“Karate makes true friends.” – Naka Tatsuya 7th dan Shotokan JKA
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Too often some instructors ruin their legacy, and the legacy of others, due to their ego. They rely on their own ideas too much, avoid useful criticism, and can even bully their students into silence. Their self-centered attitudes and approaches create a stressful culture and frustrate talented students leading to high turnover in the dojo.
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Unfortunately, most bad instructors aren’t aware that they’re bad. Their egos cause them to believe their actions are helping the dojo, not hurting it.
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Too much ego makes you stubborn and when you’re stubborn you don’t listen to other people, who may know better than you. Your ego hurts because you don’t want to take advice from instructors who are more experienced than you.
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There’s a big difference between confidence and ego. Confidence is healthy, ego is destructive. Ego can make you believe the worst in people and get defensive most of the time.
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Most instructors see negative feedback as a threat, even if it’s supposed to help them. Of course, this mentality is counterproductive. If you want to improve, you must identify the areas where you’re lacking.
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Criticism doesn’t lessen your value. It doesn’t mean that you are any less smart or talented than before. Look at feedback as discovering an area that you could improve yourself or the quality of some of your teaching or training.
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By having more knowledgeable people who have better and different skills than you close by, you can embrace the challenges and feedback they bring you. At first, your ego may hurt. However, over time, you’ll learn to appreciate their perspectives which can lead to better ideas than what you’d come up with on your own. It will also take the pressure off of you to always have all the answers.
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Build a network of diverse and positive people who want to see you do better and will challenge your ego. If your colleagues, mentors, and peers have your best interests at heart, and you’re open to their suggestions, everyone wins.
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An unchecked ego is the deadliest killer for an instructor. Their ego tricks them into thinking that they’re better than they actually are. Learn from your mistakes and flaws, you can only get better.
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Change your mindset, change your outcomes…… “Karate makes true friends.” ??
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? Photo Credit: Martial Arts Thailand – Naka Tatsuya quote courtesy of the JKA