Episode 21: Professor Brannon Beliso
Professor Brannon Beliso: Episode 21
I don't believe we're supposed to punch in nine to five. Living is not about a time clock. Living is about every moment, every breath, every second you're given.
Brannon Beliso
This episode is with Professor Brannon Beliso, a Kenpo Karate practitioner, instructor, school owner and martial arts consultant from the bay area of California. Professor Beliso grew up with martial arts, first training under his father, Lenny Beliso. We talk about his early childhood and love for the martial arts, some missteps he made on his path and how all of it combined to bring him to where he is today.If there's one thing you'll pick up instantly from Professor Beliso, it's his passion for life. It's clear that this man loves what he's doing and where he is. If you're feeling down or in need of some inspiration, this will be a great episode to listen to.
Enjoyed this episode? Why not buy the book? Five Faces of Kempo.
Show Notes
Brannon Beliso
Movies: Marlowe, Five Fingers of Death (Amazon), Five Deadly Venoms, The 36th Chamber of Shaolin, The Raid (Amazon), The Raid 2 (Amazon), House of Flying Daggers (Amazon, Netflix), No Retreat No SurrenderActors: Alexander Fu Sheng, Jim KellyBooks: Tao of Jeet Kune Do, The Art of WarOne Martial Arts - website, Facebook, YouTube, TwitterProfessor Beliso - website, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTubeOne Merit Badges - website, Facebook
Show Transcript
You can read the transcript below or download here.Jeremy Lesniak:Hello everybody and thanks for tuning in today. This is episode 21 of whistlekickMartialArtsRadio the place to hear the best stories from the best martial artists. I'm your host Jeremy Lesniak and I'm also the founder here at whistlekick, makers of the best sparring gear on earth as well as great apparel and accessories for traditional martial artists. You can learn more about all of our products like our lightweight polyester t-shirts that make a great base layer under your uniform over at whistlekick.com and you can learn more about the podcasts including all our past episodes show notes for this one and a whole lot more all for free over at whistlekickmartialartsradio.com and while you're on our website don't forget to sign up for our newsletter full of information, discounts and lots of other useful martial arts content and if you're an Android user you can check out our new Android app on the Google Play store just search for whistlekick. It's an easy way to stay connected with the show and it's free. And now to the episode. This week we're joined by Professor Brannon Beliso. Professor Beliso is an incredibly insightful and motivational man. He not only owns multiple martial arts schools he consults with people on how to make their schools better. We talked a lot about his past with the martial arts and sometimes just life in general. I came away from today's episode feeling inspired and I hope you do too. And now Professor Beliso welcome to whistlekickMartialArtsRadio.Brannon Beliso:I'm grateful to be here Jeremy, really grateful.Jeremy Lesniak:Well thank you it's gonna be fun, you know we can let everybody know that this is actually our second time recording as the first time there was some audio issues a couple of weeks ago and then we had some trouble scheduling. So, you're actually, your episode is coming out a little bit later than I wanted to you know I think the stuffs that you're doing is great and I wanna share it everybody and I'm sure our conversations will be even better than last time.Brannon Beliso:Yes sir, absolutely, absolutely.Jeremy Lesniak:Cool, so why don't you start by telling everybody how you got into this, how did you get going with the martial arts?Brannon Beliso:Actually, it was because of my dad, my dad a little step further my dad got into the martial arts in 1960 I think 4, 65 and what happened was him and my uncle had to go to one of his ex-wife's house to talk about child support and she had a couple of guys waiting there for him and they jumped my dad and my uncle. So, my dad and my uncle just barely got out of there, cause we grew up in a rough and tumbled neighborhood in the 02:23 of San Francisco some pretty bad parts and so immediately my dad went into a gentleman named Ralph Castro who's a very popular kenpo stylist in San Francisco and enrolled in his classes. So, my earliest recollections of the martial arts being a young kid, 4 -5 years old was hanging on this rail watching these guys train and story goes and I don't know you know cause I was so young I don't recall at all but this guy Ralph Castro trained with Bruce Lee.Jeremy Lesniak:Oh cool.Brannon Beliso:So, it's really cool right so there was very strong probability I was some little kid running around and not knowing that that's Bruce Lee right there you know training with this guy Ralph Castro so it's a pretty cool history and if anyone doesn't know about Ralph Castro he studied with a guy named William Chow. So, Ed Parker who we all know 03:09 American kenpo, Ed Parker and Ralph Castro studied with William Chow came here to the mainland. Castro stayed with Parker till about 7th degree and then Parker went off in the American kenpo direction. Well Ralph Castro you know wanted to stay closer to the lineage so he went back to Chow and he stayed more of what's called Shaolin kenpo closer to the Shaolin roots and so that's the style, it was my base system. So, my dad got me into it you know back when I studied once studied, I'm still studying back when I started there were no uniforms for kids and kids didn't study and it was a novelty you'd sit on Johnny Carson we have an 11-year-old black belt and was such a novelty to see any kid doing the martial arts let alone earning a black belt by the age of 22, you know it was an anomaly. So, I actually started martial arts I would probably say 3 and a half 4 but they didn't have uniforms big enough so I got my first uniform I think when I was 5 and that was 1967.Jeremy Lesniak:My mom made my first gi.Brannon Beliso:Yeah, yeah.Jeremy Lesniak:She sawed it up because I was 4 yeah.Brannon Beliso:But here's my introduction to the martial arts, because kids weren't studying back then. But kids didn't really get into the martial arts until the 1980s when Karate Kid came out. And once Karate Kid came out everybody wanted to be Ralph Macchio. So, karate wasn't really any martial arts for that fact wasn't really popular until that movie came out. I mean sure we had the Bruce Lee movies, we had Kung Fu the series you know we even had that cartoon Hong Kong Fui but nothing you know like Karate Kid just elevated martial arts you know with kids. So, I would think I was 5 so I had to prove being my father's son that I wouldn't disrupt the classes, right? Adults don't wanna train with kids so I was allowed to sit in the corner and no toys, no crayons, no coloring books in a kneeling position for 2 hours a night, 3-4 days a week and that went on for about 2-3 months. Yeah and then I since I was quiet and I sat still and I didn't move around I was allowed to join the class. So, it's a far cry from where things are today but that was really my introduction.Jeremy Lesniak:That's a tremendous amount of focus and patience for such a young kid.Brannon Beliso:Yeah well.Jeremy Lesniak:It's pretty incredible.Brannon Beliso:Yeah, my pop expected nothing less, nothing less.Jeremy Lesniak:Yeah, do you remember what it was like at that point you know clearly, you're wanting to join classes.Brannon Beliso:Absolutely.Jeremy Lesniak:Did you, you connected those dots that I need to do this if I'm gonna do that?Brannon Beliso:Yeah absolutely. Absolutely you know it's a simple, theory you ring the bell you know and the dog salivates and sits and wants the treat you know it is the same type of theory. I've always loved the martial arts, I love the art of it you know the violence part I wasn't really in to. I mean I was a state champion, I fought for years but I never believed imposing my will upon somebody you do as I say because I can hurt you or you respect me because I can beat you up was never really what I got into. What I got into what really fascinated me about the martial arts was to be able to stand in front of somebody and say you can't hit me I won't allow it, That's pretty powerful, to be able to stand there and move and not let somebody hit you you know without having to hit them or hurt them and that part I found brilliant you know where that came from and that's you know going back to your question is I would sit there and you know I wanted to be Bruce Lee, I wanted the Bruce Lee so if I sit there and I'm still and I don't move around, I don't do nothing you know I can do that cause I'd already seen Marlowe which is a movie with James Garner where Bruce Lee kicks out this