April 22, 2026 • 49 mins
Text me what you think of today’s episode!
Fear doesn’t disappear because we read the right quote. It fades when we train a new response. I’m joined by Kendra Mahon, aka Kung Fu Kendra, a Wing Chun Kung Fu master and founder of the Global Kung Fu Alliance, to talk about what real confidence looks like when life gets loud, stressful, and unpredictable.
Kendra explains Kung Fu in plain language: skill built through practice. We dig into why Wing Chun is designed for close-range self-defense and economy of motion, and how those same principles translate into everyday life. If you’re trying to be more disciplined, more productive, or more connected to your inner strength, you’ll hear concrete ways to protect your time, stop drifting into herd mentality, and build calm awareness in crowds, on the street, and at home.
If you’ve ever wanted self-defense training, a stronger mindset, or a better way to follow through on your goals, press play. Subscribe or follow, share this with a friend, and leave a five-star written review wherever you listen.
Kung Fu Kendra (Kendra Mahon) is a purple sash Kung fu Master with over 20 years of experience, she’s the Founder of the Global Kung Fu Alliance and author of Amazon book: ‘Push Your Way Through’, a book about using the ancient principles of Kung Fu to get what you want in life. Kendra also serves as Editor-in-Chief of Wing Chun Magazine and works training high profile clients such as Billionaire Brett Wilson from the TV Show “Dragons Den”.
"Your videos are very helpful for training without an opponent. I'm very
happy to have found you online!"
Joachim Igl, Paraguay
"I appreciate the online courses you offer. It is a very good thing
particularly for me with my schedule."
Forrest Stockstad, Canada
"I like your education method and videos, it's high quality and good
teaching"
Kim S., Denmark
"Sifu Kendra will be a big help in my Wing Chun instruction and
progression."
Greg Evans, Australia
"Thank you for your expert insights and recommendations."
Antonio N. Sherman, USA
Kung Fu Kendra's Wing Chun Certification Online Course
Push Your Way Through by Kendra Mahon on Amazon
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SPEAKER_03 (00:00):
Just a reminder, don't forget to hit subscribe or
follow wherever you're listeningto this podcast.
And two things you can do tohelp the podcast grow.
One, tell a friend aboutassorted conversations.
And two, consider leaving afive-star written review
wherever you download yourpodcasts.
(00:22):
It'll help the podcast becomemore visible to other folks who
may enjoy the content.
Thanks, and here's this week'sepisode.
Everyday people following theirpassions.
SPEAKER_04 (00:44):
That's probably like one of the highlights of my life
so far.
Just being able to be creativelike that.
Something I've always wanted.
And then I decided to getanother hive, and that turned
into a lot of hives.
As long as I can do that, I wantto be a good citizen, help
people out.
SPEAKER_03 (01:04):
Putting themselves out there, taking chances, and
navigating challenges along theway.
SPEAKER_02 (01:11):
I I absolutely identified with having stage
right because, you know, anytimeI went on stage, I just felt
like I was having a hot attack.
SPEAKER_00 (01:18):
Very first lap, very first practice session, I
crashed, turned the car upsidedown, made a spectacle of
myself, and I got back on thathorse and started riding again.
SPEAKER_03 (01:27):
As they pursue what makes them happy and brings them
joy.
SPEAKER_01 (01:33):
As long as people are having a good time and I
have the opportunity to putsmiles on people's faces, I love
what I do.
SPEAKER_05 (01:39):
I have done things that I never thought I could do.
SPEAKER_01 (01:44):
To have somebody tell me how real it looks and
how, you know, from their actualmemory.
Because that's telling me Icaptured what I was trying to
get.
SPEAKER_03 (01:55):
Welcome to Assorted Conversations.
I'm your host, Helen.
I've got some questions for youto think about.
How confident are you?
(02:16):
How disciplined are you?
How efficient and productive areyou?
And how connected to your innerstrength are you?
If any of your answers included,I could work on that,
like-minded, this week'sconversation is for you.
I had the opportunity to have aconversation with a kung fu
(02:39):
master and trailblazer who notonly supports her kung fu
community, but is also enrichingthe lives of anyone who is
striving to be more confident,disciplined, efficient,
productive, or connected to thestrength and beauty they possess
within.
Take a listen to this week'sepisode, and I'll see you on the
(03:02):
other side.
She's a purple sash kung fumaster with more than 20 years
of experience and the founder ofthe Global Kung Fu Alliance.
She serves as editor-in-chief ofWing Chun magazine, and through
(03:25):
her writing and her work withclients, including high-profile
leaders like billionaire BrettWilson from the TV show Dragon's
Den, she empowers people tobuild strength mentally,
emotionally, and physically.
She's breaking barriers and hermission is clear: helping others
push through and step fully intotheir power.
(03:48):
She's the author of Push YourWay Through, where she shares
how ancient Kung Fu principlescan help you get what you want
in life.
I am so happy to welcome KendraMahan, aka Kung Fu Kendra, to
Assorted Conversations.
Hi, Kendra.
Hey Helen, how are you doing?
I am well.
(04:08):
How are you?
I'm very good.
Thank you for having me.
Thanks for being here.
I'm so excited to dive in.
So tell me a little bit aboutKung Fu, the art in general.
SPEAKER_05 (04:21):
Well, kung fu dates back thousands of years, and it
was designed for people to learnthe skill of self-defense.
Kung Fu literally means skill.
So with martial arts, we'relearning to use our body as an
art to defend ourselves with ourarms, our legs, you know,
(04:45):
elbows, and and all thesethings.
So kung fu has deep roots and ithas been a foundational
guideline for a lot of culturesto promote confidence,
discipline, and ultimatelyself-defense.
SPEAKER_03 (05:05):
And how how is kung fu different from some of some
of the others, like karate orjujitsu?
SPEAKER_05 (05:14):
That's a great question.
And kung fu is a Chinese martialart.
So in that sense, um, it'sdifferent than karate, which
would be Japanese.
Kung Fu is for the most part nota competitive sport like karate
or taekwondo or jujitsu.
It is an art built for actualstreet skills.
(05:41):
Specifically, my style of kungfu, which is Wing Chun, is
designed for close range combat.
So somebody gets too close toyou, you're learning how to
maneuver the situation usingthings like the economy of
motion, less moves the better,and getting yourself to safety
(06:04):
versus you know going into afull-blown fight.
SPEAKER_03 (06:09):
Okay, okay, makes sense.
Makes sense.
So now you've been practicingyour I don't want to say your
brand, your flavor, I guess, oryour type of kung fu for over 20
years.
Think back.
What was what first drove you toexplore this and get involved
with it?
SPEAKER_05 (06:30):
Well, what first got me interested in Wing Chun Kung
Fu was being attacked at a youngage.
And through that experience, Idid a lot of healing and
obviously needed something tofocus on, to build
(06:50):
self-confidence, to buildself-awareness, and to build
martial skill so that I wouldn'tbe a target where I wouldn't not
know what to do.
I mean, a lot of people take forgranted, you know, just kicking
as an example.
You think, well, I would justkick someone.
And I've seen it firsthand withstudents who've never kicked
(07:12):
before.
It's not something that justcomes naturally.
You know, you might want to kickand scream, but to actually use
your body as a mechanism forself-defense is an extremely
powerful thing.
We're already equipped with ourarms and our legs.
And to simply learn some movesthat could potentially save your
(07:37):
life is essentially what broughtme into the world of learning
martial arts.
SPEAKER_03 (07:44):
Wow.
Well, I am so sorry that thathappened to you, but it almost
seems like it was kind ofputting you on the right path.
SPEAKER_05 (07:53):
It it definitely was.
And as scary and as traumatic asit was, Kung Fu helped me to
heal and push through andpersevere, feelings of fear,
sadness, uh, depression,anxiety.
And so that's what makes me sucha strong believer in the art.
(08:18):
Because not only did it help methrough that time, and then it
helped me for the next 22 yearsto really discover myself.
SPEAKER_03 (08:27):
Right, right.
Oh, that's that's great.
Can you think back to your veryfirst class?
You know, what was that like foryou?
Uh because now you're soaccomplished now, but can you
really think back to like thatfirst class you walked into?
SPEAKER_05 (08:42):
I do remember.
And at the time I had, you know,I was looking for a school, a
Kung Fu school.
I wasn't specifically lookingfor Wing Chun.
And I was so blessed with what Igot when I did my search.
It only took one call and onevisit.
(09:02):
I dropped in and did a freeclass on my lunch break.
And I was hooked.
I thought, wow, I feel so good.
You know, I I learned how to doa little bit of punching, and
you know, I don't know, youknow, what they do in their
first trial class, but I washooked and they said, you know,
we've got classes tonight if youwant to come back again.
SPEAKER_03 (09:25):
And I was addicted from that point on.
You know, I'm sure it wasn't alleasy, you know, as you've as
you've worked your way, you'reup to a purple sash.
Is that the highest sash?
SPEAKER_05 (09:36):
Yeah, that's uh pretty much that's master level.
That's you know, going throughthe entire curriculum and then
teaching and studying.
And now I run the Global Kung FuAlliance and I've got a
certification program where Iteach people martial arts as
well, Wing Chun.
And it it has been a longjourney.
