Belt Rank Progress

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MJS

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And speaking of people who don't think rank is important, in some ways rank IS important. For instance, the military uses rank and in the military rank is very important. With most jobs there's rank. Corporations and so forth use rank. And when I talk about the importance of the black belt, I am not talking so much about the physical piece of cloth, Im talking about the rank. Some people give the impression that they don't understand that that's what Im talking about. If rank isn't important you can tell that to people in the military, that they should just serve and not be concerned with rank. The impression that some people on this board give is that they're taking the position that anybody who is obsessed with rank in the military can go buy some General's Stars off the internet for a few dollars. I would like to point out that just because a person has some General's Stars doesn't make them a real General. In the same way, just because a person has the physical black belt doesn't mean they've made the rank.

LOL....I know cops that are Sgt's and Lt's that are horrible supervisors. I'm sorry, but just because someone has rank or uses a ranking system, does not in any way, shape or form, mean that said person is worthy of that rank. I've seen people who were Green and Brown belts and even some black belts, that looked horrible in their execution of things.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again...rank isn't what impresses me. It's the skill, the technical understanding, the application of things, among others, that impresses me. Sorry, I don't bow down and kiss someone's *** because they walk into a room with a cocky attitude and 8 stripes on their belt. Will I acknowledge them? Sure. But I don't respect anyone who demands it. Respect is earned.
 

geezer

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What question do I keep avoiding?

Once and for all, are you a particle or a wave?

Oh and also the question that Daniel Sullivan asked above about how not making Black Belt rank by 20 messed up your life. After all you seem to be doing pretty well now, back to training "harder than ever" and enjoying it.
 

Daniel Sullivan

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Once and for all, are you a particle or a wave?

Oh and also the question that Daniel Sullivan asked above about how not making Black Belt rank by 20 messed up your life. After all you seem to be doing pretty well now, back to training "harder than ever" and enjoying it.
Specifically not how it messed up his life, as he's said that that was hyperbolic, but how a professional goal required it.
 
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PhotonGuy

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This one:



You've been asked by more than one person what kind of goal required you to not only have a black belt, but to have it by the age of twenty. You've said that this is in addition to self programming or a simply personal goal. You seemed to indicate that it was more of career oriented goal.

So instead of dancing around it, what is it?

I respect your wishes if you do not wish to share, but on the other hand, you've used this unstated event to underpin parts of your thesis which you've posted on a public forum. Thus people will ask. Continuing to alude to it without sharing it could give some the impression that you're enjoying the attention.

The goal that required me to get a black belt before I turned twenty was simply that I wanted to do it. I wanted to get a black belt and I wanted to get it before I turned 20, that was the goal. That's it. I did have some other plans that depended on me getting a black belt before I turned 20, or if not shortly after, but that is not the main issue nor is it the main reason why I wanted to get a black belt before I turned 20. The main reason I wanted to get a black belt before I turned 20 is simply because I wanted to. I set a goal for myself and I give myself a time limit. So that's it, simple and straightforward. I am not dancing around anything nor am I talking in circles, at least I hope people aren't getting that impression. It gets really frustrating when people say Im talking in circles and its times like that when I see the true value of patience, but talking through texts does have big limitations.
 
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PhotonGuy

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LOL....I know cops that are Sgt's and Lt's that are horrible supervisors. I'm sorry, but just because someone has rank or uses a ranking system, does not in any way, shape or form, mean that said person is worthy of that rank. I've seen people who were Green and Brown belts and even some black belts, that looked horrible in their execution of things.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again...rank isn't what impresses me. It's the skill, the technical understanding, the application of things, among others, that impresses me. Sorry, I don't bow down and kiss someone's *** because they walk into a room with a cocky attitude and 8 stripes on their belt. Will I acknowledge them? Sure. But I don't respect anyone who demands it. Respect is earned.

I mostly agree with you but rank does have its value and place. Lots of people in school are obsessed with getting As in their classes. I don't see anything wrong with wanting to get an A. An A is no different than a black belt except for one thing, an A is used in academics and a black belt is used in the martial arts, aside from that there is no difference between the two marks of achievement.
 

Daniel Sullivan

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The goal that required me to get a black belt before I turned twenty was simply that I wanted to do it. I wanted to get a black belt and I wanted to get it before I turned 20, that was the goal. That's it.
Fine, but the bolded part below contradicts what you said above:

I did have some other plans that depended on me getting a black belt before I turned 20, or if not shortly after, but that is not the main issue nor is it the main reason why I wanted to get a black belt before I turned 20. The main reason I wanted to get a black belt before I turned 20 is simply because I wanted to. I set a goal for myself and I give myself a time limit. So that's it, simple and straightforward. I am not dancing around anything nor am I talking in circles, at least I hope people aren't getting that impression. It gets really frustrating when people say Im talking in circles and its times like that when I see the true value of patience, but talking through texts does have big limitations.
Okay, you said this back on page seventeen:

I did have plans in life and those plans depended on me getting a black belt before I turned 20 or at least somewhere in that time frame.
The bolded part of each quote is what I have asked you about. What plans in life depended upon you getting a black belt before I turned 20 or at least somewhere in that time frame?

You have stated that these undisclosed plans are separate from your simply having a personal goal, as evidenced in your quote.

The limitations of speaking via text based media are inapplicable here.
 

