If you are going to pursue any kind of martial arts -- whether it be in the classroom, at a seminar or even in a home study course -- then I want to warn you about what I call the "open mind police." These are people who teach martial arts and make it a point to go on and on and on about "keeping an open mind" when, in reality, it's the last thing they do themselves. And make no mistake, these people are extremely dangerous. Why? Because in their classes and in their writings these people will always preach hard about keeping an open mind and rail about not being prejudice with other arts. Only problem is, if you talk to them one on one, review the last five years of their training, or creep inside their inner thoughts, you'll find the exact opposite. You'll find they pay lip service to having an open mind but will pathologically cling to their traditions and rarely ever look at anything else in any kind of depth. And that's a big mistake. A big, big, BIG mistake. A mistake that can even cost lives. Because as Bruce Lee discovered 30 years ago -- while dissecting dozens of the most combative martial arts in the world -- the only way to be able to adapt and deal with any violent situation that can happen in real life, you have to borrow and use whatever works. Whether it's "mainstream" or not...whether it's "accepted" by your peers or not...and whether it goes against "tradition" or not. Why am I telling you this? Because, as you learn more about fighting, here and anywhere else you seek knowledge from, you will be tempted to shut out certain skills, tactics and techniques if they don't fit in with what you've previously learned. Please never do that. Always consider everything. Try to work new moves and ideas in to what you know. If you find it doesn't fit or work, then discard it. But if it does work, then by all means, use it! In other words...REALLY do have an open mind. It can make all the difference in the world should you ever find your back to the wall on the street some day. |