(10:00):
I I never set out to be amaster, I never set out to, you
know, teach or or be, you know,writing books and building
programs.
The whole journey, I it's almostlike I was in a meditative state
the whole time.
Right.
SPEAKER_03 (10:15):
You were just focused on what the next step
was.
SPEAKER_05 (10:18):
I was, and I was focused on healing myself and
getting to know who I was andlearning self-control, and all
these things really amounted tothese unbelievable skills now at
this point in my life.
And that's why I am such astrong believer in the power of
(10:41):
martial arts.
Not only is it a way to getoutside of your head, you know,
often we think too much, there'sa lot going on in the world.
We've got our devices, we've gotconstant noise around us.
And when you can just silenceall of that out and just
practice your forms or, youknow, do stretching or qi gong
(11:03):
breathing, it's ultimatelyextremely healthy for you.
And so I'm a huge advocate foranyone who wants to start
martial arts.
SPEAKER_03 (11:13):
Yeah, I am I am a huge fan of anything that
combines mind, body, and spirit.
And I think the martial arts dothat, do that very well, just in
in completely different ways.
I've started to get more intoyoga as I'm getting a little
older.
Um, and I find that that helpscalm me.
(11:36):
It's it's helping me become moredisciplined.
And, you know, again, probablynot along the same lines as any
of the martial arts, but I dounderstand what you're saying.
Just to practice stretches, justto practice your breathing
really helps you reconnect withyourself and not get lost in the
(11:56):
chaos of the world.
SPEAKER_05 (11:58):
Absolutely.
Absolutely.
Yoga is a perfect example of,you know, it's not even so much
about the moves, but it's justshowing up and being patient
through the yoga class.
You know, we don't necessarilywant to, you know, stretching
and be in all these painfulpositions, and but it's more of
(12:19):
a symbol of showing up foryourself because you know how
good you feel when you're done.
Yeah.
And that's that's the payoffultimately.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (12:30):
Was there a point through your whole journey that
you discovered that this isgoing to be more than a hobby
for me, and this is actuallybecoming sort of a calling for
me?
SPEAKER_05 (12:45):
Definitely.
That happened during COVID in2019.
I, you know, the whole world wasshut down.
We didn't know what the futureof tomorrow was going to be.
We didn't know if this virus isgoing to wipe us all out.
All we knew was we can't bearound each other.
And that's a scary thing.
(13:05):
So at that point, I I realizedthat not only is there a lack of
Wing Chun schools in the world,it's, you know, kung fu was kind
of a dying art, unfortunately,which is why I'm so devoted to
preserving the tradition of it.
But I wanted to bring it topeople's homes.
(13:26):
I wanted people people to beable to download videos and
learn step by step things thatthey've seen on TV, things that
they've always wanted to do.
I'm I'm finding out a lot thatyou know it's been a lot of
people's dreams to learn kungfu.
And which is great because, youknow, not only was I able to
(13:47):
identify my demographic, butalso to realize that, you know,
there is a genuine need in theworld and the lack of kung fu
schools around, it just was ano-brainer for me to start
building online programs.
SPEAKER_03 (14:04):
That's fantastic.
You know, through through youryour journey, did it ever get
hard?
SPEAKER_05 (14:15):
Oh, definitely.
I mean, life throws so manythings at us.
You know, a year and a half agoI lost my mother.
Thank you.
And it's just anyone who's lostsomeone they love knows the pain
of that.
And so that was a huge momentfor me.
(14:37):
That's you know, it it actuallymade me uh just push harder, you
know.
I don't know if I was justtrying to keep myself busy and
whatnot, but my mom's last wordsto me were that she was so proud
of me, and so I knew that Ineeded to continue to honor her
(15:00):
through not giving up and not,you know, just kind of folding
up and being in the darknessover it.
And of course it's sad, andeveryone has their own way of
grieving, and of course I do,but I I I'm trying to get into
this because I want yourlisteners to know that uh the
pain that you're going throughnow is is okay.
(15:24):
And if you can find a way toturn it into something positive,
you know, even if that meansjust taking some time to do some
breathing, nurture yourself,anything that's positive is
ultimately a good thing to do.
SPEAKER_03 (15:43):
Right.
Yeah, absolutely.
So your mom is what keeps youpushing through the tough times.
SPEAKER_05 (15:52):
Yes, absolutely.
She's always in my in my mindand in my heart when times get
tough and you know, she I am apart of her.
I came from her.
So, you know, we're just oneenergy, uh so to speak.
And so then at least I know I'mdoing something right, you know,
(16:16):
in all the chaos and all the youknow, the mess of the world, I
use that as my jet fuel.
SPEAKER_03 (16:23):
Throughout, you know, you your practice and and
I mean it's you've been doingthis for 20 years.
How long have you been a master?
SPEAKER_05 (16:32):
I've been a master since 2019.
And oh wow.
I've you know, it it comes withteaching others.
So the whole journey is, youknow, you learn everything up
until so far, and then thejourney of the mastery begins,
(16:54):
which is teaching others whatyou know, and you will learn
from your students as well.
The belts and the ranks and thetitles, I mean, it's all you
know, they're all just tangiblethings, and but ultimately it's
what what do you have to offer?
What do you have to share withthe world from your spirit?
(17:18):
You know, a lot of Kung Fuschools, especially Wing Chun,
don't use a ranking system.
There's two types of Wing Chun.
There's mainstream Wing Chun,which doesn't use that, and then
there's traditional Wing Chun,which is more of an honorary
progression through the levels.
SPEAKER_03 (17:37):
What now there are different types of kung fu,
correct?
That is correct.
So you are a master of WingChun.
How is that different from theother types of kung fu?
SPEAKER_05 (17:53):
Well, they are all different.
There's quite a few animal stylekung fu, tiger, kung fu, crane,
snake.
Ultimately, it's it was all justmade up by someone.
You know what I mean?
It's not the end-all be-all ofmartial arts.
Wing chun is just one branch ofthe many different styles of
(18:17):
kung fu, but essentially, WingChun is for realistic, you know,
self-defense.
You're attacked on the street,how can I maneuver it?
Uh, Wing Chun also teachesdeadly uh things like fingers
through the eye sockets as anexample.
And so in that sense, it's not acompetitive sport, it is
(18:39):
basically a fight for your life.
And I don't recommend any ofthese things I have mentioned.
However, you know, if you feltlike your life was in danger,
then you should be trained to dowhat it takes to stay alive.
SPEAKER_03 (18:58):
Yeah, yeah.
Where how did Wing Chun start?
Where where's the origin storyfor Wing Wing Chun?
SPEAKER_05 (19:08):
Wing Chun started a few hundred years ago in China,
and it was started by a femalenun named Yeah, named Ung Mui.
She was a part of the Shaolinmasters.
At that time, there was arevolution going on in China,
(19:29):
and the Qing dynasty was tryingto eliminate the Shaolin monks,
excuse me, because they they hadtheir own fighting style and you
know they were warriors of theirown rights.
She was one of the monks thatsurvived the burning of the
temple.
It's it's a you know a mythicalstory, and it does probably have
(19:50):
some truth to it, but this isthe story.
And so Wing Chun was created bya woman, and so it was designed
for someone who is a smallperson to be able to maneuver a
larger person, whether male orfemale.
And the beauty of that is againusing the the economy of motion,
(20:14):
using an opponent's energyagainst them.
So I was really drawn to that.
Once I found out the story, Ithought, wow, this is this is so
meant to be.
SPEAKER_03 (20:24):
How has kung fu shaped the way you and I may
have already answered this, buthow has kung fu shaped the way
you've handled stress, fear, andsetbacks in everyday life?
I mean, I know you know it'shelping you grieve the loss of
your mom, but is that day-to-daystuff?
SPEAKER_05 (20:42):
Well, excuse me, day-to-day stuff, you know,
that's what inspired me to writethe book, Push Your Way Through.
It's behind me.
Because that book was written tobasically break down the ancient
principles of Kung Fu in themodern day world.
Okay.
So learning to use your timeefficiently, you know, whether
(21:04):
you're at the grocery store ordriving, navigating crowds,
learning to say no toobligations, and essentially
just becoming extremelyassertive with your own life.
And your own time.
And your own time becauseprobably with yourself.
SPEAKER_03 (21:24):
Yeah.
Yeah, because I know the martialarts are very big in self
self-discipline.
And that's probably what I needand the lessons I can get from
your book, push your waythrough.
Taking more agency over yourtime and your energy.
unknown (21:43):
Absolutely.
SPEAKER_03 (21:44):
But also disciplining yourself to stick
to the plan.
SPEAKER_05 (21:49):
Exactly.
Learning how to, you know, makea plan and how to execute it
properly.
Ultimately, so we have moretime.
The book was basically written.
To inspire us to use the timethat we have to do the things we
love because we're only here fora short time.
SPEAKER_03 (22:08):
I love that you're translating the philosophies of
martial arts into somethingtangible for everyday folks to
be able to use and incorporatethose philosophies into their
daily life.
But I I want to go back a littlebit to your journey.
What is the difference betweensomebody who tries kung fu and
(22:32):
somebody who masters it likeyourself?
SPEAKER_05 (22:37):
Well, what the difference is commitment.
You know, I trained, you know,the Kung Fu school I trained at
the Canadian Wing Chun Kung FuAcademy.
