Free Martial Arts...Part II

I had some great feedback on the first Free Martial Arts...post.  Thank you to all that took the time to comment and provide insight.  Recently, Kai added to the conversation/discussion.  By the time I finished thinking about all the points that had been raised and responded, I realized I had enough for a follow up post.

I've copied over Kai's comments and my response/follow up, um, follows...

This topic has had me doing quite a bit of introspection.

Kai's comments:

"Dear Journeyman,
I love this post, it is so vulnerable and open. Here are my thoughts for what it is worth . . .

- No you are not “overthinking”, or being over dramatic by presenting this as a case of handing over “the keys to the kingdom”. I actually think that’s a very good metaphor in this case, given how much you have to offer this man, and the world in general. Your system is like your own baby and you need to be absolutely certain and comfortable before you entrust it to anyone else’s care.

- So I don’t think any of us can advise you whether to go for it with him at present. You just don’t know him that well, as you say, so how can you trust him with your precious material? So in my view your options are not so much about whether to hand over all or part of your material (etc). It’s more about deciding whether he has any potential, and if he does, then deciding to invest some more in getting to know him. BEFORE you commit to this relationship, or give anything to him. And if you decide that he is not going to be the right person, ether now or after you get to know him, it’s fine for you to just walk away.

- I don’t know much about this kind of scenario myself, but just Googled “How to choose a business partner” and found LOADS of good articles – here are some: 10 questions to ask before committing to a business partner; Is Your Co-Founder 'the One'? 7 Ways to Tell; Evaluating and Selecting a Strategic Partner. (Sorry the links haven't copied over into this reply).

- But I think the deepest, strongest question in your article is the one you don’t actually include in your list at the end which is: is it ok for you to charge money for something as pure, noble and beautiful as the martial arts? It feels like you are drawn to transforming your hard work into income, but are unsure whether this is actually ok in the first place, and you are asking us either to validate this action, or tell you if we disapprove (because money would somehow taint and soil our art). 

- Again this is just my opinion, but I would say that you absolutely have the right to be paid for your hard work. People draw salaries for their day-to-day jobs all the time and no one thinks anything of it. So why should your work be any less valuable just because you’re doing it independently and not for an employer – and out of love? Your blog is beautiful, and clearly the result of so much work and knowledge, and you have every right to capitalise on this; you would really not be doing anything wrong. 

- Of course some people make money from the martial arts in a wrong way, such as opening up a poor quality “belt factory” and teaching crap - or abusing their students etc - but from what you have said, that kind of activity is absolutely nothing to do with where you want to go. 

- Your post also made me think of the Buddhist concept of “Right Livelihood”. People have to make a living, and it’s proper that you should do this in an ethical way, and make the world a better place in the process. And helping people to find personal power and stay safe is an awesome way to serve humanity.

- On a stronger note, I also thought of the Parable of the Talents (bible) when I read your post. The first two servants use the money they are given well, and double it. The third servant in the story does nothing with the talent he is given – he just buries it in the ground to keep it safe. And the first two servants are rewarded - but the third man is severely punished. This sounds like a harsh story, but I believe its message is that we have a moral responsibility to make the most of what we have been given in life?

Sorry this reply is so long! and hope it doesn’t sound too “prescriptive” :-) it's really only my own thoughts and feelings on your story. Wishing you all the very best with this – are you going to keep us updated via your blog . . . ?

Best wishes Kai"

My Response:

Kai,

Thanks for taking the time to leave such a thoughtful and insightful response. I’m glad you enjoyed the post.  

I do feel like my system/program/vision is, as you said “my baby”.  At the same time, I don’t want to be too full of myself or selfish.  Your suggestion to get to know him better before coming to any arrangement is spot on.  I’m going to check out your suggestions for choosing a business partner.  Thanks.

You said:

“But I think the deepest, strongest question in your article is the one you don’t actually include in your list at the end which is: is it ok for you to charge money for something as pure, noble and beautiful as the martial arts? It feels like you are drawn to transforming your hard work into income, but are unsure whether this is actually ok in the first place, and you are asking us either to validate this action, or tell you if we disapprove (because money would somehow taint and soil our art).”

I’ve struggled with this for a long time.  The ‘logical’ side of my brain says it’s ok to charge money, but it’s in conflict with the more emotional side and I’ve often wondered why. 

