it.

But I wrote anyway.

Today I suck less.

And you just read my 50th post.

Don't Grow Old. Grow Interesting.

Every week I was embarrassed.

The outfield kept moving in every time I got to bat.

They knew I couldn’t hit the ball far.

We used to play baseball every Friday after school. A bunch of us would get together in the field behind our church school.

I was uncoordinated. Not a good batter. I wanted to quit.

Instead I practiced.

I took a bat and went down to a river bed and started practicing with rocks. I’d pick up a rock, toss it in the air, and practice hitting it.

Over and over again. Thousands of times.

The next time we played I hit a triple to win the game.

---

I used to be scared of heights.

Until I went up the ladder enough times.

After a month of being on the roof I was no longer afraid. Haven’t been afraid of ledges ever since.

---

The key to overcoming fear is practice. You practice doing exactly what you don’t want to do. Find something that’s just out of your comfort zone. Do it over and over again.

If it’s really outside your comfort zone you won’t want to do it. Do it anyway.

Every time you do something outside your comfort zone you stretch. You expand.

Comfort zones never stay the same. They either get bigger or smaller. Ever notice old people only come in two varieties? — OLD or INTERESTING.

OLD people keep doing the same things. They try and maintain status quo. But they get more lonely and more scared because they keep losing things.

Time always takes. If you let time take too much, without adding new things back to your life, you grow old.

It’s your job to ADD things. Every time you stretch your comfort zone you just added something.

If you add more to your life than you lose you will never grow old.

Don’t grow old. Grow interesting.

---

I wanted to quit playing baseball. But then I would never have hit a triple.

I wanted to stay away from the roof. But then I’d still be afraid of heights.

I want to make my posts perfect.

But then I wouldn’t get this one published today…

… and you wouldn’t get to read it.

---

Joseph Hurtsellers is an Author, Speaker and Professional Martial Arts Teacher. To get more information about Joe and his book “Break The Chain” please visit:http://www.ohiomartialarts.com/sensei-joseph-hurtsellers/

How To Find Your Perfect Guru.

 

I’m afraid.

I’m afraid if you read this and know who I am you won’t listen. You’ll want to find a teacher who isn’t scared. Someone who’s enlightened.

I’ve had many teachers, gurus, and masters.

There were no perfect teachers. The closer I got to any of them the more I realized they struggled just like me. But even with their imperfection I learned so much. I’m eternally grateful.

But maybe I’m just unlucky. Maybe the perfect teacher is out there somewhere? Maybe there is such a thing as “enlightenment”? I don’t know. 

I think it’s more likely that each teacher has “enlightened moments”. Those are the moments where time stops and you see the magic. Moments of unconditional love.

I’ve had those moments, you’ve had them too. We all do.

Some teacher have more of those moments than others. Maybe there are a few that live that way all the time. So far I haven’t found any.

But if I wait to find a teacher who’s perfect before I work on myself I might wait forever. I might never get rid of the fear.

Instead I choose to read. Books are my best teachers.

Books never get afraid and they never get angry. Good books always live in those magical moments. 

And today I’m less angry and afraid than I was yesterday. My teachers of paper and ink must be helping me.

My Kung Fu Teacher (Sifu Robert Brown) says: “The Guru should always live two villages away from the disciple.”

I think that’s true.

Books always live at a distance. When you find a good one you can feel the enlightenment of the author pouring through the pages. Books are good when they are written from a good place. Paper can preserver the love.

I wrote a book.

I wrote most of it when I was experiencing those “enlightened moments”. It is the best of who I am sometimes but not enough. The me who I am when I let go of fear.

The book I wrote stays on the nightstand. I keep it close so I can read it when I’m angry or afraid. 

I read it when I’ve forgotten how to love.

I’m trying my best to be more like the author.

