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Fear is the Mind Killer: How to Build a Training Culture that Fosters Strength and Resilience Paperback – May 13, 2019

by Kaja Sadowski (Author)

4.7 57 ratings

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How do we cultivate inner strength?

Martial arts and self-defence are about so much more than physical skills. Learning to fight is a catalyst for growth. It makes our students stronger, more confident, and more resilient -- at least, that's how it's supposed to work. Too often, the students who need that strength the most struggle to find it.

Learn how to build a training environment that helps all of your students grow. Help them face their fears, grapple with failure, test themselves, and come out far more capable than before.

Fear is the Mind Killer covers the fundamentals of designing a healthy training culture, from policy-writing and classroom strategies, to building drills and stress testing. You'll get a primer on the science of motor learning and motivation, and learn how to work more effectively with underserved populations, including women and survivors of violence.

This system-agnostic guide gives you the tools you need to assess your existing school environment and make sure that it's serving the needs of all of your students, or to build a new school that is accessible, ethical, and effective. It will help you ask the right questions and find the answers that make the most sense for you and your community, and includes sample drills and planning exercises to get you started.

You know what your students need. Here's how to get it to them.

Print length

268 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Kaja Sadowski
Publication date

May 13, 2019
Dimensions

6 x 0.56 x 9 inches
ISBN-10

1999066308
ISBN-13

978-1999066307
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Editorial Reviews

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"Once a decade, or less often, a book comes along that changes the game. Sadowski's Fear is the Mind Killer is that book. In it, she lays out the theory and practice of creating training environments that nurture student growth by building an emotionally safe environment for practising physically dangerous things, and a physically safe environment for practising emotionally dangerous things. How to push them, how to let them fail usefully, and how to make sure that every student gets the support they need to handle the stresses of effective training. Drawing on her experience of running a martial arts school, and helping train police officers, she lays out the foundations for truly effective practice: how to put your students under realistic levels of combat stress without breaking them, and without the instructor turning into a caricature of a drill sergeant. It is perhaps the most important martial arts book of the 21st century so far. If there is one book I wish I'd read before founding my school, it's Fear is the Mind Killer. There is no better resource for creating effective and ethical training environments."
- Guy Windsor, founder of The School of European Swordsmanship and author of The Swordsman's Companion

"We are at the beginning of a renaissance in self-defense and martial arts training. The focus is shifting, and must shift, away from egotistical instructors and received wisdom or dogma. Teaching is about the student, and all of us instructors have to focus on that simple fact. We need to learn how to reach each individual student, regardless of how much or how little they resemble us. We need to help them find and refine the tools that they need for their problems. We need to be facilitators in growing each student's strength, understanding and resilience. Kaja Sadowski's Fear is the Mind Killer is the best manual available on how to do that, in particular on creating an environment where the people who most need the skills (and are least likely to seek out instruction) can feel comfortable enough to grow into their natural strength."
- Rory Miller, author of Meditations on Violence and Facing Violence

About the Author

Kaja Sadowski has been a physical instructor since 2004. She taught figure skating, rock climbing, and mountaineering before coming to martial arts in 2010. She joined the coaching team at Valkyrie Western Martial Arts Assembly in 2012, and is the school's co-owner. She teaches group and private lessons to students of all experience levels, and has traveled extensively to teach at events across Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Her primary weapon is the rapier, and she also teaches unarmed striking, grappling, knife combat, and self-defence. Kaja has been a civilian auxiliary with the Vancouver Police Department's Force Options Training Unit since 2015, participating in realistic tactical training scenarios and providing guest instruction to their Special Municipal Constable program. She holds a Master of Arts in English Literature, and did the majority of her graduate work on medieval English and French chivalric romances. She has presented at a number of academic conferences, and has taught at the undergraduate level in literature, history, and medieval studies. She regularly leverages her academic training to serve her martial arts research. Kaja lives in Vancouver, Canada. When she's not punching people in the face, she enjoys embroidery, board games, and powerlifting.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Kaja Sadowski (May 13, 2019)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 268 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1999066308
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1999066307
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12.8 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.56 x 9 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #1,126,158 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #890 in Sports Psychology (Books)
- #2,366 in Martial Arts (Books)
- #11,672 in Education Theory (Books)

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4.7 57 ratings

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Kaja Sadowski

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Kaja Sadowski has been a physical instructor since 2004. They taught figure skating, climbing, and mountaineering before coming to martial arts in 2010. They are a co-owner and coach at Valkyrie Western Martial Arts Assembly and have taught workshops across Canada, the US, and the UK.

Kaja's core martial art is historical swordplay, with a focus on sword in one hand, sword in two hands, dagger, and two swords. They also teach unarmed striking, knife combat, and self defense. Kaja worked with the Vancouver Police Department's Force Options Training Unit from 2015-2020, participating in realistic tactical scenarios and guest teaching for the Special Municipal Constable program. They hold an MA in English Literature, and did their graduate work on medieval chivalric romance. They have taught at the undergraduate level in literature, history, and medieval studies.

Kaja lives in Vancouver, Canada. Along with teaching at Valkyrie WMAA, they offer coaching and consulting for fellow instructors through their website, kajaswords.com. When they're not fighting people for fun, they enjoy embroidery, board games, and weightlifting.

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4.7 out of 5

57 global ratings

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David Carroll

great valuable info, good read.

