Professor's Corner

Happy Anniversary One Martial Arts

2009-05-03T21:13:00.001-07:00

Nine years, can you believe it?! A moment to stop and reflect. As a person and martial artist, I have been challenged to be fluid. Each passing year presents the opportunity to grow and become a better person. I reflect, seeing my victories, as well as my setbacks. Life is about progress not perfection. Sometimes, I had to be at my worst, to understand God’s path for me and the infinite compassion he offers me. Humbly, I embrace my purpose to educate and motivate those who desire higher learning through discipline. I welcome parents’ desire to offer their children every opportunity, like the martial arts, to have the best life possible.

I am amazed by the quality people I have had the privilege to know and get to know. Next to listening to a 4 year olds opinion on discipline, you are my favorite people.

I have learned so much in the past year. Always be a student and never a master. I believe mistakes are lessons waiting to be learned. Always be mindful, insanity is making the same mistakes over and over, expecting different results. Continue to make new mistakes everyday.

I have no idea what endless possibilities the future holds. I am grateful my eyes are wide open and I am definitely awake. I am forever committed to improving upon what we do, to better serve our students, members and parents needs.

In honor of our 9th Anniversary, I thank God for allowing me to do what I do. I would like to thank my wife Kim, son Brayden, staff, friends and extended family. You humble me. To all our parents, I offer you my respect and gratitude. To the students and members, you are One Martial Arts. I pray we walk this path together for many years to come.

Respectfully,

Professor Brannon Beliso

Gratitude

2009-04-04T23:36:00.000-07:00

I often write about Gratitude. It is a key philosophy of many eastern spiritual practices. Every morning when I wake, I begin in reflection. I reflect on how grateful I am to be alive with a new day. I thank God for all the blessings that are my life. From this mindset, everything I experience in each and every moment of that day, I appreciate completely. I practice taking nothing for granted. I am grateful everyone I am honored to share life with me. I am grateful for every challenge life offers me. Gratitude allows me to be fully present. The only thing that truly is real is the moment I am living. Be it a conversation with a parent, praising a student, my daily phone call to my sister, kissing my wife or looking into Brayden’s eyes, I am fully present. I always say, “The present is called the present because it is a gift.” I believe yesterday does not exist and tomorrow is but a dream. The present is all that truly matters. It allows me to see the truth of that moment. It offers me the opportunity to see and experience everything for the first time. Every time I see a sunset, I embrace it as the first and only sunset I have ever seen. This is also the great joy of having a child. I am reminded, through all of Brayden’s first time experiences just how amazing life is. The other day he discovered his hand. He was both curious and in awe. It made me hold out my hand and appreciate the gift I often pay no mind to. I mindfully bent each finger and smiled at my new discovery. It was like renewing a friendship with a long lost friend.
So I write about gratitude. I encourage everyone to breath, being mindful of their breath and to be present in the moment. Practice an “Attitude of gratitude. Take nothing for granted. Is your cup half or half empty? I believe, “My cup runneth over.” Always be grateful for each and every day you are offered. Be present and grateful in the moment. It will greatly improve the quality of your life.

Respectfully,

Professor Beliso

Hope Not fear

2009-03-13T22:19:00.000-07:00

President Obama campaigned passionately with the message, “Hope not fear.” I believe more than ever this is a message we should choose to live by. Having hope in one’s life promotes a positive mindset. It says, “My cup is half full instead of half empty. Hope looks for the faintest light in the darkness. It’s the silver lining in a dark cloud. Hope says, “It can’t rain all the time.” It challenges us to believe when there is nothing to believe in. Hope encourages us to dream big and live life to the fullest. Fear perpetuates a negative mindset. It says, “My cup is not half empty, I have no cup.” Fear says, “Give up, you don’t have a chance.” It says, “You don’t deserve the best.” Fear leaves us hopeless and diminishes the quality of our lives. The important thing is to remember you always have a choice. You could choose to live with hope. You could choose to live in fear. The power of choice is yours. You are not responsible for many things that happen in life such as the state of the economy. You do have the power how you choose to perceive it. Hope is the solution President Obama offers us. I choose to wake up everyday with a hopeful heart. I am hopeful our nation will recover. I am hopeful the war in Iraq will end one day and our troops will come home. I am hopeful we will heal the earth and our children will have a world to live in the future. I am hopeful all of life’s current challenges will bring people closer together. I am hopeful we will reevaluate our priorities and become mindful of what is most important in our lives. For me, what is most important, first and foremost is God. Everyday I wake up and am grateful to God for every breathe of life I am given. It is important I recognize how blessed I am to have my family. It is important I take nothing for granted. It is important I appreciate everyone I am privileged to share life with. It is very important I am hopeful no matter how challenging life can be. So I humbly reiterate President Obama’s message of “Hope not fear.” Always choose hope and as Bob Marley once sang, “Every little thing is going to be alright.”

