Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Is Your Instructor Invincible?


           Do you remember Superman? Faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful... you know rest. (I used to watch these old re-runs as a kid and I always loved it when the bad guy unloaded his revolver at the Man of Steel - with Superman standing around bored as the bullets bounced harmlessly off of his torso, only to have the ne'er-do-well heave the emptied gun at him in frustration , causing Superman to quickly duck out of the way - as if he's thinking 'Hey buddy, bullets are one thing, but tossing that gun could put an eye out!')

Where was I? Oh yes, have ever seen an young instructor act as if he is like the Man of Steel? Invincible to attack, impervious to heat, cold, an expert with guns, with knives...listen to the Colonel:


       How many young black belts are being trained to act as if they have all of the answers and training promised by a school's advertisements?

Usually these young instructors are put through a superficial Instructors Training Program, or a Leadership Program in which they are taught Personality Traits:
  • How to shake hands
  • 100 ways to say good job
  • 'Everyone is a winner' 
  • 'Hi 5's'
It is like they have a shell that they put on and wear. You can't put your finger on it, but something seems to be missing, something fake, and contrived.

Why? Because the owner wants to expand and he's bought into the fact that it is easy to build instructors like McDonald's build a fry cooks. 

Too many instructors are put through contrived programs created by someone else. The school owner, who is either unwilling or unable to create a meaningful instructor's program buys a training program from the MAIA convention, and then figures that a three ring binder and a couple of months of role playing is enough training to start teaching.

The young instructor models himself after the older black belt and slowly stops demonstrating, and little by little stops sharing his skills, and starts telling others what to do versus sharing with others on what he loves to do, causing a wall of separation between the students and himself.

Owners, we are to blame. We are comfortable teaching the 'what', but not so hot teaching the 'why', and the 'how'. The passion that inspired us to dedicate our lives to building a dream business is lost because we fail to continue doing the difficult task of building a quality instructor, of setting high expectations, and holding people accountable. We have often settled for less because we would rather have an inferior employee out on the floor rather than have to work ourselves.

So when the quality drops we scratch our heads. Karate schools are not health clubs. A health club is by it's nature superficial and trendy. A karate school is just an empty room with a black belt waiting to lead.

Character over Personality
What makes a great instructor? Well, what is the definition of the term, 'sensei'? It translates into 'one who was born before.' It isn't intended to mean chronological age, but experience. A great instructor is one who has been there before, actually been out in the ring, one who has put it all on the line versus reading it in a manual and giving the answer rehearsed in their I.T. classes. (that's 'instructor training', not 'information technology')

Two thine own self be true.
(Hey, not bad! We went from Superman to Rambo to Hamlet's Polonius in one caffeine induced blog entry!)

If you desire to be an instructor please understand that there are no shortcuts to the knowledge that comes from experience.

Understand that as a new instructor the thing that counts most is integrity and your ability to develop relationships based on trust. If you are not good at something, then admit it...  

"Hey folks, this is a difficult move, heck, I'm still struggling with it, let's work on it together and see how we do!"

I don't know about you but when someone is honest with me it goes a long way to building a solid relationship.

New Instructors, please remember that your biggest asset is your enthusiasm for the martial arts, and you will be successful when you approach class as a fellow student who is leading the class rather than playing the part of the all-knowing, all powerful black belt who has misplaced his cape.

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Are Tournaments Worth It?

        I remember my first tournament. I was a Purple Belt from the U.W. Eau Claire Martial Arts Club in Eau Claire, WI. January 1984, I got beat 6-1 in about 30 seconds because earning a 5 point advantage was an automatic win. I only received a point because my opponent hit me in the head twice, allowing me to get a penalty point. I bowed and quickly changed my clothes so no one would know I was even registered, and I got back out on the gym floor before our division was over. Later in the event I saw my future instructor go through everyone like grease through a goose. Wow. Impressive. When I went to congratulate him, he said to me, 'Why don't you start coming around more often and we'll show you how to do this stuff?' I joined his school the next week.

        I was lucky. I was in the right place at the right time. I had finally found something to give my life meaning. Many of my friends were chasing degrees in business, accounting, finance or information systems, but I just couldn't see graduating and sitting in a cubicle somewhere as just another cog in the wheel. I guess I was a little immature and saw too many movies as a kid, hoping that life would have more adventure. After karate class I would come home to our college house while they were having frat parties, and everyone was dressed up in suits and ties except for me, and I'd be the one walking around usually with a icepack for my black eye or something, thinking that they were the weird ones. (Oh, by the way, a lot of them are general partners, managers and company presidents now.)

        A year later, I decided to leave school, move to a different town, live in poverty for the next several years and be a karate instructor, and weekend tournament fighter. There wasn't a lot of recognition outside the local karate gang, but I wouldn't exchange those years for anything. It was through these years that I forged life-long friendships, met my future wife, and developed a sense of meaning for myself. Although it didn't dawn on me at the time that I was setting in motion an exercise in character training that I probably wouldn't have got anywhere else outside the military-(two shoulder surgeries kept me out)

        Nowadays, when I here someone talking to kids about competition and how it builds character, all I usually hear is a bunch of platitudes about how they shouldn't 'let losing bother them.' Yet for all of the ones that I know that talk that way, losing bothered them quite a bit.

       So many people speak out of fear: of loss, of looking stupid, of discovering that they may not have what it takes, that they focus on trying to keep things from going wrong, rather than focusing on making things go right.

         What do I mean? Well, let's say you have an instructor, boss, mentor, or  coach (like my old high school football coach) and all he says are reactive comments, "If 'x' happens, we're gonna have to do 'y'!"
That is the talk of a scared leader, and you can sense the fear of losing seeping out of his pores.

         My instructor was a winner. He would get eye-to-eye with me and say, "Establish your side kick and be first, make them play catch up to you." Heck, even typing those words 25 years later causes my hands to shake a bit, and my heart to beat a little faster - Someone believed in me! I could feel it in my gut that I was going to win, or at least give a good showing. I should also mention the difficult workouts; the hills, the sprints, 1000 kicks a day, the sparring sessions that went on for hours - they were the acts that gave his words so much iron.

          For most karate students tournaments are a lot of fun, allowing them a challenge to test themselves, get some experience and maybe win a trophy, and that is all that they need to be. I don't push competing on my students because most of them joined for far different reasons than the ones that compelled me to start lessons. My experiences don't need to be theirs.

           Are tournaments worth it? For me they were. Are they for you? That is for you to decide.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.