How to Avoid a Fight

Video Transcript

"Hi everybody I'm John Graden from The Martial Arts Teacher's Association. You know I've been doing martial arts since 1974 and I've seen a lot of variations and approaches to the marital arts. One of the key lessons that I think is so important, especially for me, as a teacher of teachers I want to convey to you how to avoid a fight, how to stay out of a fight. Sometimes you are attacked, sometimes you are just in a situation where you have got to defend yourself and martial arts gives you those tools to pull the trigger if you have to but most of the time you want to avoid it as best as possible. James Coburn, the great actor, who is also a student of Bruce Lee said the best way to avoid a fight is to avoid places where ego and alcohol are mixed and I always thought that was really good advice. Here is how you avoid a fight and it really starts in your mind it really starts with your sense of self confidence, the confidence you have gained in martial arts. One of the great lessons in life that you can learn to help you to make decisions is short term pain for long term gain or short term gain for long term pain, what do I mean? If you're in a situation where someone is verbally harassing you or in some way insulting you, you've got to make a decision. Do I want the short term gain of taking this guy out for the long term pain of possibly being sued, maybe seriously hurting this person, going to jail, or getting yourself smashed or all the above? So it is a short term gain for your ego for the long term pain that comes with that kind of activity, the karma of that kind of activity. So here is my mindset. A true martial artist, someone who is truly confident in themselves, has a quiet ego. I have a massive ego but I keep it quiet. Something as trivial as being insulted or my manlihood being insulted, my ego is so strong that it cannot be penetrated with that kind of talk so I take the short term pain of putting up with it and leaving for the long term gain of knowing that I'm moving forward with my life. I'm doing positive things in my life and that's the message that I want to convey to you, all my students as a martial artist. That is the message that I want you to take as the real message of martial arts. I'm John Graden. For more information contact me at johngraden.com. Thanks."