1.  It’s about going the extra mile to prove that you are one of a kind in skills, talent, or personality.  Standing out from the crowd is about trying to live your best and be your best.  CANI and the Black Belt Life Style.
 
2.  When talking, it is important to come across as self-assured and knowledgeable, so be sure to have done your research and know your facts beforehand.  This might be teaching concepts or sharing a mat chat.
 
3. Take chances and work hard. Risks and chances are the things in life that can catapult you forward if they work out. Many people won't take up the challenge because they're afraid of failure. Yet, without failure nothing new can be gained and it is only those who are willing to take risks and to work hard at their dreams that eventually break through and succeed. Have a well-placed sense of faith in your mission, and a willingness to take risks if you want to stand out from the crowd.  Don’t be afraid to compete, be part of a demonstration, lead a class or speak to groups.
 
4.  Say, “Thank You!” for all the little things people do, as well as the big things. Send thank you cards to people who have helped you. 

5. When you make someone a promise, do your very best to keep it. People who stand out from the crowd are people who keep their word and follow up their promises to help, to be somewhere, to do something for someone. The reason you'll stand out is because so many people do not do what they say they will. Reliability makes you memorable and causes you to stand well above all the forgotten promise-breakers.
 
6.  Standing out from the crowd often means that you take action while everyone else stands back, wondering what to do next. If you learn to sum up situations quickly and to respond according to what needs to be done, you place yourself in a position of being different from the silent majority waiting to be shown what should happen next.
 
7. Check your posture. The person who stands out from the crowd will also stand tall, no matter your height. Slouching is a defensive strategy that does nothing to draw attention to you in a crowd, not to mention its harm for your overall body alignment.
 
8. Be present.    The greatest honor you can do another person is to show you've really heard them, and to show that what they've said matters. Since most people are too busy wondering what to say next, and how to explain their own thoughts, feelings, and ideas, a listener will stand out from the rest. Be willing to give people the space to talk about themselves and show that you clearly respect their thoughts. Not only will this flatter them and reassure them that they matter, but they'll realize very quickly that you're someone to treasure and they'll follow your lead.
 
9. Remind people how great they are. Regularly single out people in your life, from the dojo to home, to remind them how great they are. So few of us take the time to acknowledge the people in our lives whom we take for granted that when someone does validate us in this way, it comes as a totally sweet surprise and is so out of the ordinary that it gets remembered. It's also a very genuine way of establishing rapport with people, and maintaining goodwill.
 
10.  Smile. There are never enough smiles to go around; be someone who provides at least five smiles for every one frown you spot.

Greg Silva

I wanted to share my opinion on the top 5 reasons martial arts school owners lose students and stop growing.  But first I thought you might like to know why I feel my opinion might add value.  

In 1994 I had a school with 1200+ students.  Now check this out.  Out of the 20,000 estimated schools in the country, less than 10% have more than 250 students.   In my school we would average 80 - 125 students per class in our two large training floors.  In 2 1/2 hours I taught more students than over 95% percent of all the schools in the nation taught in total!
 
We started classes at 3pm Monday and would train 500 students before closing that day.  Everyday.  That’s some serious experience with students and parents.
 
In other words:  Every 2 1/2 hours I experienced what it takes over 90% of schools to experience in more than an entire week.
 
5 Reasons Martial Arts School Owners Lose Students and Stop Growing
 
1. Many schools either won’t pay or hire top martial artists and teachers.  The story is the same:  “I can’t afford it now.  Once I build the school I will hire better people.”  That is like thinking you will open a great restaurant but not hire a great chef making fantastic creations until you have a following.   In the meantime you hire a line cook from a diner because he will work for little.   
 
2.  Some school owners refuse to surround themselves with high level instructors or performers feeling they will be over shadowed.   Let go of the ego.  Your school is about building great students not about you being the “hotdog".
 
3. Owners create complicated systems when they are smaller and soon find out they don’t work easily when you grow big.   This is bad for two reasons.   First - for example, you do individual testing when you are small and then realize that it is impossible to continue when you are at 300 students.   Second - when you change your students get upset.  They may say, “I liked it better before.”   One of my biggest pieces of advice:   If you want a big school, put systems in place that you don’t have to change as you grow.
 
4.  Owners of growing schools want to expand too fast with either a second training room or second location.   They underestimate that they are the single most important part of their success equation.  Before you take that big step, learn to train and replace yourself. 
 
5.  School owners don’t invest in themselves.   In the 80’s and 90’s owners traveled and learned directly from schools that were tops in the industry.   Seminars were packed at events.  Something special happens when you visit other schools.  Sometimes you say, “This is great! I am going to use this now that I see and understand it.”   Other times you may have thought someone was doing something and are disappointed with reality.   I was watching the show “Chopped” this weekend.   The winner won $10,000.   The celebrity chef judges asked what he was going to do with the money and he said, “Pay my student loan.”   The top chef said, “Use that $10,000 to visit as many top restaurants as you can and learn so you can build an amazing business.”
 
Enjoy the journey everyone.
 
Greg Silva

Martial Arts managers, mentors and consultants pride themselves in the ability to find solutions.  They claim looking for the positive and having the positive attitude is key to success.  Although I agree with much of this, I feel my strength in helping school owners grow and prosper is my ability to find problems.   Clients and friends refer to me as the “Watchful One” as I tend to see through the chaos, discover what is missing or needs fixing and then provide steps to take to make changes and create positive results.     
 
A  business friend and I were having dinner recently and were comparing our careers and industries.  He asked me for a list of reasons school owners need my help.
 
1. Although their name is on the lease and corporate papers, they don’t feel they own their own business but rather have a job with the name that’s on their sign.
 
2. They feel free in that they make their own hours and schedules but are not free financially.
 
3. They got into their own business to enjoy teaching balanced with enjoying life and free time.   They now feel all their time is dedicated to keeping the school open.
 
4. They struggle with the belief that they can’t let go.  In other words they don’t delegate because of fear and lack of training strategies.
 
5.  The owners don’t own their power.  They tend to believe that it's more important to listen to the opinion of other instructors than go after what they believe in.  They know curriculum changes, events and fun stuff for kids are all important BUT what if someone on Facebook calls them a McDojo?  
 
6. They reach a plateau and realize that they are where they are because of past beliefs and experiences.  They then discover that they don’t know what they don’t know. 
 
7. They have difficulty predicting their future income.  This one is huge and prevents owners from planning, investing and purchasing for the future.  Without a clear-cut way to financially plan for what’s to come, school owners stagnate.

 
Greg Silva
[email protected]
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