Martial Arts Professional Magazine

“Professional” is a word that is often tossed around the martial arts industry. Do I need to mention that professional doesn’t mean austere, removed, clinical, cold and distant? It doesn’t mean you have to have a “policy” for every action in your school; a student or employee handbook, spelling out every possible rule or infraction; or how many minutes someone can be late; or a third-party billing service to “remove you from that financial whatever-the-reason is thing?”

Being professional definitely doesn’t mean you have to dress like an urban monkey and wear a suit and tie (unless that’s what you like - and, if so, then knock yourself out). Being professional doesn’t have anything to do with waxed floors, sheet-rocked walls, shopping center locations and two-ply, cushioned toilet paper.

It doesn’t mean you have to carry some ego-greasing behemoth title, such as “Grand-Supreme-Burrito-Chief-Master-of-the-Known-Universe” or wear a “regulation” uniform, with both sleeves rolled completely down and enough “MASTER” and “CHIEF INSTRUCTOR” patches to stop a hollow-point bullet.
Professionalism isn’t disconnection and distance; it’s not something you can buy, tack up or lay out. It isn’t measured by the thickness of your brochure or in the kind of material covers your lobby’s chairs. Oh sure, there might have been a time when any one - if not all - of these things spoke of some sort of professionalism, but in today’s world, no.

Today’s professionalism is organic. It’s as real as real can be. It close, it’s personal, it’s paying attention, it’s listening, and, of course, it’s about service (as always). Professionalism is knowing you’re good - because you are good; and then, it’s using what you know, with integrity and purpose. There’s no faking it with professional behavior; there’s no screen between you and your student/client. It’s providing a clean place, well lit, safe and peopled by staff-members who are well trained.

Being professional is about giving a damn, above and beyond the “norm.” It’s being punctual; it’s providing a healthy environment in which to learn, and it is, most of all (and again), paying attention to your students. Being a professional, today, means understanding that you and your staff will become a part of the family of every family you enroll.

Don’t be the kind of “professional” that wants to open a school stamped from some 1980’s version of a martial arts “model” school. Loosen the tie (or tie a knot in it and pass it to any short-haired terrier), relax on the management by the numbers, anal-retentive thing you have going, let down what’s left of your hair and start equating “professional” with “personable” and “fun.”

Now For Everyone Who Is Already “THERE”

OK, so you’re already professional in a way that is so cool, so “now,” and so hip, that you’re practically gagging on it. Good for you. Have you noticed how the pendulum sort of swings back and forth? Last year, it was shiny plastic and neon lights, and now its stacked rock sculptures and green tea?

I want to point out that there was a time when we all wanted to look like we belonged to some big national chain of schools, as if we weren’t some kind of “Ma and Pa” operation. Today, however, I think there’s a real advantage to looking “local.” There’s a return of appreciation for “buying local,” for the little guy. Handmade materials, locally produced materials, and small, “organic” close-and-personal service-oriented businesses are the buzz.

It’s YOUR TURN: What is Your Definition of PROFESSIONAL?

I’ve coughed up what I think is and isn’t professional - and so now it’s your turn. Would you be so kind as to type up a one-page-max note about what you think “professional” means and/or is (in context to the martial arts industry) and e-mail to me at tomcallos@gmail.com.
The best descriptions just might appear in this column - or some other NAPMA materials. Please sign your name and give us your phone number, so we can track you down should we need to.

Please include the words, NAPMA PROFESSIONAL, in the subject line of your e-mail. Keep it as brief as you can please, and feel free to call me at 530-903-0286, if you have any questions.