tcs-12 Level 3 Self-Control: Controlling other people

The Three Levels of Self-Control

Level 3 Self-Control: Controlling other people

Oxymoron? Not at all. Think of it as simply extending yourself into a new arena. You make your opponent part of your environment, and therefore something subject to your control.

Controlling Your Opponent

This is where most martial artists or athletes miss. They spend time learning to be calm and sportsmanlike. They learn to lose with dignity. Meanwhile, the true champions learn to control THEM.

Everything you do in competition makes your opponent react a certain way whether you did it by accident or design. The question is: Are they reacting the way you want them to?

Sometimes winning is as simple as being the person who acts and therefore forces their opponent to react.

After twenty five years of teaching martial arts, I am used to hearing “what if”... “What if my opponent does this? What if he does that?” I always respond with, “What if his good buddy is in a window over there with a rocket launcher and decides to blow you up?” After the class laughs I explain that the idea is to become the one who’s controlling his opponent: Make him ask “what if”.

Training for Level 3

Watching the early days of UFC I would cringe when the announcer would say, “Cunning J. Grappler is so good at waiting for an opening for the finishing move.”

This is horse hockey. C.J. is not “waiting for an opening”, he’s moving the fight towards that final move, even if it takes an hour (bo-o-o-ring). He had one purpose from the moment he stepped out on the mat: Move towards winning.

The Keys:

In a fight, never wait for an opening; always move the fight towards winning. Take control and do not give it back.

Controlling your opponent is partly a function of controlling your attitude about your opponent.

Don’t think: “This is what I’ll do if he does X.”

Think: “I will do this to him.”

Always fight your game!

tcs-11 Training for Level 2

Training for Level 2

The Time Control Sports training method will prepare you to find the self-defense applications of your environment.

Here are two rules to apply as you train this:

1. Learn to take every risk that is acceptable if it can better your life. Don’t let fear hold you back as you learn to live life to your full potential.

2. Commit to taking more risk (with eyes wide open) where you’ve been over-cautious; pay more attention to areas in which you’ve been careless and inattentive. It’s this balance that will allow you to attain your goal: Complete control of any situation, at any time, anywhere!!!

What this means in practice is that you take more notice of the things you do every day, even the most mundane: walking up stairs, driving a car, talking, breathing etc. This is a key training method to progress you towards seeing in slow motion.

The Key:

By being fully aware of yourself as you perform these automatic activities, you are training yourself to pay more attention to things by focusing your conscious thought on them. This will lead to focusing your subconscious mind on them as well.

Why is this important? Because seeing in slow motion depends upon “thinking in the subconscious”.

tcs-10 Level 2 Self-Control: Controlling your environment

The Three Levels of Self-Control

Level 2 Self-Control: Controlling your environment

When I was young, I enjoyed riding my bike on sandy roads and locking up the back brake so the rear of the bike would skid 90 degrees. I often bloodied my knees because I was a risk-taker — that is, a normal kid.

When I became an adult, I no longer indulged in this risky behavior. I had a job, a boss, and a paycheck, and — afraid of bloodying myself — I avoided asking for a raise. Too risky. Might be viewed as a squeaky wheel.

What happens to us as we grow to adulthood? When we were kids we took risks; we learned new skills, discovered new talents, strove to control our environment. We looked at assuming control as part of growing up. Adulthood was to be a time in which we lived by our own rules rather than responding like experimental rats to bells ringing and the appearance of the lunch tray. So what if we bloodied our knees?

Welcome to adulthood, in which we think things to death, answer to the ringing of phones and pagers, and the whims of bosses, and rarely act out our dreams.

The Key:

Learn to control your environment, whether in combat or in life.

How do you control your environment? First, look for ways it can be used to your advantage. For example, in a tournament, start by always making sure you get the side you want before the fight. This is important, because most martial artists “lead” with a particular leg. I always began a fight with my right leg out front and kept that leg out front most of the time.  When I chose the side I would occupy during the match, I chose the side that had the center judge looking at my back while I was leading with my right leg. This way, the center judge could not see points my opponent scored to my body as effectively because he was looking at my back.  This is a simple but effective control of environment.