I’ve come to realize that my beginnings in the world of martial arts were heavily influenced by some great teachers, one of whom is still my Sensei, and their attitudes towards money and the martial arts.  A common quote I heard was “You’ll never make any money in the martial arts”.  That statement was multi-layered and what it really meant was that the “belt factories” as you so aptly named them, had washed down technique and were interested ONLY in the money.  As long as you paid, you progressed.  

These dojos often had the newest, shiniest equipment, in stark contrast to the small storefront, leaking roof, duct taped mats that I was accustomed to.  The chain style schools didn’t seem to care about your individual progression, or your actual ability to defend yourself.  So I always shied away from such establishments.  It has served me well over years.  I still train with, and am friends with, several people from those early days.  And that says something about the quality of the people and the training.

To be clear, I always paid some money, there were always club dues, but looking back, I realize just how little I was paying for what I was getting.  And everyone who ever taught me had a full-time job outside the training hall.  It was a labour of love for them.

If I am to be honest with myself, one of the reasons I may be reticent to generate reasonable income from the arts is that I wouldn’t attract me.  What I mean is that the ‘me’ from back then, who had little to no money, might never walk into my program/school/facility due to the financial factor.  

I wouldn’t be the ’me’ that I am today, in the arts at least, had it not been for the experiences I had back then.  I remember being completely broke and occasionally not having the monthly dues.  The Sensei(s) never turned me away.  Bad business model, but I am still loyal to them today, nearly 25 years later, so maybe it had some merits…and I was the first one to help with water damage, moving a dojo location etc.  So, it’s complicated.

On the flip side, generating income can greatly assist in improving the quality of training delivered, if the development of the student remains the main focus/priority.  And it helps to offset the time and energy expended on such a pursuit.  It also allows the teacher (me in this scenario) to continue to upgrade their own skills and knowledge, and have safe and effective training equipment etc.

And you’re absolutely correct, 

“People draw salaries for their day-to-day jobs all the time and no one thinks anything of it. So why should your work be any less valuable just because you’re doing it independently and not for an employer – and out of love?”
And thank you for bringing my attention to the Buddhist concept of “Right Livelihood”.  I’ve been thinking on this quite a bit since I read your comments.  
“People have to make a living, and it’s proper that you should do this in an ethical way, and make the world a better place in the process. And helping people to find personal power and stay safe is an awesome way to serve humanity.”

I had not thought of it quite like that before.  I’m going to meditate on that. Thanks.

The ‘Parable of the Talents’ is also interesting, “…a moral responsibility to make the most of what we have been given…”  More food for thought.

Thank you again for your comments and I’m happy that you enjoy the blog. You’ve given me lots to think about.  Thank you for that.    


JM.

Free Martial Arts...

Greed or Quality Control?

That was going to be the title of this post at first.  Or Altrusism vs. Pettiness

I have a martial conundrum.  

I was recently approached by a very well meaning martial arts instructor who wanted help in developing/designing a self-defense class for his martial arts school (where he is a lead instructor, not an owner).

I agreed to meet with him and see what ideas he had.  I firmly believe that the 'end-game' in martial arts should be to help others, and in many ways, that should be reward enough.

I met with him and we sat down to chat about martial arts, specifically self-defense.  

This instructor is very skilled in his chosen martial art.  I had to give him credit, he knows his stuff.  Just as importantly, he also knows what he does not know. He had very little idea where to start with a self-defense specific class.  He wanted to draw on my experience and skill set to help.   

After chatting for the better part of an hour, a couple of things became quite clear.

1. He really did have no idea where to start.
2. He wanted me to provide all the material.  

So, when I say he wanted me to provide all the material, I mean just that.  He wanted to do design, develop, and maybe even deliver the product once.  Or show him how to deliver it.

So what's the problem?

I find myself struggling with how to handle this. 

On one hand, I want to help people learn how to defend themselves from real violence.

On the other, I don't want to just give away all my material to someone and walk away.  I've spent a long time working on researching violence, selecting and tweaking effective techniques and developing teaching methodologies to put together what I believe to be a realistic and effective program.

This is still a work in progress but the major 'guts' of it already exist.  

To this instructor's credit, again, he was interesting in having me deliver the program the first time, and not for free.  He wanted to watch and then take over teaching it from that point on.

