The Kick In The Head That Inspired STRESS JUDO 2010-01-24 I had been going to a particular karate dojo (school) for about 1-1/2 years before I applied for, and was accepted to, law school. The school emphasized hard sparring. As in full-contact seeing-stars kind of full contact, not the point contact that some schools use. So, when I told everyone there I was going to law school, they were all pretty excited.
My last day at the school, the sensei (head teacher) calls me out by name for the sparring session. Now, let me describe my sensei. He is about 8" taller than me, outweighed me by 50-60 lbs, had 20 years of experience on me, and moved like a cat. He said "go" and came at me harder than he ever had! UH-OH. HERE IT COMES.
Hook kicks to the sides of my head. Leg trips. Arm bars, choke holds, elbows. Hip tosses, shoulder tosses. jabs and crosses. I was reeling. It was all I could do to try to cover up, and throw an occassional jab or kick to keep him off me. But he was relentless, pushing forward. And the whole time (it was 5 minutes that felt like forever), I was trying to control my emotions. Not panic. See what he was doing and find a counter.
Finally, it stopped. I was exhausted. Getting hit is much more tiring than hitting! Oh, no - it didn't stop. He motioned to his chief black belt - pointed to me - and said "Next!" And so began 5 more minutes of an assault. I was blocking - or trying to block - kicks, punches, throws, elbows. This school taught karate, judo, akido, jujitsu, muay thai. So I am defending against many techniques. I could feel panic at the edges of my mind on several occassions, but I basically willed myself to keep fighting. Okay, so now it's over. I went to unstrap my gloves, and my sensei stepped in front of me. ":Next!" And it went on for 5 more minutes! By now, I was pretty much all defense. I tried to dodge or block what was being thrown at me. If I saw an opening, I levelled a kick or punch, but they were becoming increasinngly ineffective. But I stayed standing to the end. AND FOR SURVIVING, I DIDN'T EVEN GET A COOKIE.
Finally, the sensei called "Matte!" That's "End!" in Japanese. He slapped me on my back, with a broad smile on his face, and congratulated me. I asked what for - and he said "for not quitting. For fighting to the end."
He then explained that he had basically given me a "stress test" - putting me under maximum pressure to see how I reacted. And I reacted by staying focused, by drawing on my experience adn skill, and by not panicking or quitting. SO HOW DOES THIS WORK IN THE REAL WORLD?
So, fast forward to 1st year law school. The professors put tremendous pressure on students, and basically try to trip adn trap them. I was being qquestioned by a professor who had a reputation for making students cry! And the more he pushed me, and asked his tricky questions, and use sarcasm and contempt and dismissal in his voice - the more I hung in there. Afterwords, several friends asked me how I did it.
And I told them the story above and said "After you've been kicked in the head by a 250 lb black belt, a few questions from a law professor ain't nothing!" AND THIS AFFECTS ME HOW?
After I graduated, I began practice as a trial attorney. And I realized that I used the same skills to handle the stress of trial, and the stress of managing law offices and law departments, as I had used that day, getting kicked in the head. And, being the analytical sort, I broke down those skills into 12 components. The 12 modules - in 6 belt levels - of STRESS JUDO.
And that is how STRESS JUDO was created. The 12 components of handling stress - whether it's the stress of beign attacked physically, or the stress of combat of wills in a courtroom, or the stress of a relationship . PICTURE YOUR LIFE WHEN STRESS IS NOT A CONCERN AND WHERE YOU ARE
THE LEADER IN STRESSFUL SITUATIONS. To see exactly how you can do this, go to What to do to relieve stress. STRESS JUDO was developed by Rick Carter, a trial lawyer and martial artist. The courtroom has emotional and intellectual stress, and the dojo and fight ring has physical and psychological stress. It was to handle these stresses that STRESS JUDO was developed, to give you a fighting chance against stress, to turn stressful situations into opportunities. 0 Responses to "The Kick In The Head That Inspired STRESS JUDO"Leave a reply | Author
Rick Carter is a Christian, father, husband, lawyer, and martial artist, who developed STRESS JUDO to help people turn the stress in their lives into opportunities.
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