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Making the Decision to Teach
Posted:
Thu May 11, 2017 5:38 amby Appledog
This post is supposed to be deleted because I only keep my most recent 100 posts. An admin should delete it or allow users to delete their own posts to save space.
Re: Making the Decision to Teach
Posted:
Thu May 11, 2017 6:30 amby RobP3
I started teaching some years back and it has brought me nothing but good. Aside from providing some great training partners / students it has given me an income, helped me develop myself on many levels and led to me travelling all over the world, learning and teaching. Most rewarding is seeing guys develop and set up their own clubs, as well as hearing how what I have taught has helped people in various ways.
I disagree, however, with what you say here
"Quite frankly when I look back on all my 20+ years of training I can say that I not only learned many new things I did not expect to learn, but that the essential limits of that knowledge have been tested. I mean, that whatever there is left to learn, really only will come through my own self study and research. Yes, I could go and study with my sifus again, and pick up another couple of forms."
I got to that stage with TCC, where it seemed all that was left was "more forms." So I travelled around and trained with numerous people, I found that I still had so much more to learn - and still do! Self study is good, but needs to be tested. Having students is one method of testing, as long as they are free-thinkers and not followers.
So overall I would say think carefully about how, why and what you want to teach, then make a decision from there. Don't give up the day job just yet, unless you are an uber-commercial school it takes a while to get established.
Re: Making the Decision to Teach
Posted:
Thu May 11, 2017 6:42 amby charles
Appledog wrote: Do you feel in the end it helped you improve as a martial artist or did it become a burden?
For me, it became a burden. Whether or not it becomes a burden, I think, has a lot to do with the teacher's expectations of the students and reasons for teaching.
... my conception of what Tai Chi is and how it works is radically different not only from the casual practitioner but also from what I believed it was even just a couple of months ago.
Although not the topic of this thread, I'd be interested, if you are willing, to hear how your conception of Taiji is radically different than others.
It just feels like such a major life decision. But I know it is right for me.
It is, or can be, a significant part of your waking hours, taking up a lot of time and effort. The good news is that if you decide later that you've had enough, you can always stop teaching Taiji or scale it down to working with a few dedicated students.
Best of luck with it.
Re: Making the Decision to Teach
Posted:
Thu May 11, 2017 9:11 amby Appledog
This post is supposed to be deleted because I only keep my most recent 100 posts. An admin should delete it or allow users to delete their own posts to save space.
Re: Making the Decision to Teach
Posted:
Thu May 18, 2017 8:35 amby Appledog
This post is supposed to be deleted because I only keep my most recent 100 posts. An admin should delete it or allow users to delete their own posts to save space.
Re: Making the Decision to Teach
Posted:
Thu May 18, 2017 12:56 pmby yeniseri
I love to teach but I have found it to be a 'mixed bag" of stuff that though positive, its perception can be subjectively negative when confronting the essence of teaching.
I have had quite a few workshops/seminars but no one showed. I was able to see true dedication when an interested party showed up at one seminar and I just taught for free because it was appreciated.
For me to have students, it appeared that I would have to teach stuff I did not personnally believe in, or just to make money off someone for the sake of collecting money, Perhaps if I were better at it, nothing else would matter. I stink at it but learn more about myself.
Re: Making the Decision to Teach
Posted:
Thu May 18, 2017 4:11 pmby Niall Keane
Appledog wrote:What I got is just a complete system, basically, as complete as it gets minus "all" the martial applications....... I see a really clear path from beginner to fighter in Tai Chi, and thats what I want to share.
Re: Making the Decision to Teach
Posted:
Thu May 18, 2017 6:21 pmby shawnsegler
Niall Keane wrote:Appledog wrote:What I got is just a complete system, basically, as complete as it gets minus "all" the martial applications....... I see a really clear path from beginner to fighter in Tai Chi, and thats what I want to share.
I know, right. This is a huge part of the problem in CMA. What makes you think you're qualified with that? There are tons of people like that who got the forms and none of the "rosetta stone" on how to make it work and they try and put it together as a fighting system just from the forms and they're just HORRIBLE.
What is it in your head that tells you that your "clear path" is worth ANYTHING? It's so Dunning/Kruger.
The hubris baffles me.
Re: Making the Decision to Teach
Posted:
Thu May 18, 2017 7:11 pmby Appledog
This post is supposed to be deleted because I only keep my most recent 100 posts. An admin should delete it or allow users to delete their own posts to save space.
Re: Making the Decision to Teach
Posted:
Thu May 18, 2017 7:55 pmby JoeWood
Appledog wrote:The big problem now is training space.
I found a space which is about 850 square feet near parking, 2nd floor, semi-separate entrance (you have to walk through the first floor which is a lobby). The main issue is the first floor which is unfinished. I'd have to have people call to enter. I'd be paying $600 a month for it. I'm probably going to take it since its the lesser of many evils. Most of the rentals around here are houses and they want prohibitive rents for a main street area -- $2500 a month for a 750 square foot storefront on a main street. Keep in mind this is a town of less than 100k people. Also, all of the 'commercial lease' homes/buildings seem to have been designed by idiots. There are no separate entrances to 2nd or 3rd floors and most places have open concept central stairwell which make privacy impossible, or weird designs/posts (which make training impossible). I am wondering what kind of term they want. I don't think I will be in this place for longer than six months. I'll surely find a better place by then.
I'm planning on using puzzle mats as a cheap flooring solution initially, any idea on how to get a decent shoe experience with mats? Or should I just get a wooden floor of some kind?
Look in to renting a room at a community center or rec center.
Re: Making the Decision to Teach
Posted:
Thu May 18, 2017 8:10 pmby Appledog
Hello! I am editing this post to point out that users here cannot delete their own posts. I do not understand why users have the ability to edit their posts but not to delete their posts.
Originally I wanted to have a "cool post count" of 108, or something like that (something associated with Tai Chi) but that does not seem possible here.
Locations to teach; inexpensive
Posted:
Thu May 18, 2017 9:00 pmby yeniseri
Places to rent that I have found inexpensive:
1. Local YMCA or YWCA.
2. Local park district
3. Local high school gymnasium
4. Local community college
5. If all else fails, a public space obscured by trees (for cover/privacy) and have everyone meet there or even the outside location of the previous 4.
WInter is a problem but it can be fixed
Re: Making the Decision to Teach
Posted:
Fri May 19, 2017 12:08 amby Bao
If you teach you need to learn how to explain things in words both for yourself and many different kinds of people. I found teaching much like acting as your own psychologist, or like a way to organize your knowledge in a new way, so it becomes more accessible both to others and to yourself. I miss the time when I had time to have my own group and teach. That was for about seven years ago. I shared some space with another MA guy and we just used the fees to pay for the place. Earning money on teaching has never been in my thoughts. If you aim for earning money, you need to compromise too much with your own development to teach whatever uneducated people (I.e. the market) demands. I believe that the health part of Tai Chi comes from practicing it as a martial arts and I've never been interested to teach TCC for health only, so I am not the kind of chi tree huggin' teacher that sadly most people out there want.
Re: Making the Decision to Teach
Posted:
Sun May 21, 2017 7:54 amby Appledog
Hello! I am editing this post to point out that users here cannot delete their own posts. I do not understand why users have the ability to edit their posts but not to delete their posts.
Originally I wanted to have a "cool post count" of 108, or something like that (something associated with Tai Chi) but that does not seem possible here.