MASuccess Magazine

By Michelle Hodnett

Project Dojo is a nonprofit community outreach program in Pueblo, Colorado, that works with at-risk children. Through the power of martial arts, Project Dojo seeks to inspire and motivate kids within a safe environment, while continuing to teach the traditions of martial arts. This is the story of Project Dojo co-founder Michelle Hodnett’s experiences in her martial arts journey.

The Century Foldaway Speed Bag Platform & Leather Speed Bag is an excellent tool to build hand-eye coordination as well as speed and endurance. Speed bag training beneficial to all ages and all levels of martial artists, for several reasons:

• It increases hand speed, which helps eliminate wasted motion
• The repetitive striking action trains the user to keep their hands up – a habit that is essential if you’re even going to think about sparring
• It builds the trapezius muscle, which improves the overall snap of your punch

All of these things will benefit...

By: Cris Rodriguez, MAIA Digital Marketing Specialist

Over the past year, we’ve had over 200 school owners graduate from my 8-Week Marketing Mastermind Course. They took a deep dive into Facebook, Instagram, and Google Advertising, and learned how to use those major platforms to grow their Martial Arts Academy.

Many of them have seen amazing results with their new-found knowledge and skill set. However, many of them also realized that digital marketing can be time consuming and frustrating, especially if it’s not something you’re passionate about.

Most school owners have enough on their plate already. However, it is vital you have a presence on those major platforms.

Why? Because if you’re not, your competitor will be.

And this is exactly why I created Grow Pro Agency.

In the ever-changing online world, keeping up with the constant updates of social media can require not only your time, but also your energy.

And that’s why we’re here...

Do you want to get your mind AND body right in 2020 so you can be the best example to your students?

Then take the Free 7-Day Sleek Ninja Challenge from Hollywood physique expert, Eric the Trainer.

The holidays are a wonderful time to see family, celebrate the season, and reflect on this past year. How can we make 2020 a more profitable year, increase enrollment, and build excitement in and out of the dojo? By incorporating Sleek Ninja fitness classes into your curriculum.

The beginning part of the year is traditionally the biggest fitness time with people looking to fulfill their New Year’s resolutions. And with so many parents of your students looking for new, exciting classes, you’ll want to take advantage of this national trend by launching a fitness program.

This is a great way to get more adults included in your classes and make use of those early morning hours when your school is typically empty.

Sleek Ninja is a physical transformation program based in your...

“What martial art do you teach?”

That’s right up there among the most common questions asked by a prospective new student or their parents. If they’ve done some research, they may already know a few things about the martial arts, but as beginners, there are so many unanswered questions and preconceived ideas. Cutting through all of that can sometimes be a challenge.

As a practicing martial artist for my entire adult life I’ve had the opportunity to study a variety of martial art disciplines, some more extensively than others. I like to tell people, “They’re the same thing, only different.” I have always believed that it’s not the specific style or the system that makes one art better for one student and not another. I think it’s more important to find an instructor and a school with a philosophy and style of teaching that is appropriate for the needs of the individual student.

       ...

By Keith D. Yates

Kevin Nevels began his martial arts training as a child in Vicksburg, Mississippi, in 1993, but he stopped training a couple years later when his family moved to the small North Texas community of Coppell. It wasn’t until his college years at the University of North Texas that a friend got him re-interested in the martial arts. He found a school that taught the same traditional taekwondo that he had learned as a kid and, soon after, he had earned his black belt.

Nevels majored in radio, TV and film and always thought he would go into that industry after graduation. Instead, he took a job working with his father in the oil industry (it is Texas, after all). However, he continued to train and do some part-time teaching of the martial arts. He readily admits he wasn’t really happy in his oil job and, apparently, his dad noticed that fact as well.

In January 2010, Kevin was running a taekwondo demonstration with his team and his father was a...

By Michelle Hodnett

Project Dojo is a nonprofit community outreach program in Pueblo, Colorado, that works with at-risk children. Through the power of martial arts, Project Dojo seeks to inspire and motivate kids within a safe environment, while continuing to teach the traditions of martial arts. This is the story of Project Dojo co-founder Michelle Hodnett’s experiences in her martial arts journey.

Agility Rings from Century are durable and will last for years, and their use is only limited by your imagination. We use the rings to focus the students, to provide visual markers, and as a tool in multiple drills. No matter how you use them, their bright colors always draw kids’ attention and help them focus on the task at hand.

Ring on Ground Drills

Quick Feet: Place your rings in a line and have students go in and out of the rings as fast as they can. This is footwork and cardio. Several other agility drills, like hopping on one foot, two feet...

By Michelle Hodnett

Project Dojo is a nonprofit community outreach program in Pueblo, Colorado, that works with at-risk children. Through the power of martial arts, Project Dojo seeks to inspire and motivate kids within a safe environment, while continuing to teach the traditions of martial arts. This is the story of Project Dojo co-founder Michelle Hodnett’s experiences in her martial arts journey.

Blockers and targets from Century are great tools for building kid-friendly drills to develop blocking skills and timing. The most effective way to use this equipment with children is to make it a game. When a child is laughing and having fun, they are more responsive to learning.

Samurai Run

Have two teams sitting opposite from each other. Position two Century Square Hand Targets in the middle of the mat as markers, and a blocker next to where the lines of teams start.

One student from each team must sprint to the center of the mat, tag their target,...

By Deb Cupples

I’ve been teaching karate for over 15 years and have owned my school, Community Karate and Fitness, for 14. Along the way, I have made friends with other martial arts school owners through tournaments, seminars and social media. I fostered a great community through my martial arts connections, but the more it grew, the more I found that we were all struggling with the same issues and some of us were feeling a little stagnant.

For years, I had wanted to attend the Martial Arts SuperShow, but kept talking myself out of it. I had all the normal excuses: it was too much money, I couldn’t take time away from my school, etc. But those excuses weren’t getting me closer to my goals or renewing my passion for my business; they were just excuses.

Then, one day, I just did it. I registered for the Show, booked my flight and thought, “Well, if it’s not worth it, at least I can say I went to Vegas.”

Within the first 24 hours at the Show,...

by Herb Borkland

Texas tournament legend Al Francis ranks among the top 10 fighters of the Lone Star State’s golden era of karate. A man of principles and character, Francis has put in decades as a recreation specialist in San Antonio, proving the social value of karate training for at-risk youth. His local educational TV program, which showcased the varieties of martial arts available in the city, ran for a decade. Today, he remains one of the best spokesmen for the power and discipline that the martial arts can bring to children.

MASuccess: Where did you grow up, and what did your dad do?

Al Francis: I grew up in San Antonio, Texas. Dad was the master chef at the Galveston Hills Restaurant, but I took off in a totally different direction. In high school, I wanted to be an artist.

I was about 130 pounds and couldn’t play every sport there was. I got jumped when I was younger. My mother taught me how to block. (laughs) I knew I needed to learn how to...

by Kathy Olevsky

I’ve operated a martial arts school full time for 45 years. I may have made every mistake that can be made in this business. The reason I’m still in business, I believe, is I asked for help. I learned quickly that others before me had already found solutions. In this column, I’ll point out key mistakes I made in my career, which are common errors among school owners, both large and small, throughout our industry. And I’ll share the solutions I used to overcome them.

Your “separation point” is the feature that sets training at your dojo apart from other activities for children, teens and adults in your community: Why martial arts and not soccer, lacrosse, ballet, etc.? Within the arts, your separation point is what differentiates yours from other martial arts schools. Why would someone want to train in taekwondo with you, for example, rather than at the academy down the road?

You should be able to answer these...