What’s Best for Me?

By Jerry Weiss

Very often we have forgotten what made us decide to seek out a martial art school for our children.  It could have been because we felt our child needed some confidence building or needed help with his or her self-esteem.  Maybe you found they had no interest in any physical activity and you chose martial arts.  However any activity you choose or they choose would need some kind of commitment from both you and them.

I am not talking about an agreement you might make with a martial art school.  Of course that can be taken as a commitment that your child or children are going to continue to train.  But the commitment has to be on your part as well.

Once you know what the schedule is, it is your job to make sure your child or children are there.  Very often priorities have to be rearranged.  This can be a disruption on everyone’s part, and in some cases especially the parent or the driver.

Sure we get home from work and we’re tired.  Yes, many times we’ve had a stressful day.  Maybe we didn’t get enough sleep the day before and look forward to just doing nothing.  But then we realize that it is the day and close to the time we have to take our children to karate class.  But wait, our children have also come home from school, preschool or the sitter.  They have now settled in for the evening and are now watching television or playing video games.  They don’t want to move.  Does this sound familiar?

Now, whoever is responsible for getting that special someone to karate class as to disrupt their little ones activity and get them ready and sometimes motivated for the ride or walk to class.  AND THEY DON’T WANT TO GO!  We’re not discussing the possible fact they don’t want to go anymore.  They do like it once there. But it’s getting them there that sometimes is the hassle.  It’s hard to continue to have to “fight” with them every time there is somewhere to go.  This just so happens to be karate.  And it does sometimes become easier to say okay this time, but next time you have to go.  Well there are two things wrong with this picture.

The first problem is the children are trying to test you in getting their way.  They’re testing you however because they know there must be an effort on your part as well.  The other factor is although we know this activity is just what is needed for them; we get tired of fighting.  So we “reluctantly” say okay, stay home today. Let’s face it, then there is no effort required on our part.  This test will occur again.  Will we take the bait again?  Are we saying to ourselves, what’s in my best interest?  We can now relax ourselves.  We now get the hour or two off.

No one told us to have one, two, or more children.  No one can really believe someone else until we experience something ourselves.  We did not have children so we could have someone wash clothes, wash dishes, and cut the grass, (it would be nice).

For whatever reason the attitude of (what’s in it for me) should not be a factor.  It should not be “what’s in my best interest” but rather what’s in the best interest for our children.

So the next time your children don’t want to go to classes try and read between the lines. Get them to class so we can give them all the things we read about karate can do.