September is finally upon us, and that means ‘gakko ni
modotte’ – back to school. I bet nobody particularly is looking forward to
getting up at seven in the morning to go back to class... with the exception of
parents. However, school isn’t that bad – honest! I bet when you leave in Year
11 you’ll miss it… I already do!
As students of the IJJA, you
probably already know the values that we, as coaches, help you to build on.
Among them are self-confidence, motivation, teamwork, leadership, friendship,
and discipline. It may not seem like it, but these can help you in your
everyday school life as well! Take self-confidence for example: if you have a
bit of faith in yourself you’ll probably realise that actually, you CAN do that
complicated maths sum if you put your mind to it! Discipline is ALWAYS a good
thing; being polite to teachers and peers is definitely going to help you in
the long run when you get a brilliant school report and ultimately, a platinum
school leavers’ reference! Motivation will allow you to persevere through all
those boring maths and science classes and if you stay motivated through your
entire school year I bet you’ll ace those tests! Friendship’s sort of a given
really: be nice to people, and they’ll be nice to you too. Teamwork and
leadership are pretty much unavoidable when you’re in a class of thirty
students (but you know that already from Jiu-Jitsu!) If you’re as good at
working independently as you are at working with others – and we KNOW how good
you all are at working together! – then you’ll sail through your studies.
The moral of today’s post is
this: remember what you’re taught in the dojo. Obviously remembering your
techniques is very important, especially since Gradings are just around the
corner! But also, remember those concepts of mutual respect and skill-based
learning (if you don’t get it the first time, try it again until you can do it
like it’s second nature!)
Good luck for the upcoming school
year, guys, whatever class you’re going into! (Unless of course you’re an
adult… then hoorah, peace and quiet!) Let’s see you all down at the club on
Tuesday (or Monday if you’re at Kendal!) for that final push before Gradings,
which are on Saturday 26th September! I’ll be there to help you get
rid of the back-to-school blues!