There was multiple classesthroughout the day.
And I was going every day andattending pretty much every
class, you know, morning.
(22:58):
There'd be a class at noon andthen a class again at, you know,
5 30 in the evening.
I don't think that that'sactually required in reality.
I just went a little bit too farwith it, like I, which is a
great thing.
I completely immersed myselfinto it.
But students can become mastersof kung fu as long as they they
(23:22):
learn the system of kung fu,they're able to teach it, and
they're able to be the essenceof kung fu, which is ultimately
peace and love.
SPEAKER_03 (23:34):
You founded the Global Kung Fu Alliance.
What is it and what inspired youto do that?
SPEAKER_05 (23:44):
Well, after my mother passed away was what
inspired me to do that.
I wanted to give all people anopportunity to become a part of
something greater.
So you can become a member forfree.
You don't have to be of anyspecific type of kung fu.
(24:06):
And with that, you get acertificate, a membership
certificate, as well as alisting in our kung fu
directory.
And it's a very, it's become avery popular directory.
We've got several countries andyou know, hundreds and thousands
of students.
And it's just a way for peopleto feel connected as a part of a
(24:32):
community that practices kungfu.
That practices kung fu.
Um, I mean, we welcome any styleof martial art, but essentially
it's kung fu.
It's it's a place, you know, thekung fu world and the the online
world with martial arts can be avery hostile environment.
(24:52):
And me being a female and beingvery good at what I do, I've
experienced a tremendous amountof adversity in the martial arts
world, which was also a reasonwhy I wanted to create the
Global Kung Fu Alliance and bethe global director and
(25:13):
demonstrate leadership in a waythat I thought it should be, not
to be rude or mean or anythinglike that, which is what you see
a lot by kung fu teachers andmasters and and things like
that.
I wanted to be a place wherepositivity is drawn to it.
(25:39):
So it's interesting because alot of my students, all of them
actually, and the members areextremely kind and gentle human
beings.
Doesn't mean they're notdangerous with their skills, it
just means that I was able todivide the the kung fu world in
(26:00):
a sense.
There's polarization, there'skind of like the bullies, and
then there are the people whodon't want to be a part of that.
So it's a safe place for themembers to be.
SPEAKER_03 (26:13):
Well, and I, you know, I'm surprised to hear that
because you know, with withsomething like martial arts, and
again, I'm probably justgeneralizing and stereotyping,
but I've always thought of thosethings as very high in
mentorship.
And and, you know, again, youyou have a master, they teach
(26:35):
students, the students supporteach other, the master supports
the students.
I'm I'm really surprised to hearthat that that isn't necessarily
the case.
SPEAKER_05 (26:46):
Yeah, well, you know, maybe in local schools,
not so much, but when you havean online world where anyone can
say what they want, and youknow, a lot of people can feel
insecure when they see someonebetter than them.
Uh, there's just a lot ofadversity and polarization in
(27:08):
the martial arts world.
And I was on a podcast thismorning with a martial arts
podcast, and I had mentioned howWing Chun, you know, it can be a
bit of a hostile environment.
And he said it's all martialarts.
And you know, I focus just kindof in the Wing Chun world, but
(27:28):
right, you know, it's justthere's a lot of criticism, and
I wish it wasn't like thatbecause I want people to feel
encouraged to share their skillsand post their videos and
without the fear of you knowbeing ridiculed and you know
heckled.
SPEAKER_03 (27:44):
Um, you want them to be able to feel comfortable and
create a safe space to getbetter.
SPEAKER_05 (27:50):
That's right.
And so that's also inspired meto create Facebook groups in the
Wing Chun world where you know,just people can join, you know,
there's no bullying tolerated,any anything like that is
monitored quite deeply.
So, you know, we see a lot ofpeople popping up with their
videos and there's a lot ofsupport.
SPEAKER_03 (28:11):
So that's important.
That's great.
So in the Wing Chung world, whatdoes community mean to you and
in you know, in creating all ofthese communities that you are?
SPEAKER_05 (28:26):
It is for me, it's creating a safe space for people
to explore their uh martialarts, their skills, to
demonstrate them and to havepositive reactions.
I mean, it's impossible tocontrol what the entire world's
(28:46):
going to do, and at some pointyou need to let that go.
But for me, it's it's thecommunity is to be a place of
sharing and positivity.
And that's not necessarily thecase, but for me, that's
important.
SPEAKER_03 (29:03):
Yeah, good, good.
Well, and and I know you wantedto bring a sense of leadership
to what it was you did and beingable to be inclusive and
creating a safe space and andtrying to nurture and grow is
all part of leadership.
So hats off to you for doingwhat you're doing.
And thank you amongst theadversity that you do it in.
SPEAKER_05 (29:27):
Thank you.
SPEAKER_03 (29:28):
Now you wrote your book, Push Your Way Through, to
bring martial art philosophy toeveryday life to help all of us
live more productive lives.
What are some of the keymessages in the book that folks
can look forward to?
SPEAKER_05 (29:46):
One of the main focuses of the book is to not
get into the herd mentality, tolearn how to think for yourself
and you know, not necessarilymove with the crowd, so to
speak.
So, as an example, let's sayyou're standing at an
intersection and you're you'remaybe you're on your phone
(30:09):
looking down and you kind ofsense somebody walking forward
and you you don't even look up,you'll just start walking,
right?
But let's say, sure enough,that's actually a green light,
and there's cars, and you know,hopefully you didn't get hit.
So it's becoming aware of yourenvironment and becoming aware
of the herd mentality.
(30:30):
It's part of human nature towant to just kind of follow each
other.
Go with the flow.
Yeah, but at that when you'redoing that, you're missing out
on opportunities that you mightnot necessarily have available
to you.
And you also could be puttingyourself in a tremendous amount
(30:50):
of danger.
So the herd mentality is onepart of the book that's touched
on.
There's many parts overcomingdoubt and fear, learning to use
your time wisely, and like I hadmentioned before, learning how
to say no.
(31:12):
You know, a lot of us feel thepressure of having to do things
that maybe we don't necessarilywant to do.
Maybe we've agreed to dosomething, but now we don't want
to do it.
So it it kind of sorts out howyou can learn to be assertive
without being rude and you knowcoming across as too aggressive.
(31:35):
But a book is definitely ahandbook.
It's very simple to read.
My sister likes to say it's likea salt and pepper book.
You can just kind of open up apage and just get some words of
advice.
But um, I I tried to keep itextremely simple, but to the
point.
SPEAKER_03 (31:52):
Who who did you write that book for?
Was it a past version of you?
Is it somebody in your life thatyou know?
Is it an amalgam of experiencesand people that you've run into?
SPEAKER_05 (32:05):
Well, the book is dedicated to my mom and my dad
and my teachers, as well as myboyfriend, who has always been
extremely supportive through allthe things that I've taken on.
But the book was written becauseactually I was in Las Vegas,
(32:27):
which was what inspired thebook, just the chaos of Las
Vegas.
And I just started noticing theway people were moving around
and following each other, andthere was just really no rhyme
or reason.
And, you know, I was doingthings differently because I had
learned throughout my life howto incorporate the Wing Chun
(32:48):
into my life.
And I thought, man, if ifeveryone kind of knew these, you
know, tips and tricks on how tomove with life and to get what
they need and and remove whatthey don't need, that could be a
great thing.
So I took up my voice memo and II would just start taking notes.
I would kind of go on a rant tomy boyfriend about, you know,
(33:10):
this is you know unacceptablehow this was.
And uh, he goes, Well, youshould get it down, get it down.
And you know, it took about ayear to complete the book, but I
believe that there is a lot ofinformation in there that can
help people find more time to dowhat they love and to
(33:32):
essentially push their waythrough all of the things that
hold them back and uh theresistance that we, you know,
face in day-to-day life.
SPEAKER_03 (33:43):
Right, right.
Yeah, I find, especially, youknow, at the at the stage of
life I'm at where retirement isnot that far off in the future
anymore.
A lot of the conversation I havewith my friends and coworkers
revolves around wasted years.
Like I worked more than made thesoccer game, or you know, I
(34:06):
traveled more and I missed this.
Um, and so as we're gettingolder, we're having these
conversations about focusing onwhat's most important and to
strive to have the most money,the most toys is not, it's not
on the bingo card anymore.
SPEAKER_05 (34:25):
I agree.
I agree completely.
And we can see that see, when Itravel, I I travel to places
where people who are retired gobecause you can learn a lot by
these people and from thesepeople.
You know, I I see peoplewalking.
Walking is such a beneficialactivity.
(34:48):
It's a great way to spend yourtime.
It feeds your meditationpurposes, your spiritual
purposes.
It's good physically, gettingfresh air, getting a little bit
of sunshine.
It's got it all.
It's got the sounds of the birdsand and things like that.
So and another thing is there'sless distractions in these
(35:09):
places.
So these people have figured outthroughout their entire life
that they don't want to be inthe city hub.
You know, they don't want to besurrounded by noise and
distractions and malls.
They want to be in a peacefulplace where they can take walks,
you know, eat fresh food andenjoy the company of the people
(35:32):
that they love.
SPEAKER_07 (35:32):
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_03 (35:34):
Yeah, very simple, very back to basics.
Exactly.
