Luther unleashed

Thanks for the input guys, going to work backwards because it's just easier for me to read it and respond right away so here goes... Liger, to your post here: 1. If you have any funds advertise. (find your focus group and put it in tv, internet, radio, or newspaper.) 2. Offers: Introductory offers normally pull people in. 3. Discounts: offer discounts to school kids or homeschool kids. I have no funds, they were depleted upon opening and I foresaw this but chose to take the risk anyways. As for introductory offers currently I am always 1 weeks free, then I'm also offering a summer special of 50% off to get people in. I advertised something similar before I opened and had 10 students before I even opened. I haven't thought about the special offer for kids but it's something to think about. Nidan Melbourne, and tallgeese. My target area is self defense, adults and kids just the same but I suppose I'm geared more for kids when I do my videos. I ha e more experience with kids as that's all I ever became successful teaching at the Rec center. Also, on my part of time there are usually 20 kids to 5 adults in the schools around here so in my opinion it's a wise way to go business wise, if I want to make it. I thoroughly enjoy teaching adults, karate yet making self defense what I always come back to. Not all schools do this and I try and find that angle as well. I believe the art, and my program are solid. Down at the Rec center I maintain about 30 to 40 students with some fluctuation. I stopped really advertising there because I am comfortable with that number, as want more at the new location. My turnover is quite low though. I have a good deal of students that have been with me literally from the first day I opened my program in Jan of 2015. Many others stay months and leave as expected but i always recognize I'm doing something right, and if I didn't see that I wouldn't have taken the risk here with a stand alone location. The issue is not knowing how to get them in the door, my location is hidden from the street a bit although the main intersection is a very descent one with good traffic. I'd love to find software by the way, to help track things but I'm lost in that department. I kept every student I started with into the second month except one that went on vacation, so that number looks good. I am also nicely priced. A Taekwondo school in the area is charging 140 per month, with deposits. I am $99 per month, no deposits an no contracts. Even the place I most recently trained at was $110 so I think I'm at a good number. The Pred, I already answered one question which was who I'm trying to market towards, but the hours are tricky. Basically I'm open Monday and Wednesday from 5:00pm to 8:00pm, and Tuesday and Thursday from 6:00pm to 9:00pm. We are closed Friday, and I'm there Saturday from 10:00 to 2:00pm for open mat and also tried to get a kickboxing class going, been rough. On Tuesday and Thursday I'm at my recreation location and since I teach alone, I needed a solution. FYI my wife was a huge helper and black belt, she recently birthed our new baby girl so not much now haha, my oldest is 14 and on 2 occasions has ran a full class front to back, I was proud although she became ill in December and doesn't help out any more. Stuck with my 11 yr old who can run a group nicely but at 11 it is what it is. My solution was to have another program there on Tuesday and Thursday so I currently have Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, he takes a cut and I take a cut. So far we just picked up the first student 3 weeks ago, slow moving also. Eventually I would consider losing the rec center but I'd have to see something happen consistently at the dojo first. I would then potentially be able to expand hours. Sorry for the book guys, hopefully I responded to everybody who took the time to write, I really appreciate it. I'm really backed against the wall trying to maintain confidence and keep things moving in an upward motion.

So I've been open for about seven weeks now and I'm a little bit stuck in the mud if you will. I ran a promotion and work card before I even open my doors and had a good 10 students or so, since then I have not had any students. I guess what I'm wondering is do you at your studio, have busy and slow times? also what is it that you all do to get students in the door, because I'm not established I feel that word-of-mouth is not as much of an option of course, in my new studio I am not established enough to depend on word-of-mouth, and my old location it is much easier of course. Historically I have seen from training in the area elsewhere, that's the summertime slows down a bit while people go on vacation, I'm hoping he doesn't get too bad since I just opened historically I have seen from training in the area elsewhere, that's the summertime slows down a bit while people go on vacation, I'm hoping he doesn't get too bad since I just opened of course. I am running a summer special for half off the first months to pull people in, I am also flyer ring I am running a summer special for half off the first months to pull people in, I am also placing flyers all over the area, so far in the last week I have done about 150 flyers, some of those are on cars and some of them are talking to people. Rent is coming due soon and I'm going to need to increase my student base in order to succeed here. There is a good deal of competition in the area however none direct competition, meaning none teach the same style, most of them are taekwondo places. I am very active on Facebook and do promotional videos often to try to catch up, I even pay for business ads on Facebook, just curious what you guys think, and all input is appreciated, thanks.

