When we think of soft style concepts, one of the main ideas is that we work with the energy that’s there instead of working against it. Redirecting it, rather than meeting it head on.
Synergy
According to Dictionary.com, synergy is an interaction or cooperation giving rise to a whole that is greater than the simple sum of its parts.
So when we’re talking about martial arts and dealing with an attacker, soft style concepts use the energy that’s coming at them and take charge of it. For comparison, hard style concepts try to stop the energy by crashing into it with as much or more energy.
Words that help us imagine the synergy of energy are flow, redirection, continuation, and coordination.
Soft styles have an attitude of coordination rather than disruption. They flow more than they smash and they attempt to conserve energy and direct it.