Yeah, no, no distractions.
And I think that's probably whenyou've had a lifetime of
distractions, I think that's whyit's so hard because you're
you're already conditioned todeal with the distractions.
And you know, our attentionspans are so much shorter.
(35:54):
Social media has not helped thatin the slightest.
So yeah, it really does make alot of sense to be peaceful,
have that time to be reflective,meditative, and work on your
mind, body, spirit.
So I'm looking forward topicking up the book.
I apologize, I have not pickedit up yet, but it is on my
(36:17):
Amazon list.
So no worries.
I I will be grabbing it because,like I said, at this stage of my
life, I can use some help withstaying disciplined, staying on
task, and putting myself, Idon't want to say putting myself
first, but being fair to myself.
SPEAKER_05 (36:36):
Yeah, uh, I agree completely.
And and that's what it's allabout.
SPEAKER_03 (36:41):
Yeah, I I think a lot of parents have a hard time
putting themselves first becauseit's you know, you want your
kids to be happy.
So my kids are grown and gone,and they are happy.
So now it's time to do a littlefocus on me.
So, like I said, I am lookingforward to picking up your book.
Well, thank you.
(37:02):
Throughout throughout the wholewriting journey, because to me,
uh what you've accomplished justin kung fu alone, the
physicality of it, the masteryof it, the sharing it with other
folks, you know, being a teacherand a mentor to your students,
that in itself is amazing.
(37:23):
How in the world did you go fromthat to I want to take all of my
lessons that I've learned, and Iactually want to be an author.
I want to write about it.
Like that whole transformationto me is fascinating.
SPEAKER_05 (37:42):
Well, it was like I had mentioned, it was an
extremely long journey.
And at the time I didn't realizehow difficult writing the book
would be, just with all the, youknow, it needs to be a certain
amount of pages.
And there's all these technicalaspects to the book, right down
to you know, the publication ofit and the cover and and things
(38:05):
like that.
But I just set out time everyday.
I would wake up around 3:30 or 4a.m.
And I would get a big chunk ofit done by 7 a.m.
And that's how I fit it in,because then the rest of the day
was filled with doing otherthings like teaching and and
(38:27):
just day-to-day uh things.
So it became kind of it was likea you know, before the sun came
up journey for me, which is uhreally interesting.
But I think if anyone, you know,is going to write a book, I
would say just go for it.
And you don't have to write itall in one day.
(38:49):
What I did was I justincrementally inched my way to
the finish line.
And you don't want it to consumeyour entire life, you just want
to dedicate a little bit of timeevery day and then spend the
rest of the day doing thingsthat you enjoy or other parts of
work, but to find that balance.
Otherwise, the book suddenly isnot fun and it's not something
(39:12):
you're looking forward to, andyou don't like it because you
know it's it feels stressful.
So I would just recommend startand fit it in a little bit every
day, use that discipline, andyou will inch your way to the
finish line.
SPEAKER_03 (39:30):
What did you have to learn?
I mean, again, being a studentof Kung Fu, you you are
definitely a lifelong learner aswell as a sharer of the of that
knowledge.
But I'm assuming you had tolearn an awful lot about the
publishing side.
It's one thing to be able towrite your book, but then it is
a completely another thing toactually bring it to life so
(39:52):
that you can share it with otherfolks.
SPEAKER_05 (39:55):
Absolutely.
So I published through Amazon.
So you can do self-publishingthrough Amazon, and they guide
you to a certain extent.
So if you're planning on writinga book, look into that.
I wouldn't recommend trying topublish it on your own or
(40:15):
finding a publisher.
Definitely use Amazon.
And for the rest of it, theformatting, I mean, these are
things that are beyond me.
You outsource it.
You look on websites like Fiverror Upwork, and there's people
that you can send them yourmessy Word documents, and they
(40:38):
will know exactly how to formatit as an example, because
Amazon's not going to acceptwhatever you you submit, right?
It's gonna take so these peopleare the ones that you give the
book to and you pay a little bitof money, but it's actually not
(40:58):
that much, and uh it's somethingthat's probably required for the
process.
SPEAKER_03 (41:05):
So again, you are finding ways to maximize uh your
your energy output.
That's right.
SPEAKER_05 (41:13):
Um and not spending a fortune on it either, right?
Yeah, it's competitive, so youcan use the like wing chun, the
economy of motion, and get itdone efficiently and afford of
affordably, but the contentdefinitely needs to come from
you.
SPEAKER_03 (41:33):
Yeah, that's fantastic.
That's fantastic.
I just have some fun questions,you know.
I was thinking about what can Iask this kung fu master?
So I I just have a couple funquestions before we get into
where where you're going next.
But um, have you ever wanted touse your kung fu skills in real
(41:54):
life when you've been in anaggravating situation?
SPEAKER_05 (42:00):
I yes, absolutely.
Um, I've actually been you knowblessed to not have been in a
fight.
And they say, you know, uhlearning kung fu and being in
kung fu is to learn to avoid thefight, so to speak.
But there have been times whereI've been tempted to use my uh
(42:22):
awareness and my skills and justmy sense of something's not
right here to defend people I'vebeen with as an example, not
necessarily myself.
But I'm I'm always feeling likeI'm a couple steps ahead.
And body language is a hugething.
(42:42):
There's if there's something offabout someone's body language,
don't let it go.
You know, make sure you'reyou're aware of where they are
in the room, where they are onthe street.
You know, I I was watching likea scary movie or or or something
the other day, and you know, thegirl's walking down the the dark
street, and the van pulls up andshe keeps walking towards the
(43:04):
van, and you know, nothinggood's gonna happen, but you're
you're saying, Oh, go the otherway, go the other way.
But I mean it was a movie, soshe went towards the van and
things didn't turn out verywell.
Yeah, but um yes, so I have beentempted and I've been ready to
execute my skills at the cost ofmy own life for the people that
(43:29):
I care about.
SPEAKER_03 (43:32):
What's one move or skill you wish everybody could
learn instantly from Wing Chun?
SPEAKER_05 (43:41):
One thing that I wish everyone could learn is a
punch.
We in Wing Chun we do centerlinepunches and rapid punches.
So punching is an amazing thingbecause if you punch someone in
the, and I don't recommend this,of course, but in the uh Solar
plexus area, uh, you could windsomebody enough to run to
(44:05):
safety.
Yeah, you could punch someone inthe face, you could run to
safety.
So just learning how to actuallyexecute a powerful punch, not
just a punch that meets atarget, but goes through a
target.
So you always want to thinkpunch, but punch through your
target.
(44:25):
Or, you know, if if anyone outthere is listening and of course
might need to use these skills,that's an important thing, is
that a punch with intention tomove through will pack a lot
more power.
SPEAKER_03 (44:39):
Interesting.
Yeah, I think I punched a stun.
So there's something I can workon.
Yeah, yeah.
Punch through, don't just touch.
Yeah.
So you've you've got your you'vegot your school, you've got your
online school, you've written abook to share principles with
(45:00):
the public to help us live moreproductive lives.
What's next for Kung Fu Kendra?
SPEAKER_05 (45:09):
Well, I've I've also started a magazine publication.
So it's called Natural ChunMagazine.
That's uh that's pretty new.
Uh but what's next is I'mworking on two programs right
now.
One is the Wing Chun Ring.
It's a ring apparatus thatteaches how to maintain proper
structure with your moves.
(45:29):
Um, and then I'm also teachingan instructor course for people
to learn how to teach womenself-defense.
So it's a teach the teachercourse.
So I think that there should bemore self-defense teachers for
women and of course children andelderly as well.
And that's also included in thecourse.
So I'm working on that.
(45:51):
And aside from the women'sself-defense course, in the
future, I would like to moveinto health and supplements, so
protein powders and wing chun uhnutrition, so to speak.
SPEAKER_03 (46:08):
That's fantastic.
That's fantastic.
Well, we will definitely stay intouch so that I can share all of
these great things coming downthe pike, as well as all of the
things you've alreadyaccomplished with folks that are
listening.
Speaking of folks that arelistening, where can anybody
find you online to take a lookand possibly sign up for a
(46:31):
course, buy your book?
SPEAKER_05 (46:33):
Absolutely.
Well, the easiest thing iskungfukendra.com.
There is a ton of free giveawayson there, free sample classes, a
store full of everything frommeditation audios to audiobooks
to breathing exercises toworkouts, pretty much everything
(46:56):
for health and wellness thatI've created at
KungfuKendra.com.
You can also just Google Kung FuKendra, and there's a lot of
information that will come up.
SPEAKER_03 (47:09):
Fantastic.
Kendra, I wish you the best ofluck and success with everything
that you've currently got goingon and all of the things that
you're working on.
And I can't thank you for allyour time today.
SPEAKER_05 (47:24):
Thank you, Helen.
It's been an honor and apleasure, and thank you for
taking the time to speak withme.
SPEAKER_03 (47:33):
Just listening to the conversation won't make us
more confident, disciplined,efficient, productive, or even
better connected to our innerstrength.
But Kendra provided a ton oftools and resources to begin
those journeys for ourselves.
I think the one thing that stoodout to me about Kendra's story
(47:57):
is the word fearless.
She took an event beingattacked, which brings about a
lot of fear, and turned it intothe exact opposite.