I'm uncomfortable with this.  I don't know him that well and I have concerns he wouldn't deliver it in the way that I would.  A good self-defense program is reliant not only on techniques and concepts, but in the instructor's ability to deliver it and have the lessons 'stick'.  If you can't retain what you've learned past the lesson, it's of no value.

Am I being petty?  Greedy?  Have I lost sight of the true meaning of the martial arts?  

Or am I just concerned about people not receiving training that they could actually use to save their lives or protect them or their loved ones from injury?

I don't want a watered down version of my material being delivered.  

Long term readers of this blog will know that I've often pondered whether or not it's ok to make money from the martial arts.  In the spirit of openness, I would like one day to be able to supplement my income somewhat through teaching self-defense.  

So, in some ways, this could be an opportunity to show my stuff, as it were, in an established club. But...

Luckily, I have a bit of time to decide what to do.  The instructor in question didn't really even know who the target audience was, how long the program would be, if it would be an ongoing thing every week or a program with a start and end date, for example 6 weeks, once a week etc.

The target audience changes the way in which a program is delivered.  I would take a different approach teaching seasoned martial artist than I would people who have done little or no training at all.  

I've left it that he needs to put together a shell of what he wants to deliver, and to who, before I could really weigh in on it.

This much I know.  I want to help, in some capacity.  But should I turn over the keys to the kingdom? (wow, I'm being dramatic...).

THE QUESTION:

Should I just say no?
Should I consult on his material only?
Should I give him my whole program and hope for the best?
Should I deliver it once but not turn over the supporting material and hope for the best?
Should I give a one day seminar and see if they want to hire me for the rest?

Or are there other options?

Should I copy-write my material?  Register a business?  Develop a train-the-trainer program?

Am I losing sight of the big picture?  Am I over thinking all this?

Thoughts?

Superficial Sensei? Don't judge a book by it's cover...

When we look for a Sensei or a teacher, we search for certain traits, personality, knowledge and characteristics.  Often times we can only get a glimpse watching or taking a trial class.  One of the best ways to judge a teacher is to observe the students, on and off the mats.  Are they friendly, welcoming, serious about their training with a sense of humour or are they arrogant, unfriendly, or aloof?  This tends to be reflective of the teacher.

But what does a good teacher actually look like?  If you had to pick based largely on physical appearance, who would you choose?  And how much are you influenced, consciously or unconsciously, by how a Sensei looks? 

At first glance (pun intended), you’ll likely want to respond that a person’s appearance has nothing to do with your selection criteria.  After all, we’re all striving for perfection of character in our studies, right?

Truth be told, we all have our biases.  This isn’t always a bad thing.  It’s part of the human condition.  Some are based on a survival instinct.  Many we have ingrained at a subconscious level.  Some of these unconscious biases are incongruous with our conscious positions or beliefs.  Our society and the media have programmed us to respond to certain physical characteristics. 

So what does this have to do with selecting a martial arts teacher?  Who do we naturally gravitate towards?

As I mentioned, our unconscious, or subconscious biases, are often at odds with our consciously held beliefs.

No?  Pop quiz:

 1.    Male, 40’s, muscular and lean, military or MMA background

     2.  Female, 40’s, short and a tiny bit plump, works as a mid level manager in a      

          large company

You’ve now got a picture in your head.

So, who’s the better pick to teach self defense?  We could all answer that it doesn’t matter as long as they had the knowledge, skills and abilities but without an extended period of time observing or being taught, we have a tendency to assign value to factors that may or may not be accurate.

If you picked number 1, are you now defending your position because of his background?  That’s fine, but if I hadn’t mentioned the military or MMA background, would your initial pick have changed from the fit male to the shorter, 'softer' female?  This isn’t an attack or criticism, simply something to think about.

Even if we’re able to logically and consciously dispense with gender and physical traits, could we still be influenced unconsciously?

The curious thing is that we often respect or seek out martial arts teachers that are, well, bad asses.  Impressive physical specimens, who look tough, even a little intimidating.  The type of guy (or gal) that looks like they could kick our butts.

There’s nothing really wrong with that.  We want to learn from people that we figure could easily ‘take us' in a fight.  You don’t seek out someone to teach you that you believe you could easily beat in a physical altercation.  You want to learn to be tough from someone who is tough, tougher than you.  You want to learn to be just as tough, tougher.

But what does that really mean?  Are we potentially ruling out people who may have more to offer than we initially think?

