Building Leadership Through Dedication and Hard Work
Do you look at your child and see a future leader? Are you eager to help them be better today than they were yesterday? There are many ways to encourage your child and bring them up to be strong, confident adults, but few of these methods are universally accepted. However, when it comes to working in the martial arts, there’s nothing more common.
Martial arts like taekwondo give children the opportunity to set goals and work not just to meet them, but to exceed them. Along with building self-confidence, this helps build social confidence, giving children a chance to interact with peers on a fairly even scale. This isn’t about competition or being the best student, it’s about teaching your child to be their best self and dedicate themselves to that end. After all, there’s no better leadership quality than confidence paired with a strong sense of duty.
Aiming for the Black Belt
As your child strives to improve and master the art of taekwondo, they don’t just learn physical control—although that is an added benefit. Rather, children enrolled in martial arts classes learn self-discipline, particularly in the meditative and self-paced art of taekwondo. Every time a child earns a new belt, they learn that hard work pays off, as well as learning the value of intangible improvements to their life.
Reaching a black belt isn’t about being able to show everyone that you’re one of the best, it’s about the fact that they made it this far, they set a goal and reached it under their own power. This is one place that you, the parent, can’t jump in and do it for them if they fail; this eases children into a strong sense of responsibility, teaching them to dedicate themselves to success and accept the occasional failure. Also, according to Kenney Myers, even the least social child can find peers in a place where everyone has a common goal and interest. Instead of competition, children in taekwondo learn to support one another, helping the less capable students to improve instead of hurrying to outpace them.
When your child reaches a black belt, it’s not about a tangible object. The belt itself is all but meaningless—just another color to wrap around their gi. Rather, this means that they’ve come to a place of self-discipline and stability, where they’re ready and able to help their peers and juniors to reach the same goals.
Leadership Qualities in Martial Arts
BreakingMuscle.com reports that martial arts teach children multiple leadership qualities, including skills in conflict resolution, acceptance of tribulations, and more. Along with the promised self-confidence and dedication to a goal, you can also expect to see your child grow in emotional strength, the ability to face their fears and handle problems with grace. These children are more likely to take the lead in even the most difficult situation, not because they’re not afraid of the possible outcome but because they understand that without taking control of a situation, no one will reach the resolution they hope for.
Good taekwondo training offers your child not just confidence, but true understanding at an earlier age than their untrained peers. If you want to see your child be their best self, there’s no better route than to aim for a black belt.