I also developed the strategy of moving toward my opponent, pushing him toward the edge of the ring. When he got close to the edge, he would invariably glance toward the line. That was my cue to launch a flurry of attacks. I have scored countless points using this environmental distraction.

The Key:

Study the environment in which you spar and compete to look for environmental elements that you can turn to your advantage.

While point fighting is a very controlled and predictable environment, the need for self-defense often crops up in strange places — once I was up on a ladder installing an alarm system when I needed to defend another person from attack.

As part of the Daily 8 training exercises (see the Daily 8 section below), you will look for ways to take control of your environment and make it work for you. This is not just for combat.

Outside tip: You can exert this level of self-control at work, too. Not fond of your work environment? Learn to control your corner of it. Most people who work in an office could make the work environment better just by rearranging their desktops. If you work in construction, something as simple as a bucket bag to make your tools more accessible could save you an hour a week and decrease stress. Let’s say you’re a computer professional — are there tools you could be using that could do part of your work for you, thereby giving you more time and helping to create a more relaxed environment?

We are creatures of habit. We go through our day without pausing to look for ways we can control our environment. Just opening our eyes should reveal endless possibilities.

We are often careless. Carelessness wears a thousand faces, meaning, it can manifest itself in a variety of ways from losing track of how many drinks you’ve had, to being involved in a fender-bender, to failing to win sports contests you have the ability and physical strength to win. Bottom line: Carelessness is a lack of self-control.

The Key:

Take a look at yourself with a keen eye for areas in which you are careless. Think about what adjustments you’d make.

But isn’t carelessness the same as risk-taking? No. It’s not. Carelessness occurs any time you do anything without paying attention. It’s more likely, in fact, to happen during mundane, habitual tasks that we feel are low-risk because we know them so well.

When you exert Level 2 self-control, you are aware of what you’re doing at all times, whether it is the first or thousandth time you’ve done it.

tcs-9 Level 1 Self-Control: Controlling your reactions

The Three Levels of Self-Control

To start learning how to apply Time Control Sports we must redefine self-control.

Level 1 Self-Control: Controlling your reactions

The normal paradigm for self-control (Level 1) revolves around a person not losing his composure or getting needlessly angry. Self-control is staying calm in stressful or dangerous situations; not going on lizard-brain auto-pilot when the fight or flight response kicks in.

In Time Control Sports this is merely where self-control starts. You will learn to take it to the next level.

Think about the progression of control you exert as you learn to ride a bike. At first, you lack control of the bike’s apparatus; you fall a lot, even get hurt. But once you learn to master control of the various elements of riding a bike — balance, grip, pedaling, braking — you never forget.

Take a second and compare your mastery of your fighting skills to riding a bike.  Think of the different elements of sparring. How much self-control do you exert when you spar? How often do you flail at your opponent just hoping to land a blow or block successfully? Your form may be correct, you know the moves, but you toss them out almost at random.

The Key:

The new paradigm for self-control is the ability to control every aspect of your reactions and behavior.

This allows you to minimize the effects negative situations have upon you, while maximizing the benefits and rewards you receive from positive situations. Though this course is about combat and/or competitive sports, the lessons roll over into all aspects of life.

What can you do with this level of self-control? Well, here’s what I did: I went from never being able to win a tournament to winning consistently.

But my use of TCS/CM went beyond martial arts. Outside the arena, I went from making about $150 a week less than I needed to pay the bills to being debt-free and earning a six-figure income working a real job (with real weekly paychecks) from my home with just a computer and phone. Sound idyllic? It’s all a matter of self-control. (For more details on how I did this, see my book be your own boss at your current job.)

Most people (especially those involved in martial arts) have already achieved a Level 1 control over their own behavior in the tournament ring, but TCS/CM mastery calls for more than that.

LIMITLESS

Last night I watched the movie LIMITLESS.  I was very surprised to see that there was an actual fight scene in the movie that featured Time Control Sports principles.  It was somewhat annoying that the guy did not know how to fight and would remember Bruce lee movies so he’d know what to do.  The bottom line was he could think so fast and see things in slow motion making him an invincible.

As martial artists we train very hard to get a little better every day, I hope most people that practice this course will not take on the attitude of overnight success.  Several years from now I am hoping to see athletes from all over the world taking their sport to the next level with the help of my system.

tcs-8 The Three Levels of Time Control - Level 3: Time Stop

Level 3: Time Stop

Learn to freeze time.