Fearlessly finding a way tobetter defend herself and those
she loves, fearlessly jumpinginto her newfound love of Wing
(48:18):
Chun Kung Fu, fearlesslycreating an inclusive kung fu
community, and fearlesslyjumping into the authoring and
publishing arena.
All in the name of enrichingothers' lives, which in turn
adds to hers.
I love the full circle effectbeing fearless has in her
(48:41):
journey.
Jump down to the show notes forlinks to Kendra's online
community where you can find herbook, links to her classes, even
online classes, her magazine,and so much more.
And while you're there, don'tforget to connect with me.
All my socials are includedthere as well.
(49:03):
And I just want to point out abrand new feature.
You can now leave me a voicemailand let me know what you're
thinking about the content, aspecific episode, suggestions
for future guests, or even leaveme a message regarding what
you're passionate about.
I would love to connect with youin that way.
(49:24):
Use the tell me what you thinkabout this week's episode link
at the very top of the shownotes.
Thanks for listening, and I'llsee you in two weeks.
Just a reminder, don't forget to hit subscribe or
follow wherever you're listeningto this podcast.
And two things you can do tohelp the podcast grow.
One, tell a friend aboutassorted conversations.
And two, consider leaving afive-star written review
wherever you download yourpodcasts.
(00:22):
It'll help the podcast becomemore visible to other folks who
may enjoy the content.
Thanks, and here's this week'sepisode.
Everyday people following theirpassions.
SPEAKER_04 (00:44):
That's probably like one of the highlights of my life
so far.
Just being able to be creativelike that.
Something I've always wanted.
And then I decided to getanother hive, and that turned
into a lot of hives.
As long as I can do that, I wantto be a good citizen, help
people out.
SPEAKER_03 (01:04):
Putting themselves out there, taking chances, and
navigating challenges along theway.
SPEAKER_02 (01:11):
I I absolutely identified with having stage
right because, you know, anytimeI went on stage, I just felt
like I was having a hot attack.
SPEAKER_00 (01:18):
Very first lap, very first practice session, I
crashed, turned the car upsidedown, made a spectacle of
myself, and I got back on thathorse and started riding again.
SPEAKER_03 (01:27):
As they pursue what makes them happy and brings them
joy.
SPEAKER_01 (01:33):
As long as people are having a good time and I
have the opportunity to putsmiles on people's faces, I love
what I do.
SPEAKER_05 (01:39):
I have done things that I never thought I could do.
SPEAKER_01 (01:44):
To have somebody tell me how real it looks and
how, you know, from their actualmemory.
Because that's telling me Icaptured what I was trying to
get.
SPEAKER_03 (01:55):
Welcome to Assorted Conversations.
I'm your host, Helen.
I've got some questions for youto think about.
How confident are you?
(02:16):
How disciplined are you?
How efficient and productive areyou?
And how connected to your innerstrength are you?
If any of your answers included,I could work on that,
like-minded, this week'sconversation is for you.
I had the opportunity to have aconversation with a kung fu
(02:39):
master and trailblazer who notonly supports her kung fu
community, but is also enrichingthe lives of anyone who is
striving to be more confident,disciplined, efficient,
productive, or connected to thestrength and beauty they possess
within.
Take a listen to this week'sepisode, and I'll see you on the
(03:02):
other side.
She's a purple sash kung fumaster with more than 20 years
of experience and the founder ofthe Global Kung Fu Alliance.
She serves as editor-in-chief ofWing Chun magazine, and through
(03:25):
her writing and her work withclients, including high-profile
leaders like billionaire BrettWilson from the TV show Dragon's
Den, she empowers people tobuild strength mentally,
emotionally, and physically.
She's breaking barriers and hermission is clear: helping others
push through and step fully intotheir power.
(03:48):
She's the author of Push YourWay Through, where she shares
how ancient Kung Fu principlescan help you get what you want
in life.
I am so happy to welcome KendraMahan, aka Kung Fu Kendra, to
Assorted Conversations.
Hi, Kendra.
Hey Helen, how are you doing?
I am well.
(04:08):
How are you?
I'm very good.
Thank you for having me.
Thanks for being here.
I'm so excited to dive in.
So tell me a little bit aboutKung Fu, the art in general.
SPEAKER_05 (04:21):
Well, kung fu dates back thousands of years, and it
was designed for people to learnthe skill of self-defense.
Kung Fu literally means skill.
So with martial arts, we'relearning to use our body as an
art to defend ourselves with ourarms, our legs, you know,
(04:45):
elbows, and and all thesethings.
So kung fu has deep roots and ithas been a foundational
guideline for a lot of culturesto promote confidence,
discipline, and ultimatelyself-defense.
SPEAKER_03 (05:05):
And how how is kung fu different from some of some
of the others, like karate orjujitsu?
SPEAKER_05 (05:14):
That's a great question.
And kung fu is a Chinese martialart.
So in that sense, um, it'sdifferent than karate, which
would be Japanese.
Kung Fu is for the most part nota competitive sport like karate
or taekwondo or jujitsu.
It is an art built for actualstreet skills.
(05:41):
Specifically, my style of kungfu, which is Wing Chun, is
designed for close range combat.
So somebody gets too close toyou, you're learning how to
maneuver the situation usingthings like the economy of
motion, less moves the better,and getting yourself to safety
(06:04):
versus you know going into afull-blown fight.
SPEAKER_03 (06:09):
Okay, okay, makes sense.
Makes sense.
So now you've been practicingyour I don't want to say your
brand, your flavor, I guess, oryour type of kung fu for over 20
years.
Think back.
What was what first drove you toexplore this and get involved
with it?
SPEAKER_05 (06:30):
Well, what first got me interested in Wing Chun Kung
Fu was being attacked at a youngage.
And through that experience, Idid a lot of healing and
obviously needed something tofocus on, to build
(06:50):
self-confidence, to buildself-awareness, and to build
martial skill so that I wouldn'tbe a target where I wouldn't not
know what to do.
I mean, a lot of people take forgranted, you know, just kicking
as an example.
You think, well, I would justkick someone.
And I've seen it firsthand withstudents who've never kicked
(07:12):
before.
It's not something that justcomes naturally.
You know, you might want to kickand scream, but to actually use
your body as a mechanism forself-defense is an extremely
powerful thing.
We're already equipped with ourarms and our legs.
And to simply learn some movesthat could potentially save your
(07:37):
life is essentially what broughtme into the world of learning
martial arts.
SPEAKER_03 (07:44):
Wow.
Well, I am so sorry that thathappened to you, but it almost
seems like it was kind ofputting you on the right path.
SPEAKER_05 (07:53):
It it definitely was.
And as scary and as traumatic asit was, Kung Fu helped me to
heal and push through andpersevere, feelings of fear,
sadness, uh, depression,anxiety.
And so that's what makes me sucha strong believer in the art.
(08:18):
Because not only did it help methrough that time, and then it
helped me for the next 22 yearsto really discover myself.
SPEAKER_03 (08:27):
Right, right.
Oh, that's that's great.
Can you think back to your veryfirst class?
You know, what was that like foryou?
Uh because now you're soaccomplished now, but can you
really think back to like thatfirst class you walked into?
SPEAKER_05 (08:42):
I do remember.
And at the time I had, you know,I was looking for a school, a
Kung Fu school.
I wasn't specifically lookingfor Wing Chun.
And I was so blessed with what Igot when I did my search.
It only took one call and onevisit.
(09:02):
I dropped in and did a freeclass on my lunch break.
And I was hooked.
I thought, wow, I feel so good.
You know, I I learned how to doa little bit of punching, and
you know, I don't know, youknow, what they do in their
first trial class, but I washooked and they said, you know,
we've got classes tonight if youwant to come back again.
SPEAKER_03 (09:25):
And I was addicted from that point on.
You know, I'm sure it wasn't alleasy, you know, as you've as
you've worked your way, you'reup to a purple sash.
Is that the highest sash?
SPEAKER_05 (09:36):
Yeah, that's uh pretty much that's master level.
That's you know, going throughthe entire curriculum and then
teaching and studying.
And now I run the Global Kung FuAlliance and I've got a
certification program where Iteach people martial arts as
well, Wing Chun.
And it it has been a longjourney.
(10:00):
I I never set out to be amaster, I never set out to, you
know, teach or or be, you know,writing books and building
programs.
The whole journey, I it's almostlike I was in a meditative state
the whole time.
Right.
SPEAKER_03 (10:15):
You were just focused on what the next step
was.
SPEAKER_05 (10:18):
I was, and I was focused on healing myself and
getting to know who I was andlearning self-control, and all
these things really amounted tothese unbelievable skills now at
this point in my life.
And that's why I am such astrong believer in the power of
(10:41):
martial arts.
Not only is it a way to getoutside of your head, you know,
often we think too much, there'sa lot going on in the world.
We've got our devices, we've gotconstant noise around us.
And when you can just silenceall of that out and just
practice your forms or, youknow, do stretching or qi gong
(11:03):
breathing, it's ultimatelyextremely healthy for you.
And so I'm a huge advocate foranyone who wants to start
martial arts.
SPEAKER_03 (11:13):
Yeah, I am I am a huge fan of anything that
combines mind, body, and spirit.