light in his office and I'd already seen a couple of episodes of Long Street where Bruce Lee was a guest instructor teaching this blind private investigator you know how to defend himself against this bully that was bullying him. So I already had a little bit of exposure to Bruce Lee and then of course just watching my dad and all these guys every night was in the basement of our flat and I and this basement had poles and pillars and the ceiling couldn't have been more than 7 or 8 feet high you know back then in the late 60s nothing was built to code right so it's whatever you did you did and these guys would be 07:08 there sparring and bare knuckled right there was no groin cup, no hand gear, no feet gear, no shin guards nothing nothing and these guys are banging 07:17 I'm sitting in the corner I was just like you know I was like watching you know gladiators in the coliseum it just was something that I thought was amazing but the part I didn't like well I did though people would get hit and nobody got mad and nobody got upset. If you got punched I the face it's hey thank you I should have been keeping my hands up. Really, I mean that's 07:37 you never got mad cause that was part of learning that control. To control that anger, control that adrenaline when you feel like when you're at a disadvantage and you're being beaten or you can get hurt. So, I really dug the art part of it, the violence part I never got into that's why I was really really good when I was a fighter cause I didn't like getting hurt and I didn't like hurting people. So, you know that's why I'd sit in that corner 2 hours a night and I had no problem with that because I knew even at that young age of 5 years old that this is something that would be my life.Jeremy Lesniak:Wow it's pretty powerful and that's a great way to open it's you know of course we're all about stories here and that's a great origin story so to speak if you're you know if we think about super heroes you know their origin story that's yours. But I know you've got a lot more stories so I'd like you to think about your best one and why don't you share that with us.Brannon Beliso:Yeah there's just too many. Wait a minute I had a privilege of you know when we grow up in. Tournaments, tournaments scene was really big for us we have the California Karate Championship, we had the Long Beach Internationals Championships. These 2-day events where you would fight and then the next night you know on a stage every first and second place winner would fight each other you know every division starting from 8 to 10, 11 to 13, 14 to 16 you know girls light weight men, white belts, brown belts, black belts all the way up to grand champion you know it was really something that we look forward to. I remember CKC one of my experience is there were 3 rings, a hundred kids in each ring for my division just my division 8 to 10 09:13 and you know we fought down to a 09:14 then it was 18 then the 18 fought down the 9 and you fought down the 2 I mean incredible stuff like that and I'm gonna be able to sit there and fight and finish and then sit at the edge of the stage that was elevated I don't know 4 feet off the ground and it was old wood plywood really crappy you had to fight on this dusty you know wooden stage and there was no ring around it. If you got knocked off the stage, you got knocked off just the way it was.Jeremy Lesniak:Right.Brannon Beliso:And I get to watch Benny Urquidez, you know I got to watch Chuck Norris, you know I got to watch Jeff Smith, I got to watch people like that fight. It was pretty cool and not knowing being a kid I watch Al Dacascos I used to run around the tournaments scene with Mark Dacscos you know we would compete in the morning right and then our parents competed at night so we would be running around this place you know just exploring this big 10:06 auditorium and I don't think Mark even remembers that you know cause his mom remembers though, his mom remembers and I would remember but we did that as kids and then you know where Mark is today so it's just things like that I mean it really had that 10:19 spirit 10:21 5 bucks but you know there was no ambulance there was no medical team nothing and you got in there and no gloves, no shin guards, no mouth piece, no groin cup. I don't even know what a groin cup was till some kid came in from Little League and into a karate class and he had this groin cup and he was changing when he said well that might be a good idea, you should be wearing a groin cup when we do this you know.Jeremy Lesniak:YeahBrannon Beliso:And but you know what it forced us to do, you had to be good, you had to be proficient because if somebody kicked you in the groin it wasn't a happy day. If somebody punched you in the face bear knuckled it wasn't a happy day so I think that level of proficiency not taking anything well I think MMA fighters are awesome but you know point fighters 11:03 tournament point fighters very few people make that transition I mean 11:08 Mcdaniels is doing it but he's pretty awesome. I think he's an exceptional fighter all the way around but you know most point fighters it's a game of tag they're off balance you know they're gonna give you 3 points for kicking somebody in the head but only one point for punching them 11:22 punch or kick you in the face it's gonna hurt. You're dancing around in one leg hoping and you know in kenpo that that's like a get out of jail free card. You're gonna dance around in one leg, I'm gonna kick you in the groin you know. So, tournaments have changed a lot and that's why I personally don't support there, my I don't bring my students to the open tournaments that are out there nowadays. So that was one story I mean there's so many I remember one there was this kid in our division and we were petrified he was like huge. I don't know if he was like 20 and he was just saying he was 11 or 13 11:56 and he had been in a fire so he had some he had a fake hair on like a wig and his face was you know partially burned and everybody was petrified at this guy. I mean he outweighed me by 50 pounds must have been at least 2 head taller than me and he had a vicious side kick, vicious side kick and so he gets in the ring with 12:15 and all he would do is throw one of these sidekicks, blast the kid on the rib or the arms and this kid just did this till the rest of the fight crying not wanting to get near this monster. My dad in all his brilliance so you know this kid was up for 1st and 2nd so it was me and him and my dad said okay I want you to stand at the edge of the ring while we're waiting cause there were a couple of fights before us and you're gonna practice a drop kick. I said what is that? I've never done it in my life. You know basically when a guy throws his side kick you slide under it, down under your hands and you pump a side kick you know into the guys groin you know with the bottom of your foot. So, imagine that I'd have to go down underneath this guy's foot coming at me which I’ve never done this before and kick this guy in the groin, can you visualize that.Jeremy Lesniak:Yeah absolutely.Brannon Beliso:So, there you go, so I'm practice this with one of our black belts he's throwing the sidekick at me I'm falling to the ground but I had to slide in so you can't just drop you have to slide under the kick you know and kinda slide in the home base and then pump the foot up to the groin and so we did that and I'm doing this for like 5 - 10 minutes, going I'm never gonna be able to throw this thing at all. I've never done this you know we're trying to practice that on the fly but little did I know the brilliance of my father, this kid and his coach are watching us so guess what his coach told him?Jeremy Lesniak:Don throw the side kick?Brannon Beliso:Don't throw your best weapon, this guy's gonna kick you in the groin he's smaller and faster he will score points, do not throw your best weapon. And that was it the guy stood there the whole fight cause he that's all he had and I beat him. So I mean things like that the strategy that went in you know that there's so many, there so many 13:50 fighting side by side with George Chung anyone knows who George Chung is out there and we're on a mixed team together at the Cow Palace really big venue, you know fighting some other team and beating them you know it's camaraderie like that we get 2 -3 guys from different schools and form a team it just the spirit of it was really really special for me you know and back then growing up in the streets of San Francisco you know it was a time where you could fight somebody when the fight was over you shook hands and said okay good day right? It wasn't like today now you fight somebody to go get their cousin they get a gun they shoot you. I mean it's a whole different day so a lot of what we learned in the school we actually