So, there’s Daniel-San, washing and waxing old cars, sanding decks, and painting fences. Mr. Miyagi is watching over his shoulder saying things like, “Wax on, wax off” and “Up, down” and “Side, side”. Daniel-San is working his ass off from sunup to sun down and, if it’s the first time you’re seeing The Karate Kid, you’re thinking to yourself, “What the hell is going on?” This old guy is supposed to be teaching Daniel-San karate, but instead, he’s clearly breaking all kinds of child labor laws to exploit this kid into doing his chores. But then…the moment of truth. Daniel-San has a melt down and refuses to do any more work. Mr. Miyagi steps in front of him and says, “Show me wax on, wax off.” He throws a punch and Daniel-San’s arm flies up and blocks it. Mr. Miyagi throws a whole flurry of punches, and Daniel-San, without even thinking about it, blocks every one of them. It turned out Mr. Miyagi wasn’t just getting his cars waxed for free. All of those specific, repetitive movements were actually training Daniel-San’s reflexes and building muscle memory. This is what is called experiential training and it’s exactly what we do here at IMS through our Apprentice Program.
Put simply, experiential training is learning by doing. If you want to learn how to rebuild a car engine, you can spend your whole life reading manuals and watching YouTube videos, but you’ll never actually be good at it until you use your own hands to take an engine apart and put it back together again. The IMS Apprentice Program offers three aspects of experiential training on your journey toward personal mastery. First of all, the program accelerates your own personal transformation and growth by way of serving others. It is so much more effective to see ourselves through other people, and the more that we serve others inside the work, the more inside the work we are ourselves. The second purpose of the program is to truly serve, to learn to give back, to be selfless and make a contribution. It is a way to make a difference in the lives of other people and to pay forward what you’ve received through your Inner Matrix training. And the third component of the program provides you with the tools you’ll need should you choose to build your own practice and make this work your full or part-time job. Many of our Trainers, after completing the Apprentice Program, go on to create very lucrative careers as Trainers of the Inner Matrix Method.
But don’t just take my word for it. Here’s what some of our Apprentices have to say:
“One of my biggest takeaways, really, is getting inside the program and really doing it for myself, at first…I just wanted to be closer to the people who are driven, confident, who are making a difference and making change happen. Getting shit done. And it changed…how I talk to people, how I communicate with friends, how I hold myself accountable inside of family and relationships…I have changed just so much inside of confidence…how I hold myself outwardly…how I walk throughout the world inside of passion, my inspiration, that I know literally anything is possible.” – Marc B.
“My biggest takeaway from the program has been learning how to become present with someone and to show up and support and…serve people in a way that I haven’t ever experienced before. And then in turn, the great side effect is that I’ve been able to learn so much about myself, to grow and expand. So it’s been this beautiful experience to give and then receive so much back.” – Constance T.
“Being able to follow the system, not only the system of tools that we have (in IMS), but the systems of the Apprentice Program. We are so supported, and the systems are set up so that we will be successful. Once you get into it and get your momentum going, it is easy to make an ask, it is easy to see what you can make possible for somebody else.” – Jenni A.
So get out the rags, get out the sandpaper, get out the paint brushes and get ready to go to work. I won’t make you wax my car (unless you really want to!) but I can offer you a way to take your training to the next level. Applications for the Apprentice Program are now open so click HERE to learn more and see if this might be the right fit for you.