Posts Tagged ‘Business System’
Author: Why It’s Not Always Good Idea To Try To Build A Better Mousetrap
Learning the business of martial arts is a lot like working your way up through the ranks. You take things in sequence, learning new skills that build on those you learned in previous stages.
One thing I’ve observed since I started offering business coaching to martial art school owners is that we have a tendency to want to do our own thing.
Take for example the numerous styles and systems that exist today. There are as many styles and systems as there are instructors who believe they have something unique to offer. As one of my students once put it, “It seems like every instructor reaches a certain level, then they want to create their own system.”
In similar fashion, I’ve observed that martial arts instructors seem to want to create their own systems for starting and running their businesses as well…
Creating a unique expression that bears the mark of one’s individual personality and preferences is fine in the context of artistic expression. But in the context of running a martial art school, this often has disastrous results.
Mastery In Martial Arts Does Not Translate Into Martial Arts Business Mastery…
Think about it… by the time an instructor decides to codify their unique expression of a martial art style or system, they typically have decades of martial arts experience, study, and training under their belt. Thus, their unique approach is based on decades of trial, error, and experimentation. Read the rest of this entry »
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Chances Are It’s What You’re Not Doing That’s Hurting Your Business…
What does this have to do with martial arts business success? Read on to find out...
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Startup Videos
Martial Art School Startup Interview with Jim Mahan This is the final part of the martial art school startup interview I did with Jim Mahan. Pay attention to how he’s followed the Small Dojo Big Profits business system and the lessons taught on this site to the “T” and then look at what it’s done for him, despite not having the best location or facilities. (Haven’t seen Parts I, II, or the first half of Part III? Click here for Part I of this interview. Click here for Part II of this interview. Click here for Part IIIa of this interview.) Sound quality is not the best – it was shot in Jim’s warehouse – so make sure Read the rest of this entry »
Martial Art School Startup Interview with Jim Mahan This is the interview that proves you can either do a lot with a little, or a little with a lot! Thankfully, Jim chose the former and man has he done a lot… Pay attention to how he’s followed the Small Dojo Big Profits business system and the lessons taught on this site to the “T” and then look at what it’s done for him, despite not having the best location or facilities. (Haven’t seen Parts I & II? Click here for Part I of this interview. Click here for Part II of this interview.) Sound quality is not the best – it was shot in Read the rest of this entry »
Part II of “Doing A Lot With A Little, Or A Little With A Lot!”
This is the second part of my martial art school startup interview with Jim Mahan. In this section of the interview, Jim explains how he is starting a martial art school despite some very unique challenges. Also, you can check out Part I of this interview by clicking here. Part III of this interview will be posted to the private Member Video Content section on the site later today. In the final third segment, Jim and I get deep into examining and explaining how Jim has taken my martial arts business system and used it to go from 3 members to 26 members in just two month’s time teaching out Read the rest of this entry »
Recently, one of our readers wanted to know what I thought about the Tracy’s Karate business system, founded by the Tracy brothers of Kenpo fame. He prefers to teach adults rather than children, and wanted to know if I thought he could earn a decent living following their model.
I respect the Tracys a lot. I don’t know them personally, but I know they have turned out a lot of good black belts through their studios, and that many of their instructors have achieved success using their system. Plus, they are martial arts business pioneers, and were running successful studios when most of us were still in diapers.
Having said that, with regards to the Tracy method I think it is a good business system, with one exception – it focuses on a business model that is labor-intensive. That is to say, you will work a lot harder in your studio if your main business is giving private lessons.
To illustrate this point, let’s look at the following scenario: Read the rest of this entry »
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