Comments on: Letting Others Talk You Out Of Martial Arts Business Success

By: Mike Massie

Mike Massie — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 13:50:01 +0000

Glad you liked the points in the article, James.

By the way – nice logo on your site!

By: james

james — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 07:08:27 +0000

Great points!

Don’t get caught up in that – it’s the quickest way to worry yourself out of business.

Check yourself and remember that you aren’t paying their bills.

I look forward to your new posts! Keep it up! God bless!~

By: Mike Massie

Mike Massie — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 13:30:07 +0000

Agreed…

The road less traveled can often be the pathway to success.

By: Javier

Javier — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 03:20:16 +0000

Good stuff Mike.

It’s funny how even other businesses outside of the MA Industry get caught up in the game of “what is my competitor gonna think of me now.”

Who cares… It goes back to our Black Belt Principals we teach our kids all them.

CONFIDENCE

You gotta have confidence in what you are doing, and sometimes you will have to walk to lonely, narrow, long, and deserted road…

But in the end, you can be as prosperous as you choose. I hope SAMAS member goes forward with the 3-4 years old b/c she could create a pretty strong following!

thanks!

By: Mike Massie

Mike Massie — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 11:46:09 +0000

Brent,

Unless you’re teaching for free, you’re a business owner. So, virtually every martial arts instructor has to consider their bottom line when it comes to their business.

As far as I know though, only myself and Jim Mather address business ethics in our materials. In fact, I credit Mr. Mather for influencing my in that regard early on in my career.

So, yes… I do address that in my materials, in the forums, as I coach clients, etc. I won’t work with someone who is just interested in making a buck. There’s enough of that crap in our industry already.

Thanks for bringing this up – it does need to be addressed for folks who don’t know me.

By: Brent

Brent — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 02:17:04 +0000

Hi Mike,
I agree with pretty well everything you said. I would just add one caveat or word of warning…
I wonder about that grey area where one ends up just teaching for the money. I know you are not promoting that. And I am guessing you are addressing this issue in your forums. But from outside looking in, some people might misunderstand what you are saying in this article.

By: Mike Massie

Mike Massie — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 01:31:13 +0000

“Surprisingly…”

Good shot, Richard!

By: Richard ~ Goju Ryu Bushido Karate Academy Australia

Richard ~ Goju Ryu Bushido Karate Academy Australia — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 22:36:49 +0000

Mike ~ surprisingly 3 & 4 years olds eventually turn into 6 & 7 etc years olds ~ this wise Instructor is building a Student base for the future ~ we wish her well.

By: Mike Massie

Mike Massie — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 18:42:39 +0000

Jeff, you are right on the money… no pun intended!

When I first started teaching fitness classes, other instructors said I was becoming “just like the gyms.”

When I started teaching 4, 5, & 6 yr. olds, they said I was doing “romper room stuff.”

When I started doing an after-school pick-up program, they said I was “becoming a day care.”

But all those programs allowed me to teach my adult classes how I wanted, when I wanted – in other words, I didn’t have to worry about how I was going to make the rent!

I just looked at all those additional programs as my “part-time jobs.” The only difference – I got to work my “other job” in my own school.

By: JB

JB — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 18:17:10 +0000

Excellent advise! I would rather be successful than prideful when it comes to teaching