Top 5 Milestones for Martial Arts Students

We all know the benefits that people can achieve through long term martial arts training. Of course, the key is “long term” martial arts training. The problem is, long term martial arts training takes a real commitment. Along the way, there are dozens of reasons for students to quit their training.

Here are 5 Milestones that instructors should help their students reach:

1- Begin

This may seem obvious, but how many people do we know that would like to train in martial arts but just haven’t made it a priority yet? This is where our persuasion of power can really make a difference. Remember, the human mind is easily influenced by anything spoken with conviction. When we are speaking to people about getting started and Martial Arts, at the forefront of our thought should be how it is going to benefit this potential student. When we do this, they will be way more likely to enroll in our program. Don’t be afraid to encourage someone to start. They will thank you later.

2 - White Belt Moment

A white belt moment is that moment that virtually every student that ever earned their Black-Belt experiences. It’s just that moment when you know this is exactly what you were looking for and more. It might be the first time they hit a bag hard. If we do our job right, it might be the first time they spar. It might be the first time they break a board. Our job as instructors is to help create a “white belt moment” for our students as early on in the training as possible. This will dramatically stack the odds of this student training for an extended period of time.

3 - First 100 days

It is very common for students to quit within the first three months of training. This often happens for no other reason that the student never got in the habit of coming to class. As instructors, we should remember to call students when they don’t show up as soon as possible, especially beginners. And when they do show up, we should get in the habit of asking them when they’re coming back to class.

4 - The Commitment to Black Belt

Earning a black belt is not for everyone. However, many people that could have benefited from long-term training quit because they didn’t make the commitment to getting their black belt. Once a student commits to getting a black belt, they are way more likely to get through the challenges that are surely coming their way. As instructors, we should encourage our students to make that commitment.

5 - The Commitment to “Martial Arts for Life”

I believe that committing to black belt is not enough. Many times in our industry we see someone get their black felt and then quit because that’s as far is their eyes could see. That’s why we stress the concept of martial arts for life before our students earn the rank of black belt. That way, when you make it to black belt they already are mentally prepared to keep going. There is a big difference between someone that received their black belt and someone that IS a Black Belt.

Help your students achieve these milestones and watch your school and the impact on your community grow.