Red J

Here are some tips that have helped me over the years when speaking to groups. 1. Be prepared. Know what you are going to talk about. Try not to speak about things that you don't know. 2. Speak slowly and clearly. Most people, when nervous, tend to talk quickly. Remember to pause and to breathe. This will also give you time to allow your thoughts to keep up with your mouth. 3. If this is a new experience, keep it short, sweet, and to the point. This will help your confidence. Small successes lead to bigger successes. 4. Look around the room. Try to look just over the heads of people as looking into their eyes can sometimes be distracting. 5. Be yourself. Trying to be someone you are not can lead to disaster. People enjoy sincerity. Smiling is also nice and can avoid that deer in the headlights look. I hope this helps. It gets easier and more natural the more you get up there and do it. Good luck.

Why don't you watch a few classes and pick one to join. In my opinion either is a good place to start. See how it goes and if you are so inclined join the other class. BTW welcome to the forum and to MA.

Patrick, thanks for finding my post. I was wondering what happened to it.

Just a thought...if the school is so successful, then why is he looking to franchise? Why doesn't he make it a branch and pay you to manage it? In a franchise arrangement, you are incurring the risk and start-up fees (and the rewards if you make it). My other thought is how much will this agreement cost you? Can you do it on your own for considerably less? I would weigh the financial part of this carefully before signing on the dotted line.

If the instructor teaches and acts reasonably, then chances are that they would not be held liable, or even named in a suit. Having school rules, contracts that are signed by students (parents if a student is a minor), and discussions about when to use self defense all show that the instructor is being responsible. Futhermore, techniques need to be age appropriate and advanced techniques should be taught commensurate with ability. I think that most dojos use common sense and teach responsibly because they want students to be a positive reflection of their school and it is the ethical thing to do.

Welcome to the Forum!

Welcome to the boards!

How about a Radiantly Esteemed Daredevil who Jokes.

This looks like trouble....

My advice is to be patient and to have a good time. Incorporate stretching into your daily routine and put good effort into your practice. Nothing worthwhile comes overnight, except maybe the lottery. Come on lottery.....

So are they saying that a punch is just as effective from a weak person as it is from a strong person with all ability being equal? I believe that great form comined with strength is a good combination to have. I wouldn't say the masters are not in good physical shape. I believe that in order to achieve that level you have to be in excellent shape. What I meant by the masters...well they were the masters... was that I don't really know what they did for their training...but I have a suspicion that their training had a strength component to it. Strength training is not always going to a gym and pushing weights , in fact most of it can be done in the dojo. You are doing strength training at every lesson. Have you done pushups, deep stances, repetitive punches, holding kicks, etc.? These all play a part. And yes strength with focus would give you a stronger punch. Now there is a point of diminishing returns with strength, but the general idea is that strength should be in the equation.

Welcome and enjoy!

I agree with Jack. Pull-ups are one of the few exercises that you are using all of your body weight as resistance. You may do well with more recovery time.

Well done, Bon.

Welcome!

I saw them last year, and they cranked. You got a real bonus with Plant as the opener!

Great list three60roundhouse, I love the WHO! Let's also add in the Doors, Boston, Aerosmith, Jefferson Airplane, Steve Miller, CCR, and I can't forget the Police.

Bon, you did more than you needed to. If you really wanted to be nasty you wouldn't have talked to him in the first place. You obviously have his number and you don't owe him anything. I think that you went out of your way to give him the name of the school, times and phone number. Perhaps he will join and take advantage of MA. Next time he tries to pin you down, remember sometimes less is best. If you want to keep the private deal private, then by not mentioning it would have avoided that situation. I think that you were trying to be polite and he surprised you. Don't sweat it!

I wonder if these two jokers that sued only use gold because American money says "In God We Trust". Seriously the bow, in my dojo, is in respect, not in worship. I know the difference. The court made the right decision in making them bow to participate because the bow does not infringe on their rights. Now if they had to say a prayer, that is another story.

Bding, ding, ding, Bdong, dong, dong, dong...

I think form and strength is a great combination to have. Now form without strength has its limits as does strength without form. When the two are combined you are maximizing potential. Case in point outside of karate...Tiger Woods changed the face of golf with his strength training and his fabulous technique. Before he came along very few players were strength training. Now it's what you have to do to become competitive. You can see this in all professional sports as a trainer is a regular part of the team. Applying this to karate, I would say that to perform at your peak, you must be in top physical condition and have great form or technique. So I would recommend a balanced approach. Now the masters....well they were the masters.

Check out these two sites that cover the Shoalin animals of Tiger, Leopard, Crane, Snake, and Dragon. Both sites are very informative and can probably give you what you are looking for. Hey, my first Karate Forum link! http://www.cyberus.ca/~badger/animals.htm http://www.shaolin.com.au/animal.html

I like the "End Zone" name. What is the reason behind this name?

Tiger and Leopard are two distinctly different styles with the Tiger focusing on strength and crushing blows going through the opponent and the Leopard using agility and multiple strikes. There is a lot more to it than just this generalization.

I really lost interest after the last stike. These guys are way overpaid. No wonder it costs an arm and a leg for a hot dog and a drink. The whole spirit of the game is lost when money is the prime focus...