This is it. The true power we all should be striving for. The ability to freeze our opponent in his tracks while we move effortlessly.  This cannot be explained, only experienced!

Time Stop can only be maintained for seconds (maybe ten seconds tops) and you will be mentally exhausted after. Even if you have been able to see in slow motion for months and can turn it on and off at will, Time Stop will be an unmistakably different experience. When you achieve it, you will notice things you never noticed before. It’s like staring at a life-size freeze frame — as if you’ve “paused” real life.

When you experience Time Stop, you will feel each heart beat, feel as if you can count seconds between each pulse. You will feel the air entering and leaving your lungs. And, most critically, the amount of information you can perceive and process will astound you. If you trained Level 2 correctly, you will think your fist to your assailant’s body and it will be there.

The one thing you will NOT feel is the sheer helplessness your opponent experiences!

Be careful not to become mesmerized by this, because time will return to regular speed suddenly and violently and your window of opportunity will have passed. All three life-threatening situations mentioned on my website involved me using this technique to prevail.

The Key:

Think of your mind as a hiker on a long trek. It carries a backpack, canteens, and other baggage. In other words, it hefts a lot of weight on a daily basis, ranging from controlling your breathing and heart rate to problems with work or health or love life.

To achieve Time Stop we must drop ALL this baggage instantly and use every last iota of our metal power at once. And we need to do it at better than 20% capacity.

Maintaining Control

Taking control of time is extremely powerful. With practice it can be controlled 90% of the time. But in order to do this, you must eliminate those things that interfere with your ability to control it at will.

These things include:

§         A cluttered or chaotic mind

§         Lack of self-control

§         Poor physical health

§         Lack of sleep

The next section on redefining control discusses how to train in TCS Combat Mode and take more control of your life.

tcs-7 The Three Levels of Time Control - Level 2: Time Manipulation

Level 2: Time Manipulation

Learn to see in slow motion.

I understand that many people will buy this course just for self-defense or to compete in local tournaments as I did. BUT you must push yourself beyond the skill level required for simple self-defense or tournament play to obtain the ability to see in slow motion — that is, while you seem to be moving at normal speed, everything and everyone around you appears to slow down.

Warning: It is addictive, and you will most likely want to pursue it until you can turn it on at will. Your first experience with it will most likely be within weeks of beginning this training. If you go months without seeing in slow motion you are not training correctly. Review this manual and consult with your instructor several times a week to stay on the correct training path.

The good news is, once you have pushed that far, the knowledge will always stay with you.

The Key:

Fear is the key to activating “seeing in slow motion” at will.

Yes, fear. There has to be “something at stake”, so to speak. In the section entitled Fight Time you are taught how to develop a catch-phrase. This phrase will switch you into TCS Combat Mode. The catch-phrase is intended to induce a combined adrenaline/testosterone rush and a sense of urgency through fear: Will I lose this match?/Will I get hurt?

By training with the information in the Fight Time section you will learn to turn on slow motion when you want to. More importantly, it will also turn on automatically when you need it to if you have been trained correctly.

         

Once you get to the point at which you can turn slow motion on and off at will 50% of the time or more, it is time to strive for the final level … stopping time!

tcs-6 The Three Levels of Time Control - Level 1: Reflex and Reaction

Now that we have a better understanding the power we gain by learning to control time, lets break Time Control Sports down into its three skill levels. Think of these as ranks/belts in a traditional martial art.

Level 1: Reflex and Reaction

Your mind can think fast even if you can’t.

I remember seeing a film in school that showed what happened when you touched your hand to a hot stove. The film claimed that the nerves only needed to send the signal (It’s hot!) as far as the spine to get an answer. Had to be, right? Because it couldn’t possibly get to the brain and back in that short a time. Now we realize the message (Then don’t touch it, stupid!) travels all the way to the brain and is answered in a fraction of a second, making you react reflexively to pull your hand away.

The fact is, your mind is capable of processing information faster subconsciously than consciously. Did you actually have to think about slapping that mosquito as it landed on your neck?

Let’s look at what this Level 1 response looks like in context with Time Control Sports.

