Emotions can run amok in a stressful situation.  Those can be useful if you have practiced using them.

Many people think only of anger as a useful emotion in a violent encounter.  The truth is that anger, fear, hope, and love are all useful and should be there.

In a previous blog I mentioned that the ability to turn the emotional intensity up or down is sometimes called "killer instinct".  I offered some thoughts on why that skill is important.  I also mentioned a simple way to train to "turn it down".

Today I will offer a way to train to turn it up.  You can do it with no equipment at all.  

Part 1 was about basic strategy when facing more than one attacker. 

Now we cover your escape.

Know your exit and work towards it.  If the attack is drawn out more than a few seconds, you are going to get really tired.  There is no good way for it to end once they swarm on you.  You must escape.  Use every weapon and trick at your disposal.

It's time for "answer a question with a question"!  The answer to "Do Martial Arts REALLY work" is "Does football REALLY work?".
To paraphrase Bruce Lee, if you learn how to "do" football and you lose a game, it doesn't mean the plays were bad.  It doesn't mean the technique of throwing a pass is no good.  It means simply that you have not developed the attributes required to apply those skills against that particular opponent.

The modern martial arts owe a lot to Bruce Lee.  He pioneered the use of the training equipment seen in every martial arts gym in America.  He researched and tested ideas from martial arts from all over the world.  He even fought - literally - for the right to teach non-Chinese people martial arts.

Now we come to the end of this famous battle, and the 4th part of this "mini-series"

The last bit is often forgotten as we tell the story to children.  David took advantage of his opponent's moment of weakness and followed through.  He took Goliath's own sword and cut his head off with it.

I guess I understand why we rarely tell that to the kiddies, and why women recoil from it.  There is a tremendous lesson there though.

In Part 1, we covered the role of faith and clear mindedness.

In part 2, we saw how it is best to have more than one plan, in case of inevitable problems.

Now we continue to explore how David actually engaged the giant.

Part one began with David approaching the battle with unshakable faith and a clear mind.  What else did David bring with him?

When David was preparing for battle, he picked up 5 smooth stones.  Why five?  If he had faith, why not 1?  For that matter, why bring any weapon?