Question 054: Switching to TKD

 

We get students all the time who have studied karate in the past. Some want to learn Taekwondo so they work hard to suppress their karate habits, some have a difficult time giving up their karate habits, and some say they want to learn Taekwondo but they refuse to give up their karate habits; these are the ones who usually drop out of class. When I joined my current school and association, I had been in Taekwondo for over 25 years and was set in my ways. I had to change the way I did a lot of things to conform to the new school. Some of the changes were easy, some were difficult, some took a long time, some came without my really being aware of it, and some came even with me fighting the change. I am now fully indoctrinated into the program but I still have my previous experience to rely upon. Instructors who have been in the program since birth do everything the same and do not see any reason to change. I am always tossing in new things and forcing students and instructors to question the status quo and to think on their own.

Give Taekwondo a shot; if it does not work out you can always leave and look for something else. Anything you learn is useful.