And I think the martial arts dothat, do that very well, just in
in completely different ways.
I've started to get more intoyoga as I'm getting a little
older.
Um, and I find that that helpscalm me.
(11:36):
It's it's helping me become moredisciplined.
And, you know, again, probablynot along the same lines as any
of the martial arts, but I dounderstand what you're saying.
Just to practice stretches, justto practice your breathing
really helps you reconnect withyourself and not get lost in the
(11:56):
chaos of the world.
SPEAKER_05 (11:58):
Absolutely.
Absolutely.
Yoga is a perfect example of,you know, it's not even so much
about the moves, but it's justshowing up and being patient
through the yoga class.
You know, we don't necessarilywant to, you know, stretching
and be in all these painfulpositions, and but it's more of
(12:19):
a symbol of showing up foryourself because you know how
good you feel when you're done.
Yeah.
And that's that's the payoffultimately.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (12:30):
Was there a point through your whole journey that
you discovered that this isgoing to be more than a hobby
for me, and this is actuallybecoming sort of a calling for
me?
SPEAKER_05 (12:45):
Definitely.
That happened during COVID in2019.
I, you know, the whole world wasshut down.
We didn't know what the futureof tomorrow was going to be.
We didn't know if this virus isgoing to wipe us all out.
All we knew was we can't bearound each other.
And that's a scary thing.
(13:05):
So at that point, I I realizedthat not only is there a lack of
Wing Chun schools in the world,it's, you know, kung fu was kind
of a dying art, unfortunately,which is why I'm so devoted to
preserving the tradition of it.
But I wanted to bring it topeople's homes.
(13:26):
I wanted people people to beable to download videos and
learn step by step things thatthey've seen on TV, things that
they've always wanted to do.
I'm I'm finding out a lot thatyou know it's been a lot of
people's dreams to learn kungfu.
And which is great because, youknow, not only was I able to
(13:47):
identify my demographic, butalso to realize that, you know,
there is a genuine need in theworld and the lack of kung fu
schools around, it just was ano-brainer for me to start
building online programs.
SPEAKER_03 (14:04):
That's fantastic.
You know, through through youryour journey, did it ever get
hard?
SPEAKER_05 (14:15):
Oh, definitely.
I mean, life throws so manythings at us.
You know, a year and a half agoI lost my mother.
Thank you.
And it's just anyone who's lostsomeone they love knows the pain
of that.
And so that was a huge momentfor me.
(14:37):
That's you know, it it actuallymade me uh just push harder, you
know.
I don't know if I was justtrying to keep myself busy and
whatnot, but my mom's last wordsto me were that she was so proud
of me, and so I knew that Ineeded to continue to honor her
(15:00):
through not giving up and not,you know, just kind of folding
up and being in the darknessover it.
And of course it's sad, andeveryone has their own way of
grieving, and of course I do,but I I I'm trying to get into
this because I want yourlisteners to know that uh the
pain that you're going throughnow is is okay.
(15:24):
And if you can find a way toturn it into something positive,
you know, even if that meansjust taking some time to do some
breathing, nurture yourself,anything that's positive is
ultimately a good thing to do.
SPEAKER_03 (15:43):
Right.
Yeah, absolutely.
So your mom is what keeps youpushing through the tough times.
SPEAKER_05 (15:52):
Yes, absolutely.
She's always in my in my mindand in my heart when times get
tough and you know, she I am apart of her.
I came from her.
So, you know, we're just oneenergy, uh so to speak.
And so then at least I know I'mdoing something right, you know,
(16:16):
in all the chaos and all the youknow, the mess of the world, I
use that as my jet fuel.
SPEAKER_03 (16:23):
Throughout, you know, you your practice and and
I mean it's you've been doingthis for 20 years.
How long have you been a master?
SPEAKER_05 (16:32):
I've been a master since 2019.
And oh wow.
I've you know, it it comes withteaching others.
So the whole journey is, youknow, you learn everything up
until so far, and then thejourney of the mastery begins,
(16:54):
which is teaching others whatyou know, and you will learn
from your students as well.
The belts and the ranks and thetitles, I mean, it's all you
know, they're all just tangiblethings, and but ultimately it's
what what do you have to offer?
What do you have to share withthe world from your spirit?
(17:18):
You know, a lot of Kung Fuschools, especially Wing Chun,
don't use a ranking system.
There's two types of Wing Chun.
There's mainstream Wing Chun,which doesn't use that, and then
there's traditional Wing Chun,which is more of an honorary
progression through the levels.
SPEAKER_03 (17:37):
What now there are different types of kung fu,
correct?
That is correct.
So you are a master of WingChun.
How is that different from theother types of kung fu?
SPEAKER_05 (17:53):
Well, they are all different.
There's quite a few animal stylekung fu, tiger, kung fu, crane,
snake.
Ultimately, it's it was all justmade up by someone.
You know what I mean?
It's not the end-all be-all ofmartial arts.
Wing chun is just one branch ofthe many different styles of
(18:17):
kung fu, but essentially, WingChun is for realistic, you know,
self-defense.
You're attacked on the street,how can I maneuver it?
Uh, Wing Chun also teachesdeadly uh things like fingers
through the eye sockets as anexample.
And so in that sense, it's not acompetitive sport, it is
(18:39):
basically a fight for your life.
And I don't recommend any ofthese things I have mentioned.
However, you know, if you feltlike your life was in danger,
then you should be trained to dowhat it takes to stay alive.
SPEAKER_03 (18:58):
Yeah, yeah.
Where how did Wing Chun start?
Where where's the origin storyfor Wing Wing Chun?
SPEAKER_05 (19:08):
Wing Chun started a few hundred years ago in China,
and it was started by a femalenun named Yeah, named Ung Mui.
She was a part of the Shaolinmasters.
At that time, there was arevolution going on in China,
(19:29):
and the Qing dynasty was tryingto eliminate the Shaolin monks,
excuse me, because they they hadtheir own fighting style and you
know they were warriors of theirown rights.
She was one of the monks thatsurvived the burning of the
temple.
It's it's a you know a mythicalstory, and it does probably have
(19:50):
some truth to it, but this isthe story.
And so Wing Chun was created bya woman, and so it was designed
for someone who is a smallperson to be able to maneuver a
larger person, whether male orfemale.
And the beauty of that is againusing the the economy of motion,
(20:14):
using an opponent's energyagainst them.
So I was really drawn to that.
Once I found out the story, Ithought, wow, this is this is so
meant to be.
SPEAKER_03 (20:24):
How has kung fu shaped the way you and I may
have already answered this, buthow has kung fu shaped the way
you've handled stress, fear, andsetbacks in everyday life?
I mean, I know you know it'shelping you grieve the loss of
your mom, but is that day-to-daystuff?
SPEAKER_05 (20:42):
Well, excuse me, day-to-day stuff, you know,
that's what inspired me to writethe book, Push Your Way Through.
It's behind me.
Because that book was written tobasically break down the ancient
principles of Kung Fu in themodern day world.
Okay.
So learning to use your timeefficiently, you know, whether
(21:04):
you're at the grocery store ordriving, navigating crowds,
learning to say no toobligations, and essentially
just becoming extremelyassertive with your own life.
And your own time.
And your own time becauseprobably with yourself.
SPEAKER_03 (21:24):
Yeah.
Yeah, because I know the martialarts are very big in self
self-discipline.
And that's probably what I needand the lessons I can get from
your book, push your waythrough.
Taking more agency over yourtime and your energy.
unknown (21:43):
Absolutely.
SPEAKER_03 (21:44):
But also disciplining yourself to stick
to the plan.
SPEAKER_05 (21:49):
Exactly.
Learning how to, you know, makea plan and how to execute it
properly.
Ultimately, so we have moretime.
The book was basically written.
To inspire us to use the timethat we have to do the things we
love because we're only here fora short time.
SPEAKER_03 (22:08):
I love that you're translating the philosophies of
martial arts into somethingtangible for everyday folks to
be able to use and incorporatethose philosophies into their
daily life.
But I I want to go back a littlebit to your journey.
What is the difference betweensomebody who tries kung fu and
(22:32):
somebody who masters it likeyourself?
SPEAKER_05 (22:37):
Well, what the difference is commitment.
You know, I trained, you know,the Kung Fu school I trained at
the Canadian Wing Chun Kung FuAcademy.
There was multiple classesthroughout the day.
And I was going every day andattending pretty much every
class, you know, morning.
(22:58):
There'd be a class at noon andthen a class again at, you know,
5 30 in the evening.
I don't think that that'sactually required in reality.
I just went a little bit too farwith it, like I, which is a
great thing.
I completely immersed myselfinto it.
But students can become mastersof kung fu as long as they they
(23:22):
learn the system of kung fu,they're able to teach it, and
they're able to be the essenceof kung fu, which is ultimately
peace and love.
SPEAKER_03 (23:34):
You founded the Global Kung Fu Alliance.
What is it and what inspired youto do that?
SPEAKER_05 (23:44):
Well, after my mother passed away was what
inspired me to do that.
I wanted to give all people anopportunity to become a part of
something greater.
So you can become a member forfree.
You don't have to be of anyspecific type of kung fu.
(24:06):
And with that, you get acertificate, a membership
certificate, as well as alisting in our kung fu
directory.
