A Ventation about Poorly Run Studios
A list of qualities I hate in studios (and possibly an explanation why, depends how much I feel like going into it):
- Unkept Promises.
- Poor Budget Planning
- Loss of Appreciation for Your Staff
Your staff is your way of being in more than one place at one time. They will either confirm or deny the customer's expectations/hopes, and you should train them accordingly.
Here's the honest truth: your staff is what will make or break your business. Not your location, not your product, and not you. While all the things will help, your staff is how people decide whether or not they will continue with your business or seek to find a different one.
In my opinion, this is among the worst of them. Promises made to your instructors or your higher belts that are unkept or met with excuses will cause your higher belts/instructors lose faith in you, and possibly in the Art itself. However, because they have experience in the field, they are unlikely to quit because of this - only become discouraged.
However, when you do not keep your promises to lower belts, you can expect a fall-out of sorts. Orange to green belt is the most important time in any karateka's life. This is when a student decides whether to continue his studies in the martial arts, or whether to give up. A truly excited student (and ideally good) is hard to find, especially when he has good ideas to help improve the studio. If you promise him to start something, then make excuses and never start it, he will become discouraged and quit. You will lose not only a student, but a powerful asset that could've set your studio apart from the one across the street.
It is proper to set your goals into four groups: weekly, monthly, yearly, and five years in the future. If you have a realistic expectation for where you are, a dream of where you want to be, and a down-to-earth plan of where you want to be, you should be unstoppable.
You should also budget accordingly. Is that white out board worth the five bucks, or is it better to save up a little more and get a better bag? Which will help the studio out more? Which will contribute to the happiness of your students?
That being said you must also be sure to appreciate them. Make sure to take the step to thank them for doing a good job. Take some time out of your schedule to show them something new, or ask their opinion on a decision. It does not have to be 'business partner esque' - but something to make them want to keep coming back and strive to be the best.