3.5 Lessons From Boxing

I have had the fortune to train in Boxing, Kickboxing and Martial Arts since I was 12 years old and since that time I have been exposed to the fight game on a regular basis. It, I feel, is one of the preeminent measures of competition there is. What could be a greater challenge (or greater insanity?) than to get into a ring and place yourself in a situation where, quite literally, you may not walk back out? It demands a strong will and desire to overcome not only the person in front of you, but also to overcome your own demons; your fears and doubts. It demands that you rise to the occasion - even if the battle is being lost. Yet Boxing is not just one of the ultimates in competition, it is also one of the ultimates for learning about life.

You may not be looking to compete in Boxing (or Kickboxing/MMA) anytime soon, but here are 3.5 Lessons to Learn From Boxing to help improve the quality of your life:

1. Stay on Your Toes: If a fighter is flatfooted in the ring, they are easily hit by their opponent. They become sluggish and cannot get to their target fast enough to score points. Yet, by staying on their toes, they possess the ability to strike when they want too and evade when they need to.Your life can be like that can’t it? When you rest on your past accomplishments and “coast”, you become a target for laziness, indulgence and disorder- all of which lead to failure in one degree or another. Yet if you can continue to stay on your toes daily, you’ll find that when life takes a shot at you, you’ll be able to move out of the way and counter with your own strikes of success! Here are a few ways to stay on your toes:
· Wake up early and work out
· Eat right 95% of the time
· Develop your network of friends and professionals weekly
· Give more than expected

FREE OFFER: Need more ideas on “Staying on your toes”? Shoot me an e-mail or give me a call and we’ll talk. 727-797-4528 or John@BlackBeltLiving.com

2. Look for the openings: Many untrained fighters get in the ring and swing wild hoping that something will land eventually and they’ll win by knock out. From time to time they get lucky, however, most of the time they’ll simply get tired and the other fighter will take over and knock them out instead. A skillful fighter will feel out his/her opponent and look for any weaknesses or openings that they can use to their advantage. By doing so, they stand a good chance of finding success, if not in the early rounds, then most definitely in the later rounds. In your daily life, how many times do you complain about how bad things are vs. where your next opportunity is coming from? I’ll place a bet that you don’t look for new or better possibilities nearly enough- am I right? Each day is a day where you must look for bigger and better things for yourself. Why? Because no one will be doing it for you!

Here are a few ways to Look For Openings:

* Have your resume ready at all times
* Drop a line to your network contacts weekly
* Look for possible businesses to buy
* Learn how to market effectively

FREE OFFER: Need ideas on finding the openings in your life? Give me a call 727-797-4528.

3. Protect Yourself at All Times: Too many fighters over the years have dropped their hands when the bell rang and have been knocked or hurt out as a result. They thought the other fighter heard the bell and since there are rules to the game, they thought they were safe- sorry Charlie! How many times have you dropped your guard and paid dearly as a result? Too many times I bet! That’s how (unfortunately) we learn our lessons in life sometimes. You may be playing the game by one set of rules and someone else is playing by another, and that’s when you’ll get hit with a low blow- someone will under bid you, take you to court unjustly, or slander your name and reputation. You get the idea; you’ve got to understand that not everyone lives their life or runs their business by the rules of fairness, respect, honor or kindness.

Here are a few ways to protect yourself:
· Develop a healthy lifestyle to prevent health issues later
· Hang around positive, helpful people
· Read informative or inspirational material weekly
· Develop a relationship with a good attorney

FREE OFFER: Need help with this? Shoot me an e-mail. John@BlackBeltLiving.com

3.5 Keep Going No Matter What!: Remember Rocky? He fought Apollo Creed until the bitter end- and lost. But his effort to keep going enabled him to have a rematch with Apollo and eventually become champion. Yet, would Rocky have been offered another shot at the title if he had given up? Would you as the audience have been enthusiastic watching a movie where the main character gave up and quit? I doubt it. You were inspired and motivated because Rocky gave it his all even though he was losing. Take it upon yourself to be like Rocky and “Keep Going No Matter What!” You have an area in your life that you’re currently challenged in (and if you aren’t now you will be soon- it’s how life works!) and you have a choice as to how to respond: you can curl up into a little ball and give up, or you can roll up your sleeves and get to work on making your life better for yourself and the others you deal with on a daily/weekly basis.

Here are a few ways to “Keep Going No Matter What!”:

* Identify the root cause of the problem/challenge
* Find 3 to 5 possible solutions- either long and short term
* Call 3 close friends and ask for more possible solutions
* Ask those folks for help (accountability) until you get to the other side

FREE OFFER: Need to run those solutions past someone? Call or e-mail. 727-797-4528 or John@BlackBeltLiving.com