took out into the street to practice it we did but when it was done when we need to fight somebody in a school you have like I said once done you shook hands and you are friends. So, a lot of what we learn we would go practice on a daily basis and I remember one of it was this jumping spinning I don't know what it was and it looks so cool though right and being a martial artist we all wanted to do it. Well I'm never going out in the street and the first thing I did in a kid was a boxer. I jumped up in the air to throw this kick and before my foot hit the ground this guy hit me like 4 or 5 times. I swear and so after that I said I want some of that and that's for me where my introduction to kick boxing came. I was 12 years old maybe you know I was one of the best in the state and I threw this groovy kick I thought was really bad and he hit me like 4 times before my foot ever touched the ground. So that's when I started studying boxing so I mean I got tons of stories, Jeremy tons, tons, tons, tons.Jeremy Lesniak:And those are a few great ones, absolutely and I know we'll get to some more of them as we move on but clearly the martial arts is probably the most foundational thing in your life other than food and breath and you know maybe your family you know out of California but I'd like you to think about the benefits that you took from the martial arts you know think about how you grew and how in looking back you can say that the martial arts helped shaped your personality and tell us about that.Brannon Beliso:I think more than shaping my personality, martial arts saved my life at many times. I mean I was small sickly kid and who stuttered, so I wouldn't speak at all cause people would tease me. Back then it was Warner Brothers and a character named Porky Pig and if anyone know Porky Pig he was like a a a a,d d d he stuttered so I basically didn't speak much as a young child but the martial arts gave me the inner resilience, the martial arts gave me that self-confidence you know cause what makes martial arts very unique and why I think everybody should do it especially in the Western culture is that it's based upon that Eastern philosophy we're building our self from the inside out. Western culture would reach out externally, bigger car, you know bigger house, different relationship, more money, different job you know that's how America works I mean without being stereo typical what do most women do when they're upset, they go shop and they buy a bunch of stuff they don't need. You know and that's classic, that's it's classic example of the behavior. So, the martial arts instead of me reaching out be my friend please you be my friend, you be my friend externally for approval. The martial arts helped me to go work from the inside out, building that self-confidence to hard work never giving up always doing my best and which I describe is that's how we earn confidence. Nobody's born with confidence, we earn confidence and you can only do that by never giving up, by always doing your best, by working really really hard. So, the martial arts gave me that value you know and the neighborhood's I grew up where people dealt drugs, running games. I mean I was carrying a gun when I was 12 years old. I was running in a game but fortunately and unfortunately it saved my life when the gang got shot up at a garage party. I wasn't there cause I was the youngest one in the group and I wasn't allowed to go a lot of those parties. But our leader was 15 great martial artist shot and killed, shot and killed at 15, got shot in the face because you can't stop a bullet, you can't stop a bullet and so that's another time and then of course drugs I mean in my neighborhood drugs were rampant. I had a brother that was a pretty big coke dealer and I helped him you know at 16 -17 sell drugs and the martial arts again brought me straight to center and back out of the path so I never veered left or right too far with all these temptations with all these trappings and growing up in the ghetto, the martial arts always brought me back kept me straight you know I never went in jail. I've never been convicted of anything crazy or anything like that so the martial arts really saved me where most of my friends today are either dead in jail or they're still on the corner of 24th 18:21 dealing dime bags and marijuana going look at me I'm an old G, which means aboriginal gangster. I just look at him Jeremy I go oh G I can't believe you're still doing that stuff. So yeah, I mean that's another example, how the martial arts saved me. I don't even talk about business I mean I won't, a bunch of businesses throughout my lifetime because the martial arts helped me good work ethic. I'm not afraid to work hard, I love to work hard, so again our culture perpetuates, get rich quick, win the lottery, go to Vegas you know work 2 hours a week and make a million dollars, that's BS. You don't think Steve Jobs you know God bless his soul worked really really hard to create apple, of course he did, you don't think Bill Gates worked really really hard to build Microsoft, of course he did you know so that's one thing it's given me a business. I posted that yesterday somebody said everything you touch turns to gold. I said no no no no, I work really really hard and I love hard work. It doesn't stress me out it doesn't bother me and that's one of the ethics I think the martial arts gave me. So just those, those are just you know a few of the benefits.Jeremy Lesniak:Those are fantastic yeah and we definitely have that attitude I think in the United States and in Western Culture as you're calling it that you can't take a pill and it will solve your problems and I think we all know and a lot of people if anybody out there listening is taking a medication or probably on more than one because there are probably the side effects from the first one you know that there's no magic bullet here that solves all of your problems other than hard work. I mean there's magic in hard work and it makes things happen. You're bringing intention, you're manifesting things, however you wanna look at it, it make stuff...Brannon Beliso:But with that said you know everybody runs around Facebook that's a big acronym now, you know GSD right Get ish Done at the challenge with that is how often a people work 12-14 hour a day especially the entrepreneur and get nothing done you know so I wanna change that acronym, I wanna say get the right ish done.Jeremy Lesniak:YeahBrannon Beliso:It's really important that you have that tunnel vision in place because people don't so I love hard working and hardworking is awesome. There's nothing no matter 20:28 better about yourself you build yourself esteem, you get you know, you advance yourself everything grows around you and there's nothing no matter what hard work and I wish our culture would stop shying away from it like it's this light on a van parts it's 20:42 thing to work hard cause it's not. It's not.Jeremy Lesniak:Absolutely, I couldn't agree more. So, you mentioned some great names, some people that you had the opportunity to train with and that your father trained with but I'd like you to think about of all the people that you train with, who was the one that was the most instrumental in your martial arts upbringing?Brannon Beliso:You know I’ve had many great teachers. There's a gentleman that a lot of people have never recognized cause he never became as famous as Rick Alemany. You know Rick Alemany is my teacher till today even and I remember him he fought Chuck Norris, I think Chuck Norris might have beat him but you know I watched him fight Chuck Norris, how cool is that you know and guys beat him he wasn't it just amazing. I watched him fight and every time he fought he smiled and that would freak people out cause how many people are gonna get in the ring with you and smile the whole time to fight you right.Jeremy Lesniak:Very very few, only the crazy ones.Brannon Beliso:Yeah, I remember one time he cause he was a bouncer but he was fighting at I don't know who he was fighting might have been a guy names John Natividad who is a really popular fighter back in the day but Rick got his nose broke. So, his nose is on the side of his freaking face, literally and he didn't wanna stop fighting. I was like whoa you know okay time's up pencil's down, nose is broke you know let's go to the no he get a piece of tape, taped down his nose and beat this guy.Jeremy Lesniak:Oh men.Brannon Beliso:That kind of spirit is something that's infused in me and he's my teacher till to this day but it's you know things like him you know Rick Alemany, my dad of course, my dad I was so young and so dumb I didn't understand I you know I thought he was just being a dad just you know but a lot of what my father taught me is just incredible, incredible and my dad's another one that's