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USAMA BLOG

Raising the standards of the martial arts

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"I'm A Black Belt!" Yea, So What?

12/29/2015

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Author: Bret Gordon
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Question: How long does it take the average person to earn a black belt? Cliché answer: The average person doesn't earn a black belt. This old adage circles around social media every few months, along with "statistics" claiming that only 1-5% of all those who start martial arts training will make it to black belt. That may be true, but there seems to be an awful lot of people sporting that dark piece of cloth.

In the "old days," earning your black belt was perceived as mastery. You were now entitled to call yourself a bad dude (or dudette), and it was a sign that you could kick some serious butt. Ironically, this was also when everyone cross trained, traveled to work out with whoever would share knowledge and earned their stripes through blood, sweat, tears and broken bones. The myth that all black belts have to register their hands as deadly weapons stems from this perceived status of invincibility, along with the elitist mindset. It's human nature to want to belong to a special club, to obtain something that very few people have, so we have elevated the rank of black belt to the pedestal of things nearly impossible to obtain. But then, there's that other cliché saying that black belt is just the beginning, so which is it?


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Instructors, Charge What You're Worth!

12/17/2015

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Author: Bret Gordon
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Very rarely do I talk about the business of martial arts instruction, but after listening to another dear friend of mine think about shutting down his beloved dojo I feel something has to be addressed. As instructors, many of us feel a personal connection with our students. Those with an "old school" mentality have grown up viewing the dojo community as a family thicker than blood at times, and many instructors go out of their way to help their students off the mat. Whether it's as a confidant, a shoulder to lean on, mentor or in any other capacity, we often find ourselves stretching ourselves thin and sacrificing to be there for our students. And you know what? We continue to do it without hesitation, expecting nothing in return other than loyalty and dedication in training, regardless of how many times we get burned because that's what a family does.

These same instructors, myself included, often feel uneasy about charging what we feel is a significant amount of money for tuition because our instincts to help our students at any cost usually take over. "I know things are rough. Don't worry about paying this month, just keep training and we'll figure it out as we go." That's a conversation I've had more often than I care to admit while running my storefront school (which I later closed, but for unrelated reasons which I'll talk about later in this article). What clicked for me was when I sat down with my fiancé at the time going over our personal bills, and noticing that we were struggling when on paper I had more than enough students to cover all of our expenses with additional profit. So what was happening?



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McDojo Rant (Part 1 - Testing)

12/15/2015

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Author: Bret Gordon
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I recently read a statement by another school owner regarding testing. He said that in his school, he never fails a student because it's bad for morale and ultimately retention. His reasoning was that he is always testing his students throughout regular class, so when the actual exam arrives everyone should pass or they wouldn't be testing. I'd like to offer my thoughts on the subject.

I agree that we should not schedule our students for testing unless we believe they are ready, however that does not guarantee their advancement.  Testing is not merely about regurgitating their rank requirements but mentally assessing if the student is ready to be exposed to the next level of their training. If their requirements symbolize the "Body," then everything else throughout the exam symbolizes the "Mind" and "Spirit" that we all profess to teach. Testing is supposed to push the student beyond what they believe they're capable of, constantly pushing the boundaries and testing their understanding, not just their ability to repeat what they've been shown. 

Now, what happens when a student fails an exam? Are the only two options pass and fail? How bad does a student have to perform to actually fail?



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The Obsession With "Osu!"

12/6/2015

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Author: Bret Gordon
In the martial arts world, one can hardly go a day on the mat without hearing the exclamation "Osu!" In fact, it has even infiltrated social media in the forms of oss, osu, ush, along with many more variations, and has muddied the waters on what it actually means. Some will say it is a respectful exclamation to show understanding. Others will say it's a greeting between people with mutual respect. Some use it solely to sound Japanese. My goal is to expel the myths of "Osu" and shed light on its actual meaning and proper use.

Osu is actually not a word in Japanese at all. There is some disagreement of the roots words, but we know for certain osu is a contraction. The first theory is that osu is the shortened version of "Oshi Shinobu," which in English translates as "to endure under pressure." The second is that it actually comes from "Onegaishimasu," commonly translated as "Please teach me." So why did we shorten these words to osu, and how did it become the go-to phrase in nearly all Western martial arts schools?


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