Joseph Hurtsellers is an Author, Speaker and Professional Martial Arts Teacher. To get more information about Joe and his book “Break The Chain” please visit: http://www.ohiomartialarts.com/sensei-joseph-hurtsellers/

How To Rule In Hell

 

Whoever said: “It’s better to rule in hell than serve in heaven” lied.

You rule when you lead others to a larger purpose. Leadership happens when you find your purpose and use it to serve others.

Here’s some thoughts on how to find your purpose and lead.

Know your purpose.

To lead you need to know your purpose. People ask how to choose their purpose. Few know how because it’s a bad question. Purpose is not something you choose. It’s something you FIND. You find your purpose through taking action.

Last week I talked to a man who was interested in studying martial arts. I knew I could help him.

He had been thinking of practicing for over 20 years. He was 20lbs over weight, out of shape, and really needed to start. But he didn’t do even one workout.

His reason?  He was looking for a very specific style (Capoeira). No one in our area teaches that style; so he decided to wait.

Here’s what I told him. “Spend ten years practicing here with me. At the end of ten years you will have such great basics you can practice any style (including Capoeira) and excel.”

He didn’t like that answer. Few do.

Your life mission is not something you choose. It’s something you find. Just pick something and begin. You can adjust it along the way.

Leaders do what they love.

Look at your life and you will notice there has always been things close to you. For Elon Musk it was comic books, science fiction and computer games.

What do all three of these have in common? One common theme.

“To save the world!”

Anyone who works for one of Musk’s companies knows this is the underlying theme behind all the technology.

It doesn't matter how bold or impossible a mission sounds. All that matters is you choose something you love and get to work.

Finding your vision is a little like throwing a dart at a wall of balloons. You don’t know which balloon is going to pop. But you do need to hit the wall.

The things you love doing is the wall. Start throwing darts at it and the specifics will begin to reveal themselves along the way.

Leaders show up.

You show up by choosing to take action rather than waiting for exactly the right action. You will know the right actions to take because they will always feel an urge to procrastinate. The urge to procrastinate is only a sign that this is where you need to grow.

Accept the coffee date. Take the waitress job. Sign up for martial arts.

Don’t wait for the right guy to go out on a date. Don’t wait for the right job. Start exercising NOW.

Sometimes Mr. Wrong will introduce you to Mr. Right. Employers hate hiring unemployed people. And even the wrong workout will add years to your life.

Leaders do their best.

Do the best you can at whatever you do.

Someone said: “Better to rule in hell than to serve in heaven.”

But you only get to rule when you serve. Serve others (even if you're in hell) and they will put you in charge of the place. After you're in charge you can install the air conditioning!

Hell is only the place we go to remind us we could have done better. Do better wherever you’re at.

---

What to do if you find yourself in hell.

If you find yourself seeing the fire of hell don’t run away. The leader runs TOWARD the fire. Make the best of where you're at and right the ship for everyone else. The flames of hell are fueled by procrastination.

The leader serves wherever he finds himself.

That’s why they put him in charge.

Joseph Hurtsellers is an Author and Professional Martial Arts Teacher. To get more information about Joe and his book “Break The Chain” please visit: http://www.ohiomartialarts.com/sensei-joseph-hurtsellers/

Vision

An Admiral said:

“You can always tell the leaders from the followers when there is a fire. The followers run away from the flame. The leaders run toward it.”

It’s true.

But it’s not just that the leader runs toward the fire. He runs toward the fire for a reason. He knows WHY it’s important to put the fire out. He has vision.

That’s the thing about the leader. He knows WHY he’s doing what he’s doing on a deeper level than everyone else. It’s the depth of the mission that makes the leader.

I’ve heard it said that if your “why” is strong enough the “how” takes care of itself.

That’s also true.

---

Their is a company in Mountain View California called Google. It was founded by Larry Paige

What was Paige’s mission? “To make the world's information universally usable and accessible.”

Before Google people looked at the internet as some kind of glorified billboard. The internet was mostly a place for professors and marketers.