another unsung hero and there's been cause he had the same school in the same location 45 years in the worst part of San Francisco and he stays there and serves that community you know and never has any more than 100, 150 students day in or day out but you know my father's amazing in that capacity. He does something and he does it really well and he doesn't veer from it you know he doesn't go out of the box but he taught me that too. Don't be a jack of all trades you know, don't be 22:54 that's the big problem I think with a lot of martial artists that are just starting out they try to do some jujitsu, they wanna do some kung fu, do some 23:01 a little of this and they put all of that in their school and 23:03. You gotta do something really really well. Yes, some people mistaken that about Bruce Lee, he had 14 years of what wing chun under his belt before he started branching out? I mean he was pretty solid in Wing Chun before he ever started veering off in other directions so my daddy taught me dad, be proficient at something but I’ve had great seminars I mean I took a seminar with Royce Gracie you know I’ve taken seminars with Bill Wallace I’ve taken you know seminars with Remy Presas I mean God how lucky am I. Dave Kovar you know who's a living legend I mean I get to take seminars with these guys all the time. Ernie Reyes, I mean there's so many great martial artists out there and I think really my biggest influence is just being a white belt, being that learner that I could learn something from Mickey Mouse. My Papa used to say that, if you come here to learn, you know you learn something from Mickey Mouse and that's the other thing that I think lacks today is that humility to keep an open mind at a black belt level to walk in a school I mean I went into one school that goes no no you gotta wear your black belt professor. I said absolutely not give me a white belt I don't want no responsibility, be a white belt that's why I'm here so I don't have to be professor of anybody. Let me just strap on a white belt so never forget that. I think that's our greatest teacher. Our greatest teacher out of all these teachers I’ve ever had in my lifetime is the teach, the teaching of learning you know be a learner, don't be a teacher. That's the problem people become teachers and they stop learning.Jeremy Lesniak:You mentioned some of the names that you mentioned are great names either people that we've had on the show like Bill Wallace or people that we've talked to. I actually had the opportunity to train with Mr. Kovar still a couple of weeks ago.Brannon Beliso:Yeah amazing.Jeremy Lesniak:That a big seminar up here on the east coast and he was as incredible as I'd heard.Brannon Beliso:Yeah, he is.Jeremy Lesniak:So that was a lot of fun. So those are the people that you have trained with who would you want to train with, who haven't you been able to train with it?Brannon Beliso:Yeah Benny Urquidez for sure, you know I’ve just taken tidbits of his seminar is in stuff at the super show you know stepped in stepped out cause I'm really busy there myself. I'd love to train with Benny. I would love to train with Benny and spend a lot of time with him you know absolutely, Helio Gracie I mean I know he's not there anymore but I would love to train with Helio Gracie you know I mean Royce is amazing but to be able to spend time with his father would have been just something incredible for me. I think Helio Gracie would be another one I'd love to train with, absolutely.Jeremy Lesniak:Is there something different about those 2 gentlemen in the way that they teach or they train that calls you versus other people?Brannon Beliso:Yeah there's a real deal man, they eat, live, breathe martial arts you know that's why you gotta experience Dave Kovar he's a living example of that, he lives, eats, drinks, breathes, martial arts 24/7 you know I'm at a point in my life I'm 53 I’ve got a 3-year-old and a 6-year-old so I'd have to balance my life in that way you know and so if I was still single and I wasn't married, I'd be training all the time too. So, I envy the fact that they get to do that 24/7 and they have handlers that handle their business, handlers that take care of booking them and stuff you know I'm busy handling a 3 and a 6-year-old so I like to train with real martial artists and they say what do you mean what's a real martial artist? You walk your talk, you live by example, it was no doubt you know when Dave Kovar shows you something he knows his stuff. When Benny hits you with that spinning reverse kick that he's so well known for that jumping, spinning reverse kick, you will know that's not a reverse kick from a foot it's a reverse kick from a spirit at a heart level. There was no doubt in his mind that he is a martial artist and I dig that. I dig training with people like that and you get that a lot. You know why I see that a lot? A lot of these Brazilians coming over from Brazil in Jujitsu you know I have a hard time working with them on a business level because they're so loyal to the spirit of jujitsu in the way you earn belts and the way you do business but you know what they're real deals. These guys are real deals, I did a seminar for them and I was showing them some stand up and it would you know they were hybriding it right into a jujitsu move and they knew their stuff very clearly and they make no bones about it and they train hard and it's not about the money and I get that, I get that too but I wish I could help these guys make a good living so they can sustain their art.Jeremy Lesniak:Eventually maybe it'll just take some time.Brannon Beliso:Yeah because you're trying to find that balance, somebody posted that some 16-year-old blue belt is the head instructor.Jeremy Lesniak:I saw that post yeah.Brannon Beliso:Yeah, I saw that and you know that's ridiculous, that's just ridiculous. I wouldn't let any 16-year-old run my school. Let alone a blue belt, a blue belt and anything, anything, anything makes the difference but I think it's just the marketing thing. You know that he's not in the picture by himself, he's got the 2 instructors with him. I just it's a marketing ploy. I think they're laughing all the way to the bank and back with that but you know it's created controversy, the jujitsu world is on its ear and they're not happy with it so you know.Jeremy Lesniak:Yup but it's also sparked some discussion.Brannon Beliso:Yes.Jeremy Lesniak:And anytime there's good discussion about martial arts and quality and all that I mean bad doesn't come out of it I mean some people get might get their noses bent out of shape but certainly as we talk more and you know in an environment like this where you and I are conversing as well as all of the millions of conversations that go on that aren't ought to 28:25 we're advancing the arts we're making it better because we're talking.Brannon Beliso:Well Absolutely.Jeremy Lesniak:We're sharing.Brannon Beliso:Yeah but if I could ride on that you know when I tell people out there do what you do well. I was talking to a guy yesterday that's having challenges. He's been around 10 years as little less than 100 students now you know and he was all the way down to 40 and I said well what's your course system. He said Taekwondo I said well I think you're not teaching it well, he said what do you mean? I said why do you have a black belt in, Taekwondo and then I said sir you're not teaching it well cause if after 10 years you have 40 students and you're on the verge of closing you know your main product is Taekwondo you don't teach it well, the numbers don't lie. You know people chip 75% of my revenues on traditional kenpo karate. I do it well, I do it well. I've done 4 years of jujitsu I would never tell anybody I can teach you jujitsu never, but that's my value system. I'm not gonna go take an 8-hour certification in Krav Maga and then throw it up on my window and say hey come take Krav Maga classes you know we often think because we're a black belt that we can all of a sudden we're experts on bully defense, we're experts on women self-defense or experts on life skills, no we're not you know we're not we're just a guy that made it to black belt so you need to do your homework, you need to be proficient and if I was to teach jujitsu I would make sure I have a black belt in jujitsu. If I was to teach judo I would make sure I have a black belt first. So, I think that's the other challenge is people are out there trying to grab all these different things to make money when in the end it's just like being at a smartest bar in Vegas. You go to a buffet in Vegas, is the Japanese food really really good, no, is the American food really really good no. All the food's just okay it's just okay but if I want a good Italian food, I'm not gonna go to a buffet in Vegas. I'm gonna go to a really good Italian