Who, as a teacher is really more impressive?  And what do we hope to learn?  If our true goal is to learn to deal with real violence and to survive if attacked, who should we look to?  Should we pick the big, strong, amazingly fit person, of the more average one?

When weighing our options, we need to make sure we balance all the factors.  What’s actually more impressive, someone more physically fit that you are doing a technique on you effectively, or someone less imposing doing the same?

In styles such as Jiu Jitsu, you use your opponent’s energy and force against them.  It is an effective martial art for learning how to defeat a bigger, more powerful attacker.  Sometimes referred to as the “gentle art” – ha!

How, then, you answer the question of who’s more impressive?

The vast majority of time, the smaller, less powerful individual will have a higher level of skill in their technique.  They won’t have the luxury of being able to ‘power through’ a poor application of technique to compensate.  They will often be superior in the way they teach as they had to learn it properly right from the start.  There are no cutting corners; you have to learn to do it right or you’re in trouble.

Back to the pop quiz.

Obviously, there was not nearly enough information to make a proper assessment, and gender was thrown in as a means for a little introspection, but the fact remains -  It may be better to seek out someone of lesser physical stature who has learned his or her art to such a level that they can effectively defend themselves and teach others, as opposed to a genetically gifted athlete.  

Those that have had to work harder for their accomplishments are often better teachers and more skilled than the ‘naturals’.

Appearances can be deceiving.

Picture Morihei Ueshiba, especially later in his life.  You could argue he didn’t look very intimidating physically.  Imagine you passed on training with him due to his somewhat diminutive status as compared to many other ‘tough guys’.

It may be better to seek out someone who can effectively defend themselves when they’re at their worst, as opposed to someone at their best and at their peak. 

A short, heavy, injured person who can take defend themselves may have more to teach you than an elite athlete in their prime that can do 10 minute rounds without breaking a sweat.  

Obviously, physical fitness is an important component of martial arts training, and it can only make things easier for you.  For pure quality of technique and teaching effectiveness, however, it may not be the only pre-requisite.

Keep an open mind.  

An important lesson in the martial arts.  And in life...

Good business or Good Martial Arts? The Passion vs. Profit Debate

I’ve heard it said often that you can’t make money at the martial arts unless you’re ripping your students off.  I don’t totally agree but there are truly two sides to teaching martial arts. 

 1. A passion for teaching martial arts

     2. The business side of things

There are fantastic martial artists and teachers who fail at running a school or dojo and there are so-so ones that succeed and make a fair amount of money in the process. 

Is it ok to make enough money to teach martial arts full-time?  I’ve always been around people who had full-time jobs and taught on the side.  They often criticized anyone who ran a big school.  I originally agreed, shunning the bigger, flashier schools with lots of merchandise, fees for stripes, strips, stickers etc.  It seemed wrong somehow.

Now I’m not so sure.  Running a club (for profit) is a business.  A business must have a plan.  When we compare what we pay for other services, it’s surprising how little we want to pay for martial arts training.  Many people wouldn’t hesitate to pay much more for yoga, exercise classes in the park, spinning etc.  These are all great pursuits by the way, but to many, $100.00 a month for 1 and ½ to 2 hour classes, 3 times a week seems on the high end.  That’s 12 classes a month minimum if you went to all of them.   That’s $8.33 per class, or a little over $4 bucks and hour.  Your average yoga/meditation/mindfulness class will run you much higher, often 3 to 4 times as much (per hour).

Still, you aren’t going to get a lot of people signing up for a martial arts club willing to pay $200-$300 a month.  So you’ve got to do other things.

Merchandise is one way.  Most uniforms, pads etc. can have a decent markup.  Kids are good money makers.  Parents tend to be willing to pay lots more for their kids to be in martial arts than they are for themselves.  Compare other children’s activities, sports, clubs etc. and martial arts are a bargain.

If you could make a living teaching martial arts, is there anything wrong with that?  If you continued to improve your own skills to give your students the best possible training you can provide, isn’t that a good thing?

I’ve revisited this topic due to some recent visits I’ve made to some clubs in hopes of supplementing my current training regimen.

I watched a class, and was struck by…how shall I put this…poor the instruction was.  There was clearly no real knowledge base about how an attack might come in, or how a defense could be applied.  The people were, in my estimation, well intentioned.  I just felt they lacked the depth of knowledge surrounding the realities of violence.  They had clearly learned the techniques and were doing their best to pass them on, but I’m not sure they really understood them.  