But Google changed all that and improved every area of our lives.

Paige not only showed up; he knew WHY he was showing up.

---

The largest building in the world is under construction in Nevada.

They call it the Gigafactory.

It will be the manufacturing site of Tesla.

What’s Elon Musk’s mission?

“To save the world!” (Missions can sometimes be crazy bold).

Today every automobile maker has been forced to take the electric car seriously.

Musk’s model S is recognized as the “Best Car In The World” of ANY kind by Consumer Reports.

ALL manufacturers are now in full throttle catch up mode. It might be too late for some of them.

… and it may sound crazy but...

… you are paying only 2.00 at the pump today because of this massive threat.

Electric cars will be ubiquitous in 20 years.

Because of the “why” of one man.

---

Vision does not have to be earth changing. Sometimes vision happens on a small scale.

But even a small vision can be life changing; one life at a time. Even for relatively few.

---

There is a dojo near Toledo Ohio.

The students practice hard not for belts or trophies. But because they realize the value practice has in their everyday lives. They are united by the same mission:

“To use martial arts as a tool to raise a student's vibration and therefore help them attract more of the things they want in life.”

The students see martial arts as a tool to help them unlock the power of their mind.

The guy that runs the place writes about it regularly.

So far it’s working out.

Why Hot Dogs Will Make You Poor!

I HAD to try them.

Burger King now has hot dogs!

Living in Toledo you learn to appreciate the fine dining that hot dogs provide. Some people think of us as Jeep’s world headquarters. Others call us the Glass City.

But when you live here long enough you will learn the truth.

Toledo is really a “Hot Dog” town.

Almost every street has a hot dog place of some kind. Our most famous restaurant is a hot dog restaurant. They say it’s a Hungarian thing, I’m not sure.

I've never really quite gotten it. Isn’t the hot dog the easiest food to prepare ever? I can see going out for seafood, or Italian, or even Mexican.

… But hot dogs?

Who are all the Toledoans that need to be saved from the tedious work of slaving over a hot stove to prepare hot dogs?

Anyway.

I’m sure the entire city was on the edge of excitement. Anxiously awaiting the epic event.

After all Burger King claims to be the KING of the burger. Could they possibly dethrone Tony Paco’s as king of the hot dog? The battle could be EPIC!

Anxiously I waited in line at a BK. A slow line.

Actually it wasn’t a line.

I was standing at the counter by myself. It just took a long time for the girl to acknowledge me.

“Two chili dogs please.” (I figured what the heck - I’d splurge and go all the way and add Chili too).

“… and ... an order of large fries.”

“Huhuu… she said.” I began my anticipatory wait, already salivating.

As I waited I looked around. Who were the people in this place? They looked like extras from a zombie movie.

A strange silence in the restaurant. The musac wasn’t working. All I could hear was the ceiling fan that needed balancing:  

“whirr, click click click, whirr click click click”

The place was filled with people who looked down on their luck. Old, ragged, frowning people. Sitting by themselves. Even the couples that were sitting together were STILL sitting by themselves.

One guy had a four footed walking cane. Somebody else had an oxygen tank. A few had coupons on their tables.

Oh well; maybe not my crowd but who knows?

I waited for another five minutes. Man these hot dogs HAD to be good! Flame broiled and all like the sign said.

Finally the much awaited moment: “Here ya go” - she said as she slid the tray toward me.

I sat, anxiously opening the wrapping.

There they were.

… Hot dogs.

… Just hot dogs?

Not bad mind you, but nothing special either; regular hot dogs.

I was in shock.

“whirr, click click click, whirr click click click”

I looked around confused. That’s it? Just hot dogs?

Like the same kind you get in a cafeteria? The kind you throw on the stove at home. The kind you can poke holes in with a fork and pop in the microwave if you’re really lazy.

After that experience I wandered around for hours like a victim.

Life as I knew it had come crashing down.