Leap of Faith

2009-03-13T22:18:00.000-07:00

As I climbed to ten thousand feet in a rickety Cessna, I sat amongst three experienced skydivers and a well seasoned pilot. The energy they projected was that of a deep respect and knowingness for what I was about to experience. The one skydiver who had this look of bliss and serenity had jumped two hundred and sixty times in the past six months. I looked deeply into his gaze that past out the window and embraced the morning blue sky. The Zen that filled his eyes became my breath as I closed my eyes and meditated. There was no fear in the cockpit, only humility and joy for the honor of being able to dance with the heavens. As we reached our height destination, the paper thin side hatch opened. I looked out and witnessed God’s country like never before. As I stepped out onto the wing, everything slowed and the sound of my breath gave way to the power of the wind calling. “Ready, set, go” chanted my tandem instructor and I took a “Leap of faith” that sent me hurling toward the earth at one hundred and twenty miles an hour. The incredible rush of speed magnified the knowingness I had seen in the eyes of those skydivers in that cockpit and now felt deep in my heart. I was humbled and stripped of all complacency I may of ever felt. There is absolutely no ego as you fly through the sky without the benefit of the perfectly good airplane you just jumped out of. I felt God’s love in the knowing that today I was not going to die but live like I have never lived before. I flew amongst the heavens and kissed angels. Then the parachute opened raising me up to another level of consciousness. Silence filled the sky as we floated softly toward the green fields below. I had never seen this great and beautiful world from this vantage point and in this way. How could any of us ever believe we are so much more significant than mother earth? To be so selfish on our own paths that we hurt her again and again for convenience, progress and profit. As she reached for us with arms stretched out, I told my tandem instructor, “There is no ego up here.” I didn’t feel small, I felt at one with every element that encompassed me. I was filled with the deepest sense of gratitude. Each breath I took was timeless. I was truly present with the gift of flying that I had been blessed with. I love my wife for giving me this as my birthday gift. I had always wanted to skydive but had put the notion aside since marrying and becoming a father again. With her encouragement, I was able to take this “Leap of Faith.” I humbly thank all of you for allowing me to share this moment and my life with you. - Professor Beliso

It's Been Awhile

2009-03-13T22:12:00.000-07:00

So much has happened since my last blog. I had a son, who is now five months old. I jumped out of a plane and watched my school grow to six hundred students. I opened a new business and weathered a challenging economy. Gratitude is my choice to live by and the law of attraction holds much truth. I am back and promise to do my best to blog. What a word blog. I will do my best to offer you my insights and thoughts on life as I experience and see it. Thank you for your patience. God loves you, never forget that. Brannon

Positive Attitude

2008-01-29T15:31:00.000-08:00

A smile and positive attitude go a long way. I believe if you smile, you will feel better, make more friends and the hard things will be easier. A great mentor of mine, Master Dave Kovar of Satori Academy of Martial Arts once quoted, “Attitude is contagious, who has caught yours today?” I instill this philosophy in my staff and instructors. I believe if you practice a positive attitude you will attract positive people into your life. A positive attitude will inspire your students and staff. It will make your martial arts business a great place to come to. On the downside, a bad attitude can greatly compromise your martial arts business. We’ve all been served by someone who has a bad attitude. It is the one thing we are guaranteed to remember long after leaving that establishment and the number one reason why we will never return. Have you ever woken up in a bad mood for no reason at all? You are not responsible for that. You are responsible if you choose to stay in that bad mood throughout the day. Master Kovar proposes the question to instructors to ask ourselves and students, “How are you doing today?” He says a great response would be, “Feeling good and getting better.” When I wake up in a bad mood, I look in the mirror through gritted teeth and say that mantra. Even if I don’t truly feel it, I know if I “Fake it until I make it”, eventually I will feel better and my mood is transcended to a more positive state. I practice having a positive attitude with devotion because I know it is the most important key to being a great martial arts instructor, school owner and an even better person.

