There is a saying in budo, Katte kabuto no o wo shimeyo (勝って兜の緒を締めよ) which means “In victory, tighten your helmet!” The most dangerous time is when we think we are safe. Thinking we are safe, we let our guard down and allow complacency to come in. Complacency is then the greatest enemy of all martial artists. Many of us have been sequestered at home and are unable to go to the dojo to train. The longer the separation and isolation, the higher the likelihood that complacency and then eventually apathy will set in. One of the most strongest foes we will face is our soft, warm and comfortable bed. One of the best ways to battle our complacency foe is to create schedule. It’s easy to sit at home and become mindlessly absorbed in the news, binge watching TV or fall into the vortex of our smartphones. Those things all cause us to become mindless. Forcing ourselves into a schedule enables us to become mindful of the situation and create opportunities. We might not be able to train at the dojo, but that doesn’t mean that we are not capable of training ourselves. We can still do something and we are only stymied by our lack of imagination. We can do suburi, 31 jo kata, practice rolling, get in shape, do yoga, go for a run, lose weight, meditate, practice footwork, watch Furuya Sensei’s videos, read a self-help book, learn a language, or anything else that our imaginations can think up. A famous saying in by Judo great Masahiko Kimura was Sanbainodoryoku or “Triple the effort, if my opponents train twice as hard as others, then I will train three times as hard.” Our opponents are working hard to defeat us and our comfortable bed is calling us. Don’t let them defeat you. Find a way around your problems and disadvantages – they are only detriments if we perceive them that way and if we are unwilling to try to change them. One of the best ways to circumvent our complacency foe is to create a schedule. Don’t wait for someone else to make you great, your greatness is up to you.