For those of you who don't know, Crosby Ju-Jitsu Academy is a martial arts club, based (not surprisingly) in Crosby, Liverpool.
We've been going for 11 years now and we've grown from a small club, teaching Ju-Jitsu after school in a local school hall (where I was finishing my A-Levels at the time), to a bigger organisation with even bigger ambitions.
In September 2012, we became a Crosby Ju-Jitsu Academy Limited, a Company, registered in England and Wales, it's a big move but it puts us as an organisation in a fantastic position to kick off some of these ambitions plans I've had in my head, for a long time (years).
I decided to write a blog for 3 reasons;
1. Because it's a way of letting everyone know about us, what we're doing and how we're getting on (especially our students and their families who support us so much). We're going through a significant period of development and growth, it's exciting and I'd really like to share our progress.
2. Because I spend far too much time writing "formally" i.e. writing content for our website or notice board etc and not writing about how I feel about our club and some of the fantastic things that I think we as a group do - a personal view if you like. I get asked so many questions about all manner of topics and I often spend a long time discussing, debating and explaining things about the martial arts so I thought it'd be good to share those topics with others who may be interested.
3. (and most importantly) - I, like most people, watched the Olympic and Paralympic Games in London this year and one thing that I remember about the games the most, are some of the interviews the athletes gave where they singled out the start they we're given by the small, community sports clubs, often staffed by volunteers, mums and dads etc. Now, we're a martial art school/ club - we're not a sport and nor will we ever be (that's not to de-value sport in any way, but the martial arts, whilst sharing some of the attributes and benefits of competitive sport, are in many ways different and unique - another subject for another blog).
This last point got me thinking about some of our students from the past, many now grown adults and many still in touch. Some students and many of their parents have told me how their experience and time at The Academy really helped them grow and develop as a person. This is something I am hugely proud of and is something I know many other sports clubs around the country are equally proud of (when we take a step back to think about what we do).
However, (and the point of my blog today) running a club is NOT easy, far from it. I'll be the first to admit that on more than one occasion I have thought "why do I do this?".....closely followed by "do I want to carry on?". It's hard, it's a lot of work and there are a lot of do's, don'ts, legislation, qualifications, insurances etc etc, that's before we get onto the actual coaching - a whole world in itself. But it's also one of the most rewarding things you can ever do, the feeling you get when you take that proverbial step back and look at what you've built, look at the kid who has just done something they didn't think they we're able to do, the positive impact you have on people, it's an amazing feeling, one that makes you forget all those hoops you have to jump through to make this stuff happen.
So I intend to use this blog to do all 3 things I stated above, tell you about our Academy, the things that we do, try my best to explain some of those things that make the martial arts so special, share experiences, share my personal thoughts, answer questions (and pose some questions for reflection) and I hope share advice with other clubs, coaches or people thinking about getting involved. From setting up websites, creating databases, making marketing materials, forming companies, coaching children, catering for those with disabilities, risk assessments etc we've done or tried to do it all so I hope you enjoy the read.
Last thing to say is that this blog is a personal view, I'm not right, I'm not wrong - you may think so, that's your right and your opinion and I respect that, please extend me the same courtesy. Also, I've not got to grips with all of the blog settings as yet so I don't yet know how to moderate comments etc. I'd ask anyone who wants to leave a comment to be a) sensible - there are young people who may read what you write and b) respectful.
Cheers
Paul
Crosby Ju-Jitsu Academy
www.crosbyjujitsuacademy.co.uk
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