Thread: Off-the-Mat
View Single Post
Old 12-31-2007, 11:10 AM   #1
Rick Berry
Dojo: Kokikai Wilmington Dojo
Location: Wilmington, Delaware
Join Date: Dec 2007
Posts: 15
United_States
Offline
Re: "Off-The-Mat" Forum

When I'm "Off the mat," commentary can (should) be used the same way as technique as far as I'm concerned. Here is small example. An interesting situation came about as I was in the locker room at the local YMCA. My senior student and I had just finished working out and we were holding an animated conversation on the problems of some students in the dojo. the discussion went like this: "While a few students' listening skills are lacking, some require the development of proper decorum in dealing with people's feelings or the lack of natural abilities. Students of lower rank who demonstrated greater skills were intimidating some higher ranked students. This may happens in a dojo more often than most people think." The discussion centered on how to reach the formers' mind. Teaching attitudinal resolutions or how to get one person pass another's ego problem was what we were talking about.

A gentleman at a locker close to us stated that it sounded as if we were discussing "corporate America." In one sense we were. Life's solutions cross lines. In other words, life cannot be segmented. The principles are universal and apply everywhere. Some situations need or call for specific answers. But basically, how you operate in one venue is the way you operate in all avenues of your existence. We caught this man's attention because "everything affects everything else" and we were just applying mental Aikido principles.

This is how I approach Aikido usage in everyday life, "off the mat."

Rick Berry
  Reply With Quote