The Don't Quit Attitude of Perseverance
Dr. Dennis McCain
Over the last 10 years of teaching Tae Kwon Do, I have been personally disappointed at the number of children and adults who did not finish what they began at white belt. There are varying reasons for quitting a program: poor instruction, lack of funds, lack of character, poor parental guidance and example, no sense of fortitude, a change of priorities, no time or patience, no vision of the end result, and fear of failure. I have to admit there were times when I too could have fallen by the wayside by discouragement, injuries, time constraints, etc. But there was that sense of importance instilled in me by my instructor. He took time to remind me to persevere through the struggles and continue until the goal was reached. Just prior to testing for First Degree Black Belt, I was having difficulty with the 360 jump in Choong Moo. Not one time did I ever "make" the jump and landing successfully. While I was working before class, my instructor approached me and said, "Your testing is next week, so keep working hard." My response was, "I am not ready." Mr. Aregis said, "It's my choice for you to test, not yours."
I was challenged by the importance of perseverance and my instructor's
knowledge of my desire and ability. At
the testing I successfully completed the 360 for the first time. I advanced in rank, learned an important lesson from my instructor
regarding courage and attitude, and benefited from the application of
perseverance. When you reach the
goal, it is much easier to view the importance of persevering, because you have
reached the desired goal. Set your
eyes on the goal. Do all that you can in order to attain the goal with
integrity, work through the difficulties, be sustained in the truth that what
you learn regarding perseverance will benefit you the rest of your life. First
Degree Black Belt is the first goal, but not the last. Continue in your art and progress without interruption until you have
attained each individual goal, and then set another goal for your life, but
don't quit.
