Becoming a Self Defence Instructor is a very rewarding occupation. Helping people to stay safe and seeing people’s confidence and self-esteem increase through self defence training is, in many ways, a reward in and of itself and many people make a good living teaching self defence and what could be a better thing than turning your passion into a full time or part time business.
And I know, because that’s a decision I made almost thirty years ago, which in hindsight was possibly the best decision I ever made because it has allowed me to live my life doing what I love by turning my passion into my business.
Now you may be at that point in your life too where you are thinking of doing the same thing and my advice to you would be to follow your heart and live life on your own terms. That doesn’t mean that it will be easy, because if it was everyone would do it. You will face problems and obstacles but with the right help, support and guidance you will be able to overcome them.
😕 Problem Number 1 – Who Do I Train With?
And the first problem that you have to solve is who do I train with and that can be confusing, frustrating and worrying for you because there is no requirement for you, or indeed anyone else, to pass a course or to hold any qualification to start teaching self-defence. A person can literally set themselves up as a self-defence instructor and offer courses out to whoever they wish to.
And I know how that feels, because I was there too. When I first started out I didn’t know who to train with so I did what most people do and that was train with a lot of different people and I found it (in some cases) very restrictive and frustrating.
If I wanted to get certificated by one company I had to go through their whole training course and I was restricted to only using the techniques that they taught.
So if at the end of the training I didn’t think it was the right course for me I had to invest more time and money in training with someone else and repeat this process until I eventually found something that was good enough for me to use.
😕 Problem Number 2 – Is What I Am Being Taught Correct?
That then leads onto another problem – how do you know whether or not what you are being taught is correct?
I regularly hear from people who have been on courses where they were taught some crazy physical techniques some of which would land you in trouble if you used it in the manner it was taught.
I also hear from people who ask my opinion about what the law says you can and can’t do because they were told something on a course by an instructor and they didn’t think it was correct, and in many cases their doubts are confirmed.
The problem with this is that if you give advice that is legally incorrect and you go on to provide the same advice to others then that leaves you liable for the information you are providing, which can get you in trouble because under certain laws people have an ‘enforceable right to compensation’ if incorrect advice is given that leads them to be disadvantaged in some way.
😕 Problem Number 3 – Self Defence Is Not The Same as Martial Arts
Some self-defence courses are based on the martial art or arts that the instructor has trained in for many years and although the application of the martial art for the instructor works for them, the techniques are not necessarily going to work for someone who hasn’t had years of training in the same martial art and the ‘cop-out’ for the instructor is nearly always “well if you practice enough you’ll eventually get it right”. Tell that to a mother who wants to protect her son who is being bullied who needs something that will work now that she can show to her son, which is easy to remember when it is needed, or to a lone worker who needs something that will work when they are being threatened and physically assaulted by someone they went to visit.
The fact is that martial arts are generally about form over function which is why it takes so many years to get to black belt whereas self-defence is about function over form. In other words it doesn’t matter what it looks like as long as it works.
So if you were like I was all those years ago you are at a point where you want to teach self-defence so that you can genuinely want to help others stay safe. You want to serve your community and/or build a business based on your passion for helping others stay safe. But you’re stuck. Trying to decide which training course to do and which training provider is credible is an obstacle that is holding you back.
😕 Problem Number 4 – How Do I Find People To Teach?
And the problem isn’t over when you decide to train with someone and you will probably need help after the training course has finished, because being trained is one thing, but getting other people to come to you for training is a different game and that’s where most people need help.
This is why so many self defence trainers, who have spent a lot of money getting more and more certificates and more and more training fail.
They fail because they think that if they get enough certificates people will flock to train with them, but that just isn’t the case because when it comes to the reality of getting customers the truth of the matter is that no-one is actually interested in you. They are not interested in how many certificates you have or how good you are. They are only interested in what you can do for them. That is so important I’m going to say it again – ‘No-one is interested in you.They are only interested in what you can do for them’!
This is why so many highly qualified self-defence trainers fail.
The strategy and plan you decide on to become a trainer is one thing but the strategy and plan you need to find customers is a different one altogether!
To get customers you need to know how to market what you do because a cold hard fact is that someone who has an inferior product, but who is better at marketing, will always win over someone who has a superior product, but who doesn’t know how to market.
