Choose a USA Taekwondo affiliated school which teaches Olympic style taekwondo. These are recognized by the US Olympic Committee and the National Governing Body for taekwondo in the United States. This body educates coaches and checks their background for safety, so you can be sure that you are being trained safely and conscientiously. Use the Team USA taekwondo club locator app on the Team USA website to find a local school. The World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) World Ranking has 8 senior weight divisions for male and female, respectively. The WTF Olympic Ranking is broken up into eight weight categories: 4 for the male and 4 for the female divisions. You can find out which category you fit by visiting the WTF website. Weight categories will differ for juniors. To check junior weight divisions, visit the Team USA taekwondo site. There are three main advanced attack methods. Each technique requires being in a strong physical condition and having flexibility, power, coordination, agility, and fast reflexes. In addition, one must exercise judgment as to which technique is optimal at any given point depending on the fighting conditions. The techniques are:  Direct attack. There are three main types of direct attacks: the in-place attack, the incline attack, and the sliding attack. Which one you use will depend on the distance and stance of your opponent. Indirect attack. There are three types of indirect attack: cutting, feinting, and footwork. These mislead the attack of your opponent. Counterattack. There are direct and indirect counterattacks. The latter type of attack involves footwork followed by an attack, whereas the former involves staying in place.
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One-sentence summary -- Sign up for a taekwondo class. Determine your weight category. Learn attack methods.


Being organized is key to being the best girl ever. Even the prettiest and happiest girls can be caught up in clutter. Lay out your clothes every morning, make your bed, keep your room clean, and always have the project that is due ready for the next day at school! This might be yoga, meditation, swimming laps of the pool, going for a walk, etc. Do whatever helps you to find a calm space amid the busyness of your life. This will allow you to cope with times of stress better, such as during exams or relationship breakups. Relax. Daily meditation or affirmations can be useful for keeping you both relaxed and focused on the purpose that you've chosen for yourself.
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One-sentence summary -- Stay organized. Take up relaxation exercises to keep you calm.


If you meet someone with a good job in the industry you’re interested in, or you have an acquaintance or manager at the firm where you’re interning, you might want to conduct an informational meeting with them.  An informational meeting—also known as an informational interview—is a conversation with a reference or acquaintance who can serve as a professional resource for you.  You get to ask the person about their experience, their field, and any advice they might have for candidates trying to get into the field. When considering who to ask for an interview or whether or not to ask a specific person, try jotting down what you want to accomplish and what kind of information you’re looking for.  For example, are you interested mainly in strategic advice for application materials, or do you just want some general information about the field in order to determine your interest in a career in the industry?  Answering these kinds of questions will help you determine who will be a good interviewee and whether or not a specific candidate will be useful to you. When asking a contact or acquaintance for an informational interview, you should mention the phrase ‘informational meeting’ or ‘informational interview’ explicitly.  If you don’t request this specifically, the person might show up expecting informal drinks or a friendly chat and then feel miffed or caught off-guard when you start asking serious questions.  For example, if you’ve met someone at a party or networking event and chatted for a bit, say something like, “I have a lot of questions about the field and your experience in it—would you mind getting coffee some time and having an informational meeting with me?” If you don’t have the chance to ask them in person, you can make contact via email or telephone.  Just make sure to be concise and polite so that they don’t feel burdened by the request. Though the person giving you an informational meeting might be glad to help you, they’re still doing you a favor by giving you some time out of their work day.  This means that you should make the meeting as convenient for them as possible, taking up no more of their time than 15-30 minutes.  Check with your interviewee as to what time of day—for example, during lunch break or after work—and what kind of venue—for example, a coffee shop or their office—they prefer. You should also let them know that, while an in-person meeting would be great, a telephone or online conversation is also perfectly fine.  This consideration shows that you’re respectful of their time and happy to accept any modicum of help they’re willing to dole out. Once you’ve set up a meeting with your contact, research their background as best you can.  This will help you figure out how to approach them, as well as what information they can give you.  For example, find out what career path they’ve followed and what their main projects and roles are currently. Asking specific questions will also show your interest and enthusiasm.  Over-the-top flattery should be avoided, but something like, “My old manager said she learned so much about turning your passion project into a viable company—how did you get started in the first place?” can grease the wheels and make your interviewee more likely to go the extra mile to help you out. Once you’ve identified your goals, draft a plan for the meeting that will accomplish these goals.  Write down the questions you want to ask and put them in a strategic order.  Warm up with general questions that show your curiosity, such as, “How did you get started in this field?” and “What kind of projects are you working on at the moment?”  From there, move on to more specific questions, such as, “What qualifications or skills should I highlight in my application?” or “How should I prepare for an upcoming interview I have scheduled?” You don’t have to read off of this agenda in the meeting if it makes you feel awkward, but you should bring it with you to check periodically and make sure that you don’t skip anything you’d wanted to ask. Perhaps even more than seeking to glean information and advice from an informational meeting, you’re trying to make a positive impression on your interviewee.  You want to give your contact a brief summary of who you are, what makes you unique, and what you’re interested in.  This will make it more likely that they’ll remember you later on if a relevant vacancy at their firm opens up or they meet someone who could be useful to you. In order to do this effectively, jot down a paragraph or a list of points about yourself that you can mention at an appropriate time during the meeting.  This will help make your impression more memorable, as well as prepare you with answers to any questions your interviewee poses to you. One of the most important things you should do at an informational meeting is express interest in the person’s advice and expertise. You can do this by coming prepared with pen and paper and taking notes during the meeting, as well as having an updated resume handy in case the person asks for it.  These preparatory measures indicate that you’re serious about the meeting at hand, respectful of the other’s expertise, and professional about handling and processing new information. You probably don’t need to wear a business suit—unless you’re meeting the contact at their formal, corporate office—to an informational interview, but you should wear something smart and put-together in any case.  A sleek day-dress or well-pressed button-up and trousers will signal to your interviewee that you’ve got your life together and that you care about making a good impression. Avoid jeans, t-shirts, and scuffed sneakers in particular, as these garments can make it seem like you didn’t even bother to interrupt your normal routine when getting ready to meet the contact.
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One-sentence summary --
Consider asking a professional contact for an informational meeting. Request a meeting. Pick a setting and time that is convenient for your contact. Do your homework. Create a list of questions for your meeting. Compose a personal statement. Bring a pen, notepad, and updated resume to your meeting. Dress professionally.