Patience is so necessary. Teaching kids is, as stated by sensie8, an important part of teaching in general. Sometimes I'm frustrated, teaching kids requires a lot of repeating sometimes and after repeating yourself it ends with a consuquence. For me, I see some kids with issues as well, like autism or adhd, and it requires even more patience. It is disruptive to class at times when kids act like kids, but with your patience as an instructor they will understand what's expected of them. Patience is the key to the flow of a child's class on my opinion. An instructor who isn't patient is in for a frustrating evening and I can't imagine them lasting long or enjoying what their craft.

Bruce lee said "kicking a man in the head is like punching him in the foot"! The thing is in my opinion as a martial artist, and as a martial arts instructor, there IS a time and a place for everything. Ronda Rousey was knocked out with this kick, no it's not the street but it's close. I have lost a lot of flexibility at 39, so my last option would be head pro any at this point but it would still be an option.

Not much for all the history and things of that nature, but going back to 1993 or so, "sabomnim" has always been used as a master instructor. From TKD to TSD a master instructor was always so and so sabomnim. It was understood to be master in my schools and never heard it used differently interestingly enough. I have heard Kwan Jang Nim as chief instructor, but all of my master instructors who were also the owners were referred to as Sabomnim. It should be said after the persons last name, so as an example "Jackson Sabomnim" which the English lose translation would be Master Jackson"!

Self defense is a mindframe. First off in dealing with self-defense, the literal meaning is to essentially protect yourself and this means to first remove yourself from the situation when possible. The use of force that could potentially harm another human being should only be used when necessary, this means when there is no other option and you cannot remove your self safely or your family safely from the threat to your self Self defense. In traditional martial arts we have come to use this term as a separate meaning from a fighting stance and striking combinations. My martial arts experience goes back to 1993, and has been geared always towards self defense. I never had an interest in competing in tournaments, I never had an interest in sport fighting, only self defense and the best means to deal with an opponent that intends to hurt me badly! So I welcome others views, I welcome the discussion about what is really effective and what is not, these are my personal feelings about self defense. First off let me say that there IS what I call "nice techniques, and "not so nice" techniques. What I mean by this is that if somebody attacks me, weather it be a punch I deflected and grabbed, or they are grabbing me, I can use my forearm to press against the back of his arm behind the elbow, to lock their arm and take them down or using the same exact technique I can strike the back of the Elbow instead. This becomes either in arm break, or a movement where I can take my opponent to the ground. One of these movements is obviously much nicer than the other. Thinking in this way, I am thinking about whether I need to seriously injure my opponent or not, this thinking could get in the way. If we are to discuss the most effective means of self-defense then we would be naïve to not discuss the most simple way, as the most simple way is the easiest to pull off thus making it often the most effective way. STRIKING! Striking a person in the nose would fall in to the "not so nice" category, but think about this. If a person grabs my shirt, what would Be easier for me to pull off, a grab and elbow lock/arm break, or a quick swift strike to the nose? The answer IMHO is the strike. HOWEVER Because I teach karate, part of this martial arts path means that I must teach a great deal of children. Therefore, I have a great responsibility to make sure we use our knowledge to determine what may be a nice technique. You do not want your child breaking another students nose at school just because they grab him/her on the shoulder, The other student is just a child too and may not be out for blood so it may be quite an over reaction to break their nose, thus my use of the "nice techniques"! In the end the idea is that as adults we must be able to determine the severity of the threat, and we must be able to react to it appropriately. The most effective self-defense is not always the most effective self-defense. What the heck does this mean? It means that what may drop your attacker most quickly is not always what is needed so the most aggressive technique may not be the most effective in that situation. As for what is the most effective to drop an attacker, I will always go with striking, striking a person whether it be a low kick or a direct attack to the face using a hand strike, will always be something that is very easy to pull off because we spend countless hours striking and swinging our limbs to inevitably hit hard to break something, this is why my personal choice in a situation where I am being attacked and maybe afraid for myself or my wife or children, I will always use strikes if the threat dictate this level of aggression of course! What are some of your thoughts guys?

Thanks Sensei, I'm not the best at it but I do a great deal of social media stuff because I enjoy putting promotional videos together and what not. Your right though, in the mix of everything I haven't done some of the things you have suggested. You got me thinking about how some businesses go to a fast food place or restaurant to make some money for a cause. For God reason I have always wanted to do something for my daughters hospital. She has to be there once a week and it's not so kid friendly. Could get out there a little and do it for a good cause. Thanks for the ideas.

