SFL Episode 131: On Self-Talk (with Howard Jacobson)

This week, a conversation with health and wellness guru, Systema For Life regular, and possessor of relentlessly regular bowel movements, Howard Jacobson.

Here, we ponder the subject of self-talk, which one way or the other has become louder and more frequent over the last, lonely year. We're often told by therapists, leadership gurus, and cocky celebrities that self-talk is all-important - the difference between success and failure. But how important is self-talk, really? What role does it play in our health, our decisions, and our self-development?

Here, we discuss:

• Positive and negative self-talk

• The problem of excessive thinking and rumination

• Cognitive (versus behavioural or body-based) solutions

• Progressive / attenuated experience as the antidote to fear and self-doubt

Follow Howie at plantyourself.com, and buy his book (co-authored with Josh Lajaunie) Sick to Fit, on Amazon.com.

SFL Episode 130: On Creativity, with Patrick E. McLean

This week, a light-hearted romp into the world of martial arts, mind, and creativity, with Systema Instructor and fiction author Patrick E. McLean. Patrick is an accomplished martial artist with a pedigree that includes Judo, Jujitsu, Eskrima, AikiJujitsu, and Systema. He is also the author of more than 10 dramatic-comedic fiction books, including the award-winning How To Succeed in Evil, and the host of the How It's Written podcast. 

Here, we talk about aspects of creativity in life, work, and training. Including:

• Why creativity needs structure to roam free

• Practicing martial arts to increase your creative powers

• Barriers to creativity: fear and pride

• Advice for aspiring writers and artists

Purchase Patrick's books on Amazon.com

How It's Written podcast 

Episode 129: Realities of Combat, with Martin Wheeler

This week, a deep-dive into the myths, half-truths, and hard truths surrounding training for defence against edged weapons, with none other than Martin Wheeler - Senior Systema Instructor and Co-Founder of The Academy Beverly Hills. 

Here, we seek to include a wide range of perspectives on knife defence, in order to dispel confusion, inform your practice, and make sense of the frequent (and predictable) objections that inevitably arise whenever anyone puts out a knife-defence video clip. The hope being that next time someone starts to argue about knife defence online, you can avoid the pointless back-and-forth, and steer them here for a full discussion.  

Included:

• Primitive states and "inevitable" responses

• Dangers of magical thinking and self-delusion

• Levels of ability and understanding in knife fighting

• Working with strength, skill, and power

Mentioned in this episode: 

4-day East Coast Masterclass NC (October 21-24)

Live and Online Training with Martin at The Academy