Sweat pours between my eyes as I gulp water from a massive plastic water bottle. Coach Smith gestures next to me, talking more with his hands than words about how the girl opposite me is kicking only on reaction. As he explains a drill to set up the tokichauggi (multiple kicks in a single motion), I hear the referee call me back into the ring.
As I settle back into the rhythm of the match, all my focus goes into the red hogu (body shield) bobbing in front of me. The girl wearing it tries to bait me into an attack and I react in kind, sliding forward into just out of her range. She doesn’t bite so I throw the kick, following up with a cover punch to block her attempted return volley of kicks. I can see she’s off balance and press the advantage. With all the speed mustered from my months of training, I land three round house kicks before dodging back out of range. Out of my peripheral vision, I see the ring judge move in and end the fight. He lines us up, has us bow towards each other, and then announces the victor. We shake each other’s hand as well as with the coaches before returning to the team. Although the score is plainly displayed as 12-3 in my favor, I listen attentively to Coach Smith explain the next skill I need to perfect. It’s as if my entire day, and possibly life, is devoted to the sport of taekwondo.
Now I know what I just described doesn’t seem like a leadership position. In fact, it doesn’t even seem like an organization and most would argue that taekwondo is a solo sport. However, I couldn’t disagree more. There is an immense amount of work that is always going on behind the scenes for every tournament, match, and practice. Having served this semester as historian and officer for the Texas Taekwondo club team, I’ve been privy to the multitudinous organizational challeneges. Most of which are on a grand scale such as transporting eighteen plus members to California, have them all register correctly for competing, having adequate transportation once in California, and getting them all home again. The list of tasks behind a single competition was daunting, yet it was all was completed on time. And while this has still been only my first year to participate on the team, I’ve found that my involvement with the leadership portion has led me to dream of a bigger and better organized Taekwondo team.
And in all honesty, there’s no shame in starting out with the little things. Just from observing this year, I’ve noticed that organizational control is difficult to come by. For example, the team purchased over the last few years burnt orange jackets and bags. And while they’re extremely useful for creating a solid team appearance at events, keeping track of all the gear is a statistical nightmare. With changing members each year, it’s too easy to accidentally leave the team with an expensive UT jacket still in your possession. A standardized system of labeling and tracking gear with a program like Excel would dispel confusion and calm rising emotions by removing the catalyst of unfairness.
Another simple but noticeable change would be to set, in advance, the rules of practice and what is expected of each member. At the beginning of the year, the team had each of us sign a statement which spelled out some of the basic expectations required to be a member. While the principle behind such an idea is certainly solid, it still had some flaws. Early in the season, the team was over-whelmed with the influx of new members which nearly doubled the team’s size. We simply weren’t prepared for the logistics of having that many people in the martial arts room. When members started missing practice without explanation, the captain implemented the rule requiring absentees to e-mail within 24 hours and present an acceptable reason for their absence. This system would have worked if we had simply delegated someone the task of monitoring attendance. As so aptly put in 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, “we accomplish all that we do through delegation- either to time or to other people.
” So the rational next step is to preemptively decide on punishments for failing to meet team requirements. If everyone knows that missing practice means running three miles at 6am with the team captain watching, we are much less likely to miss practice. And when the team is all present to train together, we’re that much more likely to succeed in any tournament.
But I think what will provide the most growth and expansion for Texas Taekwondo is the adoption of relatively new technology like Facebook and Twitter for both inner-team discussions and interaction with the world at large. Because we’ve become such a large team in a very short amount of time, keeping everyone connected is a priority. Often weather or other uncontrollable factors change plans and checking that everyone is aware of the switch is of the utmost importance. My duty as historian this year has put me in charge of updated and modifying the Texas Taekwondo Facebook page in which I saw the enormous potential for growth. Not only did I discover Facebook to be a handy tool to deliver messages to the team, it also has evolved into a means of creating a dedicated fan base for the group. As is so often referenced in World Literature class, internet immortality is a vital component for success in later life. I’ve appreciated being forced into having prior experience with technology like making portfolios and updating blogs because it has made me more consistent in my role as historian to keep our digital profile alive and relevant.
