We know that goals must be specific, challenging, attainable, performance-orient­ed and measurable. We all like to have some idea of where we’re going and what we’re doing. The same is true of your students. Without achieving goals, students become uncertain of where they are going, and thus lose motivation.

This applies to your teaching in a number of ways.

Student expectations.

First, it’s impor­tant to know why your students are coming to class. More importantly, you must ask if you’re willing and/or able to teach what they are seeking. Fulfilling students’ needs and reducing students’ frustrations provide meaningful reasons to continue the process of training. It’s critical, therefore, that your instructors and students share congruent and synergetic expectations.

In-class performance goals.

The second aspect of goal setting is the prac­tical goal associated with any part of a lesson plan. These types of goals are very specific, short-term goals and impact class performance. Performance goals allow students and instructors to mea­sure the degree to which training drills have been successfully executed.

One of the keys is that the goal should be challenging enough to motivate your students, and also measurable, so that students can see exactly how close they are to success. A measurable performance goal for a bio­mechanical action might include the correct foot or body position.

Whether being used in class or during competition, performance goals must lie within students’ immediate sphere of control and not be dependent upon an outcome beyond their control. To drive home the point: Students can control the number of times a skill is attempted during a tournament match; however, students cannot control what score, if any, a referee might award for a suc­cessful technique.

Long-term goals.

A third set of goals relates to how your les­son plans fit into a long-term program of study. Every lesson plan should be a step in the process of reaching a specific goal, and pre-supposes the existence of a long-range plan, such as achieving a certain level of rank, fitness or competitive ability.

An example of a long-term goal is achieving a Black Belt. Each pre­ceding rank, then, is a progressive step and a measurable indicator of proximity to the major goal. Each requirement for rank is an action step within the single goal of obtaining the next rank, and should be reflected in your lesson-plan sequence. Each lesson plan and class drill is an action step for the intermediate goals.

“Without achieving goals, students become uncertain of where they are going, and thus lose motivation.”

By analogy, each lesson plan is a section of a road, and the long-term plan is the road map you will use to guide your students to their chosen destinations. If you have no idea what you will be teaching next week, then how will your students know how useful this week’s lesson plan will be to their overall growth and development?

Coaching goals.

The last set of goals that impact the learning environment includes your personal goals as a coach. Your teaching goals must be congruent with your philo­sophical goals, so ask yourself: Why you are teaching?

Sometimes, your goals may be competing with each other. For instance, if you think a big children’s program will pay the bills, but you hate teaching kids, then you have a prob­lem. Alternatively, if you want to train people for tournaments, then make sure that you recruit students who share your desires.

It logically follows that your coaching goals and level of congruence will affect the num­ber and type of students that you recruit and retain. Simply put, it’s a good idea to be working from the same road map that you provide your students.

Then, you teach, which is something else entirely. Or is it?

Instructors are charismatic personalities that capture the minds and hearts of students, motivate students to perform and inspire them to attain lofty goals. When we teach, however, what are the systems that make the process reproducible?

“Ah, but…” you say, “teachers are born, not made.”

Great teachers may have talent, but they work at their craft, hone their skills and learn the system.

When you teach, you create an environment in which students learn. Regardless of the subject material, there are attributes of the learning environment, which facilitate the learning process. As a martial-arts instructor, you are accountable for the creation of a learning environment and the lesson content. The level to which your classes satisfy each of the conditions of learning directly affects your retention rate.

“The level to which your classes satisfy each of the conditions of learning directly affects your retention rate.”

There are twelve conditions necessary to create a great learning environment.

Establishing Goals. This must rank as the most important condition. Simply put, if you don’t know what you want your students to learn, then it is impossible to proceed with the teaching process.

Form and Function. Form answers questions of “what” and “how.” Function answers questions of “why.” Your students need specific and unambiguous instructions about what to do and how to do it. They also want to know why they should do it the way you have taught them.

Movement. Learning martial arts is not a static, isolated activity. It’s a dynamic, physical, personal interaction. Your students should experience the full breadth of movement as soon and as much as possible.

Foundation. Build a set of skills that will be the bedrock upon which you can construct a durable edifice of knowledge. Your students will grow in confidence as you present each successive lesson and they apply the knowledge to their journeys of discovery.

Simplicity. K.I.S.S.! It works. Start simple and build from there. Let your students add skills as they learn, don’t bury them in details during the early part of the journey.

Series and Sequence. This is the road map that links the elements that you offer to your students, so they make a cohesive and integrated whole, rather than a set of disjointed techniques.

