“If you believe in yourself and have dedication and pride – and never quit – you’ll be a winner. The price of victory is high but so are the rewards.” Bear Bryant
Setting and achieving high goals for one self is the first tenant of Han Mu Do. The first long term goal that you have when you start is to achieve the rank of Black Belt. Setting long term goals is important. The problem we see with long term goals is people loose the drive to finish or get lost in the work required to achieve their goal. We see this every year with new years resolutions.
Short term goals can help you achieve your long term goals by giving you small victories along the way. The first short term goal in Han Mu Do is to learn your first sets of techniques and test for yellow belt. Small goals such as passing rank testings give you moral boosts and break down large long term goals into manageable/ attainable goals.
This same practice can be applied to most goals. Weight loss, studying, and large projects can all be broken down into small goals that will add up to achieving a long term goal. I use check lists everyday to help myself keep on track and give myself a feeling of completion. I set goals for the day, week, and year. If I don't complete my list that day it rolls over to the next. If I keep pushing a goal back through the week, I will reassess and see if that goal is still has relevance on my list.
Missing goals is going to happen. It is important to pay attention to missed goals and figure out what went wrong. In martial arts we have testings that give you direct feedback into why you succeeded or failed. We don't always get that in everyday life so it is important to look back and take note of failures but not linger on them. This is a big problem with weight loss. If your goal is to loose a pound a week you have to understand that you will hit plateaus and miss weekly goals. This does not mean that you have missed your long term goal.
Learning to have small goals that are leading to a long term goal help you to keep your spirit up, stay on course and give you a way to get back on track when you fall off. You will loose your way, slip up, and get down on yourself. Perseverance is an important trait that will help lead you to completing your goals.
This picture was taken after testing for my Black Belt. Passing this testing was a goal I worked toward for almost 6 years. I traveled to Baton Rouge, LA from Nashville to test at Dr. Kimm's original Baton Rouge school. Testing was stressful and very physically demanding, but the reward was a great feeling of completion. I now have new long term goals to complete and things to learn.
Alway Learning,
Justin Martin
