MY GOAL IS BLACK BELT

By: Sammy Pejo

One day I was standing at the front desk of the dojang and the carpet guy came in to do some measurements. As he finished, he started asking questions about our school. Recognizing the opportunity in front of me, I asked the standard question “Have you ever thought about training in the Martial Arts?” and he replied, “Hasn’t everyone?”

This got me thinking about how cool the image of Martial Arts was when I was a kid, and how it still holds true today. The physical ability required to perform the techniques at a high level needs to be developed through years of dedicated training. Like an expert in anything, the phrase “They make it look so easy” is a tremendous compliment that recognizes the previous hard work. But then many people see these high-level Martial Artists and they say, “That’s cool, but I can’t do that!”

This is one situation where we can apply my previous article about Goal Setting by being crystal clear about this goal. In the beginning, the goal of earning a black belt is every student’s dream. Often, they don’t know what is involved in such an achievement, and many schools have different requirements for black belt. But the understanding of the standard of excellence that a black belt holds is universal.

There is much more than kicking and punching required to become a black belt. Many dojangs these days are focusing just as much on the character development of their students. For children and adults alike, this usually encompasses developing respect, discipline, self-confidence, physical fitness and self-defense. I have had many students who are mothers tell me that one of the biggest benefits they found from their training (in addition to being able to train with their family) has been the feeling that they are more centered in their lives.

Of course, every student will have their own Taekwondo journey to black belt, and many will have different goals as they progress through the ranks. And at the end of the day, I remind my students that the secrete to becoming a black belt is simple: come to class, learn your curriculum, take your promotion test, and repeat until you achieve your goal of black belt. Now, everyone understands that simple does not equal easy. In fact, we make our black belt test difficult on purpose (and we are up front about this to our new students) because if was easy, it wouldn’t mean much. And each student finds their own challenges throughout their journey whether it be physical, mental or emotional, and overcomes those challenges to reach their goal. And this is how black belts achieve success.

Earning your black belt is an amazing accomplishment. However, once you achieve it, you will realize that it is simply the beginning of your Taekwondo journey. You understand that there is much more to learn from the Martial Arts, and it very well may become a life-long journey. But as the saying goes, “It is not the destination, but the journey.”