---

It took me days to recover. I thought I might never eat out again.

But recover I did.

I finally got up the courage to try something new again. I had an errand to run at Meijers and noticed the sign for “Five Guys” across the street. I decided to give them a try.

I walked in the front door and immediately noticed the great music. Vintage rock; something by Chuck Berry I think.

Stacks of free salted peanuts lined the walls.

I go up to the counter and before I can say a word the guy says: “Welcome to Five Guy’s what can I get you?”

I say: “I’ve never been here before. What do you recommend?”

He says: “You’ve got to get a hamburg-ER” (I like the way he said “hamburgER”. For some reason people at our cheap places say “hamburg” dropping the ER. They say it's a Detroit thing. I'm not sure.

But to me dropping the “ER” feels almost like they are being stingy. They don’t want to throw in the extra syllables. -  (At least not without an up charge).

But not the guy from Five Guys. If he could have he would have ADDED syllables. Maybe offer me a“hamburger-ER-ER-ER”. - I know he wanted to.

Instead he offered advice.

His voice dropped as he said: “I have to warn you…

“... This might be your first time here…  but it WON’T be your last.”

I asked what toppings were included?

“All of these toppings are FREE”. He said. (There were a bunch.)

“What size fries should I get”?

He said: “Get the small. It will feed two or three people.”

I grabbed a basket of peanuts. He zipped around the counter and wiped down a table for me.

After a few minutes the pickup guy shouted: “95!” - he hands me my bag.

It was so stuffed with fries it looks like an erupting volcano. Underneath all the greasy goodness was my loaded burger smothered with toppings.

Then he handed me a stack of napkins an inch thick.

I needed most of them.

Five Guys was fantastic. The music. The atmosphere. The service. The whole thing.

---

Will I go back to Burger King? - No.

Will I go back to Five Guys? - 1,000% yes!

But it wasn’t the food that made the experiences so different.

Burger King made me feel POOR.

Five Guys made me feel RICH.

Everything at Burger King was based on lack. Napkin holders were the kind that only allow you to only pull out one at a time. Salt and pepper came in those cheap tiny thumb sized packs. Store updates were badly needed.

Worse still, BK was clearly keeping labor costs low!

But Burger King was spending money. They were spending on ADVERTISING. They were sending out LOT’S of full color coupons for all the coupon clippers and bargain hunters.

It’s a terrible thing to see the spiral of poverty.

Don’t they know? Spending does not create abundance. Abundance is only created by GIVING.

Everything about BK was wrong.

It spoke of lack. You could also see it in the kind of customer they were attracting. I’m embarrassed to say that the only reason I could have been there is I must still have of some of that lack inside of me too.

It makes sense that they started selling hot dogs. Burger King has a “hot dog” mindset. “Offer the cheap thing and cheap people will buy it”.

But Five Guys sings the song of the Universe. I can hear Chuck Berry rockin out the chorus: “Give, give give. Give more and you’ll get more”!

---

Dump Burger King stock. Buy Five Guys.

Don’t live your life like Burger King. BE Five Guys!

Give more than what people expect. Give more than people give to you. Give in ways that don’t cost money. Give in ways that sometimes do.

How do you know if your spending or giving? EVERY TIME YOU GIVE IT WILL FEEL GOOD. Every time you spend it will feel bad. It’s just that simple.

Spending causes you to lose money. Giving makes you money. Give your time, your attention, your gratitude.

The more you give the more you get. That’s the way it works.

It’s like the loaves and the fishes. If the Master were doing his sermon today instead of fishes and loaves he’d be passing out fries and burgers.

And every fry and every burger would be from Five Guys!

An ancient text says: “To he who has more shall be given; to he who has not even that little bit he has shall be taken away.”

Now I’m going to end this post.

I’ve got people I need to give more to. Calls to make and thank yous that need to be spoken.

I also need to go for a run.  

I’ve got a few pounds to lose.