grading panic

[simone]

hello

oh thank you that you welcomed me so nicely.on sunday me and five of my class-mates (also dominik) will make a beltgrading. i'm going on shodan (i hope) and i really have developed a panic. in my prior gradings it was really ok and i wasn't afraid not even on the grading day. but i'm so afraid of my shodan examination. i think i can perform the techniques well, but maybe it's because a blackbelt is something special. did someone made similar expierences when turning from brown to blackbelt? i hope my panic will disappear in the following days.

simone.

[Tripitaka of AA]

Yes, there are moments of anticipation that can feel like panic. If you look at it as a challenge of your ability to handle "stressful situations" then hopefully you can make it a learning experience. Feel the way it makes you nervous. Fast pulse, trembling hands, confusion and inability to recall basic information... it is all just a fraction of the power that a real-life, life-or-death emergency might provoke. Hope to learn from this experience.

If you get overwhelmed by the "authority" of the instructors, and the fear of failure actually starts to affect your performance, you could always do the trick of imagining them naked! This can work for job interviews, but I've not tried it in a grading... :o

Perhaps others can give some better tips. Let us know how you get on.

[Tuna]

hey,did you need to imagine sensei naked? :p

[RickMatz]

When I used to train in aikido, before a test, I'd ask one of the more senior students to practice randori... with me as uke. I'd get the stress beaten out of me. It worked just fine.

[Tripitaka of AA]

I'm regretting the whole "imagine them naked" thing... I've been having the worst nightmares ever since :(

[Erik]

I've heard from some guys who compete really well that they work out aerobically for 30 minutes before competition or grading. This cleaned their systems of the adrenaline that was scaring them. Careful not to do too much, though.

Viel Glueck, Bursch. Du schaffst es!

[Tripitaka of AA]

Yes, that's what Dancers do. I knew a professional dancer, and they would work out to a state of fully warmed up/nearly pooped, then go on stage to perform.

Mind you, Dancers always seem to be nursing injuries and performing before they've let it recover enough. "Show must go on" is a pretty good way to end up with nagging long-term ailments.

[RickMatz]

Dancers can always lean on one of those handy brass poles if they really get tired. :-)

[simone]

hello

thank you for your advices. i didn't need to imagine sensei naked because when i entered the dojo my panic had dissapeared and i was very relaxed. i think i passed the grading.

[Tripitaka of AA]

That's a good sign. Let us know when you get the official result.

Well done for managing to focus so well, the "naked sensei" really is a last resort... be glad you didn't need it. ;)

[Tuna]

of course you did the grading well,i think i can congratulate already.