Wax On, Wax Off - Channeling the Magic of Miyagi

While channel surfing the other night, I happened upon a replay of the 1980's hit film The Karate Kid. Although it's not the greatest movie ever to come out of Hollywood, I can't stop thinking about the relevance of this film in both my personal life and my work surrounding Generation Why.

For me, the profound teaching point in the movie happens when Mr. Miyagi gets total buy-in from his 16-year-old student, Daniel. As you may remember, Daniel was continually tormented by a band of neighborhood bullies. One night, as he is getting badly beaten by five other kids, Miyagi jumps in from out of the shadows and single-handedly fights off all the attackers to rescue Daniel. Completely stunned that the quiet, elderly maintenance man at his apartment complex is also an expert in martial arts, Daniel approaches Miyagi, seeking to learn how to defend himself. The reluctant sage finally consents to instruct the young lad, with the stipulation that the lessons will be taught on Miyagi's uncompromising terms.

As the eager boy shows up for his first lesson, he assumes Miyagi is immediately going to begin teaching him how to punch and kick. Instead, Miyagi plants a sponge firmly in the palm of Daniel's hand and orders him to wash and wax a half-dozen large cars. "Wax on, wax off," Miyagi commands. Naturally, the flabbergasted teen starts to question the assignment, but Miyagi abruptly silences him with these words: "No questions! That's the deal. I say, you do. Wax on, right hand, wax off, left hand. Make large circles. Breathe in through nose, out through mouth. Very important."

It takes all day and half the night, but Daniel completes the chore and is totally exhausted, only to be instructed by Miyagi to return at 6 the next morning. This pattern continues for several days as Daniel shows up expecting to learn karate, only to be disappointed again and again when Miyagi puts him to work doing monotonous household chores. Daniel has to follow very specific instructions for hours on end without any explanation as to why.

At the end of the week, Daniel finally hits his breaking point and is about to storm off when Miyagi decides the time has come to reveal the method behind his madness. He orders Daniel to use his "wax on, wax off" hand movements as he reaches in to punch him. The boy quickly discovers that he'd actually been practicing sophisticated karate techniques the entire week-that by repeating the same motions while painting fences, sanding decks, and washing and waxing cars, he'd actually mastered the very moves needed to defend himself from his attackers.

Daniel is euphoric to discover his new set of skills and becomes an even more disciplined student for Miyagi. And, following the familiar Hollywood template, he eventually goes on to defeat his enemies, win the girl, and live happily ever after.

But this movie is so twentieth century …

In today's world, no kid blindly conforms to the "I say, you do" method of instruction without a full explanation of what they are doing and what's in it for them. Today's teens want all the details up front. It's enough to drive you whacko!

There are times when parents, teachers, and managers can't afford the luxury of explaining the rationale behind every order they give to their kids, students, and employees. It's at these tense moments when we all wish we could instantly channel the magic of Miyagi to get our young cohorts to do as we say without questioning why.

Alas, my kindred souls, keep in mind that the magic of Miyagi doesn't happen overnight, even in the movies. In this push button, hurry-up, nano-second world, there are no shortcuts to developing loyal young employees who consistently give you their very best.

Let's take a moment to examine the three principles Miyagi drew upon that enabled him to penetrate the heart and mind of his young, stubborn protégé:

1. Trust. Miyagi was always very up front and honest with Daniel, so the young man knew that Miyagi would neither abandon nor manipulate him if he took him on as a student. Daniel recognized that Miyagi had his best interests at heart; as a result, Daniel followed Miyagi's orders to the letter, even though the old man's methods were unconventional.
2. Respect. Daniel had seen Miyagi in action, and he knew the old man possessed the skills he desperately wanted to learn. Firmly convinced that Miyagi could help him, Daniel was willing to accept the "I say, you do" terms laid out before the training began.
3. Timing. When the student was ready, the teacher appeared. Miyagi didn't begin with a mind dump of self-defense techniques; instead, he held off on starting the lessons until Daniel's desire to learn was fully piqued. If Miyagi hadn't brought Daniel along slowly, it's likely Daniel would have quickly forgotten the techniques rather than internalizing them at the deepest level.

Okay, so it's just a Hollywood movie with a simple plot. But this script can come alive in your workplace if you breathe deep (very important) and remember that you must begin to shape and care for your young bonsai trees today if you want them to grow to be worthy of pride and praise in the future.

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Whys Cracks

RAGING SOCCER MOM -- So your 15-year-old daughter didn't play her best soccer game. That doesn't mean you abandon her on the I-80 turnpike. But one Lincoln, Nebraska, mother did just that.

On the drive home, the mother made her daughter repeat over and over again how to improve her performance. When the teen messed up her recitation, her mom slapped her. The girl told her mom to stop the car. Mom pulled over along the interstate, yelled at her daughter to get out, and drove off.

Fortunately, a teammate's parent saw the incident, picked the girl up, and called the police. The angry mother was charged with child neglect, and a court date has been set.

Imagine how upset Mom would have gotten if her daughter's team had lost the game.

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