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How to make your kids decisive when it counts

Episode #5

Today I want to share a really cool drill you can do with your children. Don’t forget, make it playful – don’t be captain serious.

 This exercise will help you teach your child to create immediate decisiveness when it comes to either threatening or threatening stressful situations. 

 It’s called The Sleeve Catcher.

The Sleeve Catcher name is actually coined after a old Japanese law enforcement tool that the police used called the sodegarami, a spiked staff used to catch the kimono of a violent criminal. They'd catch the garment and force him to the ground in order to restrain them.

The Sleeve Catcher is an excellent exercise that helps your child create fast initiative and rapid, decisive decision-making, without telegraphing their mind or body.

First show them two steps. The first is simply have them begin in a natural standing position, and then quickly step forward and slightly off center-line. Without stopping their motion, they will turn 180 degrees facing opposite in which they were standing with their hands lifted slightly in front of them, as though placing the palms on a wall that’s close to them.

The second is a little more complicated, so don’t introduce it until the first movement is done successfully several dozen times. So we don’t get ahead of ourselves, I’ll introduce the second movement at the end of the exercise. 

Now, your role. Begin by extending your arm to hold your hand about three to four inches away from their shoulder sleeve. Use a parallel grab, in other words; prepare to grip their left shoulder sleeve using your right hand.

Here’s where it gets fun.

The moment the sense that you're about to grab their sleeve, I want them to one way or the other, in the manner you showed them.At the same time, they will be pushing you away, or they're moving the arm away. Don’t make this a martial arts, it’s not mean to be some type of karate block. What I ultimately want them to do is to move behind you, and stunning you at some level.

Check out the complete episode: Close Quarter Dad