Bullying And The Martial Arts
“A bully would rather pick up a weapon and use it then take the time to develop one”
This verse has stayed with me through my journey in the martial arts. Bullying has taken on a persona which gives a minority of people the false sense of power. Bullying has been around forever, it usually is contained through addressing the issue with the bully or bullies. When this breaks down the next step is to draw a line in the sand. Let them understand you are not going to be intimidated by them or become subjected to their hazing. We all hope it ends here and whether you become friends is a choice the people involved in this situation will decide. Respect is what a bully demands but never gives it in return.
Bullies will have followers who are basically afraid of the bully themselves but will not confront the bully. They feel it is in their benefit to be a follower this way they are not the target of this behavior. Here at the center we help you reinforce the confidence and Self Esteem the bully is attempting to strip away from you. We will help you develop 3 methods to help you address your bullying issues.
1) Communication- tell the Resource officer or administration there is a concern with the person who is bullying you. Document what days and what was said to you. Do not continue the issue on any social network or be baited by their followers. Be smart and tell your parents and communicate these issues with people you know and trust.
2) Avoiding confrontation - Sometimes when you walk away from a bullying issue it will follow you. Draw the line in the sand and let them understand you will not tolerate this behavior. One of the most common places for this type of confrontation is in the bathrooms. Here the bully will bring his followers to help them with the Verbal, Physical confrontation. Here is where they will assemble to assist the bully and make claim you started the altercation.
3) Addressing the confrontation- Addressing the confrontation through Self Defense training, Bullies do not like to be confronted back verbally or physically. Once they are aware you have some type of Self Defense training this issue will diminish. Sometimes the bully engages help from his followers to get the upper hand. Either way you will get their respect because you will not allow them to control you. Here we teach you to be Confident, develop Self Defense tools and realize you are not someone else’s conduit to project their low Self Esteem and confidence by physical and verbal attacks.
Remember
When you are being bullied do not try to run and hide from this issue. Face it straight on and believe in yourself. Sometimes you will feel helpless while this act is happening and start to believe it only you. It’s not you it’s someone else with an issue and is projecting it onto you. You will tell people and they may not believe it or they do not want to get involved. Do not stop there find another person or a person that will help assist you in finding someone who will address this situation. Do not feel helpless or give up. Martial arts teaches you how to stand up for yourself, believe in yourself and feel good about yourself.
Fighting is never the answer to the solution, fighting back to preserve your virtues and self esteem is the short term solution.
