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Everything I Need to Know...

We've all seen the posters and the shirts - the "Everything I Need to Know I Learned from [blank]" ones. The trend started with "Kindergarten" and has spread from there - dog, cat, Volvo, etc. Well, this group has finally gotten around to joining that trend. This list was compilied by one of our members before he went off to college.

1. Keep your distance.
2. If you don't what it is, don't do it.
3. Always focus.
4. Squeeze from the pinky.
5. Start slow; speed will come with time.
6. Zen solves everything.
7. Whatever you do, don't look up.
8. Always have a back-up plan.
9. If it hurts more than a little, you're doing it wrong and need to change.
10. There's no armor that can match training.
11. Just because it's not sharp doesn't mean it's not real.
12. Anything you wear can and will be used against you.
13. A hole in my hand will heal, but a hole in my glove is forever.
14. It's the smallest nuances and details that make the biggest differences.
15. Trust your partner.
16. It's all a system.
17. Fight like you know how to fight.
18. You're never done learning.
19. Don't reach outside your circle of strength.
20. Clean up efficiently.
21. Make eye contact.
22. Test yourself, but know your limits.
23. Timing is everything.
24. The reaction matters ten times as much as the initiating action.
25. You're never too young to start learning.
26. It is better to beg forgiveness than to ask permission.
27. Repeat customers are the best kind.
28. Always ask questions; it is better to be certain you are wrong than uncertain if you are right.
29. Know what you don't know.
30. Pay attention... there will be a test.
31. There is no "mood" for fighting.
32. You only learn to roll by rolling.
33. Courtesy and some simple etiquette are 2/3 of success. The other 1/3 is practice.
34. Know your audience.
35. Anything said by a guy with a beer should be taken with a grain of salt (or several).
36. If you can't do better yourself, you're in no place to criticize.
37. Never do something well when you can do it exceptionally well.
38. The only way to guard both sides of the castle is if he cuts you half. Pick one and take it.
39. Practice, practice, practice before you try and perform it.