Current News from the Minnesota Taekwondo Center

Congratulations to those testers who have been promoted in the recent months, especially Mr. Aubrey Nielsen and Mr. Patrick Ryan, to 1st Dan Black Belt, and Mr. John Soebbing and Mr. Jim Lies, who achieved the 2nd Dan Black Belt level. Congrats also to Gregory Maas who tested for Green Belt and received an Outstanding Test Award.

We have a December Holiday Promotion for new students. $100 will get one month of unlimited classes and a uniform (a savings of over 10%). If someone you know has been thinking about getting started, this would be a good time! (It also makes a great gift!)


Halloween was great fun as kids (and Instructor!) were allowed to wear costumes if desired. Even the gym coaches got into the act!

Sunday, December 11 from 1-3 pm will be the MGC Showcase at the center. We (MTC) will be doing a short demo at the beginning, then it will break up into various disciplines and will be like a carnival of sorts. There will even be face painting and balloon hats!! Please attend if possible as this is a good promotional event for our school.

We participated in the Slice of Shoreview Parade this summer along with MGC. Wesley and Ian and family helped out and the event was great fun. They carried our banner, demonstrated techniques, and passed out business cards to the many people along the parade route.

The next test will be Saturday, December 17 at noon. Several of our newer students and many from the U of M will be testing that day, so it will be a real event. Dr. Chris Espin will have a demo of her Tiger Tykes program right before the test.

Mr. Steve Kalina, a Sergeant with the United States Marine Corps and a 2nd Dan Black belt, has recently returned from a second tour in Iraq. He is currently serving with the Marine Corps Reserve based in Fort Snelling.

Sergeant Kalina will be at the KARE-11 studios on December 5 and 19, from 5-11 pm, collecting items for the Marine Corps Toys for Tots campaign. If you would like to donate, please bring new, unwrapped toys to the KARE-11 station at that time. Check for other donation times if those times are unavailable. If you can't make it one of those dates, at least watch for him on the news broadcast!

Mr. Punnarin Koy is currently in Iraq with some of his Army unit that had been training with us. The updates have been scarce so far, but we should be hearing from him again soon. "Yesterday 127 degrees in the sun and 113 degrees in the shade. I thought it a bit warmer than other days. I guess once it hits over 100 degrees it just doesn't matter. At night and in the morning I swear it gets (very) cold."

Jessalin Ramsay and Valerie Clintsman made a wonderful cardboard display of Taekwondo tenets for a school project. It is available for viewing at the school.

Don't forget about our library of TKD books and DVD's. A lot of Black Belt tests have been recorded and make an excellent source for practice study. Just be sure to sign them out and return in a timely manner.

You may see our 4th and 5th Dan Master Instructors wearing black pants from time to time. This is a call back to the history of our school, when many Black Belts wore the black pants. At this time the privilege is limited to the 4th and 5th Dans as our Senior Instructors.

All students, please continue to sign in the Attendance log when you come in. Mark the day and date if you are the first one in, using the same column as previously. We can fit a lot more than six names on a page! This makes it easier to get a true picture of class levels for those instructors who are not there on that day.

We celebrated Dr. John Haaland's birthday in September after a Wednesday night class. That was the same night we had a massive storm where power to the center went out, so it made for an interesting celebration.

Please check with the instructor before stretching or warming up, or practicing in the TKD room floor while there is a class going on which you are not in. There have been a few incidents of loud talking, distracting noise, inappropriate equipment use, and physical interference which is not only disrespectful to the Instructor and students currently in class, but can also be a safety concern.

We would like to be sure that everyone has someone listed as an Emergency Contact in case you are unable to provide that information when needed. Forms will be provided. Turn them in to the office and have them place in Mr. Fix's mail box.

Mr. Edgar Young's school has been open for a few months in the Woodbury location. Check with him about stopping by for a class.

The MGC Winter Carnival Classic will be the weekend of Jan 28, 2006. This will be a gymnastics tournament only. They may need some volunteer help, so inquire if you are interested. The next year we may have a concurrent Taekwondo tournament as well, where we will definitely need the assistance of students and family members to pull off a successful tournament.

USATaekwondo (formerly, the United States Taekwondo Union) has a new web page link.
http://www.usa-taekwondo.us/

Building Good Habits —

By Joseph Galea (PPS Member Solutions)

We all tend to fall off track from time to time. But when we make it a habit to pick ourselves up and get right back on track, then we increase our chances of success in everything we do.

It is not easy to be the best we can be on a day-to-day basis; it takes intense focus. Our problem is that we do not coach ourselves enough on how to stay focused. The solution is to make it a habit to coach ourselves, especially when we make mistakes.

Here are good habits that you can develop and practice every day:

1.	Take responsibility for yourself. Responsibility is the recognition that in order to succeed you must make appropriate decisions about your priorities, your time, and your resources.
2.	Center yourself around your values and principles. Don’t let your friends dictate what you should consider important.
3.	Put first things first. Follow up on the priorities you set for yourself. Don’t let others, or others’ interests, distract you from your goals.
4.	Discover your key productivity periods and places. Utilize the times and places where you feel the most motivated to be productive with studying, creativity, and work.
5.	Consider yourself in a win-win situation. You win by doing your best in your class, at school, at work, and even at home. Whether you’re working at your peak performance for yourself, your fellow students, teachers, or family, if you put your best effort forward then everyone involved becomes a winner.
6.	First understand others, and then attempt to be understood. Put yourself in the other person’s place when you disagree. How would you feel if you were on the other side? Then ask yourself how you can make the situation better
7.	Look continually to challenge yourself. Challenges are what make us grow, and open up new opportunities. If you make it a habit to keep yourself challenged, whether by learning a new instrument, taking up a new hobby, or even starting a new job, you will accomplish more than you would have believed possible.

We need to develop the habit of coaching ourselves every day so that we can be the best that we can be. By doing so we will enrich our lives, and will eventually reach the point where self-development comes naturally. Wanting to have good habits is the first step; taking action is the vital second step. You can accomplish more than you ever imagined as you consciously focus on building good habits.

If you have any articles, pictures, puzzles, or any other items you would like to contribute for consideration for printing in our newsletter, please contact Mr. Al Fix.

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©2005 Minnesota Taekwondo Center

December News

Good Habits

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Welcome to the December '05 Issue of MTC Focus —

Building Good Habits —

By Joseph Galea (PPS Member Solutions)


Minnesota Taekwondo Center Newsletter — December 2005 Issue If you have any articles, pictures, puzzles, or any other items you would like to contribute for consideration for printing in our newsletter, please contact Mr. Al Fix.