Ok, so you all can gather that I'm really new at TKD. As you can see from my sig I'm hoping to have my 1st grading on August 19th, and basically, I'm really scared! I don't know why I am so nervous, as I know that the worst that can happen is that I don't pass and have to re-take it 3 months later. However, I'm still really unsure about a lot of the techniques and I know that it must look really sloppy when I do it compared to what it should look like. Last night in class we learned the last of the techniques that we'll need to learn for our 1st grading, Sajo-Jirugi No.2. I'd only just managed to get the hang of Sajo-Jirugi No.1 when my instructor goes and throws in another one! LOL. I think it all just comes down to confidence, as I can pretty much remember all the techniques when I'm standing in my front room when no-one is looking, however, stand me in a room where people are watching and I forget all I'm supposed to be doing and my arms and legs begin to resemble an octopus! I don't really know if this post is going anywhere really, but as I've read others say on here, I don't have anyone else to talk to who understands what I mean. Ok, enough random ramblings. Sorry.
It's really nothing to worry about, you've got an entire month left to work on your stuff remember, and trust me, by that time you'll have it all worked out. I'm not going to say your grading probably won't be a bit scary (I know mine was), but when it comes to the actual day, and you're standing there in your group waiting for the go, you'll get it no problem, it's so drilled in to your brain by then it's impossible to get wrong I find.
Thanks for that CK, I really didn't think anyone was going to reply so quickly. I'm sure it'll all be ok, I'm sure that loads of students are filling their pants before their first gradings, and afterwards they say "what was I worried about?" I'm hoping that it will be that way for me. My instructor says that he wouldn't put anyone in for it who he didn't think would pass, and I have faith in his judgement, so I must be good enough. I can't wait until I have a groovy yellow stripe around my belt to break up the colour of my dobok, I think I look a bit like a snowman in it at the moment! LOL
Hiya I don't do twkd , but I was really scared before my first grading, for weeks in fact. As soon as it starts though you just go into complete concentration mode and manage to do everything you are asked! It's good to get nervous to a certain extent as it shows that you care about what you are doing!
From what I understand, it's very hard to fail your first grading. However, you usually only have one go at getting it right i.e. you don't usually have a second turn at doing your form if you made major mistakes...and then you don't grade. So, of course it's scary. You've trained hard to get to the point where you are considered good enough to grade, and when it comes down to it, your months of training are going to be assessed on a few elements that may not take very long to perform. Often how well you manage your nervousness can be part of the assessment. And many people find their performance is helped by managing the adrenaline produced by being nervous. So: 1. it's normal to be nervous/scared - you want to do well for yourself and your instructor 2. Being nervous can help your performance 3. you really must already know your stuff to be recommended for a grading 4. the first grading is often treated like an official welcome to the organisation and isn't likely to be assessed too hard and/or allowances are often made for "first time nerves" Good luck!
Try not to worry too much. Gradings can't be that bad if thousands of people go back again and again - how else do you think they get to black belt? I was really worried for my first grading but it was nowhere near as bad as I thought it was going to be. You've got plenty of time before your grading so don't panic and just focus on what you need to do.
Hi, Gradings are really nerve racking things, to be honest for me they don't get any less nerve racking as time goes on, the higher grade I go, the more I want it, I was so nervous for my last grading i was nearly crying!! haha, I swear I don't know what got into me, I just felt really emotional and so desperate to pass! (i know, i'm an idiot!!) But I shouldn't worry too much when taking your first grade, I know my instructor doesn't look for too much technique on the first grading as no-one is going to come in and have everything looking the way it should look. I was told by a former black belt that it doesn't really start falling into place until you hit blue belt, and as for looking like it should, I think you are expecting too much from yourself, you have only been doing it a few months. As for getting to grips with saju jirugi, when you're at home practicing, if you wear a sock on your left foot only for the first quarter of saju jirugi, it will help you remember to keep that foot in the same place and that your right foot is doing the moving, then swap sock onto right foot to remind you its the left foot doing the moving! Pretend the sock is glue, you now can't move that foot!( i hope you understand that!!) Thats how i got my head round it,(i'm not weird really i'm not!) by the time you do chon-ji you will be wondering why you found saju jirugi hard, honest. Good luck with your grading, I'm sure you will be fine. Let us know how you get on.
My pleasure, I only graded a week ago so I'm still in the white belt mindset to a certain extent, I keep looking down and thinking "this can't be my belt, it has some yellow in it". At the end of the day, it's yellow tag, you won't fail, no one does, even one of the kids in my class who can only get through Sajo by looking at other people passed, but you'll be nervous anyway. Why? God knows, it's like when you go absailing or climbing, you know there's a rope attached to you and there's absolutely no way you could fall, but your brain somehow manages to forget this and just concentrates on the 50 foot drop to the ground below, it'd be no fun otherwise.
