by Chris Millares
Director of Education

Every year around this time you can hear the voices coming out of the shadows.  These voices dominate every day conversation and create a picture of future success.  “This year is going to be the year!”  “I will be at the gym five days a week from this day on!”  “As part of my new years resolution, I will save 10% of my gross income each week.”  “I am going to take my martial arts training to the next level by earning my next degree black belt!”  In every mall, store, gym, martial arts school, restaurant and coffee shop these voices stimulate the imagination and create the vision for tomorrow.  These visions are very inspiring and serve as a great starting point.  Vision however, is not enough to get everything in life that you want!

 Success research shows that most people stop trying to achieve their goals after less than 1 attempt.  In the face of even the slightest adversity, the masses have a tendency to give up and “throw in the towel.”  The fear of failure creates an impenetrable wall between most people and their visions of success.  As martial arts instructors and school owners, it is our responsibility to transcend these limiting tendencies and guide our students to do the same.  This new year, make it a personal mission to have the vision and take action toward accomplishing your goals. 

 The following are 4 success steps for taking action toward vision.  Lift your martial arts school to new heights through meticulous goal setting and massive action.

Make a list of specific, realistic goals

How many active students do you want after this quarter?  What is the target gross income you expect for the week, month or year?  What quality of instruction do you expect from yourself and your staff?  What are your retention goals?  How effective would you like your instructor-training program to be?   How effective are you using your software program?

Less than 4% of people have written, specific goals.  Unsurprisingly, these 4% earn as much as 10 times the amount of income as the non goal-oriented individuals of today.  They are the experts and the ones who “make it happen” day in and day out.

Type a list of your goals in bold face, capital letters and post it in clear, visible areas.  Your list of goals might look something like this:

ü      INCREASE CURRENT STUDENT COUNT BY 20% OVER THE NEXT 3 MONTHS

ü      IMPROVE UPGRADE SALES BY 10%

ü      INCORPORATE AN IMPROVED SYSTEM OF RETENTION

ü      UTILIZE SOFTWARE PROGRAM IN A WAY THAT TAKES OUR BUSINESS ORGANIZATION TO THE NEXT LEVEL

ü      RAISE THE LEVEL OF CLASSROOM EXCITEMENT 

Write down your goals today and make a strong commitment toward taking your martial arts school to the next level of excellence.  Once you have implemented this concept move on to “determining the how.”

Determine the How

Once you have determined exactly what you want, the time comes to determine the how.  Consider your own martial arts training.  How did you get from white belt to where you are now?  Was it by chance or luck?  Or was it because you worked through a specific set of steps that ultimately led you to where you wanted to go?  Where do you want your martial arts school to go in the next week, month, year?  Determining the how provides the specific methodology for moving toward your goals.  It builds the bridge between your current situation and your visions for success.

Under your list of goals, write down the specific how.  Your modified list might look something like this:

ü      INCREASE CURRENT STUDENT COUNT BY 20% OVER THE NEXT 3 MONTHS

1.      Increase involvement in the community: kidnapping prevention seminar, school talks, boy scout demonstrations, etc.

2.      Incorporate 2 lead generating promotions each week.

3.      Target members of the community with weekly email campaigns.

4.      Teach innovative, motivating classes.

The simple act of determining the how paves the road toward your visions for success.  It provides direction and creates the blueprint for turning ideas into reality.  Completing this process allows you to move on to the next step for taking action toward vision. 

Walk the Path

Once you have decided exactly what you want and determined the how, the time comes to walk the path.  The blueprint for your success is in place.  It is now up to you to take action.  As Michael Jordan once said, “Just do it!”  Take small steps, big steps, massive leaps or sprints toward your goals.  Do whatever it takes to accomplish what you have set out to do.

There is no sense in building a bridge toward vision if you never intend to cross it.  Begin your journey and have the self-discipline to stay on track.  Witness success in motion as each step takes you closer to where you want to go.  This new year, do not fall into the masses by forgoing legitimate action.  Stay focused, poised and determined to turn vision into reality.

Keep records of every action taken toward your goals.  Keep these records in plain sight and review them often.  Make a note of the date for each action to more effectively track your progress.  Place these recordings underneath your steps for determining the how.

Your modified goal sheet might now look like this:

ü      INCREASE CURRENT STUDENT COUNT BY 20% OVER THE NEXT 3 MONTHS

1.      Increase involvement in the community: kidnapping prevention seminar, school talks, boy scout demonstrations, etc.

a.       Action taken 1-2-2007

2.      Incorporate 2 lead generating promotions each week.

a.       Action taken 1-4-2007

3.      Target members of the community with weekly email campaigns.

a.       Action taken 1-2-2007

4.      Teach innovative, motivating classes.

a.       Action taken 1-5-2007

The more frequently you take disciplined action toward your goals, the faster you will achieve them.  Build your schedule and organize your life in a way that allows you to act each and every day.  Steer clear of pessimistic opinion and keep focused on the big picture.  Once you have successfully put this success step into flight the time comes to adjust the course.

Adjust the Course

During the process of goal achievement there are obstacles to be overcome.  Some of these obstacles are small while others appear to create a big challenge.  Consider the simple example of driving to work. 

You get into the car and drive down the street.  As you approach the end of the street, you notice a construction sign that reads, “Road closed.  Follow detour.”  You follow the detour, come to a red light and are forced to stop.  The length of the red light is about 30 seconds but nonetheless if feels as if you have been sitting there for at least an hour.  The light turns green and you are back in business.  The detour leads you nicely to the expressway as you drive on to the entrance ramp.  It looks like clear sailing from here until the brake lights in front of you start to appear as if purposely trying to ruin the day.

The bottleneck traffic lasts for about 20 minutes, which once again feels like an eternity when you are sitting in the car.  “Finally” you say to yourself as you drive passed the traffic jam and on to the open road.  At this point, you step on the accelerator because you are running late.  As if this is not enough, another driver attempts to merge into your lane without looking which forces you to turn the steering wheel and avoid danger.  As you take the exit off of the expressway, you take a deep breath and continue on your journey to work.

In the same way that you make adjustments when driving to work, so must you adjust the course when moving toward your goals.  The obstacles that you face on the drive to work each morning are synonymous to the obstacles you face on the road toward goal achievement.  Be flexible, open-minded and willing to face each obstacle with an unceasing determination.  Re-affirm your goals on a regular basis and make adjustments as needed.

Take Action towards your Vision and let ChampionsWay! show you how we can help!

by Chris Millares
Director of Education