Traditional Dojo Adding Other Arts As Supplements

Honos · White Belt

I have been trying to make our dojo more family welcoming being a dad with a large family myself I have found it much easier when my wife and kids can enjoy the dojo while not necessarily training all the while in just Shorin Ryu. Thursdays we started offering a Yoga Class and allow a Kendo club to teach while the rest of the nights are all traditional Shorin Ryu Karate. I have gotten mixed reactions from my students and contemporaries but have not noticed a decline or increase in new students. I am looking for honest reactions from people of traditional karate. Do you feel this is a mistake that waters down the karate by taking a focus off or do you feel this is appropriate. I have been told that a cross training in BJJ would help the dojo as well but do not want to water down our karate. Thanks for any input people.
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Chibana Style Shorin Ryu
John Kleck Student Of Robert Giles And Earnest Estrada Sensei.

LLLEARNER · Brown Belt

Maybe it is a necessity in the area where I live but most of the dojos have multiple disciplines they teach. Usually, they do it in a way to incorporate family at different levels. My own Sensei blends Shotokan with Judo and Japanese Jujitsu and our testings cover all three disciplines. He also does cardio kickboxing. From a business standpoint, I can see the advantage of having unused floorspace and times being filled and generating income.
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"Those who know don't talk. Those who talk don't know." ~ Lao-tzu, Tao Te Ching

"Walk a single path, becoming neither cocky with victory nor broken with defeat, without forgetting caution when all is quiet or becoming frightened when danger threatens." ~ Jigaro Kano

Nidan Melbourne · KF Sempai

I believe it is ok to allow other MA to utilise your club space when it won't interfere with your normal timetable.

Besides it will only add potential new members to cross train.

JR 137 · Black Belt

A lot of people don't like change. I don't see how adding other stuff waters down anything. Unless of course you're changing what's being taught during Shorin-Ryu classes. If you were my teacher and you said "for class today, we're going to do yoga instead of karate" or kendo, I wouldn't be too happy. I signed up and pay for karate. I'd have no problem with if you incorporated some yoga principles into the stretching/warmup/cool down routine, so long as it was appropriate and beneficial, but I don't think that's what you're getting at.

I'd get upset if the schedule changed and karate was no longer offered at the times I usually attend. I have a 4 year old and 6 year old daughters, so free time is pretty scarce. But that doesn't seem to be the case either.

I don't see anything inherently wrong with the space being utilized during down time, provided the people using it aren't causing issues. It's a good thing - adding stuff like this supports the club and helps ensure the long term stability. Without income, the doors close.

Maybe work out a deal with the yoga and/or kendo instructors where existing students and perhaps their families can attend for a discounted rate for a certain amount of time and or a certain number of classes? If my CI allowed a yoga instructor to come in during down time and my wife could attend for the right price (provided she liked the instructor), it would be great. Several of our significant others and several students at our dojo take yoga. I'm sure we'd rather have it in the dojo instead, so that it's less of a financial burden on my CI. Sure they'd be things like them making a mess or moving stuff around, etc., but those things work themselves out pretty quickly most of the time.

tallgeese · Black Belt

sensei8 · KF Sensei

Dojo supplements, as to the adding of a plethora of other activities, is, and has been, a long time staple of MA schools. What to offer and what not to offer will differ across an ocean of varieties because of said schools interests based on the CI, for the most part, and from the public/student body.

Being eclectic across the board in what a MA school offers to its student body, current as well as prospective, builds up and tears down at the same time. This is dependent on either having not enough, just right, or to much of a good thing. Finding that balance depends on the CI; after all, the CI controls/oversees the entire operation of the school.

The CI's influences have to be tempered across the board. If not, then anarchy sets in where it's not appreciated or wanted. Does what the school has to offer have to make since to anyone?? Imho, NO!! Balancing that ever important P&L Statement accurately makes and breaks a MA school faster than one can imagine.

Change is inevitable, and necessary!! However, change, if poorly executed, is destructive, and preventable!! Fine tuning a MA schools offered curriculum's is that high-wire act done over that bottomless sink hole. On one hand, act fast with those curriculum's that are successful and profitable. Albeit, on the other hand, if one doesn't act quickly against failing curriculum, then the schools profits quickly turn into a out of control deficit.

"That doesn't make any since whatsoever, to have a Shotokan school teaching a crochet class!!", says a prospective student! That might be true! However, that's the choice of the CI, and not anyone else's business.

The CI/Owner's job is to reach a profitable year at the years' fiscal end!!

With that being said, if I was to add inner-tube painting to my offered curriculum's, and I was turning a profit from it, then I'd continue to offer inner-tube painting for the rest of my life!!

Sure, a MA school wants to offer classes that would compliment the core style taught at that school, as a first choice for the CI, but OTHER supplement offerings DON'T HAVE TO BE IN SYNC WITH THE CORE STYLE!!!!

Why??

PROFITS!! They're to be made, and not lost!!

While I'm very traditional in my MA, however, this addresses the inevitable change in that, I'm the furthest thing from being that traditionalist when it comes to earning positive profits!!

Imho!!

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**Proof is on the floor!!!

Wastelander · KF Sensei

We do have a weekly grappling class in our dojo, as well as twice weekly "cardio kickboxing" classes, and we periodically hold yoga and meditation seminars. These things aren't super popular, but they do tend to bring in people that don't normally join the karate classes. If it works in your area, with your demographics, then it can definitely be beneficial. It's pretty easy to keep these things from "watering down" your karate, honestly.
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Kishimoto-Di | 2014-Present | Sensei: Ulf Karlsson
Shorin-Ryu/Shinkoten Karate | 2010-Present: Yondan, Renshi | Sensei: Richard Poage (RIP), Jeff Allred (RIP)
Shuri-Ryu | 2006-2010: Sankyu | Sensei: Joey Johnston, Joe Walker (RIP)
Judo | 2007-2010: Gokyu | Sensei: Joe Walker (RIP), Ramon Rivera (RIP), Adrian Rivera
Illinois Practical Karate | International Neoclassical Karate Kobudo Society

Spartacus Maximus · Black Belt

Same dojo, but different schedule or different instructor is the best way to maintain optimal benefits of training as well as quality.

The Pred · Green Belt

sensei8 · KF Sensei

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