Transference. Bring it home to your students. Pragmatism is a very powerful motivator. If what you teach can be applied directly to the life experiences of your students, then learning is facilitated. Teach your students in settings that most closely resemble the situations in which your students will actually use the skills you teach.

Meaning, Value and Benefit. When you present it enthusiastically, the lesson content has real value for students. If your students want to be fit, then explain to them the health and fitness benefits of the drills you’re teaching. If your students want self-defense utility, then meaning and benefit is conveyed through the practice of scenario-based drills and the use of a situational teaching paradigm.

Activity. Your students don’t want to hear your stories; they want to write their own stories. A good rule of thumb is 85% do and 15% talk. Your students came to train and learn skills, not sit and watch you perform or listen to you explain how many times you could have been a world champion with a certain technique.

Reinforcement and Feedback. Let your students know how they are doing. Many of us think we are quite good at this one, but do we always reinforce specifically? Immediate? Constructive?

Satisfaction and Enjoyment. This is what closes the exit door and keeps your students returning for more. Create high energy, positive environments where you send your students home “sweaty, smiling and sore.”

Creativity. Students don’t just want to do what you tell them to do; they will naturally tend to experiment. Students love to solve problems during class. Give them that opportunity, and reap the benefits of a higher retention rate.

Obvious answers, right? I wonder why so many of us do exactly that as business owners. We counsel our students to do appropriate stretches; we reinforce the correct form. Yet, we sometimes find ourselves trapped when our schools’ functions run us, instead of us controlling those functions.

 ”I want to run a successful school, so I look to my own inner balance at the same time as I work on my outer business.”

When I first opened my school, it was the next logical step in my martial arts life. As a plans-driven person, I studied how to open a business and started to acquire the skills necessary to remain in business. I did not become another statistic on the failed start-up-business list.

To build my business, I did what I do well, and found people who would support my venture and shared my vision in some way. I didn’t want to build a business that would eat me alive. I wanted a place where everyone could grow.

My vision has been refined and I have discovered that, for me, the martial arts are merely tools for personal growth. The martial arts ceased to be an end itself. I wanted my students to be infected with that same spirit and see that the martial arts were a way to balance their lives. Sometimes, however, I lose sight of this goal. Sometimes, the business seems to acquire a life of its own and I find myself wrestling a dragon I created.

We live in a world where timelines become shorter, pressure to succeed increases almost exponentially and we struggle to keep pace. As a school owner, there are so many options to offer our students. Gone are the days of the single-art school. Aside from stylistic differences, there are kickboxing, body shaping, grappling, weapons programs and curriculum for all ages. Is it our egos that lead us to attempt to provide it all?

We cannot be all things to all people, or fill every niche. There must be balance. As Brian Tracy writes in The Power of Clarity, it’s all about ordering your value set. If I value business success over family and health, then I may sacrifice both to obtain “success.” Is that where I want to be in my life?

When we’re successful, there is always balance. I am balanced when I do justice to my family, clients and myself, and my sense of business integrity. My personal key is: Know what you do well and do it well. When I sense a loss of balance, I return to my Judo training: If I resist, then I become a wall to be overcome by a superior force; if I’m off balance, then I’m vulnerable to weak forces.

In the final analysis, I want to run a successful school, so I look to my own inner balance at the same time as I work on my outer business. I cultivate the types of clients who are a perfect match with what I offer; and I work on serving their needs with all of the abilities of my staff and me. For me, it’s not about opening another profit center; it’s about maximizing the profit centers that I already have.

How do I keep my dragon from consuming me? I set aside time to work on my business. I keep a clear vision in my mind. I know that there are some things that I will not sacrifice to gain long-term goals.

I still have work to do in this area. After all, I’m a work in progress. I do know this: When I truly give my clients what the martial arts has given me, then I am at my best. My best isn’t just teaching on the deck or running my business, my best happens whenever my life is in balance.

Dr. Chris Dewey is a university professor and martial artist. He holds Black Belt ranks in Judo, Jujitsu, Taekwondo and Hapkido, and has been training for more than 30 years. He is the owner of the Starkville Martial Arts Academy and is Chair of the United States Judo Association Coaching Education Committee.

There’s an old saying: “A rising tide raises all boats.” Simply stated, people tend to perform better as a group when there are high expectations and an example to follow. During these tests, Black Belt students are the standard of performance to which the other students aspire. When the Black Belts are exhibiting complete effort at a rank test, everyone does better. It is precisely because of this phenomenon that we do our upper belt tests in this fashion.