restaurant and I think the same thing here it needs to perpetuate itself we need to be proficient at what we do, really proficient before we decide to branch out.Jeremy Lesniak:It's a great point and it’s something that yeah, I'm starting to see more and more because I think people are trying to appeal to everyone and you're a businessman I'm a business man and one of the things that's pretty calm in amongst traditional business philosophy is hone in on your core market you know what is it that you do better than everybody else.Brannon Beliso:That's right.Jeremy Lesniak:And start with that.Brannon Beliso:That's right.Jeremy Lesniak:And if you're trying to do everything, hoping something's gonna stick, it's all gonna fall off the wall.Brannon Beliso:Right and I'm saying if your core product what you were reared in what you have a black belt in your you can't grow your school with that you think you're gonna grow your school with my program or somebody else's absolutely not, it's a band aid it's a temporary fix. It's gonna all fall apart at some point because if you can't teach what you know really really well, you're not gonna teach my program to somebody else's really well either when the day is done. So yeah you need to be proficient at what you do, really really proficient and that's you know what you see with some of the better schools the bigger schools and I don't even say on a business level these schools that are really successful teach one core system and then it might have jelly beans or icing on the cake you know but they don't try to be a jack of all trades.Jeremy Lesniak:Yeah great points, you’re really good at saying things that leave me kinda, I don't wanna say speechless but without much to add so good job. We've covered a lot of good stuff and let's kinda switch gears a little bit into some more of the fun stuff we'll come back around to some of these things that you're talking about with your system and everything but how about movies I mean you talked about Bruce Lee and I mean do you have a favorite martial arts movie or movies?Brannon Beliso:I'm a martial arts movie junkie yeah, I can remember as a young kid we had a movie theater called the Grand Theater and every Sunday we get dropped on the movie theater opened at about noon and it had back to back to back martial arts films, 3 in a row and literally they would lock all the kids in this auditorium. We'd have a coke in one hand jujube's in another whatever sugar and by the end of the first second movie we're flying through the aisles kicking each other and I kept my teeth on and early days there was a movie called 5 fingers of death and I don't know if you know that one right, right?Jeremy Lesniak:I do yeah.Brannon Beliso:Classic with the iron side song riiiiiiiiiiiiiii right his hands would glow but you know what I dug about that movie which I didn't really get till I was much older was how in the opening scene right? Old old teacher looks at this guy goes I’ve taught you all I can teach I'm gonna send you to the other part of the country in the 32:54 province to learn some so and so how humble is that? You got these instructors no you must stay with me forever you 33:02 servant only study my style cause my 33:05 kung fu is better than your tiger dog you know and so that was brilliant that is the martial arts mindset in essence when the humility of a teacher to a student to say I cannot teach you anymore you must go over here, that's so cool. So that kind of stuff, there was a guy back in the day called Alexander Fu Sheng I think he was there in the 33:23 I loved all of those films. I would go to Chinatown at the Jackson movie theater and you know the voices never match rats are running across our feet literally and we'd watch things like that. The eighteenth's chambers with Gordon I can never say his last name Liu Lao Gordon you know he did all the kill bill films too.Jeremy Lesniak:Oh okay.Brannon Beliso:He did 36 Chambers anything then you know Bruce Lee was my hero so pick a film Chinese collection the Big Boss which was later called Fist of Fury and the return of the Dragon, Enter the Dragon, the Game of Death. I mean I cry I was at internationals when Bruce Lee died and they were showing it on the screen I cried but even after he died I watched every you know impersonator that came out after him. Remember that all those impersonators that look like Bruce Lee a little bit.Jeremy Lesniak:YeahBrannon Beliso:All those strings and films, I even watched those you know of course Black Belt Jones, Jim Kelly I watched Jim Kelly. I watched the Kung Fu series you know that was out for a while. Anything, anything that's got to do with martial arts today, Donnie Yen I think one of the most under rated is Donnie Yen. Donnie Yen is an amazing martial artist.Jeremy Lesniak:He's incredible.Brannon Beliso:Yeah when I saw that Ip Man movie the first one and he fought those Japanese guys for the rice, there are people I mean I know he's huge in China but he should be really really big here. I mean he's so under rated and then of course Jackie Chan, Jet Li you know I watched every Chuck Norris film. Every one of them even his TV series you know what's that TV series he had recently.Jeremy Lesniak:Walker Texas RangerBrannon Beliso:Yeah and Loan Wolf Mcquade, I watch everything, anything and everything that comes out. The big ones I like that was The Raid the Raid 1 and 2. Those are pretty clean movies where the fight scenes you know are very strong simple. I like the you know standard classical Chinese one where they fight through the air and it's all fantasy and I get that you know I get that but if I get to watch some of these spin around in the air in slow motion like an 35:15 one more time it's like so I really like some of the Donnie Yen stuff and the Raid even Ong Bak you know Tony Jaa this some it's really rhythmic and dance but if you look closely there's some really good clean exchanges that of straight up street fighting and I dig that stuff too. I am we never go to watch 35:32 it's not gonna happen you know some of the Stephen Chow, the silly stuff, the Shaolin soccer you know his whole genre it's kinda fun and funny as well you know so anything man, anything that's got to do with martial arts perpetuates you know growing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Power Rangers you take it, you take anything that's got to do with the martial arts I will watch it. No matter how painful it might be I will watch it.Jeremy Lesniak:What did you think of Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon when it came out.Brannon Beliso:Well I love that it really elevated the martial arts to a whole new level I mean we're always looking for that next thing to help boost us you know and I love that genre you know of just the whole 36:10Chinese overcoming them. I get all that but I think it's way played out now you know what was unique about it at that time is he took that genre and elevated. Was that Ang Lee who did that movie, no he's the director.Jeremy Lesniak:I think so. I don't have it off top of my head.Brannon Beliso:Yeah but it's really famous I know he went on 36:31 stuff with John Travolta and a couple of different things, might have been him. Anyways so it did it really 36:37 that colorful really showed the richness of the culture, it really showed that in depth but I think it's way played out now, way way played out you know and it's done cause if you had to dance over trees we know that's never gonna happen I don't care and if I study for the next 4 years I'm not flying across trees. I don't know 36:53 you know it's not possible, it's not so but you know 36:57 what it did for me though and I think like many people's wow martial arts can help me be better than better and I love that about it you know and then Chow Yun fat of course I’ve watched all his stuff too. I just you know just this stuff. House of Flying Daggers is another great movie, right very colorful very rich, did you watch that one House of Flying Daggers?Jeremy Lesniak:If I did it was a long time ago.You gotta see that one too, that's got some good fight scenes as well.Jeremy Lesniak:I'm gonna check that out. How about are there any that you think of that are particularly bad I mean really bad but are still worth watching maybe because the fight choreography is really good?Brannon Beliso:You know that Never Give Up Never Surrender, that first Claude van Damme film where he was 37:47 bad kid and he jumped up into the split, he's on the end of the boxing ring and sat there Van Damme yeah, it's horrible I mean there's so many bad ones but it doesn't matter as long as it perpetuates the martial arts I mean some of the later Steven Seagal films are just terrible so bad you know they're just so bad but hey if it perpetuates martial arts and promotes the culture I don't