Muay Thai Applied to Business Part 1

Having recently joined Milton Muay Thai with my son, I am co-immersed in all things MMA. A few weekends ago, we spent Friday in back-to-back classes, then Saturday watching a professional competition, then on Sunday participating in a three-hour lesson by renowned trainer Kru Karim Phetphlai. As I was floating through these few days, my mind pondered what could be gleaned towards business. So, while not trying to be cliche by writing a supposition on The Art of War by Sun Tzu or The Book of Five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi and their relations to business ad nauseam, I wrote this postulation related to my brief exposure to Muay Thai....so far. ??

Muay Thai?(Thai:???????), also referred to as Thai Boxing, is a martial art and combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. It is known as the art of eight limbs, referring to fists, elbows, shins, and knees. For a strike to count as a point, it can't be blocked or guarded against. I will elaborate on the complications below.

Before each match, the ritual of Wai Khru Ram Muay consists of two parts; Paying respect to the teacher, then the dance of the fighters. The superstitious practise starts with each fighter circling the ring in an anti-clockwise direction with one hand on the rope, pausing at each corner to perform a brief prayer to seal the ring from evil. (Yokkao) This is followed by a kneel and bow three-peat to show respect to parents, teachers, and Buddha. The Ram Muay dance follows. The entire ceremony is performed to the soundtrack of Sarama, which also accompanies the fights.

Thailand's first boxing ring was built in 1921 at Suan Kulap. Fighters at the?Lumpinee Boxing Stadium?began wearing modern gloves, as well as hard groin protectors, during training and in boxing matches against foreigners, yet, traditional rope-binding (khat chueak) made the hands a hardened, dangerous striking tool. The use of knots in the rope over the knuckles made the strikes more abrasive and damaging for the opponent while protecting the hands of the fighter.?This rope-binding was still used in fights between Thais but after a death in the ring, it was decided that fighters should wear gloves and cotton coverlets over the feet and ankles. (Wiki)

YOU'RE AS WEAK AS YOU'RE PERCEIVED TO BE.

In Muay Thai competition, the fighters are battling for the dominant position. When the clinch and knees are executed, they must be countered or else the other fighter will be awarded more points. (Saks) Clean hits should be countered, such as when countering a kick to the body; this is also why you will see trainers do a ridiculous amount of kicks in a row, called "buern" in Thai.

Power shots called?"luk kangrang" score more. If your opponent attacks you, but you do not show any reaction, that is NOT a power shot. But, if you attack your opponent and he offers a visible response (such as flinching), this will score in your favour.?This aspect?of the fight?is often overlooked by viewers unfamiliar with the scoring system. Saks continues to explain that when Thai fighters get knocked down or swept, they'll immediately bounce back up and continue to charge; Fighters do not want to show?any?weakness.?The moment weakness is established, the fight is scored in favour of the more dominant fighter, even if he's been losing for most of the round.

Michael Porter's infamous Porter's Five Forces has an element that assesses the threat of new entrants to the market. Companies in markets with high barriers to entry, such as capital costs, regulations, and intellectual property, face less competition than low barriers to the market. This also holds for companies that appear very strong in their market(s). There is a multitude of good books and articles on competitive strategy, so I won't dive into that here. Still, whether building your business or your image, there is a psychological drive to look for weaknesses in our competitors and exploit them. Bullies and prisoners look past the physical appearance (individuals or companies) and are more intimidated by one's demeanour and body language. Be sure to bolster the image you are projecting to the market and your competition. Focus on exploiting your strengths (value proposition) and keep your dirty laundry in-house and away from prying eyes.

LIKE IT OR NOT, YOU'RE IN A SPECTATOR SPORT.

I was really surprised the first few times I heard the audience chants in Muay Thai. It is unique to the sport. You can listen to the audience yell OWEI and OOWEE, and DTEE. You score Muay Thai exchange by exchange. If you win the exchange, this is equivalent to winning a point; in other words, the person receiving more OWEIS is usually the winner of the exchange. Perceived damage is another aspect of Muay Thai scoring. Low kicks and punches, for example, only score well if it looks like the fighter got hurt or off-balanced from the punch or low kick. (Curious Chris) You might even see the apparent loser raising their hands at the end of a fight. This is not a sign of cockiness. Instead, it shows the judges and gamblers that they are fine and still ready to fight.

• OWEI, or AYY — means "punch" or "elbow."
• OOWEE, or OWAYY - means "kick" or "knee."
• DTEE, or DI — means "hit" or "good," and people will say this when the fighters are engaged in the clinch.

Muay Thai is a popular spectator sport that also includes much gambling. The sounds of the crowd are utilized to help influence the judges in their scoring and are proven to have an influence. (Myers et al., 2012). The decision goes to the judges in fights where there is no KO.

When working on your career goals, it is essential to remember that you are not alone. Good and bad, others around you will influence the outcomes you're aiming for. There will be spectators cheering for (e.g., friends and mentors) or against (e.g., jealous peers) a particular outcome, and there will be judges (e.g., bosses, HR) that can determine your fate. Like it or not, you are always in a multilevel socio-dynamic. You can choose to tune out the noise but should also balance it with some socio-sportsmanship to help put people in your corner when needed. The pearls of not doing so will undoubtedly lead to ostracism and/or incivility, regardless if you recognize it is happening.

NB: More to follow in Part 2. ?