When all our Black Belts are present, regardless of whether they will be testing, it motivates all other students to perform at a high level.

If all the Black Belts sweat with the candidates, giving their best, then the Black Belts show that they care about their classmates and that progress is important to everyone in the dojo. In a sense, our Black Belt students consider it their personal responsibility to mentor and support those who will be testing. Our dojo thrives on synergy. It grows when we support each other and look beyond immediate self-gratification to the greater needs of others.

Finally, it’s a good idea occasionally to jump into the pressure cooker. During Black Belt tests, our students have the opportunity to show how sharp they can be under pressure. It’s a time for “sharpening the saw” or “honing the edge.”

In our Judo and Jujitsu programs, Green Belt is immediately before Brown, of which there are three levels before Black Belt. In our Taekwondo program, Green is the beginning of the intermediate ranks, followed by Blue, Purple, Brown and Red, before reaching Black.

This is the timeline we use to coordinate and promote this rank test as a major event among the students.

Four months in advance: Advertise testing date (late March or early April for the spring and late October or November for the fall). Send letters to Black Belts and Black Belt candidates. Note: We operate in a university town, so we are constrained by the university calendar.

Three months in advance: Prioritize lesson plans, according to the needs of the testing group.

Six weeks in advance: Encourage the development of after-class and weekend groups. Start reminding students during class.

Two weeks in advance: The program manager talks with all Black Belt candidates, individually.

Day before test: Meet with the program manager and grading board to make sure that everyone knows his or her job.

Night of test: Since we teach with a rotating curriculum, everyone performs the entire syllabus. All Taekwondo students perform all the basic techniques, but only perform to their required rank form. All Judo and Jujitsu students perform all throwing and grappling requirements, exceptions being made for age limitations. Only the Black Belts will demonstrate forms. Award ranks and distribute belts and certificates. Take group photographs. Go to a restaurant for a meal.

Following day: Send a press release to the local newspaper and highlight special achievements. Send congratulation cards to the new Black Belts.

Next instructor’s meeting: Review the test, highlight what needs improvement and develop lesson plans to fill the gaps. Discuss specific student cases, as necessary.

Dr. Chris Dewey is a university professor and martial artist. He holds Black Belt ranks in Judo, Jujitsu, Taekwondo and Hapkido, and has been training for more than 30 years. He is the owner of the Starkville Martial Arts Academy and is Chair of the United States Judo Association Coaching Education Committee.

In an effort to encourage a sense of team spirit and synergy, and also enhance retention, I developed an approach to our Black Belt testing process that has been successful and works with both the striking and throwing arts.

Approximately 25% of the population suffers from test anxiety, so I wanted to remove some anxiety and an element of the unknown from the testing event by developing a sense of comradeship amongst those testing. Everyone in the dojo, from Green Belt and higher, is expected to participate in the event. Anyone who either has time in grade or is within one month of time of grade requirements is eligible to test for his/her next rank.

As a result, my Black Belt-rank tests look like very large rank-requirement classes filled with students from Green through Black Belt. There’s much hard work, fun and sweat in my school’s Black Belt tests. The tests take an entire evening, but they are not rigid, discipline-driven events. They are open to spectators.

Our school conducts adult Black Belt-rank tests six months apart: the spring and fall. The two ranks below Black Belt are on six-month test cycles, too. If a student tests in the spring for Black Belt candidacy, then he or she should be testing again in the fall for his or her Black Belt. Since the rank test is an opportunity for everyone from Green Belt and higher to take the test, by the time a Green Belt has made it to Black Belt candidacy, he or she will have seen and participated in at least eight Black Belt-rank tests.

An outcome of this process is that apart from the new material that will be performed at each new rank level, every student knows what to expect from a Black Belt-­rank test.

There’s a process, which leads to the rank test. Classes, during the months before the test, fill any holes and ensure that the students are ready. Approximately a month prior to the test, small groups of students begin to stay after class or meet on the weekends with one of the instructors to work on their requirements. These groups develop spontaneously and become part of the team-building process. Typically, these groups develop amongst those students who are testing for the two belts immediately below Black, and are led by a Black Belt instructor who acts as a mentor. The ad-hoc groups also help the Black Belt students to refine and polish their skills, due to the constant barrage of questions being asked about the requirements.

Mistake #8: Changing too much, too soon. This is the other side of the coin, where you trash everything to serve your students and risk losing the true meaning of what you intended to do.

Mistake #9: Missing the niche. Martial arts is a niche opportunity and, often, you try to be too many things to too many people. It is better to be exceptionally good at what you do and provide a service that cannot be matched by the competition.

