The Creator.

When reading bios, sometimes it seems more like the writer is trying to woo readers with an overwhelming amount of “I did this, so you should learn from me,” credentials. For these reasons writing this autobiographical information was difficult.
I am not the type of person who does things for bragging rights. Mostly, all the things that led me to the creation of BPC are as a result of my passion for martial arts. People say I have a gift for combat and martial arts, but I do this because I love it. I have made martial arts my life.

Since my eighth year on this earth, I have practiced and studied the martial arts, winning a few championships along the way. As a young man of nineteen, my desire to use my abilities to bring good to the world led me to become a security professional at the Sarnoff Corporation in Princeton, NJ. At twenty-one, the martial arts became such a part of me that I left everything behind in NJ, moving to Ohio to become a personal student of Stephen K. Hayes, a Black Belt Hall Fame honored, self-protection and criminal expert and personal protector to the Dalai Lama of Tibet.

While in Ohio, I took my passion further by becoming a student at one of the United States premier executive protection (bodyguard) academies, Executive Security International (E.S.I.). During my E.S.I. training, I served as personal security for two well-known clients. In my continued pursuit to serve I took a position as a security professional for The Limited Corporation.

Continuing my studies with Stephen K. Hayes, I and a few other students saw a great opportunity to bring the lessons of our empowering system to the inner city youth. We soon started the nonprofit organization Spirit Quest, which has served over two hundred inner city youth since its inception.

At twenty-five, my calling drove me to join the Military as a Special Operations soldier where I then began to create BPC.

  • Some other ways that I have been able to serve:
  • Appeared in a Discovery Channel “Unsolved History” episode
  • Appeared in numerous, nationally distributed martial art DVDs
  • Created Assailant Countering Tactics (ACT) curriculum for women
  • Wrote and published “I Choose to ACT” empowerment book
  • Created Battlefield Proximity Combat (BPC) Curriculum
  • Organized and taught several BPC classes in Iraq
  • Wrote BPC book
  • Served for 15 months in Iraq
  • Trained over 100 82nd airborne division soldiers in BPC
  • Trained Psychological Operations soldiers in BPC
  • Trained Civil Affairs soldiers in BPC



As you will notice I am at no shortage of accomplishments. I mention these so you know I have dedicated my life to learning what I teach. Yet, as I stated before, this is not as important to me as just helping others by doing what I love.

When it all comes down to it, the only thing that I find truly important about my history is my passion for the martial arts and my desire to use my strengths to strengthen my community, my family and my country. I live loving to serve, and through service, I experience true living.

—Hakim Isler