care. If it's gonna inspire one more kid or one more adult to get off the couch and go take martial arts I don't care how bad it is, really. You know I love the Best of the Best Philip Rhee you know his stuff is cool right, the first one and then they started to get crazier and crazier but that's okay too, that's okay too. Anything that perpetuates the arts I'm there, good or bad or indifferent you know it really doesn't matter when the day is done you know that Surf Ninjas that was horrible.Jeremy Lesniak:Yes, absolutely.Brannon Beliso:If you'll do martial arts because of it who cares, who cares right,Jeremy Lesniak:And if nothing else it was you know it was fun to laugh at.Brannon Beliso:Yeah mindless entertainments, sometimes you gotta shut down I don't always have to watch some documentary about climate control you know and always have to be in that position sometimes we need to look at what it is its entertainment, right. It's entertainment when what's his name Jason Lee did the remake of Dragon you know the Bruce Lee story some of it was really good but when he threw some of those kicks, I think they were horrible, they were just horrible but you know what he's not a martial artist nor is he meant to be you know he was just the best person to play the role but he had that one fight scene where that you know that still nobody knows it's folklore when he fought that Jackman whoever in Chinatown. He was throwing some kicks that were just, just so bad I can't believe they didn't speed up the film, edit it out, reshoot it with a double somebody cause it was just really bad would I mean Bruce Lee would've turned over in his grave and say well that's really bad, really bad but I'd watch that movie every time because it's about Bruce Lee's you know, it's about Bruce Lee's life story.Jeremy Lesniak:How about books?Brannon Beliso:Well Tao of Jeet Kune Do number 1.Jeremy Lesniak:Why?Brannon Beliso:Number 1 because I mean Bruce Lee was like the Jimmy Hendrix of martial arts. He's in there talking about fencing, he's in there talking about you know, he's in there saying every art has something to offer that's why it's the art of fighting without fighting I have no style because I'm all of it. It's an expression of your soul, it's an expression of yourself I mean he was the first one that really get martial arts to say stop fighting in a traditional you know like a boxer, like a righty. If you're a right hander, fight like a south paw because you got your lead technique in front of you, that's brilliant. I mean cause at fencing if I'm a right handed fencer I'm gonna stand with my right foot forward because I wanna lead you know with my right hand if I'm fencing, I wanna lead with my right foot so Bruce Lee's was one of the first people to do that and I remember me and my dad would have arguments about this cause I was left handed and he kept saying no no you must fight like a right hander you must you know cause back then left handers were considered witches and I thought you know I remember teachers punishing for not writing right handed cause I was left handed I can't write with my right hand.Jeremy Lesniak:Right.Brannon Beliso:But I would fight like a righty because my dad made me but in hindsight as foresight it was developing on upon Bruce Lee's already mind set. You gotta fight both sides, don't get me wrong but Bruce Lee really always fought like a lefty because he wanted that lead technique forward and we won't even get into the philosophy that's in that book you know that's there and I think what it really embellishes is we do know Bruce Lee had a back injury, we do know he wrote that book at a time in his life where he was suffering, 41:15 you know but what he really did you know desperate measures through desperate times he found his voice through that book. He found his soul through that book and every time I pick up that book, I think I’ve got like 4-5 edition every time they come out with the special hard covered groovy edition I’ll buy, I don't care I’ve read the book, I’ll get it again. This one's got a new black holder and it's got a gold and you know embossed thing of Bruce Lee's thumb print. I don't care, it's a great book and I’ve given it to many people. You know The Art of War, The Art of War is a brilliant book, philosophically as far as you know life and how to understand your opponent. I think The Art of War is brilliant anything older books by Ed Parker. Some of his early stuff when he was talking about angles and lines and stuff and even though it was all theory and it a lot of it didn't have practical application I even think Ed Parker was heading in the right direction with understanding what is combat what is art and I think really, we need to understand that and anything that we reader do you know why are you doing the martial arts, why? And when you pick up a book to read it when you walk in to 42:23 role why are you doing it. Is it for fitness? Is it for self-defense you know is it for art and know that. They're all good and we have those two camps ahh that's not practical self-defense it's a suck martial arts. No, it's not, try to do some of that hyper you know where you're spinning you do a 720 through the air and there was a kick at the end of that, that's hard to do. That's really a gift to be a major athlete to do that so I think everything has its place. So again, all these books that I read I think it's time. It's time you know for me wherever I'm at in my life when I come upon one of these books and I pick them up and I read it, it resonates where I'm at in my life but that book I always go to Tao of Jeet Kune Do, number 1.Jeremy Lesniak:Cool, clearly, its had quite the impact on you.Brannon Beliso:Yes, absolutely.Jeremy Lesniak:Has a lot of meaning? We’ve talked a little bit about some of the stuff that you've got going on and you clearly have some strong opinions on the business of martial arts and the philosophy of running martial arts schools. So, I wanna give you the opportunity to tell us about that you know what do you have going on you know I know you've your, your one martial arts programs and the patches which I think are brilliant. So why don't you tell people about that stuff?Brannon Beliso:Well you know my heart and soul was still in my schools but I think what we've done I wasn't gonna open a second school cause I travel, I speak, I teach, I write and I have a couple of online businesses so it wasn't really a monetary issue. The first school gross is a million dollars a year, 600 I make 30% net but really came out of it was to prove to myself that a service based martial arts school based upon serving people really well and learning ways to serve them better was replicable see people in the industry wrote me off as an anomaly. Ahh it's one school you know it's personality driven so I stopped teaching to prove that it wasn't about me and the school still flourished based upon the systems that I wrote. Then they said ah well it's an anomaly it's still only one school, so we've had the second school now we've been open 6 months we just broke 162 students.Jeremy Lesniak:WowBrannon Beliso:That's a lot right in 6 months?Jeremy Lesniak:That's absolutely, yeah that's fantastic.Brannon Beliso:Yeah, its averaging 30-33 thousand dollars a month at this new location since the day it opened and it's growing so it's proven now that it's replicable and I’m only there a couple of days a week. So, its proven that my systems are replicable, but everything we do is and I think what it's really showing the industry is the true brutal spirit, the spirit that I think martial artists are servants, we were meant to be servants to our community you know it's that I'm the master, you're the lowly student wash my floor for free you know and pay me for lessons while you're at it. So, I think that's what I'm really sharing with the industry and all my programs is to understand that we are servants and if we serve people really really well and learn ways to serve them better we can not only make a good living you know we can really make an amazing living, an amazing living, an amazing living and I'm living proof of that so I live that movement. So yeah, I have the one 45:21 badges cause I really believe life skills are important so whether it's mine or somebody else's life skills program you need to see some type of life skills curriculum why? I'm not gonna walk up to a soccer coach and say please teach my kid focus and discipline but I will walk into any martial arts school and expect it. So, if you don't have some kind of great life skills system in place, you've missed the boat and your school will suffer. I remember me and my dad said well you know if you do 5000 kicks you learn discipline from doing it I said no dad I got a really good kick you know so I think much like a curriculum you need a