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Thread: What is important in a leader/teacher?

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    Default What is important in a leader/teacher?

    Dirk says
    So, when it comes to martial arts you have to ask yourself what is important in a leader/teacher. Is it being able to win 50 street fights or being able to create a global organization of millions?
    There are so many ways to explore this question. Comparisons of various Arts and their Founders, comparisons between Bujutsu and Budo, Sports Organisations or militia. I guess you have to start with definitions. How to define a martial art in the first place. What is included, what is excluded? A country's infantry might have a Close Quarter Combative training program. surely that's a martial art! A baton-twirling gymnast in a sparkly costume that vaguely resembles a dogi, they'd be calling that a martial art.

    Ueshiba Morihei, So Doshin, Oyama Mas... or the guy who did the videos for Tae-Bo in the 1980s. What is "important" for YOUR matial art?
    David Noble
    Shorinji Kempo (1983 - 1988)
    I'll think of a proper sig when I get a minute...

    For now, I'm just waiting for the smack of the Bo against a hard wooden floor....

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    Gassho

    My two-cents:

    Quote Originally Posted by dirk.bruere View Post
    So, when it comes to martial arts you have to ask yourself what is important in a leader/teacher. Is it being able to win 50 street fights or being able to create a global organization of millions?
    ...AND...

    Quote Originally Posted by Tripitaka of AA View Post
    What is "important" for YOUR matial art?
    are the two sides of the same coin. The important thing about a teacher/leader in whichever martial art "X" is the ability to help/encourage/motivate his students so they can achieve the goals pursued by that "X" MA.

    So, which qualities are required for an instructor depends upon the martial art he/she teaches (at least partly, because we can agree there are many "generally convenient" qualities that are good for all)

    Then, the question of this thread is in very close connection with: What is important for the martial art you practice? or What is its goal?

    There are many martial arts (and also so-called-disciplines) out there. For ones, the important thing will be the ability to win sporting tournaments, for others the efficiency at combat, for others self improvement and so on.

    Regarding Shorinji Kempo, I think there is a very clear and strong ultimate goal and that is a social one. As stated everywhere, Doshin So created Shorinji Kempo as a tool with the sole purpose of improving Society. This is goal number 1.

    Then, his approach for the improvement of Society was the improvement/development of as many individuals as possible (because "all depends on the quality of the person" - Hito hito hito...). So this is a derived goal number 2.

    Again, to achieve the development of strong and fair individuals, he composed that mix of Kongo Zen philosophy and martial art (ekkin gyo) called Shorinji Kempo. The practice of Shorinji Kempo is meant to produce the three well-known outcomes of healthy body, personal development (or "healthy spirit") and self-defence ability (supposed to serve the purpose of standing against injustice). These would be the third-level-goals 3.1, 3.2 and 3.3

    All these goals are (or should be) pursued from a general joy and fellowship spirit at the dojo where we try to put in practice the kind of society we strive for.



    Excuse me if I write such obvious things you all know by far better than me...

    It's only that sometimes reading this kind of discussions one finds that the point is missed (not saying this is going to be the case). Many times we are "tempted" to play in a ground that is not ours entering into disquisitions about matters that may be much more important for other MA than for ours (or viceversa).

    As said, only my two cents.

    Kesshu.
    Fernando Fernández de Bobadilla
    WSKO Almería Branch - SPAIN

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    Very well put, Fernando.
    David Noble
    Shorinji Kempo (1983 - 1988)
    I'll think of a proper sig when I get a minute...

    For now, I'm just waiting for the smack of the Bo against a hard wooden floor....

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    Quote Originally Posted by Tripitaka of AA View Post
    What is "important" for YOUR matial art?
    Like Fernando said, there are some general qualities that any good teacher should have. For one, a good instructor needs to be able to impart knowledge in a way that's accessible to many different learning styles. Not everyone picks up technique in the same way, and a good teacher should know how to connect with students in a way that suits their particular learning needs. I'd also say that a good instructor is passionate about teaching and takes an active interest in students' improvement. There's more to teaching than just demonstrating to the class and correcting errors, and a really great teacher is (at least) as invested in his/her students' successes as he is in his/her own. A good teacher also creates an environment in which students feel safe and respected, and where they are able to concentrate on learning.

    Since you also asked about the "art specific" qualities of a good teacher, I'll touch on a few points that are unique to BJJ instruction. It's an ever-changing martial art, with new techniques constantly exploding in popularity and success. Teachers need to be aware of the art's inexorable evolution, and while they needn't be experts in every new thing that comes along, they should at least be able to coach their students through the basic concepts of whatever is at the frontier of contemporary BJJ. Not the same but slightly related is the need for honesty and humility. BJJ teachers can't really pretend to know things that they don't (at least not for long). They or their students will quickly be outed at tournaments or sparring sessions, and the BJJ community does not tolerate false claims or inflated ranks*. To be respectable, a BJJ teacher should also have tournament experience and at least a decent record, and many students prefer that their instructors be active competitors. This could be in any number of grappling events or in MMA, but it's vital that a teacher demonstrate a willingness to put it all on the line and challenge themself against other schools, instructors, and styles of BJJ.

    *If you're interested, here and here are a couple recent videos (NSFW language warning) of fake black belts being outed. If you're REALLY interested, there's also this now classic video (NSFW language again) of world champion Andre Galvao showboating as he effortlessly dispatches an opponent claiming false rank (not only does the man lie about his rank in BJJ, but he also displays a shameful ignorance of even the most basic fundamentals).

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    Deleted....

    I didn't realize I was in the Shorinji Kempo forum.
    Last edited by CEB; 26th August 2015 at 23:27.
    Ed Boyd

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    Quote Originally Posted by Omicron View Post
    ... and many students prefer that their instructors be active competitors. This could be in any number of grappling events or in MMA, but it's vital that a teacher demonstrate a willingness to put it all on the line and challenge themself against other schools, instructors, and styles of BJJ.
    Well, here is the problem with that - what happens when the teacher hits 35 or 40 and they just get their arse kicked because they are no longer as young and fit as they were? Time for the BJJ scrap heap?

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    Quote Originally Posted by dirk.bruere View Post
    Well, here is the problem with that - what happens when the teacher hits 35 or 40 and they just get their arse kicked because they are no longer as young and fit as they were? Time for the BJJ scrap heap?
    Hi Dirk. I guess I was thinking of the typical "day to day" type coaches and teachers you see in BJJ gyms. Sure, there are many teachers who are past their physical peak and may no longer be able to compete, but most such instructors were avid competitors in their day. Academies headed by such instructors also usually have younger, junior coaches who are in the prime of their competitive years. Most tournaments also have a masters division for competitors over 30 (which isn't old...!). Plus, there are plenty of older practitioners who are still great competitors! In my own experience, even the oldest of my teachers have been competitors. Even though some of them were older, they maintained an undiminished spirit of competition and self-improvement. Perhaps most importantly of all, there's more to competing than just winning, and those benefits can be reaped by any entrant, regardless of age.

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