I think one of the major reasons why parents are so excited to get their kids enrolled into a martial arts practice is specifically because it does instill a level of discipline and focus that may be absent in other aspects of their life. I think what’s great about it is that they have a role model, an instructor, someone to look up to, to perhaps teach them some life lessons that their parents, of course, would already try to teach them, but coming from an external source or someone that they can revere and respect for other reasons.
It’s very easy to get distracted in in schoo and a lot of students have trouble with their attention span. And I think we’re seeing that more and more in modern society with social media and things like that. Accounts like YouTube and Twitter and of course Tik Tok, where there are 30 to 40 second videos and a very short attention span.
With a martial art, you’re required not only to train your physical abilities, but to focus your mind and channel your energy even when doing really difficult or really challenging exercises. I think that’s one of the most wonderful things about the practice, is that you can grow independently of other students, so it can be a very self-focused practice, but also it can involve a lot of teamwork as well.