Posted by Mike Massie on December 31, 2009
Expect bigger and better things for your school in 2010...
Let’s be honest… 2009 was a difficult year for many martial art school owners and instructors.
For many school owners, it was a year when you saw less interest in your programs than in any previous year in the last decade.
And, for many part-time instructors, it was a year when many of you began looking at teaching as a possible means of income to fall back on should you lose your job.
I certainly hope none of you reading this had to go through that, but the from the emails I’ve been getting I know many of you have. And, quite frankly, I believe that many of you were ill prepared to face an economy that is as bleak as ours has been over the last year… and I want to ensure that never happens to you again.
So, I’m working hard to make the new MASAI website vastly better than anything I’ve provided for you previously. I’m working to get you more content each month, and also to provide you with more articles and lessons that are relevant to your situation.
Of course, with more content and improved services, our prices will be going up for our new members in January 2010.
But as a reader of my blog, I’d like to allow you the opportunity to enjoy the benefits of MASAI membership at our current 2009 prices. Click here to visit the site and take our $1.00 test drive to lock in your membership at our extremely low 2009 rates.
Working hard so you can expect better thing in 2010 -
Mike Massie, still your Martial Arts Business anti-Guru
Posted by Mike Massie on June 30, 2009
In those days, there were warriors...
It’s not often that I mix in religious messages with my business messages (although, in the martial arts world religious messages are as ubiquitous as wet in water – you just don’t realize it because it’s culturally based).
However, I think this blog post by Faith-Based Millionaire author Jay Peroni is a great message for anyone who is facing challenges as they pursue their business with passion and fervor.
http://www.jayperoni.com/2009/06/what-lion-is-god-calling-you-t.php
Hope you enjoy it as much as I did… the quote in the beginning (describing the deeds of Benaiah, one of King David’s three mighty men) reads like an action sequence from Gladiator.
Posted by Mike Massie on June 11, 2009
Remember how it felt the first time you gloved up? That's how it's going to feel the first time you face real adversity in your business - only much, much worse.
clutch:
n. A tense, critical situation.
Remember how it felt the first time you gloved up?
That’s the way it’s going to feel the first time you face adversity in your business.
But only magnified by a power of 10.
You have butterflies all the time, you fret instead of focusing, you can’t eat, can’t sleep, and you generally want to fall apart.
“Courage is grace under pressure.”
- Ernest Hemingway
But, you can’t. It’s simply not allowed. Because, all truly successful people know that Hemingway had it nailed… and that, my friends, is the key to finding success in the midst of adversity.
So, how will you act in the clutch?
Will you choke, or dig deep and pull out the best performance of your life?
Now, you might be an accomplished competitor and fighter, someone who is accustomed to calling on hidden resources and toughing it through during a hard match.
But, have you practiced putting that same intestinal fortitude to work in the games of business and life?
The truth is, many of our most accomplished athletes have choked in the ring and arena.
(And yours truly – in the ring and in business. Believe me, it happens to everyone if they stay in the martial arts or in the business arena long enough…)
But many more fall under the pressures of their daily lives. Yet, “in the clutch” is where real business success happens, when you gut it out under the most intimidating of circumstances and obstacles.
So, let me ask you again…
How will you act in the clutch?
Will you gut it out, or choke?
Ultimately, it’s your call.
—
Mike Massie is the author of Small Dojo Big Profits and runs a martial arts business coaching website for new instructors and small school owners, StartingAMartialArtSchool.com.
Click here to purchase Mike’s business manuals and materials.
Posted by Mike Massie on April 1, 2009
“The question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me.”
- Ayn Rand
I’m not really into Ayn Rand (although I agree with many of her views, and I sure enjoyed the heck out of playing BioShock), but I think that quote sums up the attitude that all successful entrepreneurs have.
Wrestler Dustin Carter doesn't let fear stand in his way. George Tiedemann/SI
Business owners who are successful over the long term see risk as part and parcel of the game; there’s no such thing as “risk avoidance”, and only “risk reduction” exists in their vocabulary.
And yet I often hear from people who are starting businesses, and their mindset is so focused on fear of failure that I know they’re not cut out for owning a business.
Think about it… if you were training a fighter, and all they talked about and thought about was avoiding getting their tail kicked, would you start booking fights for them?
Of course not, because you know that fighters have to be focused on their ideal outcome, which is tearing the person across the ring apart.
I can remember fights where I got the snot knocked out of me by guys that my coach told me I should be able to beat. But, the problem wasn’t my skill level; it was my mindset. In each case, I had psyched myself out before the match had even begun.
A fighter has to be confident that they’re the one who is going to be doing all the damage; if they’re focused on “not getting hurt”, then they’ll become paralyzed by fear… and that’s a dangerous place to be in when you’re sharing the canvas with someone who is serious about hurting you.
“In battle, if you you make your opponent flinch, you have already won.”
- Miyamoto Musashi
Being in business requires a similar frame of mind. You have to set out accepting that it is not going to be easy. You have to appreciate the fact that the business environment is tough, and that you will experience setbacks.
“Fright often occurs, caused by the unexpected.”
- Miyamoto Musashi
Yet, when you also accept that those setbacks will only be temporary, and that each one brings you one step closer to your goal, you’ll be prepared emotionally and mentally when things go south…
And, you’ll bounce back from those situations much quicker than the person who starts pulling their hair and asking, “why me?” every time they experience a setback in their business.
“Why you?” A better question to ask would be, “why not you?” because it expresses the pragmatic sort of thinking that allows every successful entrepreneur to rise, time and again, to any given challenge.
Posted by Mike Massie on February 20, 2009
In this economy you simply can't afford to be a wuss about what you need to do to stay in business
Ever see a kid arguing with his parents about something they wanted him to do?
If you have kids (or teach them in your school), I’m sure you’ve heard this before:
“But I don’t want to (insert something here that kids normally hate doing)!”
And you know the rest.
When I explain to martial arts instructors what they need to do to succeed, many times they’re a lot like those kids.
I tell them exactly what they need to do to succeed, and this is what I often hear in return:
“But Mike, I don’t want to…”
…teach kids
…teach women
…teach baby boomers
…teach fitness classes
…teach grappling
…teach mma
…sell equipment
…sell nutritional supplements
…do birthday parties
…work on my marketing
…hire a professional to design and build my website
…have a marketing budget
…track my stats
…train a leadership team
…run a summer camp
…make public appearances
…do public speaking events
…network in my community
…get publicity from the local press
…do volunteer work and fundraisers
In short, they’re telling me they don’t want to WORK…
They just want to make the big bucks, without having to hassle with all the things that will get you there.
But, you’re different, right?
I mean, you’ve been reading my materials, and so by now you know success doesn’t just happen like magic.
Well, in this economy that’s doubly true.
So, for those of you who are okay with bucking up and just dealing with whatever it takes to make your school a success, my hat’s off to you.
And, when the dust settles after this recession is over, you’ll be one of the ones left standing while your whiny, sissy competitors are long gone.
- MM
—
Questions? Comments? Totally disagree? Let the world know! Post your comments below:
Comments:
Filed Under: News