Training the reflexes is very important. From block punch drills all the way to preset counter attacks and programmed submission holds, all are great examples of training the reflexes. But this will only take you so far in the martial arts.

The Key:

You must learn to program three to four techniques to be truly reflexive.

In the same way that stepping on the brakes of your car to avoid a sudden obstacle in the road is instantaneous, these techniques must be programmed to be instantaneous. Take, for example, the need to be able to plant your fist on your opponent no matter where it is when you’re attacked. Once you get to the point where you can pull your hand out of your pocket and connect it with someone’s nose (for example), you start training to be able to do that with speed and power.

If you’ve fought in tournaments you know that your opponent will inevitably do something annoying like blocking or moving out of the way when you attack (how rude). In the time it takes you to think of the right technique to use, they can be ready with a counter-attack. But if you can train yourself to reflexively use three or four solid basic techniques, you will have more of an edge than you would if you learned a fancy advanced technique. Realistically, how many times have you scored in a point tournament with a flying side kick?

Exercise: To achieve a Level 1 mastery of TCS/CM, choose three or four simple, basic techniques. Then, practice these three or four techniques every chance you get until they are a part of you — weapons you carry with you everywhere you go.

This way, if you are ever attacked you can call upon these ingrained reflexes to smash your assailant silly.

At some point in your training, as you work at making a broader range of techniques reflexive, you will notice that your reactions become correct more often. You block correctly and strike with precision most of the time.

Beginning mastery of Time Control Sports will almost always manifest itself first as a noticeable increase in athletic performance.

You can reach this level (Level 1) of increased performance without Time Control Sports and become a great athlete or fighter. But Time Control Sports takes reflexes to the next level: time manipulation — the level you will have to achieve to become a world class athlete.

tcs-5 Redefining Time

Let’s start by taking a look at the phenomenon we call TIME. What is it? What is it capable of? How do we relate to it?

The Power of Time

In J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit, the character Gollum poses a riddle:

This thing all things devours
Birds, beasts, trees, flowers

Gnaws iron, bites steel,
Grinds hard stones to meal,

Slays king, ruins town,
And beats high mountain down!

The answer to the riddle, of course, is TIME! 

Time is so powerful that either you control it or it controls you!

Is time working against you or for you? In the arena, are your matches hectic and reactive as you struggle to make the right moves in a timely fashion? In life, do you have too much time on your hands or not enough to do what needs to get done?

Time is the most important and most powerful unit of measure in our lives.

Any unit of measure can be manipulated.

Take a one quart jar and fill it with marbles, is it full? No — you can still pour sand into it. Can you fit anything else in between the marbles and the sand? Sure, just add water. My point is simply that like the quart, a second is a unit of measure and a container.

The question is, “How many events can you squeeze into a second?”

Sound like time-management? It is, in a sense. Managing time can be expensive. In the corporate world, billions of dollars are spent each year on time-management, ranging from studies of how to make workers more productive to seminars on the subject for every level of employee.

On a personal level, we think time flies when we’re having fun. We say, “I think the clock stopped” when we’re stuck in a boring class or meeting.

Time really does seem to slow down or speed up depending on the circumstances. This phenomenon is at the heart of TCS/CM. One of our Daily 8 training exercises is to understand the phenomenon of time dilation and to consciously control time during any situation.

Using the Daily 8 and taking control of time-flow in daily life will aid you in controlling time during a fight or in a dire situation AND it has a welcome side-effect: It can be a vehicle for improving other areas of your life.

Most of us have had the thought that if we could only go back in time we could change the world. (Sounds like a science fiction movie ... or two or three.) On a much smaller scale, almost every one of us has made some mistake that we would give our eye teeth to go back and undo.

Let me give you a personal example:

While writing the copy for the course website, I was on the phone with the woman I work for. I had called her to tell her that we had just closed a large deal and made a considerable amount of money as a company. I knew she was going to visit her gravely ill father and thought she needed some good news. At the end of the conversation I said, “I hope everything is okay with your family” but I knew it was not. I realized before I’d finished the sentence that it was the wrong thing to say. I was speaking as if I had no clue what was going on. I could not go back in time and change what I said, but instead applied the concept behind TCS/CM to the situation and seamlessly added, “or as well as it can be during these trying times.”

