“Do you have a black belt?”

One of the most influential movies in my life is The Karate Kid. It continues to resonate to this day. Every once in a while, I dig it out and watch it again and take away something new each time

Beyond the iconic “wax on, wax off” mantra, lays a message about how to live and how to treat others.

I watched it recently and was admiring the choice of settings to further emphasize the difference between teaching styles of Kreese at the Cobra Kai Dojo and Miyagi.

The Cobra Kai trained in a stark white square space with a defined hierarchy led by a tyrannical dictator. Driven by fear, the student’s achievements are hollow, lacking the characteristics to be a real person. Kreese’s message of “No mercy,” limits the range of feeling and intent of his art.

Miyagi’s dojo was the everyday locale of his garden, the lake, and beach or around his house. Daniel’s lessons resonate across the spectrum of life and are not limited to the karate. By showing Daniel the purposefulness of movements and the ability of those to transcend the physical, Miyagi provides a way of living a fuller life.

What type of environment helps you learn?