The Challenge of Adult Personal Development

By Eric Scott

The Martial Arts Perspective

I have an awesome job. I teach full-time, and get to use mixed martial arts and self-defense as a conveyance for personal development for adults and youngsters. The children get it that they are meant to be learning full-time, and their parents invest in them. The adults are rather more of a challenge when faced with their own personal development. Sometimes adults would rather sacrifice than put aside the time for their own development plan. Some adults think it's greedy - that learning and personal development is an indulgence.



Lifelong Learning

Learning is not an indulgence , but it is a leisure activity; nonetheless learning is the sole activity that offers a return on the investment of time and cash. We are almost all of the way through 2015. My students hear it from me once or more a month. Next year will be the same as this year, excepting these three things - the people you've met, the books you have read, and the things you are better at. Human connections, knowledge, and abilities.

Starting an Israeli Krav Maga self-defense program is enfranchising but might not be for everyone, but the plan needs to include something that is challenging and time-bound. One difficulty is that the sorts of goals we will be able to set and enjoy don't appear courageous. But the fact is that if we are not growing a little, we're dying a little bit.



A Basic Development Plan:

I am not getting preachy with adults, but when I get questions, I share an illustration of what I do every month:

Read one book each month on an interesting subject

Make a short list of work and personal talents I want to work on, and do it. Not moving mountains, small things. Lynda.com could be a great resource for this. I learned video revising, which is great for personal and business. There's a boom in learning chances for anything you'd want to learn - including my online Krav Maga programs.

Put the telephone down and strike up a fascinating conversation with someone at the coffee bar once every week, and spend 20 minutes finding out about what she or he does. It is the most simple place in the world to have a genuine conversation, without needing to "network. " (Yuck)

The months roll by and I I never have time I want. Neither will you. It's satisfying to understand I am making a tiny bit of progress at a time, which is by coincidence also the key to progress in self-defense skills.

About the Author:

Eric Scott is a pro martial-arts instructor and founder of Self-defense Global . Self-defense Global offers gear, coaching, and training missions for a safer life. He offers a free video introductory class which has more information than most paid programs including a week of video lessons, and a free electronic book.