How do you know if your instructor is one of the best?

Traveling and seeing many instructors around the world, I have seen many types of instructors and been fortunate to develop a deeper insight about successful instructors and their way. What makes a good instructor? How do you know if your instructor is one of the best?

Well firstly, in many schools, you can understand the instructor by watching his senior students.

Does the instructor have a good cross-section of students, or do they all look the same, act the same and talk the same? In some schools, the students are all like clones of the instructor, and when this is the case, we come to the conclusion that this instructor is going in just one direction, with the same attitude for everyone... and the students that survive and stay in this school are duplicates of the instructor.

In traditional martial arts, this is a natural outcome. The process of each traditional martial art creates similarity in the students, for example karate leads to calluses on the knuckles and elbows, muay thai develops unbreakable shins, sumo creates big and strong wrestlers and taekwondo develops outstanding flexibility. In the end, the traditional martial art creates consistent physical qualities in the successful students.

But in Krav Maga, this shouldn't be the way. Krav Maga can be for everyone, from people in duty to civilians, from the strong and young fighter to the older student, and for women and children too. Fit, not-so-fit, aggressive, timid... Everybody can find solutions in the Krav Maga system. This is why what Imi created is so unique and innovative.

So if we see students who are all clones of their instructor, we can conclude that the instructor is teaching Krav Maga as if it is a traditional system and not the living, evolving system that it is.

Secondly, look at how the instructor and his students interact.

Do the students ask questions and challenge techniques to gain understanding, or are they 'yes men'?

If the students are blindly following the instructor, it's a big problem. It means that the instructor doesn't want questions or doesn't have answers. Worse, the instructor dismisses the question with a brutal demonstration on the one who asked the question!

This kind of instructor probably has only one way of teaching and understanding. And since this kind of instructor often also has to feel superior, his students survive by keeping their mouths shut. God forbid that they may have ideas and questions of their own! This kind of instructor will not stand to have in his school a better student from the technical point of view or smarter.

In the old martial arts, it was forbidden to ask the master questions and the learning was based on total commitment to imitate the master. It took many years to gain the full transmission of the art. But in our modern world, we don't have this luxury to wait 25 years to master the martial art. Krav Maga was designed to give immediate and logical answers. And the way of teaching is to reveal, not to conceal. Therefore, if the instructor doesn't want to or can't explain a technique, he is not equipped enough to be a good instructor. Students with a deep desire to understand a technique will not survive in this environment.

And thirdly, watch how the instructor teaches his beginners.

How many students are in one lesson? Can the instructor pay attention to everybody? Does the instructor look for mistakes and correct them? Is the class designed to show / reflect how tough the instructor is? Is there something for everyone in the class?

In the old martial arts, life was tough for beginners to see if they had the strength to endure. Masters rejected their students and students had to prove themselves in order to be allowed to train.

But in the modern world in a Krav Maga school, good instructors are generous to their students. Generous with their time and their knowledge.

Good instructors run classes that are good for their students, not just good for their ego. And if the beginner classes are filled with a variety of people, who are all enjoying and learning, the instructor is good.

Think about these things when choosing your Krav Maga school and instructor. Don't forget, Krav-Maga is a serious matter; it's your life, self-defense.

The good news is that there are lots of excellent Krav Maga instructors around the world. Keep on practicing and have fun.