However my knowledge is far from perfect. So far, I have had no formal training in computer or technology skills. Any and all techniques are things I've just picked up from friends. This led me to the belief that having a specific computer programming basis to work off would provide a better baseline for future endeavors. Hence, I plan to take at least one course in college on computer programming, probably one that uses a simple but effective program like C++. By extending my current knowledge of technology programming into something more advanced, I could better expand our realm of influence on the web. But I'm careful not to forget that programming is only the basis on which to display a message. The message itself is what conveys to others the true spirit of the group. And in that vein, I feel that taking a journalism writing course would greatly improve my ability to reach a wider audience. The Texas Taekwondo team already has a website but in order to attract more prospective members, it needs to have interesting articles worth reading. The striking difference between creative writing and journalistic reporting justifies applying for a class in the communications school to better learn journalistic writing. By the end of a single semester in such a course, I suspect that the long term aspirations I have for the team could come to fruition.
By long term, I mean the distant yet not unattainable plans that I foresee in the genesis of Texas Taekwondo. So far, most of the adjustments I’ve mentioned are things that could be easily instigated by next year but along with other small changes, would lead to a perception shift of the sport as a whole. We had humble (and recent) beginnings as “the nationally competitive sport team [that] was later created in 2005 by former national team member Tony Smith.
” But since that first competitive team, we’ve strived to become a force to be feared. I want to have Texas Taekwondo enter a tournament all decked out in burnt orange and moving as a single unit. I want this image to create a sense of trepidation in all the other competitors at the meet. And that recognition shouldn’t be something solely limited to other taekwondo teams. My vision is to have the University of Texas recognize the hard work these student athletes put in. I feel that we should be seen on par with groups like Texas Baseball or Basketball. This awareness could take the form of a nicer facility for practice or even just more students interested in joining the program and learning what it’s truly about.
The most tangible form of awareness that I wish to achieve is to host a major taekwondo competition here on campus. I feel that this would serve as a two-fold advantage for team. On one side, it would get the team more involved in the process of planning and carrying out a tournament. It would be a good chance to have the team work towards a group goal instead of the individual interests of matches and victories. And the hunt for new upcoming leaders is never over. As older students graduate, it’s important to have tested the mettle of the younger ones and develop the skills they’ll need later on. The other key benefit to a tournament hosted on UT campus is that it would allow for outside students to visit and get a taste of one of UT’s unique sports teams. By spreading the word through a variety of media such as flyers and e-mail announcements, we could draw a crowd to help support and cheer on the team. As a fighter with a history of being a performer, I know exactly how great a difference it can make when you have a crowd chanting for you. I want the team to be able to experience that intense passion of having an entire community backing you.
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While I know that improving the Texas Taekwondo team isn’t exactly a goal that will save the world, I still know there’s plenty to be gained from improving the community it creates. Many of the students on the team didn’t expect the transformation from friends to family on the taekwondo team, which is exactly what happened. The hard work fostered a family atmosphere where everyone is accepted as an integral part- from white to black belts. The basic tenements of taekwondo state that “taekwondo students can improve themselves physically, and mentally by training. The final goal is to achieve harmony with nature and oneself.
” It’s not a ninja movie where the goal is to learn crazy kicks and knock out opponents. The real aspiration is to train yourself in self-discipline which can be applied to all aspects of your life. The dedication you learn produces a strong foundation of character that can never be taken for granted. The taekwondo team trains body, mind, and spirit and I want that experience to continue to grow and influence students on the University of Texas campus.
WORD COUNT: 1,823
WORD COUNT WITHOUT QUOTES: 1,769
Photo Credits:
-Match video: Raymund Lee
-Me kicking: Raymund Lee
-Group waiting to fight: Me
-Warm up in Jackets: Tina Tran
-Group Photo: Mr. Rodriguez
[1] Stephen R. Covey, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People: Restoring the Character Ethic (New York: Free Press, 2004), 171.
[2] "About," Texas Sport Taekwondo 2010. http://www.utsporttkd.com/about-2/.
[3] "Ethics," General Taekwondo Information, 1994-2010. http://www.barrel.net/ethics.php.
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