Onegaishimasu Parents, We have parents coming to us all the time with “How do I get my daughter/son motivated!?”. Or, “Why can’t they get motivated about school/reading/sports?!”. Or, “I just cannot get my daughter/son motivated to do anything?!”

Well, after working with hundreds of families over the past 17 years I have some news for you . . . it’s not about motivation.

Performance and success are not about motivation. Its all about doing the reps past the initial starting phase, or “honeymoon” phase. Think about the last time you decided “This time I am going to do it!” I am going to start that new diet or exercise program. What happened? You got all motivated and pumped up. You might have even gone out and bought that new outfit or even that piece of exercise equipment or gym membership. Let me guess. Three months later……? I'm willing to bet there are just as any treadmills in people's homes used to dry clothes as there is used for exercising.

Motivation is needed to get started. It gets you off the couch, it inspires, it fuels that initial desire to get moving. You need motivation to do anything you really don’t want to do, but motivation can rarely sustain you past the first few months. (Gym memberships are a great example of this!). But what would this have looked like if you had the skills and the knowledge to sustain and even accelerate your personal development long past the initial "Start up phase"? What is the key? The key is HABITS.

Performance and success happen easily when good habits are formed, good habits become disciplines, and good habits are formed by doing the reps. Crash or radical diets rarely work, but a sensible permanent change to your eating habits do. In the end, your child’s habits will make the difference between whether they succeed or struggle.

So instead of trying to “motivate” your child, focus on developing new good success habits. This happens by doing the reps, and forming good daily habits that become disciplines…..especially when approaching things they don’t like or aren’t necessarily good at!!

Parents, as part of our dedication to Continuous and never ending Improvement (CANI) we have been working very hard to come up with ways to take our program to the next level, and help your child discover their unlimited potential. In the New Year we will be introducing some success building concepts for you to take home that will help your child get in the “Good habit-forming mode and mindset” Our mission is to take your child’s personal development to the next level, help them discover their unlimited potential and make 2020 their Best Year Ever!!

You can piggyback on the energy and emotion by also forming some family habits at the same time.......So, what's the next habit you want your child to develop?

Have an amazing week

Sensei

Keiko Karate – “Actually we do make Ninjas and Superheroes here………………we turn kids into Ninjas and we turn their parents into their superheroes!”