If you don’t like something, it isn’t necessarily “bad”.
I recently finished watching a movie on Netflix, and at the end of the film, it asked me to review it. I was presented with three options: “Like it”, “Love it” and “Not for Me”. This struck me as the word “Bad” did not exist anywhere in the review options.
In today’s society, we can easily believe that if we don’t like something, then it must be bad. As such we think we must have polarized views towards anything and everything that we come across. In reality, what we are reviewing may be objectively good, but subjectively, it might not be to our taste. For example, my grandmother’s meatloaf recipe is objectively very good. Meat loaf just happens to be my least favorite food!
When it comes to our views of various different martial arts, it can be as easy to fall into the trap of forcing ourselves to view things as good or bad, not as Netflix suggests: Like it, Love it or Not For Me. In following Netflix’s advice, we can create an open mind for ourselves and appreciate different styles and techniques even if we don’t subscribe to them or practice them ourselves. For example, some may view some traditional martial arts as less practical while still acknowledging the positive aspects of them like character building and health. Likewise some may not like to do mixed martial arts and see the susceptibility of injury, but still appreciate the effort put forth by those that train in it. Personally, I view both traditional and mixed martial arts as valuable and see both as beneficial in their own ways.
When you are tempted to judge something. First ask yourself, “Is it really bad or is it just not for me?”