And it's a very, it's become avery popular directory.
We've got several countries andyou know, hundreds and thousands
of students.
And it's just a way for peopleto feel connected as a part of a
(24:32):
community that practices kungfu.
That practices kung fu.
Um, I mean, we welcome any styleof martial art, but essentially
it's kung fu.
It's it's a place, you know, thekung fu world and the the online
world with martial arts can be avery hostile environment.
(24:52):
And me being a female and beingvery good at what I do, I've
experienced a tremendous amountof adversity in the martial arts
world, which was also a reasonwhy I wanted to create the
Global Kung Fu Alliance and bethe global director and
(25:13):
demonstrate leadership in a waythat I thought it should be, not
to be rude or mean or anythinglike that, which is what you see
a lot by kung fu teachers andmasters and and things like
that.
I wanted to be a place wherepositivity is drawn to it.
(25:39):
So it's interesting because alot of my students, all of them
actually, and the members areextremely kind and gentle human
beings.
Doesn't mean they're notdangerous with their skills, it
just means that I was able todivide the the kung fu world in
(26:00):
a sense.
There's polarization, there'skind of like the bullies, and
then there are the people whodon't want to be a part of that.
So it's a safe place for themembers to be.
SPEAKER_03 (26:13):
Well, and I, you know, I'm surprised to hear that
because you know, with withsomething like martial arts, and
again, I'm probably justgeneralizing and stereotyping,
but I've always thought of thosethings as very high in
mentorship.
And and, you know, again, youyou have a master, they teach
(26:35):
students, the students supporteach other, the master supports
the students.
I'm I'm really surprised to hearthat that that isn't necessarily
the case.
SPEAKER_05 (26:46):
Yeah, well, you know, maybe in local schools,
not so much, but when you havean online world where anyone can
say what they want, and youknow, a lot of people can feel
insecure when they see someonebetter than them.
Uh, there's just a lot ofadversity and polarization in
(27:08):
the martial arts world.
And I was on a podcast thismorning with a martial arts
podcast, and I had mentioned howWing Chun, you know, it can be a
bit of a hostile environment.
And he said it's all martialarts.
And you know, I focus just kindof in the Wing Chun world, but
(27:28):
right, you know, it's justthere's a lot of criticism, and
I wish it wasn't like thatbecause I want people to feel
encouraged to share their skillsand post their videos and
without the fear of you knowbeing ridiculed and you know
heckled.
SPEAKER_03 (27:44):
Um, you want them to be able to feel comfortable and
create a safe space to getbetter.
SPEAKER_05 (27:50):
That's right.
And so that's also inspired meto create Facebook groups in the
Wing Chun world where you know,just people can join, you know,
there's no bullying tolerated,any anything like that is
monitored quite deeply.
So, you know, we see a lot ofpeople popping up with their
videos and there's a lot ofsupport.
SPEAKER_03 (28:11):
So that's important.
That's great.
So in the Wing Chung world, whatdoes community mean to you and
in you know, in creating all ofthese communities that you are?
SPEAKER_05 (28:26):
It is for me, it's creating a safe space for people
to explore their uh martialarts, their skills, to
demonstrate them and to havepositive reactions.
I mean, it's impossible tocontrol what the entire world's
(28:46):
going to do, and at some pointyou need to let that go.
But for me, it's it's thecommunity is to be a place of
sharing and positivity.
And that's not necessarily thecase, but for me, that's
important.
SPEAKER_03 (29:03):
Yeah, good, good.
Well, and and I know you wantedto bring a sense of leadership
to what it was you did and beingable to be inclusive and
creating a safe space and andtrying to nurture and grow is
all part of leadership.
So hats off to you for doingwhat you're doing.
And thank you amongst theadversity that you do it in.
SPEAKER_05 (29:27):
Thank you.
SPEAKER_03 (29:28):
Now you wrote your book, Push Your Way Through, to
bring martial art philosophy toeveryday life to help all of us
live more productive lives.
What are some of the keymessages in the book that folks
can look forward to?
SPEAKER_05 (29:46):
One of the main focuses of the book is to not
get into the herd mentality, tolearn how to think for yourself
and you know, not necessarilymove with the crowd, so to
speak.
So, as an example, let's sayyou're standing at an
intersection and you're you'remaybe you're on your phone
(30:09):
looking down and you kind ofsense somebody walking forward
and you you don't even look up,you'll just start walking,
right?
But let's say, sure enough,that's actually a green light,
and there's cars, and you know,hopefully you didn't get hit.
So it's becoming aware of yourenvironment and becoming aware
of the herd mentality.
(30:30):
It's part of human nature towant to just kind of follow each
other.
Go with the flow.
Yeah, but at that when you'redoing that, you're missing out
on opportunities that you mightnot necessarily have available
to you.
And you also could be puttingyourself in a tremendous amount
(30:50):
of danger.
So the herd mentality is onepart of the book that's touched
on.
There's many parts overcomingdoubt and fear, learning to use
your time wisely, and like I hadmentioned before, learning how
to say no.
(31:12):
You know, a lot of us feel thepressure of having to do things
that maybe we don't necessarilywant to do.
Maybe we've agreed to dosomething, but now we don't want
to do it.
So it it kind of sorts out howyou can learn to be assertive
without being rude and you knowcoming across as too aggressive.
(31:35):
But a book is definitely ahandbook.
It's very simple to read.
My sister likes to say it's likea salt and pepper book.
You can just kind of open up apage and just get some words of
advice.
But um, I I tried to keep itextremely simple, but to the
point.
SPEAKER_03 (31:52):
Who who did you write that book for?
Was it a past version of you?
Is it somebody in your life thatyou know?
Is it an amalgam of experiencesand people that you've run into?
SPEAKER_05 (32:05):
Well, the book is dedicated to my mom and my dad
and my teachers, as well as myboyfriend, who has always been
extremely supportive through allthe things that I've taken on.
But the book was written becauseactually I was in Las Vegas,
(32:27):
which was what inspired thebook, just the chaos of Las
Vegas.
And I just started noticing theway people were moving around
and following each other, andthere was just really no rhyme
or reason.
And, you know, I was doingthings differently because I had
learned throughout my life howto incorporate the Wing Chun
(32:48):
into my life.
And I thought, man, if ifeveryone kind of knew these, you
know, tips and tricks on how tomove with life and to get what
they need and and remove whatthey don't need, that could be a
great thing.
So I took up my voice memo and II would just start taking notes.
I would kind of go on a rant tomy boyfriend about, you know,
(33:10):
this is you know unacceptablehow this was.
And uh, he goes, Well, youshould get it down, get it down.
And you know, it took about ayear to complete the book, but I
believe that there is a lot ofinformation in there that can
help people find more time to dowhat they love and to
(33:32):
essentially push their waythrough all of the things that
hold them back and uh theresistance that we, you know,
face in day-to-day life.
SPEAKER_03 (33:43):
Right, right.
Yeah, I find, especially, youknow, at the at the stage of
life I'm at where retirement isnot that far off in the future
anymore.
A lot of the conversation I havewith my friends and coworkers
revolves around wasted years.
Like I worked more than made thesoccer game, or you know, I
(34:06):
traveled more and I missed this.
Um, and so as we're gettingolder, we're having these
conversations about focusing onwhat's most important and to
strive to have the most money,the most toys is not, it's not
on the bingo card anymore.
SPEAKER_05 (34:25):
I agree.
I agree completely.
And we can see that see, when Itravel, I I travel to places
where people who are retired gobecause you can learn a lot by
these people and from thesepeople.
You know, I I see peoplewalking.
Walking is such a beneficialactivity.
(34:48):
It's a great way to spend yourtime.
It feeds your meditationpurposes, your spiritual
purposes.
It's good physically, gettingfresh air, getting a little bit
of sunshine.
It's got it all.
It's got the sounds of the birdsand and things like that.
So and another thing is there'sless distractions in these
(35:09):
places.
So these people have figured outthroughout their entire life
that they don't want to be inthe city hub.
You know, they don't want to besurrounded by noise and
distractions and malls.
They want to be in a peacefulplace where they can take walks,
you know, eat fresh food andenjoy the company of the people
(35:32):
that they love.
SPEAKER_07 (35:32):
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_03 (35:34):
Yeah, very simple, very back to basics.
Exactly.
Yeah, no, no distractions.
And I think that's probably whenyou've had a lifetime of
distractions, I think that's whyit's so hard because you're
you're already conditioned todeal with the distractions.
And you know, our attentionspans are so much shorter.
(35:54):
Social media has not helped thatin the slightest.
So yeah, it really does make alot of sense to be peaceful,
have that time to be reflective,meditative, and work on your
mind, body, spirit.
So I'm looking forward topicking up the book.
I apologize, I have not pickedit up yet, but it is on my
(36:17):
Amazon list.
So no worries.
I I will be grabbing it because,like I said, at this stage of my
life, I can use some help withstaying disciplined, staying on
task, and putting myself, Idon't want to say putting myself
first, but being fair to myself.
SPEAKER_05 (36:36):
Yeah, uh, I agree completely.
And and that's what it's allabout.
SPEAKER_03 (36:41):
Yeah, I I think a lot of parents have a hard time
putting themselves first becauseit's you know, you want your
kids to be happy.
So my kids are grown and gone,and they are happy.