And the students were serious about their training (which is good) but I felt they were getting technique that might not translate to the real world.  And they clearly didn’t know this.  I may sound overly harsh and don’t mean to be, but that’s what I saw.  Well intentioned instructors, hardworking respectful students, and positive energy.  The only thing lacking was consistent street worthy technique.  I should mention that some was decent.

The original point of all this was that this business was successful, with charts for grading fees, schedules, merchandise, t-shirts, gym bags, jackets, books, magazines etc.  This particular club has been successfully running for well over a decade.

There are (in my opinion), better qualified people to teach in the area, but few know how to make money in the arts.

Is it ok to make a living at the martial arts?  Does doing so mean an inferior training experience for students? 

Can you still find the depth of knowledge in the arts in a commercially successful martial arts school? 

It would be the dream of many to make a decent living in the martial arts.  Is it possible to do so without ‘selling out’?

Thoughts?

How to judge a martial arts school in less than 15 minutes

I recently had a very positive experience visiting a martial arts school.  A seminar was being held by a very skilled practitioner that was in the area for a couple of days before continuing on his cross country circuit.  I had heard of him and had seen online clips which were impressive.  My Sensei also spoke highly of him, which was reason enough for me to seek him out.

The problem?  It was being held at a dojo that I had never been to.  Add to that I was going solo and knew no one who was attending.  And it wasn’t a Jiu Jitsu dojo.

It’s always a little daunting to go to a strange location full of strangers.  Would I be allowed to attend?  Would it be awkward?  Would people be standoffish?  Would they want to test me to see if I deserved my ranking?  Would I stand awkwardly off to the side while everyone paired up?

So many questions.

So what did I do?

First, I checked the school’s website/Facebook page.  It said “Open to all schools and styles”.  Good sign.

Next, I called on the way, speaking to the owner/head intructor.  I asked him if it was ok if I just showed up and paid on arrival (you could pay on-line on his site – great idea!)  “Sure”, he said, asking only if I had any martial arts experience and if I had a gi or would be in street clothes.   Sounded friendly.  

Another good sign.

Arrival.  I found my way in.  Being a new face, I was immediately approached by the owner who introduced himself and welcomed me.  He introduced me to his second in command (only on paper, I suspect – his wife).  They both shook my hand, asked me to fill in the standard waiver.  I offered my payment, which was nice, they didn’t’ ask for it right away. 

Third good sign.

The owner introduced me to one of his students who offered to show me where to change/stow my gear etc.  Very nice person, let me use his locker so I could lock my valuables away.

Back to the mats.  Lots of people in attendance.  Crowed place.  Mainly students from the same school, but a couple visiting schools were represented with different gis, crests etc.

As we stretched awaiting the start of the seminar, I was approached by most of the students from the school who all welcomed me to the event.  Really made me feel at ease.  

Very good sign. 

As the warm up began (little was I to know it would last over an hour…), there was general good humour and positive energy, with humorous glances and looks during the more intense part of the torture, er warm up as we experienced the ‘shared suffering’. 

Once the seminar was underway, each time the visiting teacher told us to mix up partners, I was always the one approached by someone from the hosting school with an offer to work with them. 

The seminar itself was very good, with some good solid technique and some great things to think about.  A good time was had by all.  At the end I thanked the owner and his wife for allowing me to attend.  I was told that I was always welcomed and they thanked me for attending.  When I was getting changed, most of the students shook my hand saying that they hoped they would see me again.

I tend to judge a teacher by their students.  Good students, good teacher, generally speaking.

I didn’t get a chance to critique the pure martial skills of the owner, but I got a pretty good indication as I watched him taking the seminar.  No standing off to the side not taking part.  Worked hard, looked pretty sharp.  Yet another good sign.

I may not take the style of martial arts that they normally teach, but I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend the club as a place to check out for those that do.  And I’ll be back.

As I was driving away, I realized that in the course of one short afternoon, I had made a whole bunch of new ‘martial’ friends.  I also realized that even though the whole process spanned over several hours, I knew as soon as I walked into the school that it was a good one. 

It took less than 15 minutes.

A reminder what the martial arts are all about. 

A good day.

Train well.