“Martial arts without martial virtue are useless for the ways of warfare.”
– Nakae Toju
Welcome to the November 2013 issue of Your Warrior’s Edge. My goal is to provide you with value each month. I hope my newsletters will stimulate thought, inspire, and help you along your journey, as well as provide some fun and a good deal now and then.
Please let me know how I can make this better for you.
IN THIS ISSUE
Warrior Values, What Are Your Values? Self-Defense Tip from Ernest Emerson, New Staying Safe Pages, Your Warrior’s Edge Blog, Striking Thoughts – Bruce Lee’s Wisdom for Daily Living, Hard-Won Wisdom From The School Of Hard Knocks, Black Belt Communicator Tip, Just For Fun – Tough Guy Wisdom, Parting Thoughts – Thanksgiving
WARRIOR VALUES
“Education without values, as useful as it is, seems rather to make man a more clever devil.”
– C.S. Lewis
An important concept that I believe is central to living with the warrior’s edge and being a warrior is doing what matters. That means we must choose to do what is right and what is important. Your values determine your choices, and that is why I say a warrior’s values create the foundation to living with the warrior’s edge.
The dictionary defines values as “deep longings and beliefs that a person acts on consistently.” Notice there are two important parts to this. First, values represent what’s important to you, or deep longings and beliefs. But equally important, especially to be truly core values, there must also be an accompanying patter of behavior – consistent action. I actually think the consistent action part might even be more important. Without it, rather than a value, you have a good idea.
Your values are the roots of your choices. And if you want to discover your values, look to two important currencies of your life – your time and your money. These can reveal your values. How you spend your time and where you invest your money is indicative of your core values.
Values determine choices. What choices have you made? What really matters to you? What are your values?
Often we don’t take stands on things because we are not clear on what really matters. Sometimes it is because we lack the moral courage to stand up because it may be an unpopular or potentially dangerous choice. Standing firm on values almost always requires moral courage and often eventual sacrifice.
If we desire to live as warriors, and to live powerfully with the warrior’s edge, we must recognize that values are at the heart of leading this fully engaged life of a warrior. Values form the basis for authentic living and are derived from your beliefs and convictions. And it is under pressure that you discover your true values.
One of the most important values for the warrior is integrity. Integrity is the quality or state of being complete or undivided. Therefore, if you lack integrity, you are not whole. When you are living with integrity, you have an edge, because your efforts flow directly from your core values. This is why integrity is so high on the list for living with the warrior’s edge.
It really does give you an edge in life. Clarity of values allows you to say “yes” to what is right and what matters, and “no” to what is wrong or not important. Integrity and clarity of values then allows you to stick with your yes or no.
Values are formed early in life, and we are often unaware of them. They often come into sharp focus in times of stress. To handle stressful times easier, discover your values and live by them. Remember, your values determine your choices.
What are you choosing today?
“Wherever I go meeting the public… spreading a message of human values, spreading a message of harmony, is the most important thing.”
– Dalai Lama
WHAT ARE YOUR VALUES?
“Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be. Be One.”
– Marcus Aurelius
Because your values serve as the foundation to living with the Warrior’s Edge, it is important to discover your own values and where they come from. It’s also important to identify values, if practiced more consistently, would give you greater fulfillment.
To help with this, actually take a few moments to answer these questions. Doing it on paper will be most beneficial, but even just taking a moment to ponder the questions and answer them to yourself quietly in your mind will help you gain clearer understanding and direction.
First, let’s look at where your values came from:
1. What people have had the deepest impact on your life? What advice, philosophy, or values have you learned from these people and which ones have really stuck with you?
2. List at least three books, CDs, movies, poems, sermons, or sayings that have contributed to your values. What insight from them has stayed with you?
3. List at least three experiences that have helped shape your life direction and what value did each teach you?
Now let’s look at your values:
