Mike Stone's Martial Arts Instruction

Aloha Friends, another beautiful day in paradise. “We possess what we seek. The respect we want, the integrity we demand, and the love we hope to find already live within us.”

LITTLE SUCCESSES. GREAT JOY.
In a world filled with so much negativity, perhaps the little successes and simple moments of joy deserve to be magnified.
It’s amazing how quickly, when the world around us seems to be spiraling out of control, we can lose our ability to make sense of the reality we are creating.

Pollution is everywhere in our water, our air, our cities, and our oceans.
But perhaps the pollution we should be most concerned about is the pollution of our thoughts, expressions, and actions.
We seem to care less about one another—and, perhaps even more concerning, less about ourselves.

For a very long time, human beings have mastered the art of living within limitations. And in doing so, we may have failed to recognize just how powerful we really are.
Our limiting beliefs have helped us survive. They have even helped us thrive.
But survival can also make us indifferent.

We become accustomed to conditions, situations, and circumstances that should cause us to pause and ask:
Is this really the world we want to create?
We complain about the lack of respect, honor, and integrity in others, without fully recognizing that these qualities already exist within us.

We possess what we seek.
We criticize greed while living in a universe of abundance.
We blame others for what is missing, while overlooking the incredible resources, creativity, compassion, and power we already have within ourselves.
Perhaps the change we are waiting for doesn't begin somewhere out there.

Perhaps it begins with us.
A kind word.
A helping hand.
A moment of gratitude.
A promise kept.
A choice to be present.
These may seem like small things.
But in a world overwhelmed by negativity, small acts of goodness become Let's celebrate the little successes.
Let’s amplify the joy.
Let’s return to the qualities we already carry within us.
Integrity. Discipline. Truth.
Perhaps the world needs more of us at our best.

Love and Light,
Mike Stone

Send a message to learn more

Aloha, friends! Another beautiful weekend in paradise. I just returned from a three-day writing and resting retreat feeling refreshed, inspired, and grateful.

I also received word from Amazon that the corrections I requested have been completed, and my latest book, Living a Warrior Lifestyle: 9-Step Guide to Self-Mastery, has now been released. It is the first book in a martial arts trilogy.

The next two books are already underway:
• The Curriculum Code: A Martial Arts Guide to Being Your Best
• The First One Hundred Steps: A Pilgrimage of Self-Discovery
For Bruce Lee fans, I'm also excited to share that my new book, Did You Know Bruce Lee? A Reflective View of a Unique Friendship, is scheduled for release at Christmas 2026.

Looking back, there were no signs in my early life that I would one day become an author. Today, I can't imagine doing anything else. Writing has become another path of learning, sharing, and discovery.

Our potential is rarely limited by our circumstances. More often, it is limited only by our imagination, our trust, and our belief in ourselves.

Have a wonderful week, everyone.
Mike Stone

Aloha Friends, another beautiful weekend is coming up at the Coco Grove Beach Resort, Siquijor, Philippines. This is where I love to go on weekends. The peaceful atmosphere and friendly staff make it a pleasant, relaxing, and creative place to express my thoughts through writing. It is a place where I continue learning more about how and why I think, feel, and believe, and where I strive to become a more compassionate, patient, and understanding person.
One of life's realities is that every negative experience contains an equivalent, or even greater, benefit, if we are willing to look for it. At the time, I had no idea that one simple playground incident would ignite a lifelong passion for the values and principles of martial arts.
THE INCIDENT
It was recess, and a group of us boys decided to play tackle football. As was usually the case, all of the Japanese boys ended up on one team. For some reason, I always chose to play with them. No one questioned it, and they always welcomed me. The other team was made up of Hawaiian, Filipino, Portuguese, Caucasian, and other mixed-race boys.
Only years later did I understand why I was naturally drawn to the Japanese team.
It wasn't about ethnicity as much as it was about their values, their integrity, humility, and quiet confidence. Something about their character, attitude, and presence resonated deeply with me. Their respect for others, discipline, calm demeanor, and customs and traditions earned my admiration. They were authentic. Their inner beliefs were reflected in their outward actions.
Even as a young boy, I found myself drawn to that way of being.
During the game, one of the biggest boys on the opposing team was tackled cleanly by one of the smallest players on our team.
Without hesitation, the smaller Japanese boy walked over, smiled, and extended his hand to help the other boy to his feet.
The larger boy angrily slapped his hand away.
There was no anger on the smaller boy's face. He simply smiled again, leaned over, and quietly offered his hand a second time.
Once again, it was rejected.
That simple act has remained with me for more than seventy years.
The lesson had nothing to do with football, physical strength, or winning. It was about character.
The stronger person was not the one lying on the ground, nor the one capable of overpowering another. The stronger person was the one who refused to allow someone else's disrespect to change his own character.
In that brief moment, I witnessed humility without weakness, kindness without expectation, courage without aggression, and respect offered without requiring it to be returned.
Those values became part of the invisible compass that has guided my life ever since.
Sometimes our greatest teachers are not found in classrooms.
Sometimes they are found on a dusty playground during recess.
And sometimes, the most important lessons we ever learn are taught without a single word being spoken.