structured curriculum out there and again I’m gonna go back to just don't think because you're a black belt you're qualified to write a life skill system. You need to study child psychology, you need to read these books, you need to take courses, you can't just make up this stuff because you're a black belt and think it's valid. So, life skills I think is that's why I created that and then now where I'm at today you know I’ve really been in the industry helping everybody, everybody, everybody. You ask anybody out there in the community and I help you for free, for free, for free. The challenge with that is it's now taking up so much of my time that either I monetize or I stop doing it. That's it well all that's coming down to. So, after the last super shows so many people have been coming to me going you know what do you charge, how can I hire you to consult me I said I’m not a consultant, I'm a teacher and I’ve worked on other people's courses too so I'm launching a thing called It's Time and I believe it's time to make the 46:47 of changes in the industry that need to happen. Either we're gonna keep sitting here and repackaging, regurgitating, the same old information and keep telling people you know you need contracts in order to be a viable business. I know some poor guy who pays a consultant all this money who told him to take on contracts, this guy is losing $2000 a month plus not well 47:06 whether he pays a consultant so see it cause it was against his values it wasn't in this true spirit so I am but I stand in the line of fire every day and its been a rough fun for me to make this choice to monetize what I do because I really want people's faith to be alive and people love the fact that they can call me find me at Facebook and I help everybody, everybody, everybody. But I know I was talking to somebody in Germany and it was like 2 in the morning cause of the time difference and my wife gets out of bed literally and she goes what are you doing. I said well I'm trying to help this guy in Germany you know he's having challenges with his school 47:40 England and after I got done she goes you know it's time I said no I'm sorry babe I didn't mean to be on the phone this late she goes no it's time, you're up all hours of the night the day you help everybody, it's time you start charging people for this. What you have to offer people is heads and tails about everything out there I go yeah yeah but then then I'm no longer Robin Hood of the 48:01 I'm not helping people anymore she goes yes you will and you will be able to help them better because you can devote the time to it because you're making the money to support it. I get it, I get it now I do but I still won't stop helping people that need help. I won't do that either 48:14 So but it's time there's a very select group unfortunately you know cause I can, there's only one of me and I wanna spend a lot of one on one time with each school owner. So that's gonna require only working with so many which you know is a hard one for me cause I wanna help everybody, everybody.Jeremy Lesniak:So how about this, you not everybody that's gonna listen to this show owns a martial arts school in theory you know the vast majority of them train in the martial arts but I'm willing to guess that just about everybody has a job so if you could kind of adapt some of that that you teach martial arts school owners and throw out a nugget or 2 of advice for everybody with respect to their profession or job or whatever what might that be?Brannon Beliso:Well a couple of things number 1 write this down, it's not about me it's about we you know Jerry Maguire that movie who have so poignant when he looked at Cuba Gooding and said stop being a paycheck player, stop you know saying it's I'm not getting the ball he's not turned to me, the linemen suck, same thing here stop it. Stop being selfish you know wake up every day and be grateful, be grateful you have a job and if it's a job you don't like, change it, you know do something that you're passionate about that has purpose that you love love love to do. Well not all of us are in here financial position some of us has to get up and go to work and do this job I got a mortgage payment I got kids. I hear that song and dance everyday well you know what so do I. I have a mortgage, I have kids but I’ve chosen, I’ve chosen and you have that choice so if you call it a job first of all you need to quit, you need to go do something else cause if it's a job then you're in big trouble. Everyday you should wake up and love what you do, love love what you do and I’ve seen janitors that love what they do and they're the richest people I know because you know you can have all these money and all these fame and fortune if you're unhappy not of it means anything. You could have the best wife everything and none of it matters if you are unhappy so take 2 steps further with that. Don't try to be happy find peace, what do you mean it's American way, happy got to be happy are you happy? Hey is he happy no it's really about peace and I don't wanna be happy I wanna be at peace because I can't be happy with what's going on in the Middle East but I can be at peace knowing that I'm very grateful each day I wake up I get to be here I can be at peace with that you know and that's it I can be at peace that you know I'm 53 and when I throw a punch it doesn't come on as fast than it used to when I was 23. I can be at peace with that and accept life on life's terms so people that have regular jobs out there, take that martial arts spirit into the workplace be a team player, lead by example you know if you wanna advance in any kind of company don't talk about you know show me the money when do I get a raise if you're supposed to be at work at 9am, show up at 7.30. If you don't have to work on weekends, ask to work on weekends you'll advance quicker and further in any job environment if that is your goal. Now if your goal is to fly under the radar be a paycheck player, do your 9-5 check out go home and do that every day you're gonna wake up 40 years from now with a gold watch and a pension luckily and in today's economy and you're gonna go what the hell happened to my life. I don't believe we're supposed to punch in 9-5. Living is not about the time clock, living is about every moment, every breath, every second you're given and if you can do that you'll never have a job, never and you'll love what you do.Jeremy Lesniak:That's wonderful advice and I found myself nodding along to a lot of what you're saying you know certainly the things that you're saying here are things that you didn't invent these concepts.Brannon Beliso:NoJeremy Lesniak:But you certainly put them together in a very strongly constructed very approachable way and you can hear the passion that's coming through as you're saying them you're not just reading them off of a car or reciting something you read in a book.Brannon Beliso:And Jaden Smith said in some little Instagram video he goes I think that's silly people give ideas everyday why shouldn't you use the ideas they give you. You're not copying or biting or ripping off people that's why ideas are put out there. It's ego that says hey I'm gonna sue you you're using my idea no, we write these ideas we write these philosophies to perpetuate you know a type of living to give people tools to be at peace. So yeah you know I'm not trying to reinvent the wheel I'm learning to drive the car better. I get that and I'm cool with that but you're right some of its Tony Robins some of its Bruce Lee, some of its Deepak Chopra but when the day's is done it's like rock and roll Jeremy. It's the same 3 cards, it's just the person playing it, interpreting it. You put a paint brush in my had its I'm gonna paint different than you but it's still a paint brush when the day's done so yeah, we need to check our ego on both sides of that. People bite my stuff all the time, I happily tell people use it I use it to 53:08 cause you know and its probably Plato, or its probably soccer teaser, its probably Confucius, when the day is done you know we can keep going back back back until the beginning of time and give somebody credit for it that invented it but I think that's ego so yeah, its just my take on the whole thing.Jeremy Lesniak:Right on, good stuff so if someone who wants to get a hold of you or find out more about what it is that you offer you know the one merit badges or any of it, how do they get a hold of you and find out more?Brannon Beliso:You know the biggest line to do that is Facebook and you know that find Brannon Beliso at Facebook I'm there all over Facebook, Instagram, Linked In, Pinterest you know I’ve got things there brannonbeliso.com, Google my school 1 Martial Arts whoever in San Francisco or Millbrae. School owners come from all over the world to see our culture