No, we can’t go back in time. But being ready with an appropriate answer all of the time is better than having a perfect answer some of the time. Time Control Sports can help you achieve this.

tcs-4 How Does TCS/CM Work?

Think of the human brain as a computer. It’s far more complex, of course, and has a few gadgets computers don’t have, but for the sake of example, it works.

On a computer, as with the human brain, there are two different types of data storage:

• Active memory, which is like our short-term memory.
• Stored data, which exists in electronic format on hard disk, CD, or some other storage device and is roughly equivalent to long-term memory.

Active memory is where you run programs and manipulate data. Besides the program you may be actively working with, there are also programs running “in the background”. So, while you’re using your word processor, the operating system may be downloading upgrades, swapping files, spooling print jobs, or any number of other things. These programmed or autonomic tasks correspond loosely to the way the brain handles breathing, muscle movement, blinking, etc. while you write the Great American Novel.

Human beings generally try to pack as much data into active memory as they possibly can. Appointments, names, faces, constantly updated information about the immediate environment, oft-used travel routes and destination information — all need to be called up at a moment’s notice, so we try to keep them where we can access them quickly.

But, as with the computer, the more data we try to load into our own active memory, the slower the CPU runs.

What happens when a crisis hits?

Well, ideally computers do something called running in “safe mode”. That is, they shut down all non-essential programs (including that word processor you were using) and jettison everything from active memory except what’s needed to get through the crisis and allow you to recover.

The alternative? A nasty, costly crash.

These are the basic alternatives the human mind entertains when a sudden crisis situation strikes: crash (panic, dither, scream, pass out) or run in “safe mode” (jettison all non-essential programming and focus on only the situation at hand).

TCS/CM is intended to train your mind to:

§         Drop immediately into “safe mode” instead of crashing.

§         Provide essential “core programs” that will allow you to effectively and efficiently handle the situation, whether it is a mugging or a tournament match.

To date, we have only scratched the surface of what is possible with TCS/CM. As this course grows in popularity I am confident that more people with experience in time manipulation will bring new and exciting uses to the table. Look at the history of Tae Kwon Do. It became an official martial art in 1955, and thereafter, masters from all over Korea brought forth lost and hidden training techniques to teach to enthusiasts of the new art. I expect to see a similar outpouring of experience with Time Control Sports. The next few years promise to be absolutely amazing.

About the Course Format

Unlike most informational products, mine is streamlined. I hate receiving information in the form of a book and finding that I only need to read ten pages out of a hundred. So this course has no filler. It just explains what to do, when to do it, and what results you should expect. The very reason this system works revolves around “getting to the point quickly”.

tcs-3 Sections 1-3

Warning (Read Me First)

While this product is the exact training plan used to teach Time Control Sports (TCS/CM), this product is for informational purposes only. Do not attempt this program without a qualified instructor.

Before starting any exercise program you should first consult a physician. Even with the aid of a competent instructor TCS/CM is only intended for people in excellent mental, physical, and emotional health.

TCS/CM does not certify or recommend any instructors at this time, should this change in the future, information will be made available here.

There is risk involved in any physical endeavor. TCS/CM makes no warranty, expressed or implied, as to the suitability of TCS/CM for self-defense or tournament use. The user agrees that even given a qualified instructor and excellent health there is always a risk of injury.

User assumes all risk of use or misuse of the information contained herein.

Materials contained in any part of the document may not be reproduced, copied, edited, published, transmitted or uploaded in any way without the written permission.

 Getting Started

Set Your Expectations

As a student of Time Control Sports you must first set expectations for what you want to achieve.

Just as a new student walking into a Tae Kwon Do school expects to learn a variety of kicks and blocks, you must set your expectations for what you want from Time Control Sports.

“I want to see things happen in slow motion!” is not a high enough expectation.

I recommend you first study the sections on Redefining Time and Taking Control and plan your progress accordingly.

Questions such as, “How do I achieve seeing in slow motion in the shortest amount of time?” and “In which areas do I need the most improvement?” should ever be in mind. Daily you should ask yourself, “How can I continually and consistently improve my mental fighting / competitive skills?”

Base Your Expectations on Reality

Time Control Sports is not a metaphysical concept. There is no chanting, humming, or sitting in a lotus position. Nor will I ask you to stand on your head — only to use it.