TKDTony2179

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I turn 38 this Christmas and now I am training harder than ever.

Do you feel slower as you get older? I myself will be 35 next yr and at sometimes I feel old when sparring the 20 yr old. People say I am still fast but I can't tell.
 

lklawson

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Do you feel slower as you get older? I myself will be 35 next yr and at sometimes I feel old when sparring the 20 yr old. People say I am still fast but I can't tell.
At "forty-mumblemumble" I'm not noticeably slower than when I was 20. I'm more experienced and better trained and I feel just as fast and fit, etc.

No, it's not during the fight/sparring/whatever that kills. ...it's after. Heaven's above but it takes freaking forever to heal even minor injuries any more, blast it! I have a minor cut in the crease on the back of my right thumb knuckle. After two blasted weeks it's finally, almost fully healed. :(

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk
 

MJS

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I mostly agree with you but rank does have its value and place. Lots of people in school are obsessed with getting As in their classes. I don't see anything wrong with wanting to get an A. An A is no different than a black belt except for one thing, an A is used in academics and a black belt is used in the martial arts, aside from that there is no difference between the two marks of achievement.

Sure, many would like to get a black belt. I have 2 of them...a 4th in Kenpo and a 1st in Arnis. But in the grand scheme of things, I don't put myself in some special group. It's a piece of cloth. It symbolizes that you've reached a certain goal, but that's about it. Doesn't mean you're an expert, though one would think a BB would be above average. Doesn't mean that you can kick anyone's ***.

I don't have any stripes on my Kenpo BB. It's a plain BB. Why? Personal choice. The stripes don't matter. What matters is when I'd stand in front of my students. How well could I teach them? How well do I understand the material and how well can I translate that to them? THAT is what matters!! My Arnis BB. Since I've had it, I've worn it one time! Yes, you read that right..one time, that time being after my BB test. I've gone to numerous camps, and seminars since then, but in our group, we really don't wear them that much. Sure, some do, and that's fine, but for the most part, it's obvious who the BB's are and who are the lower ranks. ;)
 
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PhotonGuy

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I should've pointed this out much earlier but I will say it now. Getting a black belt is not so much about getting the physical black belt that anybody can buy for about $5, its about meeting the instructor's standards for the rank of black belt.
 

ballen0351

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I should've pointed this out much earlier but I will say it now. Getting a black belt is not so much about getting the physical black belt that anybody can buy for about $5, its about meeting the instructor's standards for the rank of black belt.
Which instructor your current one or the one from 18 years ago when you were 20?
 
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PhotonGuy

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Which instructor your current one or the one from 18 years ago when you were 20?

The instructor I train under now is the same one that I trained under when I was 20. I've been training under him since I was 12.
 

Daniel Sullivan

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Are you ever going to respond to this?
Okay, you said this back on page seventeen:
I did have plans in life and those plans depended on me getting a black belt before I turned 20 or at least somewhere in that time frame.

The bolded part of each quote is what I have asked you about. What plans in life depended upon you "getting a black belt before [you] turned 20 or at least somewhere in that time frame?"

You have stated that these undisclosed plans are separate from your simply having a personal goal, as evidenced in your quote.

This is the subject which another poster said you had been dodging. And at this point, I am inclined to agree with him.

And when I say this:

The limitations of speaking via text based media are inapplicable here.

I mean that communication by text is perfectly suited to you answering this question if you so choose.
 
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PhotonGuy

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Are you ever going to respond to this?


This is the subject which another poster said you had been dodging. And at this point, I am inclined to agree with him.

And when I say this:



I mean that communication by text is perfectly suited to you answering this question if you so choose.

As of right now I don't feel Im ready to discuss my other plans, but that is beside the point. The fact of the matter is that I had a goal and part of the goal was to get it done by a certain time period and that time period was the same whether or not I had other plans. So I don't see why it really matters what other plans I had or why people need to know them. As I said, the main point is that I had a goal and whether or not I had further plans didn't change that.
 

ballen0351

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As of right now I don't feel Im ready to discuss my other plans, but that is beside the point. The fact of the matter is that I had a goal and part of the goal was to get it done by a certain time period and that time period was the same whether or not I had other plans. So I don't see why it really matters what other plans I had or why people need to know them. As I said, the main point is that I had a goal and whether or not I had further plans didn't change that.

Because this goal was 18 years ago and still bothers you so there is more to the story then just a simple goal. You don't want to talk about it fine but you posted the topic not us
 
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PhotonGuy

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Because this goal was 18 years ago and still bothers you so there is more to the story then just a simple goal. You don't want to talk about it fine but you posted the topic not us

The main reason it still bothers me is because I didn't complete it, not within my self imposed time limit. Aside from that, the main reason it still bothers me is because I haven't really talked about it, until now. Talking about stuff helps, but it was only shortly after I posted this thread that I discovered this martial arts website on the internet.
 
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PhotonGuy

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Somebody said that for all the belts after white, that their sensei tells them when they're going to test, not just for black belt but for all the belts. A more traditionally run dojo might do it like that. The way I see it, though, is that if your sensei tells you when you're going to test for your next belt it should be done like that for all the belts, not just the black belt. It doesn't make much sense for your sensei to tell you when you will test for black belt but to allow you to test for the other belts at your own discretion.
 
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