6 Things Martial Arts Taught Me About Business

I took up martial arts when I was 19 and had some early success in competitions, but I put none of my success down to natural ability, it was a function of determination, willingness to learn and the fact that I was fortunate enough to have some wonderful teachers and role models. One of my best friends competed in the Seoul Olympics and he infected me with his endless determination, positivity and humility.

Perseverance Fixes Everything!

Martial arts require the practitioner to learn new movements and techniques, some of which are complex and in even un-natural. The idea of getting your foot above your head isn’t something most people think about let alone practice! These techniques are mastered through repetition and perseverance.

If you work hard and keep at it, you will improve. It’s such a cliché but its at the core of my belief system. There is nothing that cannot be improved with hard work and perseverance.

My favorite technique in TaeKwonDo competitions was my trusty back kick. It’s not an easy technique to get right but I practiced it hundreds of times a day until I could do it without thinking. Then I continued to practice it hundreds of times a day until it got faster and stronger, with better timing.

In business, its important that you can present. I remember vividly my first presentation in 1987. It was truly terrible. I don’t mean that it wasn’t good compared to my ability today, I mean that by any standard, it was a terrible presentation, but the CIO of my company took time to give me constructive criticism. I even remember she used the word diffident! Her coaching was helpful and encouraging and I practiced and persevered. Since then I must have performed thousands of presentations. Now, I know I present well.

I am unable to think of a single business skill that cannot be improved with intelligent practice and hard work.

Setting Realistic Goals

I could never run a 4-minute mile or a hundred meters in 10.5 seconds! I simply don’t have the genetics. In the martial arts, beginners are not asked to do the complex drills that the more experienced students are working through. There are some basics that are typically done as a group, but then the class is split up so that students are given exercises appropriate for their level of expertise.

Stretch-goals are fine, but they should be achievable. Unattainable goals serve only to demotivate and discourage. Goals have to move you out of your comfort zone but they should never be completely out of reach.

In business, if you understaff or staff a project with an under-skilled team, it will end badly. Challenge your team to move out of their comfort zone, but make sure that they can succeed. I’ve seen managers give employees tasks tat they cannot perform. No matter what they “should be able to do”, if you know someone will fail and you allow it to happen, it’s on you!

Manners and Humility

Martial Arts teaches a formal system of manners and courtesy. Practitioners learn to think about etiquette and that the general rule is to be polite and humble. As a young martial artist, I learnt that if you behave with manners and humility, people are generally much more positive towards you.

In business I’ve always found good manners to be extremely valuable. I’d also note that although some details vary by country, the core values of manners and humility are consistent. I can say that from personal experience of doing business in China, Japan, India, Europe and the Americas. Arrogance is never a good trait.

Have a Can-do Attitude

Positivity is contagious. It fuels passion and hard work and it can inspire others. Looking someone in the eye and saying, “we can do this, we know what to do and we are going to do it”, is extremely powerful. It works best if you believe what you are saying but if you can actually fake it! Why do you think martial artists make noises? There are physical reasons but there are far stronger emotional reasons.

Others feel our positivity. I don’t believe this is magic, people feel your energy because we carry ourselves differently. People pick up on our non verbal behavior: body language and para-linguistics (volume, tone, intonation, speed of our words). In face to face communication only 7% of the communication is based on the words we say, 38% is para-linguistics and 55% is body-language! (credit Dr. Albert Mehrabian)

Martial artists are also taught to stand tall and strong. If you stand strong you will feel strong. Next time you feel under-pressure, try standing tall, take a deep breath and feel your strength. Practice feeling strong and positive.

Be a Learner

Willingness to learn and a positive disposition are, I believe closely related to humility. I want to learn something new every day and I can learn from most junior member of my team. I’ve always enjoyed learning, but martial arts showed me that life is all about constantly learning. Our world is changing so rapidly that we are all challenged to learn every day.

In technology there I seven more emphasis on learning. Today we are challenged to learn more about AI, IOT, cloud, In memory databases, NoSQL databases, micro-services and more. We are presented with a never-ending list of relevant and valuable learning

Teams Beat Individuals

Martial arts completion is mostly considered an individual sport but no one gets there alone. You need good trainers, training partners and coaches. The chemistry between coach and competitor is important. Similarly, the relationship between student and master is very important. I have been fortunate in business to have found several teachers and mentors. The lessons I learn about team work are at the core of the way I try to build and develop my teams.

Great teams are built on mutual trust, respect and a sense of a common goal or mission. These values were ingrained into my core by my martial arts experiences. I also learned that you can lead a team without putting yourself above it. I cannot think of a better way to learn about teams than through martial arts or sports.

In Closing

These are some lessons I have learned in martial arts and applied to my business life. This is not an exhaustive list and I’m sure other martial artists will have different lists and philosophies. I also believe that these lessons can be learnt through other endeavors. I love sport in general and especially rugby, which could be the ultimate team sport! (maybe a subject for a future blog post)

I’d encourage anyone interested to find a good martial arts school and start a lifelong journey. I’m sure it will help you learn more about business.