The Story of George Nipah
One thing that I love about the martial arts is the mental training that comes from it. The toughness, resilience, commitment, discipline, focus, confidence, grit...I can keep going on with all the mental stuff that I love from the martial arts.
Of course I love the physical conditioning, the art and the ability to apply all those cool martial arts techniques and tactics. But it's the mental toughness that I really appreciate and at the moment, the part that I am trying to focus on.
One example of many, is the story of
George Nipah.
Here is George pictured on the left with
Felix Williams, a professional boxer and the number one contender for the national featherweight championship
George came to Canada, from Ghana, in 2007 and spent about 4 years in our country. He wasn't able to afford a membership with us, but we were happy to have George work out a barter system with us, and he trained with us from May 2008 to September 2009.
It was tough for George. No real family, no friends and no job. But he loved training in the martial arts. Listen to what George has to say:
I learned a lot of things at Kombat. I learned how to love the process of training in the Martial Arts, set goals in life and commit to them and how to get my priorities in life correct. The warm and enabling environment helped me develop very good social skills which have helped me to this day. Lastly, by working at Kombat, I learned good work ethics i.e Showing up on time, working hard and taking initiative.
My study of the Martial Arts has taught me to be resilient, patient and mentally tough. It has also taught me to control my emotions and work through them. Also it has taught me to value myself as a human being and treat others with respect.
Martial Arts can benefit people in a variety of ways. It can help people get fit. Also it can help people acquire valuable life skills such as discipline, focus, commitment, a good work ethic, and mental strength. Also it can be used as a tool for self defence. It also builds character.
Currently George is training in
Boxing.
But the most important thing? He finally graduated in a
Bachelors Degree in Psychology!
This is one of my proudest achievements. Having a small influence in someone's life, and seeing someone do very well in their life.
We are proud of you George.
And another thing...
I recently learned that due to the success of George's thesis project and his interest in the field of sports psychology, he is being considered for a role on the national hockey team as a performance manager / sport psychologist. He will be the first of his kind in Ghana to start this endeavor.
Again George, we are proud of you. You are taking the deeper lessons of martial arts and applying it to your life. Beyond the physical. And you are also helping people. :)
- Joey, just Joey
