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"Your guide for newbies covers vastly all the points that worry me the most ... I read it eagerly the minute I received it, and several times more after. ... I wonder how people used to prepare for their first gradings in the olden days, before you guys wrote this guide ... In general, I like the understanding and friendly style of yours, and the tricks to gain a few secs in case you feel too tired! ..." Patricia, London
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Before going on to relating to other people in the dojo, I would like to write about the overall process of dojo-change.
I've recently read about the steps of cultural shock (and I wrote a post about it which was lost just before submitting...), because of moving to a new country. The four steps of cultural shock are always there, and none of the steps can be skipped no matter how much you would want that. The only thing that might change is the duration of the individual stages. Before going onm here's the steps from Wikipedia:
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