We are interested in going where science has not yet taken us: to harness the power of the mind.

Whether or not it’s true, we’ve been told that we only use 20% of our brain capacity. Ever ask yourself what the other 80% is doing? Ever wonder if there’s some way to channel that untapped power to serve faster thinking and quicker reactions?

Something that’s on far better scientific footing that the 20% claim is the fact that a surge of adrenaline can confer extra physical strength in extreme situations. In addition to seemingly “super strength”, many of us have also experienced a strange sort of time dilation (sounds like Star Trek doesn’t it?) I’m talking about the way time seems to move more slowly in a crisis situation such as a car accident.

When confronted with something darting in front of our car, we receive a shot of adrenaline that seems to confer extra zing to our reflexes. We brake or swerve to avoid collision more quickly than we would have thought possible.

This poses a question: Are seeing in slow motion and that surge of adrenaline related?

My experience indicates the answer is a resounding “yes!” And it was this connection that made me wonder if the response could be harnessed. This, in turn, led me to create the concept of Time Control Sports and systematize a path to achieving what I call Time Control Sports Combat Mode or TCS/CM.

What is TCS Combat Mode?

TCS Combat Mode is the art of being able to seemingly manipulate time to give yourself an edge in competition and/or in life-threatening situations.

All great athletes use time control to some degree. You’ve heard sports commentators remark on it. “He’s seeing the ball well,” they say of a power hitter like Albert Pujols. Or remark on how Joe Montana was able to see the entire field of play and note the movements of every receiver even as he was rolling out of the pocket or facing a blitz. To these athletes, seeing things happen more slowly and thinking and responding more quickly seems natural to the point that many of them do not even notice the phenomenon. In my own experience, I can say that I have never lost a fight while in TCS Combat Mode and seeing in slow motion.

If you are already using some degree of time control in your own athletic endeavors, you will no doubt comprehend the principles behind TCS/CM more quickly and be able to achieve the highest level of control more readily.

tcs-2 Time Control Sports: Combat Mode

a course in the Art of Time Control

Violence cannot be controlled by technique alone.

• Table of Contents  
• Warning (Read Me First)
• Getting Started.
• Set Your Expectations.
• Base Your Expectations on Reality.
• What is TCS Combat Mode?.
• How Does TCS/CM Work?.
• About the Course Format.
• Redefining Time.
• The Power of Time.
• The Three Levels of Time Control.
• Level 1: Reflex and Reaction.
• Level 2: Time Manipulation.
• Level 3: Time Stop.
• Maintaining Control.
• The Three Levels of Self-Control.
• Level 1 Self-Control: Controlling your reactions.
• Level 2 Self-Control: Controlling your environment.
• Level 3 Self-Control: Controlling other people.
• Programming Correctness.
• Stop over analyzing.
• Don’t be intimidated.
• I am better...
• Make your first answer the correct one.
• Fight Time.
• First: Be willing to cause harm.
• Second: Use a catch-phrase.
• Surprise!.
• The Daily 8.
• Tracking Your Progress.
• Time Control.
• Self-Control.
• Congratulations!

tcs-1 Become the ultimate fighting machine by seeing things happen in slow motion.

Become the ultimate fighting machine by seeing things happen in slow motion.

Are you learning to fight to your fullest potential? Whether you are a striker or grappler / soldier or police officer  or maybe just a weekend paintball player … do you have a systemized approach to honing your mental combat sills?

Being sharp and alert just does not cut it on the field of combat.

You need an edge that not only helps you prevail but helps you control the situation.

Mistakes are not an option for the soldier or the policeman. We all have heard the term “friendly fire” or the story of the kid in a dark room with a toy gun. Anyone would give their eye teeth to undo a mistake like that. By seeing things happen in slow motion not only can you defend yourself better but you can also decrease the chances of the unthinkable accident happening.

Time Control Sports is not a Ninja / super special forces learn it in one night course but instead a real martial art that can be practiced and improved upon for years to come. Trained side by side with your current martial art or job training Time Control Sports can give you the edge you need when and if you ever need it.

I will be republishing the full 29 page manual here on this Blog for the world to enjoy. I am the author and copyright holder.