“What’s really disturbing to me is how many martial arts instructors somehow feel they must”take a vow of poverty” to teach quality martial arts.
The reality is the better you do at developing your students and creating a quality school the easier it becomes to make a living comparable to professionals with similar levels of training in any field.
” – Grandmaster Stephen Oliver, 8th Dan This month Martial Arts School Owner interview one of the martial arts most outstanding individuals, 8th degree black belt, president and founder of Mile High Karate, Grand Master Stephen Oliver.
From the outset of our meeting I realize it is more than just a lifetime’s commitment to hard training and technical excellence that has enabled Grand Master Oliver to achieve so much in his career that has spanned well over thirty years.
Perhaps it is the real passion that he has for providing high quality instruction to his students while providing an opportunity for his school owners and staff to make an incredible living and even going as far in his marketing campaign to boldly state that ‘that each and every Black Belt ever developed at Mile High Karate has said the experience was not only worth $1,000,000.
He combines with ease all the savvy marketing and business techniques available to any business person, at the same time demonstrating the true attributes of a traditional martial arts instructor.
So whatever stage you are at with your teaching there is something to learn from Grand Master Oliver.
After thinking about that path as a career and looking at what he could earn out of college- he decided to put together an extensive business plan and move to Denver, Colorado to open a chain of martial arts schools.
“My model was really the Jhoon Rhee Institute and when I moved I opened five schools in 18 months – with only about $10,000 in capital.
” Following his passion for the arts was something that would pay off in a big way and by the age of 25 he was the head of a million dollar operation.
The first to admit that over a thirty year career in the martial arts is hasn’t been all plain sailing.
” Yet through it all Grandmaster Oliver never lost sight of the passion and the drive to be innovative in the martial arts with his Mile High Karate school chain.
” Adding that; “with my schools we’ve managed to support the individual schools by getting their billing, their accounting, and their payroll done for them by someone else.
” Another key foundation of Mile High Karate is providing focused training programs on all three critical success factors that each school must focus on: 1.) Effective internal and external marketing systems 2.) Structured pricing systems and presentation processes to effectively enroll and upgrade students – much of it supported with automatic processes or incredibly effective sales tools 3.) Effective instructor training systems combined with scientifically and structured curriculum to ensure the highest possible quality of students.
At the same time Grandmaster Oliver remains totally focused on instilling the core values and philosophies in the growing Mile High Karate chain, “the over-all culture of the organization is very important.
” During my time with Grandmaster Oliver, it was clear that apart from being a very talented martial artist and instructor, he is an individual that believes the path to success is through constant learning.
Over the years I have been very focused on continuing to pick a subject matter and either formally or informally educating myself to a very high level in areas that are practical and necessary for my continued success not just as a business person but as a martial arts school owner.
” Building one of the USA’s most successful chains of martial arts schools has not been easy, and it has required some tough decisions along the way combined with sharp business acumen and he is quick to add that “I often get a reputation of focusing on the money -but that is not accurate.
We’ve developed an incredible martial arts organization with Jeff Smith and many other high quality Black Belts in the leadership hierarchy making sure we have the best possible Black Belts and provide a situation where school owners and their staff can equal or exceed their income opportunities from any other endeavor.
” Indeed the reality for Grandmaster Oliver is that the better you do at developing your students and creating a quality school the easier it becomes to make a living comparable to professionals with similar levels of training in any field.
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