It really wouldn't benefit me to do that, either way the rec center pays. I make that money wherever they are at except I have a large gym to teach in, I held a class on Tuesday for example in which I had 23 students in one class, now much of that was because I condensed the classes so I may have only 2 classes instead of 4 as I did, so I can get back to the new studio to finish up the night teaching there. It's a 35 min drive for the record lol. While I'm in Buckeye at the rec center I have a Brazilian jiu-jitsu guy doing classes at the studio, so that I don't have to be closed. Only one student there so far but promising. Ultimately I'm OK doing the 2 locations bit eventually need another instructor to help out. My wife gave birth to a baby girl a month ago, so she's been of little help for obvious reasons (don't tell her I said that) my oldest who is now 14 was a huge helper as a Jr Black belt but as I have posted became I'll, so I could use a bit of help. I can hold down the fort for a bit though. I think we're doing OK, there is a bit of competition in this area but I'm one of the only one especially without contracts and deposits, I think we'll be doing well just going to take some building.

Thanks again. I have definitely considered the fact that I can only fit so many people in the seating area and on the mats in the space I have. So the answer I have come up with it is the same as yours, which is to Simply add more class times as necessary. With the schedule I have now I think I could fit another two classes in each evening plus another day if it comes to that. I currently keep closed on Fridays because I reserve those days for testings only. This is how my last school did it and it worked well for him so I figured I'd give it a try haha. I'm also doing an open mat and a kickboxing on Saturday but could easily add an extra class if needed also, so there is plenty of room to spread out my student base if necessary, and I hope it is necessary. A little stuck still right now, 15 students and hoping to get somewhere before next month. Need 20 to cover rent, and maybe 5 more for utilities. I'm not letting go of my first location in Buckeye at the the rec center. I'm at 37 this month which means I have 52 total, things look promising. I have about 10 that have been with me over a year, so I think I'm doing things the right way, no daytime job so I better be lol

Thanks guys comma I move things around several times trying to figure out what to do with the seating but I think the seating looks great now. It cuts into the mats which is something I hate but because our program is so popular with the kids two seats were filling up with parents and I had to do something. I still have some quotes to put on the walls and stuff like that but I'd say we're 90% finished and this is how we're going to look for some time. Now it's all about getting them in for classes. Thanks again for the compliments guys

Thank you a bunch. Most welcome, I must say I am a bit jealous! must be nice your have your own location, the little dojo I teach from is a great little place, but its not mine Jealousy shouldn't be what you feel lol. It was a huge decision to open up a school coming from a rec center. It has been an incredible amount of hard work to get things going. It's hard to see from the outside but MAN the work to make things successful is intense. It's a choice though. Anybody can make the move, you just have to be honest about weather you believe you can pull people in and keep them there, and the rest will follow.

Thank you a bunch.

Breaking in the new studio. Getting ready for our first kickboxing class doing some warm ups. This is my daughter yes sges wearing a black belt, before we overthink it, shes a black belt after 2 years in a class for just 6 and 7 year olds. When she's ready to move into the full karate program she will start at white belt so it does not carry the same weight. This is my daughter who was only 8 and this is her first time doing this type of pad work so take it easy on the breakdown of technique, she certainly has her hands a bit low LOL. She has a great deal of talent though. https://youtu.be/nHIkOv6oxnc

Very nice ! Best of luck Thanks you sir

So open a week now, still things to touch up and I have played with the seating 4 times but we are pretty set now. Notice the custom benches, I found a great guy to do them for me in trade for lessons for his kids, he plays with wood as a hobby, what a talent. Anyways, 12 students and hoping to make it happen, we'll see... Pic #1 https://goo.gl/photos/yeEgXdyC23fQ1NLk6 Pic #2 https://goo.gl/photos/CeeqJyYdcepyRG3CA Pic #3 https://goo.gl/photos/n4UG6zRyvBZgRyki6 Pic #4 https://goo.gl/photos/qwLJHLAcVfdTvNPP8

Wow that's crazy, 100 is quite high to me. In my area I would say 50 is more of an actual average. I javelin a smaller place as some may have seen but for me to break even and make no profit at all I need roughly 20 students. 20 is so low that I figured if I can't make 20 students happen Ito might be time to go back to being a mechanic... NOT! I see the number per class because of how many pieces of tape I want to have a student to standing at. The number is 10 to 15. If every class I ran had 10 to 15 students in it I'd make a good living at teachinges. I javelin been open for 1 week and I am at 12 and one adulthat trying the first week free so hopefully 13 after Wednesday Should be doable, I just hope it's doable by the time rent needs to be paid and electric shows itself haha. Again 100 jist sounds ds high to me. Even with a bigger place it's a stiff number.

