What it means to be a white belt and to always have a white belt mentality.
The White-Belt symbolizes a birth or beginning of a person’s will to acquire skills particularly in some form of martial arts like Karate or Taekwondo. So what does a White-Belt Mentality mean? Well, the meaning behind having a White-Belt mentality means to always be learning from anyone, anywhere, anytime of any skill level. No matter what you are learning, you can always learn something for someone else. For example, as a dancer for 18 years I have taken classes and workshops from hundreds of different people, styles, ages, backgrounds and philosophies. Each class I take I walk in with an open-mind and try to absorb the knowledge and movement that is given to me.
Now, that great thing about this mentality is that it can apply in every aspect of life, whether it’s martial arts, dancing, playing an instrument, trying a new style of training or even business. You can check your ego at the door( and trust me you will experience some egotistical moments) and focus your energy on learning something new or even unlearn something that no longer serves you. Yep, you heard me, learn from someone else’s experience to help you not make the same mistakes. Trust me it’s great.
The best part! Not only does this mentality and practice help progress you in your endeavors and keep a humble attitude, it also launches you into exploring new things you always wanted to try or never thought you would try and like. It challenges you to be uncomfortable and try those things you always had reservations towards. As an example, here’s a list of personal & business things I started this pass year and will continue to do for a while for pure enjoyment.
White-Belt Activities:
- Writing a weekly blog
- Kayaking
- Camping
- Ukulele
- Indian Clubs
- Strong Coach Mentorship
- Dancing regularly again
- Creating Online Training Products
- Full-time online coaching
- Rollerblading
- Biking
This is just a list of things I’ve tried, re-tired, and loved/ loved again. The key is to prioritize doing these things you enjoy and to schedule them to stick to them.
Check out my blog post It’s All About Me to learn the importance of planning and scheduling “me time.”