Everybody gets nervous before a grading its only natural. As long as you do what youve been taught and try your hardest there should be no problem.your instructor would not put you forward for promotion if you werent ready
Just relax mate ... Think abot what you are doing ... take your time and most of all be the best YOU can be ... Good luck Leroy 3rd Dan black belt TKD
It's natural to be nervous, most people are. Our group all find that whilst we are waiting outside we are all terrified but as soon as our name is called and we hit our mark something takes over and we are all really calm. We all know that we know what we are doing and that our instructor does not allow us to grade if we are not good enough. I guess it helps though that our instructor is one of the people at the front table so we can all see him.
I'm pretty sure that it will be Master Michael Dew 7th Dan. I think he's the grading examiner for the South West. Ok, I know, my theory's not 100% yet!
Good luck Drusilla and just relax and do your best. More than likely you will be saying your grading was a piece of cake on August 20th You are always the most nervous with your first , but that won't change with subsequent gradings, although you will be better able to deal with the nerves having had the experience. This is quite a good tip! I'm going to pass it along... thank you
Master Dew is a great guy hes not gonna try and trick you into making mistakes.Remeber he was a white belt himself once h eunderstands your nervous.Ask your instructor to see what a grading card looks like, you are only tested on whats on that card. 10 push ups 10 front rising kicks sitting stance middle punch walking stance front punch walking stance low block rev punch walking stance middle inner forearm block rev punch saju jirugi A + B aprox 5 theory questions
You will do just fine on your grading.Most instructors would not let a person test if they thought that they may fail. GOOD LUCK Fred
That's a great tip, thanks! I didn't know that, I just thought we would be tested on random things and then I would completely forget what I was doing and just end up standing there going bright red looking like a prat. I'm a little worried about the theory, as I've only just mastered the 1-10 in Korean, let alone all these complicated words for various stances! However, I have been told that you're pretty unlikely to fail purely because you didn't know your theory; if your practical was good enough then you'll pass. Hopefully this is the way that it will be for me. Rest assured I shall make a post about if (when?) I pass! My apologies for the mass paranoia! Thank you everyone for your support, you're all great, and have made me feel a little more at ease with myself.
Hey Drusilla, Ya, everyone is nervous at their 1st grading. It's something they have never done before and even though you may have watched a grading, it's a whole different experience to be in one! I have no doubt that if you apply yourself you will solidify the problem areas you feel you have and you'll do awesome. It's a whole month away. The most important thing to remember is to relax! The more you work yourself up the worse you will screw up. It's a first step towards your black belt and everyone has to take that first step. Just listen carefully and go with the flow. Other than relax, the only other specific thing I can suggest is when you are doing your movements and pattern do your best not to look at the others who are up there with you. If they mess up and you see them it will make you think they are right and you are doing it wrong. Our Sabumin used an example to the kids that looking at others when testing was the same as copying of someones paper in a test at school. As for the people watching, try to block them out the best you can. Try picking a point on the wall in whatever direction you are facing and focus on it while you are performing your particular task. This might help you to focus on the task at hand and keep you from getting messed up by others. Don't worry, it sounds like you have a good crew there. You will do just fine. Best of luck.
I'm pleased to say that I'm starting to feel a lot more confident with my techniques and I think they're starting to look a lot better. My instructor saw me looking around for reassurance this evening when we had just gone through Sajo-Jirugi 1 and 2 ("in our own time", rather than each part being demonstrated and counted out for us, so we were all doing it at different intervals, which is always a lot harder) and he came over to me and said that I was doing really well, my arm movements had got a lot better, but I just had to make sure to concentrate on my stances, as they were a bit sloppy, but he said that it was good, so that made me feel great. I decided this evening that I have invented Sajo-Jirugi 1.5, as when I was going through number 2 I was getting my middle blocks confused with low blocks. This evening's training was really good actually, as we had 6 other members come down from their various clubs to stand in our front row so we could see what we should look like when we're doing various techniques. It was really useful actually, as there was a wide variety of belts there, from black all the way down to yellow tag, and I think it has proved to be really helpful to the whole class. I'm definitely going to start practicing at home, as previously I'd only ever been doing techniques in the dojang, but I think I'll benefit immensely from doing some at home as well. I do press-up's and sit-up's at home routinely, but I think I shall now start to do some other things as well. I'm going to copy this post and put it into my journal, as it has come out more like a diary entry.