Reviewed in the United States on September 9, 2023

Verified Purchase

I've incorporated learnings from this book into my local rapier teaching and it's paid off immediately.

Helpful

Dan Halliday (Liberty Sword Club, Jersey City, NJ)

Utterly indispensable; remarkably important

Reviewed in the United States on March 9, 2020

Verified Purchase

I've run a HEMA club for the past two years. It's a project that I began without much of a blueprint on how to go about it, albeit with certain ideas of what *not* to do. Things are going really well and "Fear Is The Mind Killer" has been an important part of this.

This book has been paradigm-shifting for me and has been indispensable in my development as an instructor and as a club head. It is written in a manner that is clear and concise without being dry or dull.

It's a quick read, but I recommend taking a few weeks to a few months to fully digest it. Read a chapter, chew on it a while, continue. Much like our source material, these things take practice and lots of it. It challenges us to foster a martial culture that embodies the whole of our Art: Soft and Hard/ Schwach und Sterck (for us KdF folks) and to use this in a manner that allows our people to be vulnerable in the ways that we need them to be.

There is, of course, a great deal more to be said but I'll leave it there. This is a book that we all need through our community's various growing pains. Read it, chew on it, humble yourself, apply it.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Harold F Vance III

Get ready to reshape your group's training.

Reviewed in the United States on September 22, 2022

Verified Purchase

A great book! Really helped me rethink my group's training methodology and foci to be more effective and inclusive. Not only that, but much of what is contained within can be generalized beyond just martial arts training to the ways we learn in across the board.

Helpful

Kindle Customer

A great training guide for all levels

Reviewed in the United States on August 24, 2020

Verified Purchase

I would recommend this book to anyone training in any kind of martial art, whether they're a beginner or have been training for many years. It's geared toward instructors and those running a school, but I and my fellow students have gotten a lot out of it, helping us think through our training and how to improve the structure behind it. It was a really cool experience to me to read this on the way to and from class, and notice how the training concepts described here were being applied. No matter the martial art or sport, definitely worth a read (or three).

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phillip legare

Fear is the mind killer

Reviewed in the United States on June 21, 2019

Verified Purchase

Excellent book on how to build your own self defense training program that works. Our fears limit us in a stressful and violent situation. This book provides information on how to break through that fear and instill skills that will help the person survive violence.

Helpful

L. Eldred

Very useful to this SCA instructor

Reviewed in the United States on August 22, 2019

Verified Purchase

I'm a long term historic rapier instructor in the SCA. I recommend this book to any martial arts instructor. There is some content that is more applicable to a formal commercial school than a club with a more ad hoc structure, but the vast majority of the discussion has universal application. I gained a lot of insight into the needs of non-traditional martial arts students that I hope will improve my interactions with them in the future.

One person found this helpful

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ETHF

Very, very good book

Reviewed in the United States on July 25, 2019

Verified Purchase

One of the better martial arts books I've read in the past few years; really ever. Rather than focus on techniques, moves, or anything that a standard book will attempt to transmit; this one focuses on processes, group policies, and how to structure your own teaching in a way that will benefit all types of students.

Really an excellent book, and one I've had multiple other instructors purchase after sampling mine.

Helpful

Matthew Hooper

Building a Modern Martial Arts Program

Reviewed in the United States on May 30, 2019

Verified Purchase

Kaja has written what I believe to be one of the most important martial arts books this year. Her experiences in building a martial arts studio that welcomes and keeps women and minorities coming back can help studio owners keep their students, grow their audience, and help the people who need it the most. I'm using her work as I start my own studio, and expect to buy copies for friends. Highly recommended.

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

Amazon Customer

important read

Reviewed in Canada on December 27, 2021

Verified Purchase

Excellent book, breaks down training situations extremely well and is illuminating for people teaching martial arts. A must read I would say.

DanPT

Maybe my favourite book of 2019

Reviewed in Germany on September 11, 2020

Verified Purchase

Possibly the best book on how to create a nurturing training environment at your school – and why. The book starts out by providing great insights into motor learning and why the training environment needs to be well taken care of to enable effective growth. Most of the rest of the book then explains the how. It is well structured, with each chapter building on the other. The book also manages to present a compelling case for the points it makes without ever feeling preachy, and for everything shows how it benefits the school and makes the students stronger. If you teach martial arts or self-defence, this is a must read and must-take-seriously.

Dannielle Levan

A must for anyone teaching, managing or organizing people

Reviewed in Canada on June 2, 2019

Verified Purchase

I can say, from personal experience, that the author lives and breathes the stuff she's set out here. It's a brilliantly set out method that will help you mold your group's culture in a healthy, safe atmosphere. She has a deep understanding of her art, and of the way it affects people's learning.

You need to pick this up. Read it, then read it again. Apply it to your community and watch it grow!

One person found this helpful

A. Chipman

Good for instructors and students alike!

Reviewed in Canada on August 23, 2020

Verified Purchase

Excellent book for any club leader to read, and still very useful for students to understand what goes into martial arts/hema class design and what too look for in a good club/school/class. Highly recommended.

Freakingankie

Thoroughly enjoyed it.

Reviewed in Canada on July 2, 2019

Verified Purchase

And ideal guide in the fostering and maintaining of Equitable and safe space for everybody.

One person found this helpful

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