Surround Yourself with Quality People

2008-01-29T15:24:00.000-08:00

Make it a priority to develop and nurture quality relationships. From your employees, to your mentors and friends, spend your time with quality people. Define what that means to you. I suggest that include people who are goal oriented, compassionate, unselfish, confident, community oriented, spiritually grounded and devoted to their family. They should exemplify all the qualities you admire in a person and aspire to be. They should inspire you to greatness. They should be people that offer constructive suggestions but never criticize you. They should be one of your greatest reasons to love and do what you do.

Having Goals

2008-01-18T09:55:00.000-08:00

It is important to have goals. They build your self-worth and help you grow your life and business. Remember being a white belt in the martial arts and dreaming of one day earning your black belt? Dreams and goals are often synonymous. To achieve goals, you must be able to visualize them. If you can visualize it, you can achieve it. Write down your goals. Divide them into three lists; “A”, “B” and “C”. The “A” list are daily activities such as teaching quality classes, training, eating healthy, picking your kids up at school and getting enough sleep. The “B” list are tasks that must be accomplished in four to six weeks and requiring planning and preparation such as a monthly belt testing, a demonstration at a local mall or making a dinner reservation at the best restaurant to celebrate your anniversary with your wife . The “C” list is your wish list filled with all the things you dream about such as a vacation around the world or a new home or going sky diving. This is my favorite list because it allows me to use my imagination where the sky is the limit. To be successful with all your lists you must follow through. Talk is cheap. Walk your talk. Ever find yourself saying, “One day I’ll do this” or “I should of have done that?” Stop making excuses and take responsibility for all your actions and choices. Eliminate the words “I can’t” and “But” from your vocabulary. These words only set you up for failure. Remember to write down those lists and follow through. Review them on a weekly basis. Whatever goals you did not achieve this week get transferred to next’s week list. Do this until all your goals are achieved and I promise you a more fulfilling life.

Balance

2008-01-18T09:50:00.000-08:00

Balance. It is defined by nurturing your mind, body and spirit equally. If I take care of my mind and spirit but abuse my body, by not training and having poor eating habits, I will be imbalanced. If I properly nourish my body and grow my mind by learning but have no spirituality then I am imbalanced. All three must be fed equally to create balance. Feed your mind by learning every day. Feed your body by eating healthy, training and managing your stress. Invest in your spirit by finding your own spiritual path. Create balance by spending alone time every day. Share quality time with your family and friends. Take vacations every year. Humbly accept your limitations. Recognize you cannot do it alone. Always be grateful. Accept life on life's terms

Sustained Passion

2008-01-18T09:49:00.000-08:00

Sustained Passion: “To sustain passion on a daily basis is the art of a true master.” It is easy to be great for one day, a challenge to be great for a week but very difficult to be great consistently. Sustained passion is the first key to constant growth in your martial arts business. It is also vital to maintaining a quality life. The foundation of sustained passion is focus and discipline. My definition of focus means to “Pay attention”. Look with your eyes, listen with your ears, think about the best choice to make, and take the right action. All four must be fully engaged to be focused. The second is discipline; simply defined as, “To always do your best”. It does not matter if you are tired or in a bad mood, you must always do your best. Discipline takes great skill on a daily basis. Focus and discipline are life skills that must be mastered to sustain passion.

Thank you Lord...

2007-12-17T10:19:00.000-08:00

My heart is filled with humility. I am so grateful to be a husband, father, martial artist, a teacher and small business owner. God has blessed me, even though often times I don't feel very deserving. God offers me his love and mercy in spite of my shortcomings. He lifts me up when I am down and gives me hope when I feel hopeless. God shows me with a lot of hard work and a "never give up" attitude that dreams can come true. God has given me a beautiful loving wife, a prosperous business supported by the best group of people anyone can imagine, my health and most of all, a spiritual relationship that gives me the strength to want to be a better person. I thank you Lord for giving us your only son, so we may see the true love and mercy we should all exemplify for the world and each other. I thank you Lord for blessing me with so much. I am humbled by your greatness. I love you God. Happy birthday Jesus...