So now it's time to do a littlefocus on me.
So, like I said, I am lookingforward to picking up your book.
Well, thank you.
(37:02):
Throughout throughout the wholewriting journey, because to me,
uh what you've accomplished justin kung fu alone, the
physicality of it, the masteryof it, the sharing it with other
folks, you know, being a teacherand a mentor to your students,
that in itself is amazing.
(37:23):
How in the world did you go fromthat to I want to take all of my
lessons that I've learned, and Iactually want to be an author.
I want to write about it.
Like that whole transformationto me is fascinating.
SPEAKER_05 (37:42):
Well, it was like I had mentioned, it was an
extremely long journey.
And at the time I didn't realizehow difficult writing the book
would be, just with all the, youknow, it needs to be a certain
amount of pages.
And there's all these technicalaspects to the book, right down
to you know, the publication ofit and the cover and and things
(38:05):
like that.
But I just set out time everyday.
I would wake up around 3:30 or 4a.m.
And I would get a big chunk ofit done by 7 a.m.
And that's how I fit it in,because then the rest of the day
was filled with doing otherthings like teaching and and
(38:27):
just day-to-day uh things.
So it became kind of it was likea you know, before the sun came
up journey for me, which is uhreally interesting.
But I think if anyone, you know,is going to write a book, I
would say just go for it.
And you don't have to write itall in one day.
(38:49):
What I did was I justincrementally inched my way to
the finish line.
And you don't want it to consumeyour entire life, you just want
to dedicate a little bit of timeevery day and then spend the
rest of the day doing thingsthat you enjoy or other parts of
work, but to find that balance.
Otherwise, the book suddenly isnot fun and it's not something
(39:12):
you're looking forward to, andyou don't like it because you
know it's it feels stressful.
So I would just recommend startand fit it in a little bit every
day, use that discipline, andyou will inch your way to the
finish line.
SPEAKER_03 (39:30):
What did you have to learn?
I mean, again, being a studentof Kung Fu, you you are
definitely a lifelong learner aswell as a sharer of the of that
knowledge.
But I'm assuming you had tolearn an awful lot about the
publishing side.
It's one thing to be able towrite your book, but then it is
a completely another thing toactually bring it to life so
(39:52):
that you can share it with otherfolks.
SPEAKER_05 (39:55):
Absolutely.
So I published through Amazon.
So you can do self-publishingthrough Amazon, and they guide
you to a certain extent.
So if you're planning on writinga book, look into that.
I wouldn't recommend trying topublish it on your own or
(40:15):
finding a publisher.
Definitely use Amazon.
And for the rest of it, theformatting, I mean, these are
things that are beyond me.
You outsource it.
You look on websites like Fiverror Upwork, and there's people
that you can send them yourmessy Word documents, and they
(40:38):
will know exactly how to formatit as an example, because
Amazon's not going to acceptwhatever you you submit, right?
It's gonna take so these peopleare the ones that you give the
book to and you pay a little bitof money, but it's actually not
(40:58):
that much, and uh it's somethingthat's probably required for the
process.
SPEAKER_03 (41:05):
So again, you are finding ways to maximize uh your
your energy output.
That's right.
SPEAKER_05 (41:13):
Um and not spending a fortune on it either, right?
Yeah, it's competitive, so youcan use the like wing chun, the
economy of motion, and get itdone efficiently and afford of
affordably, but the contentdefinitely needs to come from
you.
SPEAKER_03 (41:33):
Yeah, that's fantastic.
That's fantastic.
I just have some fun questions,you know.
I was thinking about what can Iask this kung fu master?
So I I just have a couple funquestions before we get into
where where you're going next.
But um, have you ever wanted touse your kung fu skills in real
(41:54):
life when you've been in anaggravating situation?
SPEAKER_05 (42:00):
I yes, absolutely.
Um, I've actually been you knowblessed to not have been in a
fight.
And they say, you know, uhlearning kung fu and being in
kung fu is to learn to avoid thefight, so to speak.
But there have been times whereI've been tempted to use my uh
(42:22):
awareness and my skills and justmy sense of something's not
right here to defend people I'vebeen with as an example, not
necessarily myself.
But I'm I'm always feeling likeI'm a couple steps ahead.
And body language is a hugething.
(42:42):
There's if there's something offabout someone's body language,
don't let it go.
You know, make sure you'reyou're aware of where they are
in the room, where they are onthe street.
You know, I I was watching likea scary movie or or or something
the other day, and you know, thegirl's walking down the the dark
street, and the van pulls up andshe keeps walking towards the
(43:04):
van, and you know, nothinggood's gonna happen, but you're
you're saying, Oh, go the otherway, go the other way.
But I mean it was a movie, soshe went towards the van and
things didn't turn out verywell.
Yeah, but um yes, so I have beentempted and I've been ready to
execute my skills at the cost ofmy own life for the people that
(43:29):
I care about.
SPEAKER_03 (43:32):
What's one move or skill you wish everybody could
learn instantly from Wing Chun?
SPEAKER_05 (43:41):
One thing that I wish everyone could learn is a
punch.
We in Wing Chun we do centerlinepunches and rapid punches.
So punching is an amazing thingbecause if you punch someone in
the, and I don't recommend this,of course, but in the uh Solar
plexus area, uh, you could windsomebody enough to run to
(44:05):
safety.
Yeah, you could punch someone inthe face, you could run to
safety.
So just learning how to actuallyexecute a powerful punch, not
just a punch that meets atarget, but goes through a
target.
So you always want to thinkpunch, but punch through your
target.
(44:25):
Or, you know, if if anyone outthere is listening and of course
might need to use these skills,that's an important thing, is
that a punch with intention tomove through will pack a lot
more power.
SPEAKER_03 (44:39):
Interesting.
Yeah, I think I punched a stun.
So there's something I can workon.
Yeah, yeah.
Punch through, don't just touch.
Yeah.
So you've you've got your you'vegot your school, you've got your
online school, you've written abook to share principles with
(45:00):
the public to help us live moreproductive lives.
What's next for Kung Fu Kendra?
SPEAKER_05 (45:09):
Well, I've I've also started a magazine publication.
So it's called Natural ChunMagazine.
That's uh that's pretty new.
Uh but what's next is I'mworking on two programs right
now.
One is the Wing Chun Ring.
It's a ring apparatus thatteaches how to maintain proper
structure with your moves.
(45:29):
Um, and then I'm also teachingan instructor course for people
to learn how to teach womenself-defense.
So it's a teach the teachercourse.
So I think that there should bemore self-defense teachers for
women and of course children andelderly as well.
And that's also included in thecourse.
So I'm working on that.
(45:51):
And aside from the women'sself-defense course, in the
future, I would like to moveinto health and supplements, so
protein powders and wing chun uhnutrition, so to speak.
SPEAKER_03 (46:08):
That's fantastic.
That's fantastic.
Well, we will definitely stay intouch so that I can share all of
these great things coming downthe pike, as well as all of the
things you've alreadyaccomplished with folks that are
listening.
Speaking of folks that arelistening, where can anybody
find you online to take a lookand possibly sign up for a
(46:31):
course, buy your book?
SPEAKER_05 (46:33):
Absolutely.
Well, the easiest thing iskungfukendra.com.
There is a ton of free giveawayson there, free sample classes, a
store full of everything frommeditation audios to audiobooks
to breathing exercises toworkouts, pretty much everything
(46:56):
for health and wellness thatI've created at
KungfuKendra.com.
You can also just Google Kung FuKendra, and there's a lot of
information that will come up.
SPEAKER_03 (47:09):
Fantastic.
Kendra, I wish you the best ofluck and success with everything
that you've currently got goingon and all of the things that
you're working on.
And I can't thank you for allyour time today.
SPEAKER_05 (47:24):
Thank you, Helen.
It's been an honor and apleasure, and thank you for
taking the time to speak withme.
SPEAKER_03 (47:33):
Just listening to the conversation won't make us
more confident, disciplined,efficient, productive, or even
better connected to our innerstrength.
But Kendra provided a ton oftools and resources to begin
those journeys for ourselves.
I think the one thing that stoodout to me about Kendra's story
(47:57):
is the word fearless.
She took an event beingattacked, which brings about a
lot of fear, and turned it intothe exact opposite.
Fearlessly finding a way tobetter defend herself and those
she loves, fearlessly jumpinginto her newfound love of Wing
(48:18):
Chun Kung Fu, fearlesslycreating an inclusive kung fu
community, and fearlesslyjumping into the authoring and
publishing arena.
All in the name of enrichingothers' lives, which in turn
adds to hers.
I love the full circle effectbeing fearless has in her
(48:41):
journey.
Jump down to the show notes forlinks to Kendra's online
community where you can find herbook, links to her classes, even
online classes, her magazine,and so much more.
And while you're there, don'tforget to connect with me.
All my socials are includedthere as well.
(49:03):
And I just want to point out abrand new feature.
You can now leave me a voicemailand let me know what you're
thinking about the content, aspecific episode, suggestions
for future guests, or even leaveme a message regarding what
you're passionate about.
I would love to connect with youin that way.
(49:24):
Use the tell me what you thinkabout this week's episode link
at the very top of the shownotes.
Thanks for listening, and I'llsee you in two weeks.
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