Love and Light
Mike

Aloha Friends, another beautiful day in paradise. Learning from Life's Early Experiences. Early life experiences have remained with me for decades, continuing to shape the way I think and understand the world.

During the second term of fourth grade, I was introduced to death up close and personal. Years later, I would come to realize that this experience helped me better understand not only death, but life itself.

My ten-year-old classmate, Miles Iwaishii, died from brain cancer.
Earlier that same year, I had lost my mother to stomach cancer, but she had been cremated. We were not allowed to view her body. A short time later, our entire fourth-grade class walked in silence to Miles' home. One by one, we filed through his living room, where he lay peacefully in a beautiful white satin-lined coffin. He looked as though he were asleep. A small white silk cloth had been folded into a triangle and placed across his forehead. I assumed it covered the area where surgeons had operated after discovering the cancer in his brain.

When it was my turn, I stepped forward and looked at him. I was conscious of how I thought I was supposed to feel and how I was expected to express those feelings.
But I felt nothing.
No sadness. No fear. No confusion.
Nothing.

As I walked away, I felt guilty because I had felt nothing at all. I wondered what I was supposed to feel. Was there something wrong with me? Why didn't I experience the emotions that everyone else seemed to feel—sadness, grief, and loss?
I didn't realize it then, but another question had quietly entered my life:
What is death?

Today, I have a much deeper understanding of what death means to me.
That simple childhood question stayed with me for decades. In time, it became part of a much larger search, not merely to understand death, but to understand life itself.

Looking back now, I can see that these childhood experiences were not isolated memories. They were the first breadcrumbs on a lifelong pilgrimage, leading me to question everything I thought I knew about myself, about life, and about what it truly means to learn.

Perhaps the greatest lessons of our lives do not begin in classrooms. They begin with the moments that quietly awaken our curiosity, moments that compel us to ask questions whose answers may take a lifetime to discover.

Love and Light
Mike

Aloha Friends, another beautiful day in paradise. Think about this…You may not remember who won the gold medal in the 200-meter dash at any Olympic Games or who was crowned Miss World in 2010, but you probably remember the teacher, coach, or counselor whose words encouraged you, believed in you, or inspired you to become a better version of yourself.

Be consciously aware of the words you think, express, or speak; they can easily manifest in the reality you experience. Monitor your thinking.

Take a moment to reflect on these phrases.

I love teaching because it gives me an opportunity to continue learning.
Life has been my classroom, and awareness has been my greatest teacher.
Death is my reminder to live being my best.

I can believe in you without having ever met you, because your potential is unlimited. You decide when to unleash your power.
Never let someone else's opinion become your identity or reality.
The only thing completely within your control is your attitude. You are here to remember your power, appreciate your blessings, and be of service to others.

Love and Light,
Mike Stone

Aloha Friends, another beautiful day in paradise. I am a lifelong student.
My education began at birth. Before I understood words, I learned through changes in voice volume and by observing facial expressions and body language. As I grew, my other senses joined the process, and curiosity became my greatest teacher. Learning was never something I did only in school; it became the way I lived.
That has been true for as long as I can remember.
Even today, after more than eight decades, I remain fascinated by people. Why do we think the way we do? Why do we make choices that repeatedly bring us pain? Why do intelligent people sometimes commit acts of cruelty and violence? Those questions continue to challenge me.
When life is going well, we rarely stop to ask why. We simply enjoy the moment and take it for granted. It is only when life becomes difficult, when obstacles, disappointments, and unexpected losses appear, that we begin to question everything, including ourselves.
Ironically, even after life teaches us valuable lessons, we often repeat the very behaviors that caused our suffering in the first place.
Only through hindsight, reflection, and quiet contemplation do we begin to recognize the breadcrumbs that were always there, the seemingly insignificant moments that became the turning points leading us to where we are today.
One of my earliest turning points came in the fourth grade.
I failed.
Not just a poor report card; I failed the entire year and had to repeat the fourth grade.
At the time, it was the most humiliating experience of my young life.
I remember sitting alone at my desk while my classmates lined up and happily walked next door to begin fifth grade. At the same time, the incoming third-grade students filed into my classroom.
I remained seated.
One little girl stopped and asked my teacher, Mrs. Pacheco, "Why is Mike Stone still sitting there?"
Without hesitation, she replied, "Mike isn't very smart. He's slow, so he has to repeat the fourth grade."
Those words pierced me.
Looking back, I realize how much power words carry, especially when they come from someone in a position of authority. A teacher may forget what she said within minutes, but a child can remember those words for a lifetime.
Words shape confidence.
They shape self-esteem.
Sometimes, they even shape identity.
I remember wondering:
Was she right?
Was I really slow?
Was I stupid?
Would I always be less capable than everyone else?
Those questions stayed with me for years. Ironically, they also fueled my lifelong desire to learn, not to prove her wrong, but to discover who I really was.
Love and The Light
Mike Stone

Aloha Friends, another beautiful day in paradise. I attended a boarding high school for four years. As a freshman, I was required to wash the socks and polish the shoes of any junior or senior boarder when told to. I used those opportunities to wash my own socks and underwear and to shine my own shoes every evening. It was not punishment; we were being taught discipline and humility, and it has stayed with me to this day. That is what I love about the values and principles of martial arts.