1. List ten values that resonate most with you and reflect how you actually live your life.
2. List at least five values you feel are most important for you to consistently practice.
3. Ask yourself if and how you are practicing these in your life.
To help you with this exercise, here are some values you might want to consider:
Achievement, Accuracy, Adventure Aesthetics, Acknowledgment, Advancement Authenticity, Autonomy, Balance, Benevolence Beauty, Change, Contribution, Courage Connectedness, Comradeship, Caring, Courtesy Challenge, Collaboration, Community Creativity, Directness, Entrepreneuring Empowerment, Elegance, Excellence Excitement, Free Time, Freedom Faith, Family Happiness, Focus Friendship, Growth, Imaginativeness Inclusivity, Intellectual Status, Integrity Independence, Health, Humor, Humility Honesty, Helping Others, Helping Society Leadership, Leisure, Location Knowledge, Loyalty, Joy, Justice Mentoring, Nurturing, Orderliness Partnership, Peace, Playfulness Precision, Participation, Performance Productivity, Power, Responsibility Renewal, Recognition, Risk Taking Self-Expression, Spirituality, Stability Service, Success, Self-Control, Teaming Trust, Vitality, Time Freedom, Temperance Tradition, Wealth, Wisdom Other: Other: Other:
I hope this exercise inspires you to think about your own values, what they mean to you, and how you can ensure you are living by those values you determine are most important for your life.
“Try not to become a man of success, but rather try to become a man of value.”
– Albert Einstein
(Values articles inspired by John Busacker’s “Fully Engaged: How To Do Less And Be More”)
SELF-DEFENSE TIP
Here is a little self-defense tip from Ernest Emerson:
Avoid Rather Than Fight
Most street attacks will involve odds stacked against you – from the number of assailants to the distribution of weapons. You’ll need every ounce of resolve and willpower you possess, on top of all your physical capabilities, to survive.
That’s exactly why most martial arts instructors wisely advise students to avoid trouble whenever possible. Three of the best ways to do that are to stay alert, use common sense and listen to your gut feeling.
If you ever find yourself thinking, I shouldn’t go into that bar with all those Harleys out front, listen to that voice. You’re using all three aforementioned tools.
(From “The Ultimate Guide To Reality-Based Self-Defense” by the editors of “Black Belt” magazine.)
NEW STAYING SAFE PAGES
As a resource for staying safe, I’m continuing to add to my website. The following page has been added to the Staying Safe section since the last newsletter:
These pages and more available at: Staying Safe with Alain Burrese
“A people that values its privileges above its principles soon loses both.”
– Dwight D. Eisenhower
YOUR WARRIOR’S EDGE BLOG
Recent blog posts you might have missed include:
Book review of Hero Living by Rudy Reyes
Book review of The Doctors 5 Minute Health Fixes
Gun Disarm Tips with a video with Rich Nance
Book review of Bodyweight Strength Training Anatomy by Bret Contreras
Book review of The Fighting Footwork of Kuntao and Silat Workbook by Bob Orlando
Knife Defense Tip from Michael Janich’s Counter Blade Concepts
STRIKING THOUGHTS – BRUCE LEE’S WISDOM FOR DAILY LIVING
There are no “means to ends.” There will never be means to ends, only means. And I am means. I am what I started with, and when it is over I will be all that is left of me. All goals, apart from the means are therefore an illusion, and becoming is a denial of being.
(From the book “Striking Thoughts” published by Tuttle)
HARD-WON WISDOM FROM THE SCHOOL OF HARD KNOCKS
The revised and expanded edition of Hard-Won Wisdom is now available in paperback and as a kindle e-book. Learn more and order here:
Hard-Won Wisdom From The School Of Hard Knocks
“Read and learn from this book. It covers a much-over-looked area of the subject of fighting: the middle ground.”
– Marc “Animal” MacYoung, from the Foreword
BLACK BELT COMMUNICATOR TIP
“The ability to make people believe in you and trust in you is one of the few absolutely fundamental qualities of success.”
– John J. McGuirk
The best way to do that is speak the truth and be someone people can trust.
JUST FOR FUN – TOUGH GUY WISDOM
When told he was probably basically a violent man, who replied:
“No I’m not. I’m just good at it.”
Who said it and from what movie?
Reply to this newsletter with the correct answer and you will receive a code to buy signed Tough Guy Wisdom books for 50% off.
(Also reply if you want the answer.)
PARTING THOUGHTS – THANKSGIVING
“Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.”
– Dr. Seuss
I want to wish everyone in the United States a Happy Thanksgiving. May you enjoy the holiday with friends and family. And may I wish everyone, regardless where you are, much to be thankful for.
One of the things I will be giving thanks for this holiday is all of you that are part of my community. Thank you all for sharing this journey with me.
Please share this newsletter, the website, and the facebook page with others that may enjoy and benefit from them. Thanks!
Wishing you all the best on your journey as you live with the Warrior’s Edge.
Take Care and Stay Safe.
Alain