Happy Holidays

2007-12-03T23:02:00.000-08:00

Amazing. Another year has almost passed and the holidays are upon us again. How often I have heard people say, “I survived the holidays”. I do not want to survive. I choose to live. Living embraces such qualities as passion, giving, accepting challenges and always doing our best. It reminds me to be humble and grateful for every breath I am offered. It says never take a single person for granted and be present in every moment I am blessed with.

As I reflect upon 2007, I have so much to be thankful for. First of all, my personal relationship with God. The strength, faith, and love God gives me are the foundations of my life. To my wife Kim, and my family, you are my heart. To the parents, students, and members that are One Martial Arts, you allow me to live my passion and truth. My dedication to serving you is my strongest conviction. To my staff and parent organization, I would like to thank each and everyone of you for giving me unconditional support and belief. You represent the true meaning of teamwork.

As I look forward to a new year, I will hold fondly the memories of our Tournaments, 5th Annual Appreciation Picnic, Easter, Halloween and Buddy Day parties, Child Identification with SFPD Reserves, SF Food Bank Food Drive, SF Firefighters Toy Drive, countless belt tests, private lessons and classes. Together we have achieved so much. I know together in 2008, with God’s love and mercy, the possibilities are endless. I am humbled to contribute to helping so many of you be your best. I am grateful for the trust you offer me. Thank you for your patience as we grow and constantly strive to be a better martial arts school. Your honesty, dedication and understanding is the driving force behind One Martial Arts.

I thank you with a child’s heart. My prayers and gratitude are with each and every one of you. Happy Holidays!!!

Respectfully,

Professor Beliso

Thanksgiving

2007-11-04T20:18:00.000-08:00

I want to be fully present with every breath I take. You never know how many more you will be blessed with. I say this with a deep sense of love and compassion not fear. My love of life and living it completely is my discipline. It defines courage, knowing you are afraid but choosing not to allow that fear to paralyze you. It says do not think about losing, then you will surely lose. Embrace the humility of simple victories and feel God's mercy. So I offer you this: Kiss yourself in the mirror at least once a day, act like a kid more often than not and give of yourself, unselfishly to your family, friends and community. In honor of Thanksgiving I recognize the gift of family that we have been given. However we define family, it is the main social aspect of our lives that give us a true sense of belonging. Feel humility that you have been blessed with truly wonderful people to love. Embrace gratitude knowing you never have to go through life’s ups and downs alone. Our family are the people we should always offer the kindest words of love and compassion. They are the greatest gift offered us. It is an honor to be a part of something so beautiful as family. I thank God for helping me realize this each and everyday. I am grateful for the entire One Martial Arts family.

Happy Thanksgiving,

Respectfully,

Professor Brannon Beliso

2007-09-30T00:12:00.000-07:00

What is inside your heart?
I do not care if you make
100,000 dollars a year,
Tell me what makes you cry?
There’s no mystery or magic.
Simply feed your
Mind, body and spirit
Equally and you create
Balance and harmony.
Neglect any of the three
And you create imbalance.
Freedom is the key.
Choose to put down
The thick high walls
That keep out all the light
And you feeling nothing
Except the same mistake
That you make over and over
Always asking yourself why?
So I challenge you to
Laugh ten times a day
And always be in love,
With yourself, others
And life in all its
Glorious mysteries and
Funky twists and turns.
I’d rather go through life
With my eyes wide open,
Then asleep with only
A gold watch and a pension
To show for after thirty years.
This is only my perception.
Find your own perception
Inside those places that you
Cry alone to, late at night,
When no amount of
Distractions or lies
Can prevent you from
Hearing the truth that
Cries out from your soul.
"I’m alive in here"
"I am alive".
And then all you hear is
The sound of silence.
You’ve broken through to
To the other side,
Past your fears,
Past your past
Into the gap of unlimited
Potentiality where
Love is the light
That shines through the
Darkness in your heart.
I am humbled to
Share my heart with you
And will always choose
To love completely
Each and every time
God grants me this opportunity.
This gift that calls to be
Fully appreciated in
All its simplicities but
Makes no promises...

