That’s a good question!? I’d like to know as well , but for me It depends on uke, I usually begin by setting up Shomen (#1) and allow everything else to flow naturally from the reaction it creates. How about you explain your favorite and why?

@David Dunner I tell my students—and anyone willing to listen—this simple truth: there should always be a foot race before any knife fight. Movement is wisdom. Distance is mercy. Before skill, before courage, before technique, there must be awareness and choice. If there is space to leave, leaving is not weakness—it is understanding. The blade teaches humility. Not every conflict is meant to be met, and not every danger is meant to be mastered. Sometimes the highest expression of training is knowing when not to engage at all. Run when you can. Train so you know why.

@Curtis Roberts That’s a great framework, and it maps very cleanly into Aikido principles. Pause to preserves ma-ai and prevents from allowing the collapse of distance too early or reacting blindly. Breathe restores posture and center, which is essential for awareness of both self and environment. Think allows timing to blend instead of being rushed, so movement stays connected to what is actually happening. Act then becomes kuzushi—not forced, but arising naturally because balance, distance, and awareness are already aligned. In this way, P.B.T.A. supports self-control, situational awareness, and clear movement under pressure. Nice addition Curtis

@David Dunner That’s a powerful way to put it, and it aligns exactly with what I’m trying to talk about here. Staying calm when everything goes loud isn’t something you decide in the moment—it’s something that’s already been trained into you. Pressure doesn’t create new behavior; it reveals what’s there. That’s why pressure testing matters. Not to harden ego, but to clarify instincts, and show flaws in training. When skills have been trained honestly and repeatedly, they surface without conscious effort when the situation demands it. What I’ve found in Tomiki’s Aikido is, this is precisely why pressure testing is treated as information to take back to practice ( the lab) to be refined. It shows us what we actually rely on when choice is limited and time is compressed. Calm under pressure isn’t passive. It’s the result of preparation, reflection, and responsibility—so when action is required, it comes from training rather than reaction alone Thank you for sharing that perspective, your service. And welcome