A father was disappointed with his son’s character – the son was bullying other children. So that father employed an ancient tool for character development – boxing.

If empathy is under developed, the surest way to communicate what it feels like to be beaten around, is to get beaten around.

The father brought a professional in to do the attitude adjustment. The father told his son to put on some gloves and headgear, and get in there with someone who knows how to hit back.

The pro enters the ring, and pounds his own face, doubtless to further emphasize to the soon-to-be-former bully what was coming, and instill the sometimes valuable lesson of fear.

Immediately upon the round beginning, it was clear the the bully had skills enough to beat up little kids, but that was it. The pro naturally held back, but still gave the young man the work he so needed and deserved.

A good part of the lesson is verbal and emotional, rather than physical, both from the fighter, and from the father. The father can be seen recording the round with a mobile device, and taunting the likely now former bully.

Hit back, tough guy!” he shouts at about the 1:30 mark of the video. “Hit back, tough guy! Come on.

In the second half of the video, the professional boxer has been replaced with someone far closer in age to the bully. However, the younger boxer still possesses skills sufficient to impart valuable lessons. And the younger boxer does not hold back nearly as much as the professional boxer.

At the end of the video, the young bully’s headgear is removed revealing an exhausted fighter that is bleeding from his nose and mouth. And the young man was in all likelihood wiser and better for the experience.

Kids who are beaten arbitrarily often become bullies. But kids who learn via combat sports what it feels like to be bullied often become better people for the experience.