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Old 12-21-2008, 09:56 PM   #457
GeneC
Location: Henderson,
Join Date: Nov 2008
Posts: 370
United_States
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Re: The continued Evolution of Aikido

Quote:
Matthew Gano wrote: View Post
Yeah, I would agree, but if we're discussing external motivation sources, I think that would ensure a greater degree of effort. Still, a bit of a hyperbole, i agree.
I believe that simply having each competitor's record follow them with their journey will ensure they do their best ( like I said before, it's human nature to compete and win. Nobody wants to lose, but if they have to, they want their opponent to earn the win).

Quote:
Matthew Gano wrote:
Well from my perspective as a teacher it's better because it's an intrinsic approach toward motivation. Extrinsic motivation is a fine thing and is proven effective, but it doesn't apply to every situation and carries with it some pitfalls. In my experience, where competition is used as the primary means of motivation there is often a knee-jerk response mechanism in which the individual tends to compete where competition isn't appropriate. Ultimately I think this comes down to a matter of personal taste, I have no problem with a balance of the two (humans are cooperative animals also), but I personally prefer the non-competitive method as the primary source of motivation...and O Sensei seemed to also, per what I've read and been told.
Agreed. Teaching/classes should not include competition, but competition should be separate activity, preferably where all area dojos are involved( testing and grading, as well as public PR). I'd expect upper grades would be more apt to compete. I know as soon as I felt like I's proficient at a technique, I'd like to test it to make sure it's(we're) martially effective.

Quote:
Matthew Gano wrote:
You can have bad habits in competition too though. Efficacy tendancies for me are a matter of specialization and generalization. Every martial art has its various emphases that they specialize in. To get a really good sense of how they interact with each other you have to cross-train and experience the different ways people move (the benefit of mixing up training partners in my opinion...something I didn't experience much of in my brief stint with two other arts).
Agreed, but I think that'd show itself quickly in competition. what better way to "mix it up" than at a competiton that included other dojos.

Quote:
Matthew Gano wrote:
While I would say generally my opponants did their best, I would say it's more accurate that they tried their best to win and that that actually caused some of them to compromise their overall performance. It's a subtle shift in attention, and one which doesn't always make a difference, but my sense is that "winning" is ultimately an arbitrary goal when viewed next to simply doing your very best all the time. Personally, when I've focused on winning, I've performed worse than when I focused on doing my best.
Then I'd think that's all the more reason to focus on doing your best all the time and the win will more likely come.

Only between a single breath is Yin/Yang in harmony
Emotion is pure energy flowing feely thru the body-Dan Millman