I challenge you to keep an open mind

Recently I found out about a seminar that is being held in Lakewood by Mr. Roy Miller. WOW! He's coming to Colorado and teaching a seminar right in my town! How cool!?!? So I have been sharing this information with my friends in hopes of trying to get them to come with me. Two of my good friends from Kempo have expressed  interest.

However, when I brought it up after class last night, no one even blinked an eye. No one asked questions. No one cared. Everyone just got up and left.

Seriously?

As a martial artist, shouldn't you be looking for ways to improve, to learn more, and to try new things? This was kind of shocking to me. Don't ever presume that your school or dojo covers everything you will ever need to know or you are too good to learn from someone or something outside your normal circle of interactions. Everyone has something to teach.

I challenge all of you to keep an open mind when it comes to MA. (And life in general) Try new things. Step outside your comfort zone every once in a while. Go to a seminar. Read a book about martial arts. Visit a new dojo to see how they do things or try a different style. Talk to someone and see what their opinion is. Challenge yourself to try looking at things from someone else's perspective for once, and do so objectively without getting defensive or being judgmental. Try to learn something new or challenge yourself to learn even just one thing about a subject you know nothing about every once in a while.

I have a good friend that is always saying to me "Once the mind has been stretched, it can never return to its original size."

Keep an open mind. Don't lose your curiosity. Never stop asking questions.


Links!
Lakewood Seminar Information
Mr. Miller's blog