Consider the McDojo. By and large, when we say the word, we use it in a pejorative way. We mean commercial studios that purport to teach some form of martial arts, which are based on contracts and guaranteed promotions in rank for students. Many are franchised chains, some are run by charismatic instructors who lay claim to skill in arts no one has heard of but them, belt levels awarded by organizations of dubious distinction, and an ever-shifting emphasis on whatever is popular at the time; from Karate to Kung Fu to Kick-Boxing.
Those of us who consider ourselves martial artists tend to hold such places in low esteem. We train for various reasons, but none of us would seek to 'purchase' a belt or ranking by contract, regardless of our actual capabilities. We seek the 'real thing' and not a pale imitation sold to the children of soccer moms and fantasy-football dads.
However, the McDojo has a place as a legitimate business. Note that I did not say as a legitimate place to learn martial arts. A business. Like calling McDonalds a 'restaurant' (and hence the term 'McDojo'). Yes, you can get food at McDonalds, and some of it is tasty. You could even live on it, more or less. Not many would claim it is superior to the local restaurants in one's home town, but it has certain attributes that make it attractive to some. For one thing, it is dependable. You always know what you're getting. The quality may not be the best, but it's nearly always safe and up to a particular standard, even if that standard is not very high. For another, it's cheap; although many know where to find local bargains at non-fast-food restaurants that is even cheaper.
The McDojo, like a fast-food restaurant, serves a purpose. From the business point of view, it is profitable if done right, and it generates a dependable revenue stream. By using contracts and looking at promotions as customer enticements to continue instead of recognition of skill levels achieved, it does the one thing that all businesses struggle with - generate recurring revenue that is predictable. If franchised, it generally has a business model that makes the typical pitfalls and traps of local businesses smoother and easier to manage, like offering specialized vertical accounting software designed specifically for the business, discounts on group-based health and liability insurance, and produces and services that can be sold.
Can students learn 'real' martial arts in a McDojo? Sure, if the instructor is capable of teaching it. However, learning martial arts is secondary to making a profit. This may seem anathema to some - those who see martial arts as something pure that is not to be sullied. But others see it differently - even the best 'pure' or 'authentic' dojo cannot stay open without students. A wonderfully-qualified instructor who is difficult to get along with, or mean, or even sadistic, can ruin a dojo, no matter how authentic the instruction is. A fantastic instructor who cannot balance the books, pay the rent, keep the lights turned on, will soon find himself without a place for his or her students to work out, no matter how good their training is. So it seems that business needs are important to any dojo, whether or not it is an 'authentic' dojo. So even a non-McDojo must consider the needs of business, even if they place the emphasis on teaching and not on making money.
A McDojo is primarily a business. As a business model, it is logical and sensible. As a teaching model, if it is part of a franchise that puts a requirement on actual training of authentic, it can be a reasonable if not superior one. That is, like McDonalds, it can insist that a minimum standard be met in instructors and franchise owners. That is not to say that all McDojo's do that, but they can. Students can learn useful skills in such places if they are good students and the instructors are good instructors; but it is incidental to the business itself, not the basis of it. Poor students will also be promoted as long as their check clears, but that's recognizing a business reality, not seeking to build a positive reputation in the authentic martial arts community.
'Real' dojos will always dislike McDojo's and for good reason. They do indeed drag down the 'value' others perceive of authentic training and advanced belts by lowering the bar and giving away or selling belts and rankings to whomever can pay the freight. On the other hand, one must wonder how many students start at a McDojo who might otherwise never even have considered martial arts training (due to the McDojo's incessant advertising), become dismayed, and seek out a 'real' dojo as a result? How many instructors in 'authentic' dojos can relax knowing that their students are there to learn and not to buy a belt, since they know if that is their goal, they can drive down to the local Black Belt Factory and buy one in a year and a half?
McDonalds doesn't really damage local restaurants - they serve a different purpose. McDojos don't really damage local dojos. They serve a different purpose.
Thoughts?
Those of us who consider ourselves martial artists tend to hold such places in low esteem. We train for various reasons, but none of us would seek to 'purchase' a belt or ranking by contract, regardless of our actual capabilities. We seek the 'real thing' and not a pale imitation sold to the children of soccer moms and fantasy-football dads.
However, the McDojo has a place as a legitimate business. Note that I did not say as a legitimate place to learn martial arts. A business. Like calling McDonalds a 'restaurant' (and hence the term 'McDojo'). Yes, you can get food at McDonalds, and some of it is tasty. You could even live on it, more or less. Not many would claim it is superior to the local restaurants in one's home town, but it has certain attributes that make it attractive to some. For one thing, it is dependable. You always know what you're getting. The quality may not be the best, but it's nearly always safe and up to a particular standard, even if that standard is not very high. For another, it's cheap; although many know where to find local bargains at non-fast-food restaurants that is even cheaper.
The McDojo, like a fast-food restaurant, serves a purpose. From the business point of view, it is profitable if done right, and it generates a dependable revenue stream. By using contracts and looking at promotions as customer enticements to continue instead of recognition of skill levels achieved, it does the one thing that all businesses struggle with - generate recurring revenue that is predictable. If franchised, it generally has a business model that makes the typical pitfalls and traps of local businesses smoother and easier to manage, like offering specialized vertical accounting software designed specifically for the business, discounts on group-based health and liability insurance, and produces and services that can be sold.
Can students learn 'real' martial arts in a McDojo? Sure, if the instructor is capable of teaching it. However, learning martial arts is secondary to making a profit. This may seem anathema to some - those who see martial arts as something pure that is not to be sullied. But others see it differently - even the best 'pure' or 'authentic' dojo cannot stay open without students. A wonderfully-qualified instructor who is difficult to get along with, or mean, or even sadistic, can ruin a dojo, no matter how authentic the instruction is. A fantastic instructor who cannot balance the books, pay the rent, keep the lights turned on, will soon find himself without a place for his or her students to work out, no matter how good their training is. So it seems that business needs are important to any dojo, whether or not it is an 'authentic' dojo. So even a non-McDojo must consider the needs of business, even if they place the emphasis on teaching and not on making money.
A McDojo is primarily a business. As a business model, it is logical and sensible. As a teaching model, if it is part of a franchise that puts a requirement on actual training of authentic, it can be a reasonable if not superior one. That is, like McDonalds, it can insist that a minimum standard be met in instructors and franchise owners. That is not to say that all McDojo's do that, but they can. Students can learn useful skills in such places if they are good students and the instructors are good instructors; but it is incidental to the business itself, not the basis of it. Poor students will also be promoted as long as their check clears, but that's recognizing a business reality, not seeking to build a positive reputation in the authentic martial arts community.
'Real' dojos will always dislike McDojo's and for good reason. They do indeed drag down the 'value' others perceive of authentic training and advanced belts by lowering the bar and giving away or selling belts and rankings to whomever can pay the freight. On the other hand, one must wonder how many students start at a McDojo who might otherwise never even have considered martial arts training (due to the McDojo's incessant advertising), become dismayed, and seek out a 'real' dojo as a result? How many instructors in 'authentic' dojos can relax knowing that their students are there to learn and not to buy a belt, since they know if that is their goal, they can drive down to the local Black Belt Factory and buy one in a year and a half?
McDonalds doesn't really damage local restaurants - they serve a different purpose. McDojos don't really damage local dojos. They serve a different purpose.
Thoughts?