Subject: My son Rufus and the knot in his shoe….

This past weekend I went through the frustrating phenomenon that all parents go through.

I had the distinct pleasure and privilege of trying to get a knot out of my son’s shoe.

How he tied it in a knot in the first place?? – WHO KNOWS!!! But, there I was, in my living room, with a sneaker on my lap with a knot in it.

I tried everything.

I used my teeth, the end of a comb, a pencil…. EVERYTHING.  (If I had hair, I would have pulled my hair out!!)  LOL.

I could not get the doggone knot out to save my life.

And then I took the shoe to my wife and she fixed it immediately.

Now why am I telling you this.

Well, my son has been tying his shoes for years now.

He would most definitely consider himself to be a shoe tying expert….. BUT with all of the shoe tying that he’s done over the years, his shoes still get in knots at times.

And they are knots….. that he CANNOT fix. 

Now many of you have judo and jiujitsu careers like that. You have some knots, some sticking points, some hurdles and problems in your career that frustrate you, but you never really address them. You just cut the “shoelace” buy some new ones and hope that such a situation never occurs again.

Well, here’s what I know.

After that happens a few times, you end up with a martial arts career that is stuck and can’t go anywhere.

I recommend every one of the clients in my Deliberate Practice Coaching program to always have a few resources that they can take their “knots” to in order to get fixed. Why? Because even some of the best knot fixers in the world….have knots. For example, when my son brought me his shoe, I did all that I could but couldn’t fix the knot that my wife could fix in seconds. Because she could see the problem differently and provide a different solution to it.

Here are 5 things that my son will find out over time:

1. No matter how good you think you are at tying your shoes, you can be better
2. Knots happen when there aren’t people around watching your shoe tying process
3. When knots occur, have someone to go to in order to fix them
4. There are multiple ways to tie your shoes.
5. Knots SUCK.

In the beginning of 2015, I opened up my Deliberate Practice Coaching Group once again. Unfortunately, I did not have as many spots as I had at the beginning of 2014 because I had some people who already re-upped for 2015. But, this year, I will have all 5 platinum and gold spots open and I will tell you this — I can guarantee you that your game on the mat and your overall martial arts experience will improve great if you decide to do the work.

So…….. Please bring me your shoes…. and I will give them to my wife. LOL  

But bring me your judo and jiujitsu knots and I will untie them and hand you back a brand new pair of shoes.

in the next few days please enjoy your holiday season and also be on the lookout for:

1. My Deliberate Practice Year Long Training And Coaching Program

and

2. A host of training and development opportunities at Tampa Florida Judo in Tampa, Florida (All year long)

Take care and have a great holiday season.

Dedicated to Your Improvement,

Rhadi Ferguson, PhD
2004 Olympian

P.S. In the beginning of 2018, I will start my Deliberate Practice Coaching Group once again so make sure you sign up today.