Just preparing for opening and having a little fun with my son, noticed the look on his face LOL Superman punch with sword.

I enjoyed that very much, love watching the kids getting into it. I think I'm going to park my car outside my garage too, looks awesome. Gotta prioritize! Thanks, I like that, gotta prioritize haha.

I design my own curriculum, and I can concur that separating ranks by those standards is a great idea, but requires some planning. On Monday's and Wednesday's I do beginners classes, onot Tuesdays and Thursdays I do advanced classes. The advanced class really has more of the intermediate students as well. So, once a student becomes High Blue Belt (5th gup/rank) they move over to the advanced classes. It helps to be able to manage as you seemed to be thinking. As for the rotating I don't really do it in the format explained here but then again I do struggle at times to keep things organised. Separating by rank does help though weather you rotate or don't.

I see what your saying, I appreciate you taking the time to explain it to me. I like that, and I'd like to think about that some. I'm always open to trying new things and new ideas. Sometimes they don't work and I just revert back. I'm open because I want my program to be a living thing that evolves, that's why I love these topics so I may feed off of them and take what I like lol. I do my main curriculum currently once a week, and do something different and often new on the opposing class day. An example would be on Tuesday I may do forms, then on weds day I could do sparring, or weapons, or kicking drills (I enjoy kicking drills) or whatever I see fit. I like having an open day each week to break up the monotony and do what I think will fit at that time. Its an interesting idea to rotate it in the man error described above though.

I like it. That Nakamura guy knows his stuff Glad to see things are moving along. When are you opening up shop? April 4th, so one week. Excited but also anxious. Feeling the pressure to get some students, only 4 registered so far, not bad for not being opened though.

JR 137, this shot is especially for you. I hadn't put the words in quotations yet but I am going to, I'm also going to put who said it. I need to find a smaller stencil for it to look how I want it to but I'm a huge fan of quotes, glad you posted this one, it has the honor of being the first on my wall. https://goo.gl/photos/siDVVPy58BCJf7d68

So I have to say I really like this topic, I'm a little confused so and I don't want to seem ignorant but I do not understand the rotation of the curriculum. I do understand rotating the curriculum to a certain extent, AZ I have trained under and tots a rotating curriculum for weaponry however it was not something students tested on. My question is how do you rotate and still test, so in the advanced student gets back to the basics what is your reasoning for this? I am essentially asking the original poster and anybody else of course and this is not directed at any one person. I do find it extremely difficult to teach many different levels of curriculum too many students, the more help you have as instructor it becomes easier because you can break off into groups, with my wife becoming pregnant and my daughter becoming ill I have essentially been teaching classes 90% alone and it is very difficult as I have been pulling higher-ranking students to help out but not all have the ability to convey in the proper way. Maybe somebody could break it down in even more a simple way that was already done LOL

I agree these are excellent points you make. You also stated smaller men should be included, I always say my aim is to teach a smaller/weaker person these things. Some of what I try and get across can also work for children. Thanks for the solid post though!

Pretty deep. Over the last year and a half in business I have had some faces that I'm used to seeing every day for many months, leave. Some with no warning, just stopped showing up and I had to call (I always think calling is the right thing to do and I ALMOST always do it), some have told me they don't want to do it anymore, some have told me that the time isn't good anymore because of their schedule. It is hard to give your students so much and have many, over time, walk away as if you we nothing, a passing phase or something of the like. I sometimes think a buisness like a restaurant would be better, or even a barber shop. My wife is a hair stylist and as long as her clients live in the same area, and like her skills, they continue to come. It's a different beast, no hard work, no complicated things to remember, no battling with physical limitations... Just relaxing, gossiping and looking good. In martial arts some instructors like myself call students and their families, your martial arts families BUT so easy they can walk away. Wow what you said hit the nail on the head as I have been feeling like that lately and dedication is defiantly needed on a huge level. Thanks for the post, really hit home.