Meet Tim Flynn

We recently connected with Tim Flynn and have shared our conversation below.

Tim, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?
In March 2022, I went to Los Angles to visit my good friend, Eric the Trainer. We got into discussing why I wanted to learn Martial Arts, and it was due to being bullied from 2nd to 12 grade. Eric sat and listened to me for about an hour as I discussed my experiences with bullying and how I overcame them. He asked me if I talked about my experience to my students, and I said “no.”

Eric made me realize that I have knowledge that you cannot learn from a textbook. I have life experience! I work with kids, teaching them Martial Arts; I should be taking this negative experience and turning it into a positive one by sharing my story and helping children and families that could be going through the same situation right now.

I’ve been running my Martial Art school, called Kato Karate, in Mankato, MN, since 2016. Since then, I have worked with many families daily, and while getting to know them, I heard many stories from my student’s parents about how their child is being bullied and asking for advice on how they can help their child from being bullied in school.

The amount of kids being bullied in school is just enormous. I heard reports from Parents that the school knows about it but is not doing anything to help; my child was just assaulted at school, and the police will not help. It breaks my heart to hear these stories, and I feel I need to do more to combat this issue. I wanted to become the voice for those scared to speak up!

Bullying is not just a simple topic to talk about. There are many factors we have to look at: 1, determine if it is actual bullying or kids being rude, 2, what type, is it Physical, Verbal, Cyber, or all 3? That is why I started my outreach program, “Karate Chop Bullying.”

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
Karate Chop Bullying kicked off October 15th, 2022, at the Martial Arts History Museum in Burbank, CA. We had celebrities from Film, Television, and Martial Art Icons and spoke about how we overcame bullying! Our goal was to inspire hope in a child or anyone experiencing bullying and let them know there is light at the end of the tunnel.

Since then, I have been traveling the country with Karate Chop Bullying teaching kids Anti Bullying techniques and self-worth. I even started a Podcast called Karate Chop Bullying – The Podcast. In the podcast, we let people talk about their bullying experiences and let them share how they overcame bullying. Our Mission is to “Break the Silence” on bullying and to provide inspiration. You can listen to our podcast here www.KarateChopBullying.com

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
All of this success in my life happened from a negative experience. Life is full of highs and lows. When we are at our highest, we feel amazing! When we feel our lowest, we tend to feel depressed and lose hope. I believe the negative in our life is there to teach us a lesson or give us a skill we will need to pass on in the future. We may not understand why we are going through a rough time right now, but if we persevere through it, we become stronger.

The advice I give my students is to “Never Give UP!” Giving up is easy. Giving up does not make you stronger mentally and physically. Giving up doesn’t make you a better person!

Perseverance makes you Stronger, more Knowledgeable, and more Successful.

Any advice for folks feeling overwhelmed?
When I feel overwhelmed, I step back from whatever is causing me to feel overwhelmed. I like to play video games to get my mind off the situation, and if that doesn’t work, I call a friend or colleague to get advice. Having a network of people you can go to is extremely important. If something feels challenging, reach out to anyone who will listen. I learned that just talking to another person and getting it off my mind helps me a lot, even if that person didn’t have the advice to give me. All I needed was just a person to listen.

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