2007-09-30T00:10:00.000-07:00

Exercise the mind
By freedom of thought.
In the imagination
Stop signs melt
And fly away.
Pretty funny if you ask me,
To see an elephant
Green as can be.
Or the nations
having a pie eating contest
To satisfy their greed.
Today I am a imaginist.
A mindset that only
Lives in images.
Yeah, that’s the ticket!
Images,
Of...of...
Don’t think!
Let your imagination run free.
Had a conversation with an ant today.
It was interesting indeed!
We spoke of dog shaped clouds
And two ton grasshoppers,
Whose songs are deafening
To the tiny ear of the ant.
Imagine if you will,
A place like Willie Wonka’s
Chocolate factory
Where everything is edible.
Kinda like the world use to be huh?
Elvis is alive!
I spoke to him yesterday.
He’s running a peanut farm
Down in Georgia.
Makes some pretty righteous
Peanut butter too!
Oh well, my imagination
Needs some food.
Maybe I’ll have some
Liver and strawberry ice cream
With banana chow mein and
Fried cucumbers.
Nah, how about chocolate
Lizards and pickled yak balls
With parsley? Hah, hah!
No, how about steamed butterflies
And the frozen eyes from the
Face of a politician?
Imagination my good friend
Holds the key toUnlimited potential!
Use your imagination and
Set yourself free...

2007-09-30T00:08:00.000-07:00

Round one thousand
Eight hundred and thirty two,
Brannon vs. Self-doubt.
Self doubt has dominated
The early rounds but the
Tide seems to be turning.
Brannon’s corner has told their fighter
To quit fighting self-doubt
And embrace it like a best friend.
This has left his opponent
Confused in the later rounds
And the momentum is changing.
Brannon is on his toes,
Bobbing, weaving and sticking
Self-doubt with explosive jabs
Of positive reinforcement.
He knows he can win this fight
With self-acceptance
And looks like a true champion.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Self-doubt is down for the count!
In a flurry of love,
Brannon has knocked out
Self-doubt to win the
The championship of self-worth...

2007-09-30T00:06:00.000-07:00

See the baby
Taking his
Very first step.
So much thought
And preparation
Is involved.
The importance,
Negotiation and
Planning bears
Great significance.
The child is amazed,
Overwhelmed, excited,
Delighted and determined
To complete his task.
He lifts his appendage
With calculated precision
And gingerly, no awkwardly
Leans forward to
Plant it firmly in
Front of himself.
The red alert is over
And the green light
Signals a successful mission.
The first step has been
Taken and many more
Trips lie in the future.
Just imagine what
It’s gonna be like
When he starts running...

Honor

2007-09-30T00:03:00.000-07:00

This year I have had the extreme honor of attending services for the passing for four very special and loved people. They were all well into their eighties and nineties. This fact humbled and amazed me.As I approach forty six, I have begun to accept the reality of my own mortality. I find myself asking, “What is the key to a long and prosperous life?”. After hearing eulogies for these four individuals, I realized they all shared many great qualities. They were all very giving and unselfish people. They possessed great faith in God. They believed in good family values. They were simple souls who did not put great value on material things. They passionately gave to their communities and country. They represented an era when their word was upheld without compromise. They were conservative and never wasted. They never took anyone or anything for granted. They were loyal and trustworthy. They were greatly respected, loved and admired by family, friends and associates. They were not judgmental people. They lived humble lives. They worked hard and never complained. They exemplified integrity and the true sense of pride. I realize many of the qualities they all had in common, we strive to teach in the martial arts. I was even more honored to recognize this. I will continue to do my best to teach and live by these values. God willing, I will be blessed with a long and prosperous life.Respectfully, Professor Brannon Beliso

Practice

2007-09-01T01:25:00.000-07:00

The key to being great at anything is practice. If I want to be great at reading I need to practice. If I want to be great at riding a bike, I need to practice. If I want to be great at martial arts, I NEED TO PRACTICE. Most people, especially children, find the repetitive nature of practice to be boring. Most children’s definition of boring is “It is not fun” and “I don’t like it”. No one is great at most things right away, so of course at this stage, most people don’t like it and its not fun. If they practice and practice, they will eventually become great at anything they choose. At this point, it does become fun and most like it. Practice through the boredom, knowing that likeability, fun and greatness is on the other side.

