It’s hard to believe that my dojo turns 21 this weekend.

The actual date is Oct 29, and we’ll be celebrating Saturday the 30th.

21 is a special year. My eldest son turned 21 this year too. I am so proud of and grateful for him, and also for the dojo that he and his brothers and so many others grew up in.

I’ll share the invite and agenda for this Saturday’s celebration at the end of this email.

But, as you’d imagine, I have some meditations about this milestone first.

As in human life, my dojo has grown and developed considerably over the years.

With myself at the helm, and others assisting along the way, we went through periods of growth and setback, have had some great victories and have made some grave mistakes.

We survived our awkward adolescent years and, like the boys and girls we grow into men and ladies, have come to a position of readiness for challenge and excitement of what’s next.

Every lesson, every victory and every defeat, and thousands of hours of deliberate training and growth, sowing and growing, have come together to make us who we are today and we prepare for the next and greatest evolution.

So, for this special occasion, I decided to spend a few minutes meditating upon and then sharing some of my favorite lessons learned over the last 21 years and give this advice to all of the amazing leaders in my sphere of influence, and to my dojo were she personified, in much the same way I would a son or daughter preparing for life as an adult.

1. Don’t relish too long in the victories or wallow too long in defeat. Each and all will pass and contribute to your future.
2. Don’t panic. Nothing is ever as good or as bad as it seems. Stay calm with your eyes on the prize. All things work together for good.
3. Make the most of every moment. Each becomes a memory faster than we expect.
4. Treat everyone with love and respect. See more in people than they see in themselves and empower them to see the same and live up to that potential. Conversely, never be discouraged. Sow into others as long as they will let you but know they’ll eventually move on and also that not all seed falls upon good ground; some falls upon stony ground or weeds. We can’t control that.
5. Which leads me to one of the most important lessons of all, one we share oft and grow our youth up with at KMMA: life is 10% what happens and 90% how we react to what happens.
6. Believe and be patient. Focus on sowing seed every day and Focus on the things that matter most. We can’t control the outcomes, but we can control our inputs and have faith that we will reap what we sow.
7. Worry less. I guess this one is really a product of many of the others. Do not be anxious or afraid…
8. Seek sound counsel and beware. Great mentors and good counsel are invaluable. Bad associations are equally toxic.
9. Learn from the past and prepare for the future, but live in the moment. As I’ve already alluded to, the moments turn to memories faster than we realize.
10. It’s never too late. Set worthy goals and move in the direction of these. But, rather you mess up along the way, lose Focus on your goal, or even realize that you want to go in a different direction, it’s never too late to change the trajectory of life. We can’t change our destination overnight, but we can change direction immediately. Like all great things, change begins with a choice.
11. Be cautious of #10. On the other hand, most people change often because they lack the Discipline to Focus on one thing long enough to become great. It takes 10,000 hours. If you keep changing plans- well, we’ve already established that time goes fast.
12. Time is our most conscious commodity. Invest it in relationships, health, wealth, your mission and purpose and in the relentless pursuit of worthy goals. Never waste, kill, squander or otherwise abuse it- nor allow others to do so. Above all your natural resources, value time.

Halloween Party & 21st Anniversary Celebration!

1000-1200: KMMA Community Halloween Party includes Ninja Trix Obstacle Course, Bounce House, Music, Demos, Food, Carnival Games & More- and register for drawings!

There will also be AMAZING Grand Re-opening Specials for new students all day!

You can get started for NO MONEY DOWN or save over 30%

1-2pm: Official Ceremony for the 21st Anniversary of Krav Maga Martial Arts

• The Cutting of The Cake

• Keynote and Testimonials

• Pictures

• Drawings:

  • A birthday party for one lucky child, value $300

  • another pizza party, value $300

  • two krav camp day passes, value over $400

  • Grand Prize: A One-year membership valued at $3,000

Thank you in advance for joining Team KMMA and I for this historic event.

Call 813-948-4844 or register here to RSVP!

  You can also just show up but it will just help us plan if you tell us ahead of time that you’re coming!

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TampaKravMaga.com and Krav Maga Martial Arts have been empowering lives through the martial arts in the Tampa Bay area for 20 years!

Founded in 2000 by Grandmaster Stephen J. Del Castillo, a 7th degree Black Belt and Sr. Master Instructor, Krav Maga Martial Arts and Karate lessons for pre-school children ages 3-6 and elementary age kids ages 7 and up are designed to develop the critical building blocks kids need – specialized for their age group – for school excellence and later success in life.

Krav Maga Martial Arts Adult Krav Maga training is a complete adult self defense, fitness, and conditioning program for adults who want to learn real world self defense, lose weight, and/or get (and stay in shape).

If you have any questions about our program, or would like to go ahead redeem your 2 weeks FREE, you can call us anytime at 813-547-6368 or visit our Krav Maga Martial Arts website.

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 a 7th 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 commisioned 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.

The Krav MagaMartial Arts Headquarters is in Lutz, FL at 1900 Land O’ Lakes Blvd., 33549. Krav Maga Martial Arts serves Lutz, Land O’ Lakes, Wesley Chapel, and surrounding areas.

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