Martial Arts Experts, Revisited

There are so many martial arts experts out there!  It's really quite impressive.  Master, Grand Master, Shihan, Sensei, and all the others.  Black belts everywhere, in every discipline, in every dojo.  All of them so experienced, so full of knowledge, wisdom, expertise and good advice.

Right?

Yes, that's absolutely right.  Every single one of them is, indeed, an experienced and wise master who can set you on the right course.  And once you're there, I have some property I'd like to sell to you...

The problem with naming anyone an "expert" lies in the precise definition of expert, as well as who confers the title upon them.  For example, someone who has reached high rank in an established organization, who is certified in one or more ways and vouched for by their martial arts elders, probably has some skills under that frayed and faded black belt.  I am more than willing to at the very least hear them out, and will probably gain from the experience.  On the other hand, I have issues with the self-proclaimed "experts".  Those issues start, but certainly do not end, with the fact that they feel important enough to proclaim themselves so to the world!

I have certainly had my moments of feeling all-knowing and wise, looked around at a dojo full of people and just longed to benefit them with my riches.  Luckily for me, I was rarely able to indulge myself, since said dojo usually contained a number of people who have been doing this longer than I had, and who frequently outranked me.  Very beneficial for preventing me from making a fool out of myself. 

I'm extremely lucky that way.  I train in a region rich in high rank certified instructors, experienced world-level competitors, and a deep base of karate-ka who have been doing this for many long years.  Despite my years of training and dedication, and the rank I've attained, I am very, very rarely the most qualified person in the room.  Just for starters, my husband has been doing it for twice as long and outranks me, my instructor is a 6th dan, and the regional head is an 8th dan who did his initial dan testing years ago under Funakoshi. 

Kinda keeps things in perspective.

A woman I know has been doing karate for about 20 years.  She's good.  She's one of those deceptively good people; not a lot of flash, but very solid, much faster and more intuitive than you might realize until you try sparring against her and realize you can't get a damn thing through!  She also is a wife, mother, and college professor, so her training in the past few years has been less intense.  Some newer people don't necessarily realize her long history.  At Kangeiko, one of these people chose to give her some advice on her kata.  She smiled politely and refrained from commenting that she remembered when this person wore a white belt!  Another woman I know gave some advice on kata to someone she met at Master Camp.  She later had to apologize (as did her instructor) to the 5th dan that she (a nidan!) had been correcting!

I am always very careful about who I give advice to.  I will give opinions freely if the situation warrants it (or in this blog), but it's so important to keep a low profile.  I could put up a pretty good argument that I have the goods to back my opinions up, and the right to express them:  I have a respectable rank, with more than a decade of experience, who is in the Instructor Training program, who assists my sensei with teaching and instructs the beginner class, and fills in for sensei when he is out of town in teaching belts of all levels... definitely solid credentials, but unless I'm actually teaching, or it's someone from my own dojo that I outrank and who hasn't trained as long as I have, then I rarely comment unless I am asked. 

Why not?  Respect.  Even if you technically have rank on someone, it doesn't always mean it's necessary or appropriate to give them your two cents.  It's great to feel that you've grown, that you've learned so much.  It's great that you've reached a point where you start really seeing things like hip rotation, vibration, correct technique, timing, etc.  These insights will take you a long way, and if someone asks you to watch their kata and give them some feedback, you will be able to give them something constructive to work with.

Until then, unless you happen to be their instructor or have been specifically told to work with them, then it's probably best to keep your mouth shut.  People don't always appreciate your well-meaning advice, and you might be stepping on toes without even realizing it.  There are plenty of qualified instructors out there to handle the teaching duties; stick to your own training and it will be better for everyone concerned.

Comments

[RS]

I am always happy to read your thoughts about karate. Yesterday we had a nice tournament in kata. Maybe you would like to see the photos:

http://sodergren.com/dojo/?p=68

[LirianFae]

Thanks for sharing Chadie! It'a nice to see photos from other people's tournaments.

Our tournament is coming up next weekend. Usually I am too busy working and competing to take many (if any!) photos, but this year I might have more time. So if I get some good ones, I'll try to post some up as well!

[AG]

Our late federation president, Grandmaster Jae Joon Kim, forbid junior members from commenting on techniques of senior members. Simply a sign of respect.