I have been asked this question so many times when people seek guidance or help to address negative issues that affect their lives but feel powerless to do anything about them.

"What can I do? I'm just one person."
I've heard that question for the past fifty years of my life.
After years of searching for an answer, I discovered something surprisingly simple and practical.

I can't change the world by myself, but I can change the world immediately around me.
It begins with the smallest acts of personal responsibility.
Making my own bed.
Doing my own laundry.
Taking care of the things that are mine to do.
These aren't chores to me; they're daily reminders that humility is not thinking less of yourself; it's never believing you're above any task.

The most powerful form of leadership is example.
Accepting responsibility for your thoughts, words, and behavior.
If each of us committed to becoming the best version of ourselves, living with greater humility, kindness, discipline, and love, we would positively influence our families, friends, and communities.

Positive energy spreads. Character spreads. Example spreads.
Perhaps that's how we change the world, not through grand gestures, but through millions of ordinary people doing ordinary things with focused intention.

The greatest contribution I can make is to become the best version of myself.
What about you? I know you are capable, but are you willing to be your best?

Love and Light
Mike Stone

Aloha Friends, another beautiful day of awareness, growth, and transformation. My experience has always been that Growth Rarely Begins in Comfort.

Most of us would like to believe we can change simply because we want to. We read books, attend seminars, make New Year's resolutions, and promise ourselves that this time things will be different.

Yet, if we're honest, lasting change rarely happens that way.
More often than not, meaningful transformation is born from turmoil rather than tranquility.

Conflict, disappointment, loss, failure, illness, financial hardship, or emotional pain have a way of forcing us to stop, reassess, and ask difficult questions. They interrupt our routines and challenge our beliefs. They push us to examine the choices we've made and the direction our lives are taking.

Comfort, on the other hand, can be a subtle trap. When life is predictable, convenient, and familiar, there is little reason to challenge ourselves. We settle into routines that feel safe, even when they no longer help us grow. Our comfort zone becomes our prison, and without realizing it, we trade progress for familiarity.
Nature offers remarkable reminders of this principle.

A pearl is created because a grain of sand irritates an oyster. What begins as discomfort eventually becomes something of great beauty and value.

A diamond is not born soft and polished. It is created through immense pressure, heat, and time beneath the earth.
Perhaps we are not so different.

The greatest lessons I've learned in my own life didn't come during the easy seasons. They came through adversity. Looking back, many of the moments I once wished had never happened became the very experiences that shaped my character, strengthened my resolve, and clarified my purpose.

The decades of martial arts training and hours pulling guard duty as a Private in the Army both paid off big time. Allowed me to create a better version of myself.

This doesn't mean we should seek hardship. It means we should recognize its value when it arrives.

Sometimes life doesn't happen to us—it happens for us, revealing strengths, wisdom, and resilience we never knew we possessed.
Growth is seldom comfortable, but it is almost always worthwhile.
You can start with the simple and easy chore of making your own bed each morning.
Discipline is not punishment; it's a path to freedom.

Love and Light,
Mike Stone

See less

Aloha Friends, Another gorgeous day in paradise. I was consciously awake at 4:30 a.m. and immediately began my daily routine of stretching and range-of-motion exercises.

The most important parts of my body that prepare me for a full day of action and quality performance are my joints. They are responsible for every movement I make and greatly influence the quality of my physical performance throughout the day.

My first attention and intention each morning is to warm up what I call the Eight Power Points of Physical Movement:
• Neck
• Shoulders
• Elbows
• Wrists
• Hips
• Knees
• Ankles
I perform 30 rotational repetitions for each joint, gradually increasing both mobility and circulation. These movements help lubricate the joints, improve flexibility, and prepare my body for more demanding activity.

Once I've completed my joint rotations, I move on to 50 to 100 repetitions of martial arts movements, including kicks, blocks, and strikes. Some are performed through full extension, while others emphasize rotational movement and fluidity.

The initial warm-up exercises prepare my joints and muscles for greater power, speed, coordination, and control. By taking the time to properly prepare my body, I reduce the risk of injury and increase the quality of my movements throughout the day.
At 82 years young, I have learned that longevity is not an accident. It is the result of consistent daily habits practiced over a lifetime. Before I ask my body to perform, I first prepare it to perform.

Have a wonderful day, and remember:
Motion is lotion for the joints, and movement is one of the keys to a healthy, active, and purposeful life.

Aloha,
Mike Stone