Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is more than just a martial art. Those mats are more than just a space where you’ll learn new techniques and become healthier; rather, they’re also a place where you’ll make great friends and become a part of something that’s bigger than you – a community of like-minded people. And, if you’re a coach, you know how fantastic it feels to see all your students training and having fun.
However, some instructors take their students’ membership in the academy way too seriously. These instructors think that their students should have extreme, unwavering loyalty to them and their academies; so much so that leaving the said academy is almost equal to a moral crime.
This shouldn’t be the case. Professor Ryan Young, from Kama Jiu-Jitsu, explains why.
STUDENTS SHOULDN’T HAVE UNDYING LOYALTY
Professor Young emphasizes that he understand why BJJ instructors feel overly “territorial” when someone leaves their school. They’ve invested a lot of time into that student and have even perhaps formed a friendship with them; and then, that student decides to leave.
However, whatever the reason for student’s decision may be, the instructor should understand that this is simply how it is. They don’t have the ownership over the student(s) and they should (at least if they’re keen to teach for a number of yours) understand that students will leave. It’s just a matter of them finding their own paths, and often doesn’t have anything personal to do with you as a coach.
Professor Young explains more from his own experience on the video below:
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