Have you ever wondered why the Israelites ended up wandering around the desert for forty years after Moses gained their freedom from Egypt, never reaching the promised land?
The reason is that ‘The plan to get to the Promised land needs to be different to the plan that got the Israelites out of Egypt’ (which is why they ended up wandering around the desert for forty years never reaching the Promised land).
So you need two plans. One to become a self defence instructor and the other one to get customers to come to you for training.
😕 Problem Number 5 – What About Certification?
Then there was always the issue of what do I do now I’m trained? None of the people or companies I trained with offered any kind of post course help, advice or support. Basically it was thanks for paying to train with us, here’s your certificate and bye bye!
Apparently (at least what I was told) was that most training companies won’t teach you how to promote or develop your business because (and I’ve heard this more than once) they don’t want to create any competition and they certainly don’t want you to be more successful than they are.
And with regards to certification, it was only ever an in-house certificate issued by the trainer or company (and, possibly like you, I’ve got draws full of them!).
🙏 But There Is a Better Way 🙏
The fact is, I spent a lot of time and money on learning all of this the hard way until eventually I had, what I can only describe as an epiphany moment.
✅ NFPS Ltd Created The First BTEC Level 3 Self-Defence Instructor Award
Because there was no recognised standard or qualification for Self-Defence Instruction I decided to create one so, with a lot of help and guidance we produced the very first qualification which is the BTEC Level 3 Award in Self-Defence Instruction, which means that you leave our course with a recognised Ofqual regulated qualification.
✅ We Set Up Support Groups For The Trainers We Train
I also set up support groups for the people we train so I have a closed marketing group where I teach you everything you need to know to market your business. We also have a closed NFPS Trainers only group where you can get help and advice from all of the NFPS trainers as well as all of the trainers we have trained. This way the support doesn’t end when the course does!
✅ We Are Inclusive and Not Prescriptive
And our training is not prescriptive in terms of what techniques you need to teach. We teach a range of principles and as long as your training meets those principles you can teach whatever you wish.
✅ Our Training Is About as Legally Defensible As You Can Get
In addition to all of that we have lawyers teach you the law and I’ve also worked as an Expert Witness on the use of force for many years and have given evidence in many court cases, tribunals and disciplinary hearings. That way you know the information you are getting is about as legally defensible as you can get and in addition to that I give you a guarantee that if you need me I’ll be there for you. So if you teach someone something and they challenge you, I’ll have your back!
✅ We Are A Family!
Everyone regards NFPS Ltd as a ‘family’ and when people train with us and get invited to join our various closed support groups they will always get a ‘Welcome to the Family’ message from all of those people already in the ‘family’.
It’s a family because we are all there to support and help each other. Everyone shares their knowledge and expertise freely.
✅ Learn How To Market Your Business & Have a Product To Market!
We have a specific Facebook group that has over eighty video lessons that will teach you how to market your business, based on training courses and events that I have attended that have cost me tens of thousands of pounds over the years.
We can even license you to deliver a BTEC Level 2 Award in Breakaway and Self-Defence so that you have a winning market edge in your business that puts you above most of the competition.
Lots of Post Course Support and Help
We are also always on hand to help whenever you need it.
I am personally only ever an email or a phone call away and my team of trainers and every other member of the NFPS Family are there for that purpose too.
In short, you’ll never be on your own.
🤔 What Are You Waiting For?
So, what are you waiting for? We only run two BTEC Level 3 Self-Defence Courses a year, one in April and one in October and if you like to find out more about the course itself then go to this webpage where you can see all of the course details (and bonuses) 👉 https://nfps.info/self-defence-trainer-training-2023/
If you are looking for more than just a certificate then I would love you to come and join us on our next course. It may be the best decision you’ll make.
Don’t make the same mistakes that most people make, which I’ve outlined for you above.
In NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) the way you get fast results is to find someone who is the best at what they do in the business you want to be in and model their practices. By doing that you can fast track your success because they will guide you past the mistakes they made and learned from.
I’d very much like to be that person for you.
The rest is up to you, so….. What are you waiting for – https://nfps.info/self-defence-trainer-training-2023/