cause it is unique you know people trip we have no front desk we have no program director we have no operations manager. All these things you're supposed to have in the business we have none of those things and they walk in and go where's the office, we don't have one well where do you close people? Where do you do your selling conferences? We don't if we do our job from front to back, you walk up to the front desk and it's just the transaction well where's the program director? We don't, it's simple as 54:18 a 6-year-old girl can process a service agreement right so people come from all over the world. So, look up One Martial Arts if you're in San Francisco, Millbrae we always welcome people and I’ll buy you dinner when you're in town. Onemeritbadges.com you know it is what it is we have over 300 clients worldwide and we do almost 0 advertising for it. Why?Jeremy Lesniak:Tell us a little bit about that.Brannon Beliso:One Merit Badges is just life skills you know but it's taught in a simple simple way. I ask people when you're a fighter, how many techniques do you have in a ring. Some ego guy told me one time I have a whole arsenal, yeah right when you step in the ring how many techniques Jeremy? What do you think, 3, 4?Jeremy Lesniak:Half a dozen maybe?Brannon Beliso:Maybe right on a good day but you got your bread and butter it was probably 2 or 3 okays.Jeremy Lesniak:Yup.Brannon Beliso:Same thing here I don't think you need a book to teach somebody about focus. If I can't say it in one page then it's useless so that's that was one of the premises. What's unique about it, there's no monthly subscription you know everybody gives me crap about that all my friends that have hey you wanna get that monthly subscription, $99 a month that's the price point every month you will get $99 from 300 people. I don't wanna do that I think it's bogus you know how many of these organizations you get materials you don't use you never open the box that sits in the corner, all the time right?Jeremy Lesniak:Yeah.Brannon Beliso:Yeah, all the time so that's what's unique about it there's no subscription and it is, it's one page talks about the life skills you got one 55:37 student parent hand out, and then people earn badges organically, people say what do you mean cause they always ask me what's the 20 things they must do to earn focus I said nothing, what? Like that show remember Seinfeld they did that one episode, what's this show about nothing? And 55:54 at the embassy what do you mean it's a show about nothing, it's just everyday life. It’s the same thing here if I see a kid looking at me when I'm talking I might turn on and say you know what sir you get the first focus badge of today's class, you're sitting still and looking right at me when I'm talking that's awesome focus which means pay attention. You know because I think again we live in that culture where we wanna appear smart. So, you look at the class they bend their knees, you look away they straighten up their legs start talking to their friend, you look at them they bend their knees, you look away so what are they doing do they really possess discipline, no they're simply looking for your approval, they simply want you to look at them and say you're great, you’re smart, you're amazing. Right so the premise of one merit badges is to look for habit and habit is what it's about. If I observe a behavior then we award a badge but that's sometimes really too kumbaya for some of these really military karate schools in the Bible belt they don't get it, they go that's too kumbaya for me man, give me three things and then make my life easy, no we're not sheep don't be sheep, open up that box, venture a little further, embrace it and make it your own and that's what people don't get about one merit badges either they want me to feed them everything and I won't do that, I won't do that. I perpetuate people to be you know individuals, people to be leaders and I'm not to be sheep.Jeremy Lesniak:Well said and yeah, I would like to encourage listeners to at least check out what you've got going on online. You've got some wonderful websites and even if you're not a martial arts school owner there are some wonderful concepts I mean you heard the advice that professor Beliso shared with us today and there's a lot more out there that you can take from what he's teaching people and I would encourage everyone to do so. So, any parting advice as we start to sign off?Brannon Beliso:Yeah you know there's that saying my cup is neither half full nor half empty and then you say well you know make a choice cause technically it's both. Is your cup half full or is half empty? I'd like to take that a step further you know and I’ve read this before and there's nothing that I created but I just wanna expand upon it. Imagine you have a picture, so your cup is neither half full nor half empty, you have a picture of unlimited resources, unlimited potential and you know we live in a think of the law of abundance you know we have the abundance take that and refill that cup. You're not in the middle of Ethiopia where you wake up every morning and you have to walk three miles to get you know some disease driven water that's stagnant with mosquitoes you know we live in a culture that perpetuates abundance I think you know obese abundance in some cases but don't squander that opportunity folks and I think we squander it because we live in the age of technology of self-centeredness where we have to have a selfie stick and we walk around taking pictures of our self all day and we sit at Facebook posting images of our self-doing any little bit thing and then we sit there and we put it up on a pedestal of at something like it so grandiose no it's not. Sitting in jail for 25 somewhat years and coming up becoming president of Africa, that's something to talk about you know stop celebrating mediocrity stop it and put down that selfie stick stop taking pictures of yourself, stop trying to be the next YouTube you know sensation and where you got 3 million followers but none of them know you, they're not your friends come on, they're not your friends, get out there, 59:25 go clean the park, go help somebody across the street, do something real, make an impact in the community and that's why technology is dangerous. I used technology to perpetuate my purpose but you won't see me sitting there posting a video about look at me I'm eating a hamburger 59:41 That's not the purpose of social media for me, nor is it to air my dirty laundry or to go after somebody else. But that's again my value system but I'm gonna say that you know I don't know where I was and I was just appalled everywhere I look people had selfie sticks, walking around just all day long and I'm going wow you're freaking 16 what have you done in this world what have you really done, what? Hit the toilet seat every morning when you get up to pee, what have you really done, right? So, to perpetuate that our culture's gotta stop that you know we've gotta stop that so and I don't say that in a mean vicious way, I say that in a very heartfelt way, we need to put that stuff down and look each other in the eye, on a human level and be grateful for every breath, every moment, every person, that we're given the opportunity to interact with and be around and that to me is something I think would change the world.Jeremy Lesniak:Very poignant and I thank you for sharing that and for everything that you share with us today, this has been fantastic and not that anyone's gonna get to hear it but this is definitely better than our first attempt.Brannon Beliso:Yeah yeah, well you know and but I believe that Jeremy everything happens for a reason.Jeremy Lesniak:Yeah.Brannon Beliso:Been through the worst experiences I’ve been, in the worst situations I’ve been in when I get to the other side of that and I look back I'm going oh men I'm so grateful I didn't stay with that girl. I'm so grateful I didn't stay in that situation you know everything does happen for a reason. I know that scientists don't believe that nothing is coincidence, nothing is by destiny, that's all hoopla, that's cool you know if you wanna believe that but I really do I think the person who's probably really bad or it didn't work out recording wise so we can get what we got today you know.Jeremy Lesniak:That's right.Brannon Beliso:Yeah absolutely.Jeremy Lesniak:I really thank you for being so open and being so honest and sharing with us today.Brannon Beliso:No, I'm grateful.Jeremy Lesniak:You know it's been a pleasure having you here.Brannon Beliso:I'm very grateful to have done this today.Jeremy Lesniak:Thanks for listening to episode 21 of whistlekickMartialArtsRadio. A big thank you to Professor Beliso for coming on the show and sharing everything with us. 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