In God We Trust

2007-08-06T10:41:00.001-07:00

In God we trust. I see it on our currency all the time. What does this mean? To associate God with money? This seems contradictory to most Christian teachings I’ve read. To me, “In God We Trust”, means trusting and having faith in God. I see that faith in the smile of a child or a perfect sunset in Hawaii. It is the happy ending at the end of a movie or when good wins over bad. Faith is the strength God gives me to never give up, and accept life on life’s terms. God is known by different names such as Buddha, Allah, Jehovah or Jesus. No matter the name, to me, having faith in God is the path to inner peace and balance. Faith asks me to surrender my self-will and control to God. It inspires me to always be humble, tolerant, compassionate and forgiving. Where I can’t, God can. When I feel like I can’t go on and want to give up, I give it up to God. This simple act of faith gives me a feeling of peace, knowing that everything will be just as it is should be. This peace offers me clarity. I am grateful each time I wake to a new day and go to sleep with the hope of an even better tomorrow. I am grateful I choose to have faith. I thank God for his love and mercy. I encourage everyone to find their own spiritual path. It is the key to establishing faith in one’s life. In God we trust.

Respectfully,

Professor Brannon Beliso

Relationships

2007-07-15T23:28:00.000-07:00

Relationships are a big part of our lives. They influence and shape the way we think, feel and live our lives. We have relationships with God, family, friends, and acquaintances. They are the foundation of our existence. Some relationships are good for us and others unhealthy. Some last a lifetime, while others are but a moment. Some practice the art of relating to themselves. We seek and pursue relationships. Each one offers an opportunity to embrace and accept life on life terms with a sense of humility and hope.
Relationships,
Relation ships
Relating ships
We are ships in search of relating.

Communication

2007-07-10T01:01:00.001-07:00

Communication is a valuable life skill. The success of communication comes from being a good talker and an even better listener. Good manners, respectful language, strong eye contact, and honesty are elements of a good communicator. Be concise, clear and never bring up the past. Focus on the current topic being discussed. Always offer a positive viewpoint. Remember there are no problems only challenges. Avoid using the word "Problem". It creates negative energy and the listener will have difficulties hearing what you are saying. Do not use the same energy that created the so called, "Problem" when discussing the solution. Only love and a win-win mindset will create a healthy resolution. My father often said, "You cannot listen if you are talking". So when listening, be quiet and focus on the person who is talking. Remember hearing is not the same as listening. Listening requires respect and genuine interest in what is being said. Master communication skills and you will greatly improve the quality of your relationships and life.

Believe You Are

2007-07-10T00:56:00.000-07:00

You are what you believe you are.
If you believe you can, everything is possible.
If you believe you can’t, then you have already defeated yourself.
If you believe in yourself, the potential is unlimited.
If you do not believe in yourself, failure is your destiny.
Believe you are, and you will be.

— Professor Brannon Beliso

Fluid

2007-06-20T18:45:00.000-07:00

Fluid
Always in motion
Never stagnant
Ever changing
Adapting to life
As it goes.
Purpose fulfilled
Living completely
With love, humility and
A positive mindset
Offering shelter from
The many storms
That rage on
In my heart and mind.
God is my anchor
And dreaming big
Is the mantra that
Keeps me smiling.
Ever fluid like water
Flowing to the path of enlightenment...

Happy Father's Day

2007-06-18T23:22:00.000-07:00

I found myself asking on this Father's Day, "What makes a good father?" Not an easy question to answer. People's truth about their fathers often are motivated by many variables. They range from fear and shame to genuine love. There is no exact just an innate acceptance of our fathers as they are. An unconditional love. I am honored to have a father and be a father. Even on the most trying of days, I am so grateful to be given this gift. First may I praise God, the one true father. To my real dad, I miss you everyday. I pray we get to share a moment before it is our time to go home. To my surrogate fathers, thank you for the privilege of your knowledge and teachings. I am a better person because of my fathers. They have taught me how to live life bigger than I could ever imagine. To them I wish "Happy Father's Day".