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Focus Your Focus; Lessons From the Storm

We recently survived a pretty nasty hurricane, Milton, in and around Tampa Bay… and including the communities our schools serve- Lutz, Land O Lakes, Wesley Chapel, Odessa, Port Richey and New Port Richey, Spring Hill and others.

    Milton was supposed to hit us as a cat 5 hurricane.

I’m guessing you know that this level of storm can be truly catastrophic.

I am grateful that didn’t happen, and for all the other blessings we enjoyed around that storm.

Today I want to share a lesson around the way different people reacted.

    I hope not to offend anyone but, if I do, I hope it’s in the constructive way that leads to a change in behavior.

We get more of what we focus on and our attitude of gratitude, or habit of complaining, determines the quality of our life even when the circumstances are exactly the same.

1. When we were getting those scary reports that Milton could be the biggest, most intense and most catastrophic and life threatening storm that had ever hit us, some chose to stay and some chose to go.

     Either choice was fine. 

This is what we should do in all circumstances; analyze the data and make the decisions that we think are best for us.

2. Thank God, circumstances changed and we were really only hit with something between a cat 3 and cat 2.

   We experienced some trials and inconveniences. 

Many or most of us lost power. Today will be a day of clean-up for sure.

3. But as is almost always the case, life is 10% what happens and 90% how we react to it. 

And you can really see the difference in the way people react, even from the posts on social media.

Some are complaining about the loss of power.

   But some choose to focus instead on the fact that we have power most of the time, or that we are still able to do so much with our cellular and other technologies in spite of the inconvenience, or that they can spend some extra time with their loved ones, in the lost art of talking, or that the weather is nice today and the birds are singing. 🙂

or even that we live in a country wherein so many men from around the country are already hard at work trying to restore the power as quick as possible; many or most countries lack the leadership, industry or financial resources in which that could be true.

Some are worried about rather their food is going to spoil, or that a tree hit their car or property, or that they can’t get out yet because of all the debris in the roads- but many others with all the same are grateful that they and their family are safe.

Some actually complain online that they “did all this for nothing” or that they chose to leave the area “for nothing”…

    but I for one am super grateful that we were spared and that nobody I know was killed or seriously injured.

4. I am not trying to diminish anyone’s emotion or anxiety; nor am I unawares that some were worse affected than others.

   But what I am saying is that, in any circumstance- even the worst that I am grateful did not happen….

        our attitude and focus still drives our result.

Even should, God forbid, we ever were to face the worst scenario, like the ones those people faced with Helene in North Carolina, we still have a better chance of survival when we focus on looking for the solutions, rather than the problems; and this is true with all the problems of life. 

And, even then, the worst can happen.

Ultimately, when we do everything we can do, the best we can do, keep a positive and productive attitude and fight to the end, and then it’s up to God.

That’s why we pray for the best, expect the best, and prepare for the worst.

     And also why, when anything less than the worst happens, we choose to be grateful and deal with what’s next.

Prepare To Live; Empower To Lead!

Grand Master Stephen J. Del Castillo
Founding Master Instructor, Krav Maga Martial Arts
TampaKravMaga.com         StephenDelCastillo.com

p.s. remember that my team and I will be conducting a free KMMA curriculum mini-camp tomorrow from 11am-3pm! you will have fun, get a great workout and learn something new, and be back to training with your KMMA tribe, friends and family too!

  • we will conduct this camp regardless of whether or not we have power
  • should power come on by then, we’ll have regular evening classes and my Blackbelt Leadership and Certified Instructor Training (CIT) tomorrow night too!

About Grandmaster Stephen J. Del Castillo: Grandmaster Del Castillo is the founding Master Instructor of Krav Maga Martial Arts and has been empowering lives in Pasco and Hillsborough Counties since October of 2000. He is an 8th degree Blackbelt, MBA, author, mentor and success coach, a US Army Veteran and a proud father and grandfather. He is married to Ms. Barbara Del Castillo who helps him run the school. Grand Master Del Castillo began his training in the early 80’s and has high level blackbelts in Tae Kwon Do, Karate, Premier Martial Arts and Krav Maga Martial Arts as well as experience in kickboxing, Jeet Kune Do and Jiujitsu. He has high level instructor certifications from BBSI, IKMF, and KMG and has been featured in numerous Martial Arts publications and also Success magazine. He was a competitive sport karate and American Kickboxing instructor until he enlisted in the US Army where he served in the 82nd Airborne Division, where he won an Army Green to Gold scholarship and proceeded to ROTC and the University of Tampa. He was commissioned in 1992 and went on to serve in Germany with the 3rd Infantry Division and then in several other posts in the US until he left military service to pursue his dream of creating KMMA in 2000.  Today I continue to train, learn, sow and grow under the mentorship of World Champion Grandmaster Jeff Smith, who regularly visits the academy to help sow into my teams and students as well.

The Krav MagaMartial Arts Headquarters is in Lutz, FL at 1900 Land O’ Lakes BLVD and now our new location in 8836 US 19, Port Richey! Krav Maga Martial Arts serves Lutz, Land O’ Lakes, Wesley Chapel, Port Richey and surrounding areas.

See stephendelcastillo.com for more information and to order my book, Developing Your Superpower, Meditations on Mastery, Volume 1.

Also, check us out on Fun4TampaKids & on Go2Karate.com