Split: Why did/do you want your KSW black belt??????

ok weird question, just curious as to peoples motivation towards achieving a black belt in Kuk Sool Won. This isn't a KSW is rubbish thread, i just wondered why people are following the path. Examples of what i mean are, some people need to gain confidence, so was it a lack of confidence that drew you to wanting to achieve it. Some people were not that athletically gifted at school and want to prove that they can do something physical to themselves. Some people are bullied come looking for self protection. etc etc Ok think i've got across what i'm trying to ask. Afterall everyones belt means something different to them. Some it will be a measure of skill, some measure of time and effort, and some a measure of internal discipline. Yes i realise you could argue all of these are achieved i just wondered which is the primary one people were striving for. Besides we needed a new thread.

 

For me it was purely for the love of the art. As you know monkey, it's not a hardman thing with me. I originally joined because I saw a demo at my school and thought it looked cool then I got hooked really, there was always something even cooler to learn in the future to keep me interested and it's still the same, I want Woon Hahk Hyung! Hehe

 

Basically the same here for me. I just quit kickboxing and was looking for another martial art to study, I was on the brink of starting Tae Kwon Do. However I obviously believe now that I was lucky I got to see that demo. Another important aspect for me wanting to go blackbelt and beyond is to be able to defend myself and others if necessary.

 

Its just a step in the journey of learning the martial arts. While its an achievement, its no different than my gold or red belt....

 

I had been a competitive athlete my entire life...and at 29 I was bored with running 5 and 10K's. Kuk Sool Won was the most comprehensive MA that was close to my house. KSW offered me the opportunity to train as an athlete and compete. After a few seperated shoulders... tournament medals...and a blackbelt, it has now become more about internal development for me. I still love to compete...but the MA's have become a lot more valuable than that. I am very excited to see where this path is going to continue to take me. It is somewhat of a paradox...as I age and my physical skills begin to taper off...I am becoming a better person overall!

 

Not a weird question at all. In fact, it's neat to learn this about other people.

I've always wanted to study some sort of martial art. Why? It's cool. But practically speaking, I need some sort of physical activity. A lot of physical exercise (e.g. running, weight lifting) to me is mindless thus it's boring and I lose interest. Martial arts works for me because it's not only physical but mental and can have spiritual/philosophical aspects as well (so good for mind, body, and soul). Plus, learning how to defend myself and others isn't a bad thing. If someone wants to harm me or my family, I want to ensure I can stomp a mudhole through him. I chose Kuk Sool Won because, of all the things available to me it had exactly what I wanted. I don't regret selecting this art as the one to study, and have thoroughly enjoyed my journey in it.

So why do I want my black belt (I'm currently Dahn Bo)? Well, it's a nice milestone. I know black belt is really a beginning, not an end, but still it's a significant milestone. And tho black belt isn't an end, isn't a finish, isn't a completion, it's still something I wish to achieve because I've had a few significant things in my life that I got "this close" to achieving and didn't for some reason or other. I got "this close" to Eagle Scout (Boy Scouts' highest rank), and didn't get it. I got "this close" to earning a Masters Degree, and didn't. If I could go back in time and change things, I'd certainly finish those two things. And there have been other little things here and there in my life that I started but didn't finish and am unhappy that I didn't finish. So I look at my black belt along those lines. Those things weren't ends, but they were significant milestones that took a lot of time, work, and so on to get to. And to get "that close" and then not achieve it for whatever reason... I sometimes still kick myself for it. So I refuse to do the same with black belt. It's been one of the more intensive and difficult things in my life to work on, and one of the most rewarding that's resulted in so many good things, growth, and improvement in my life. There is nothing that will stop me from achieving black belt. I want to break my cycle of getting "this close".

And of course, once I achieve black belt (Jo Kyo Nim), I fully intend to continue studying. It's when all the cool stuff starts.

 

i wanted a black belt, because black looks good!

 

not really sure why this has been deleted from this thread but here goes

put simply, it was the next step.

i didn't start kuk sool because i want to fight or be the best in the world, it just seemed like a good idea at the time.

i've always been fairly active playing football (or soccer, whatever that is! ) or doing athletics, i was a mean sprinter but one day some friends were going to try out this martial art, i went with them and i've been hooked ever since.

my goal was always the next belt colour and i never really thought "i really want to get to black belt" getting there was more of a natural progression than a goal.

now that i have reached that goal (and second dahn), my next one is to reach 3rd degree although if i'm honest i'm not sure how much further i'll go after that. 4th is a possiblilty but master level is a whole new ball game.

 

I probably just missed your post as I was splitting up the posts to this thread.... sorry, but thanks for reposting!

 

Sorry dave my fault i asked for the whole thread to be deleted,was getting fed up with having to justify myself before. And it was just going nowhere at least here it can do the thing i intended it to. That is let everybody know who shares common goals and objectives within their own art.

I'm really annoyed Nadine has gone too. :cry:

And I was scared

 

ha ha this nadine thing is becoming a bit obsessive. are you sure you're not stalking her?

 

I did shotakan karate for about 7 years without reaching blackbelt (i got to first kyu, one rank below) The instructor at the time wouldnt let me take my black belt which was mainly my own fault as i was young and didnt really train as much as i should have (once a week) due to me not liking the style of the teaching at the time. I decided to get back to practicing a MA and i guess a reason to want to get to black belt is to show my myself i could reach first dan level and hopefully if i trained hard could be a good bb at that. Seein the other bb's practicin forms etc at our club makes me wanna get there more as they look well good... Plus i agree with Matt Black looks the best..

 

I started for a girl. I was dating a girl at the time I started Kuk Sool and we were both interested in joining a martial art. After looking around I became fascinated with KSW, so we started taking the art. I was fortunate to have a school near me with KJN Chun Duk Lee as the school master. He amazed me with both his mastery of the art and his greatness of spirit. I decided that if I could become half the man he was, I would be ok. So it has become a personal goal of mine to try to come close to that greatness. I have faltered along the way and left training for a while, but a black belt and dedication to the art has become a passion. The rest is simply stops along the path.

Kinda mushy, I know, but what can I say? I'm a sucker for KSW.

 

My reason for getting my black belt was not just one reason. My main reason was to discover myself and to help me understand myself better. Defeating an opponent is easy but to defeat yourself is something else.

Other reasons include learning self-defence as well as getting a source of guidance which when I started, my life seriously lacked.

As my journey through Kuk Sool continues I constantly find new goals and meanings in everything.

Personally I think most of us are trying to get to the same destination, just that we're all taking different paths.

 

Well actually yes but don't tell the press she doesn't want to go public just yet lol

Haha the old fatal charms of a girl hey Sir they do have a strange way of shaping destiny don't they.

 

Aha and from someone i don't think i have ever met, but maybe i have comes the true path that the question to begin with was set out to make people think about in the first place. (is that gramatically correct )

Yes i would totally agree with that

 

I wanted it because it was the required stepping stone for further knowledge of the art. That, and it is a requirement to teach. That's pretty much it.

 

Ok so if teaching is a passing on of knowledge attained from study, what is it you want to teach these people???? thats not meant as a confrontational thing again but just a question.

 

Everything i've learned and continue to learn . I also hope to instill in them a respect for martial arts in general and an open mind about training and learning.

 

Everything you have learned being more than just a load of techniques right. sorry the title of this thread is a little misleading i was just trying to get people to think on a surface level as to why they originally wanted one, and as to the reasons that they kept training and everything that they had learned from it. I just wasn't intelligent enough to think up a way of putting that.