I have been successful in my town because I have a reputation for what it is that I offer: Judo, Jujitsu and Taekwondo. My reputation has real value in the minds of my students. I would rather do one thing well than try to open extra profit centers and compromise my core skills.

Mistake #10: Thinking that your competition is the martial arts school up the road. Your real competition is all the other sports and activities that students and prospects can choose instead of the martial arts.

Mistake #11: Being so specialized that you offer programs and services no one wants.

Mistake #12: Not engaging in enough business and leadership training for your staff and you.

Mistake #13: Failure to make the switch from a “club” instructor to a business owner, an entrepreneur. Don’t make the mistake of operating with a small-club mentality and fail to understand that business professionals play by a different set of rules to become successful.

Mistake #14: Don’t fail to schedule time to develop your strategic business plan and vision because you are too busy doing tactical work every day.

Mistake #15: Opening a business is not the vision. You need a vision of what your business will do when it’s working at peak efficiency and effectiveness, doing the right things for the right people and giving you the life you dream of living.

Mistake #16: Plan your curriculum or lesson plans ahead of schedule. Don’t fly by the seat of your pants too much.

Mistake #17: Observe the performance of your staff and you through the eyes and ears of your students and their parents. What do they see and hear when you teach? It’s easy to teach what you think was a great class and forget to focus on what your students think is a great class, and one that helps them achieve their goals.

Mistake #18: Don’t lose the personal touch. Provide the personal services that you did when you opened your school. Too often, your cards and telephone calls smack of mass-production, not sincerity.

Mistake #19: You can easily compromise standards to keep a client happy, rather than recognize that standards are a statement of business and personal integrity. If you want your students’ respect, then it behooves you to have reasonable standards and expectations of performance, and provide the tools necessary to achieve those standards. Many martial arts school owners and instructors have ranked at least one student who was not quite ready, in an effort to re-motivate or to keep a student in class.

Mistake #20: Don’t fail to organize and implement the systems with which you operate your entire school. Too often, important tasks are not completed correctly, on time, every time-unless I do them. See Mistake #2. This does not mean that I have to reinvent the wheel. See Mistake #1!

Although experience is the best teacher, I believe that most established business owners would want new business owners to avoid falling into the traps that can appear on the way to business success. I am confident you will avoid some of my mistakes, twenty of which I’ve gathered in a series of articles; this column includes the first seven. I will certainly confess to having made them to some extent-but most of us do as we work hard to achieve our goals and succeed.
After I opened a commercial school, I became aware that being an entrepreneur and being in business are not the same. In the words of E-Myth founder Michael Gerber, I was “a technician having an entrepreneurial seizure.” Most of us are martial artists first and business owners second. I sometimes think it would be better if it were the other way around!

Mistake #1

In my case, I had already operated a university club, but then moved off-campus because of university building renovations. Since I already ran a successful club on campus, I reasoned that it couldn’t be that much harder to run a small business off campus. This was my first mistake.

Mistake #2

Once I started moving up the business-learning curve, I quickly made the second mistake. I found myself caught in a juggling act that sapped my time and energy, and created the opportunity for a dazzling array of mistakes from which to learn.

As a technician, I already knew the martial arts, but did not know how to conduct the business part of the process, which meant that I spent more time doing the “business” than was required for the health of my business. I had a vision for my business when I opened it, but it’s easy to lose sight of the vision when you’re in the trenches doing the work and not refining that vision on a regular basis.

Mistake #3
This created the opportunity for my third mistake, namely, failing to learn the real message behind each mistake the first time.

Mistake #4
I tend to be self-reliant and self-motivated. I tend to believe that I can do anything. Maybe I’m a Black Belt, but I am not a Black Belt marketer, manager, accountant and child therapist. I need help, and sometimes fail to ask for it. A word to the wise: Outsource! I outsource my accounting, printing, marketing and information technology.

Mistake #5

Inability to delegate. In other words, thinking, “No one can do it as well as me.” Enough said.

Mistake #6
Micro-managing your instructors and staff: see Mistake #2.

Mistake #7

Being unwilling to change; becoming trapped by traditions that have little or no meaning to our clients or to the development of a successful business. Our ranking process, syllabi and rituals can be obstacles to business success.

I have had the opportunity to be trained by some outstandingly gifted instructors during the years, but some of those very same people unwittingly created challenges for my business because they didn’t understand the dynamics of “running a business.” This is not to criticize them, it is merely a statement of the obvious: Our mentors are not all knowing in all areas of our development, and it is wrong of us to think that they are.