Sugar Ray Robinson: arguably the greatest pound-for-pound fighter ever.
It doesn’t matter if you want to be the heavyweight champion of the world or not. Every guy should get in a fight at least once in his adult life. Just hear me out…
It could be a controlled match, like a boxing match or mma fight, or it could be a street fight. But every guy should know what it feels like to get hit in the face, but to also truly know how he’ll react to getting hit in the face.
A lot of us talk a big game. We look pretty strong, or we look like we can handle ourselves, but when push comes to shove we cower. We turtle. We lose our minds in the middle of the chaos and look for the quickest way out – usually in the form of a cheap shot.
I know what you’re thinking, “alright buddy, so every guy should get in a fight in his adult life, what are we cave men?” No not at all. In no way am I saying that we should be one of those douche bags who goes out on weekends looking for a fight. That’s useless and immature. And they deserve the ass kicking that they eventually get.
What I mean is that we should know what it feels like to get hit in the face and we should truly see how we’re going to react when that happens. How are you going to react when life smacks you in the mouth?
Will you cower, turtle and look for the easy way out? Or will you stand and fight?
Step # 1
Don’t Make Decisions Ruled By Emotion
Also, don’t fight consumed by emotion. Emotions cloud our judgment. We make unwise decisions when we’re thinking with our feelings because we’re not taking everything into consideration. Fighting is no different. You need to be calm and aware of all that is going on around you if you’re going to effectively pick your opponent apart, and expose his weaknesses.
Is there place for emotion?
Of course there is. Feelings and emotions are what makes life exciting, they give meaning to our purpose and what we’re doing, but also why we’re doing it. This of course coming from an Irish, Italian. I have about as much emotion as you can have. Throughout my life I’ve let my emotions rule my decision-making.
Interestingly enough, getting into boxing helped me deal with that in a way that nothing else had ever been able to do before. I used to get in fights growing up because I was an angry kid. Boxing took all of the emotion out of fighting. It made it more of a game of chess than a test of manhood.
Step #2
Add some tools to your toolbox
Good luck building a house without any tools. Good luck being successful in your career without any skills. Good luck winning a fight if you’re out of shape and don’t have a clue how to throw a punch.
I can show you how to do this a lot better on video than I can in words, so here’s a series I did for the Art of Manliness about boxing. In it I show you how to throw punches, how to block them, and how to take advantage of your opponent.
Here’s the series – Click HERE – take a look at the videos on the right for instruction.
The other side of this is training. You’re going to be more equipped to win the fight if you’re in great shape. For this, another gift. If you haven’t signed up to my member’s email list yet, here’s where to do it –> Free Workout.
I send out weekly training, nutrition, and lifestyle tips that are exclusive to those who sign up as they aren’t shown on the blog. You also get a free workout that’ll give you the tools to build the speed, power, and endurance you need to win a fight.
Step #3
Face your fears
Fear can be a debilitating thing, or it can be exhilarating. When you face your fear and conquer what you’re truly scared of, you WILL feel like you can do anything. And I’m not talking about holding snakes or spiders; I mean your real fears.
Your fear of failure, your fear of being alone, of losing, or of getting your ass kicked. Most people go through life walking a safe path. They don’t face what scares them and they never reach their true potential. They stay in their comfort zone and I’d argue, that they never truly experience life.
Identify a few things that you fear, and make a goal and plans to face them. Are you scared of failing? Then pursue something you’re truly passionate about. Something that will really hurt if you fail. Give it your all. You may fail, or you may not, but give it the effort it deserves.
Scared of reaching your REAL POTENTIAL?
Think about it. I mean your true potential. A lot of us are. That’s why we do things half-assed, or why we start a program but don’t truly finish it.
