Returning To The Ways Of Old...

[sensei8]

If you are moving truly to the old wys then no belts and no marketing i.e. teaching in secret and to select people only.

I said old ways, not prehistoric.

Back to the old ways for Shindokan, at this time, is to eliminate rank indentifiers. This has been done.

[quinteros1963]

Why have any indicator of rank at all, unless you are the instructor that is?

[Lupin1]

I like having the indicators of rank up to the dan level, at least. It keeps everything organized and gives you something to work for in the beginning while you're still trying to get a grasp on the big picture. Would I still go and train if there were no belts at all? Of course. In fact, I'm no specific belt right now and I sort of like that. But then again, I'm fairly competitive and somewhat vain anyway (although I never show it) so even if there were no visable ranks I'd know where I stood in the class and get personal satisfaction in being ahead of someone else, even if I didn't show it (of course right now I'm the lowest person in the class and I'm perfectly happy with that-- I get all the attention and extra help and everything ). Even with the black belts, most of whom I have no idea what degree they are since we don't display it, I can tell who's higher and who's lower based on how good they are and which ones will automatically take a leadership position among the others and which ones will gratefully recieve the instructions given by the other and which ones feel they have the right to argue. There's a pecking order, even when no rank is displayed.