If Your Instructors Are Doing This, It’s Hurting Your Students

Let’s talk about a habit that’s quietly slowing down your students’ progress…

Generic praise.

If your instructors walk around class tossing out “Good jobs” and “awesomes” like they’re giving away free samples of bourbon chicken at the mall, you’ve got a problem.

I get it. We want to be encouraging. But when every student gets the same recycled “awesome” and “Great job,” those words stop meaning anything.

Praise loses value when it’s vague and automatic.

And if we want our schools to grow, we have to focus on student outcome before income.

So how do you fix it?

Start using the “Praise with Purpose” method.

Here’s the rule: If you’re going to praise a student, make it specific and relevant to what they’re learning.

Instead of: “Nice job!”

Try: “I love how you rotated your hips on that round kick.”

Instead of:

“Awesome!”

Try:

“That jab was lightning fast, your hand got right back to your guard too. That’s what I’m talkin’ about!”

When you give specific praise, 3 things happen:

Students know exactly what they did right.
They’re more likely to repeat that action.
They feel seen, which boosts confidence and retention.

Want a great way to teach Praise With Purpose to your staff?

At your next instructor meeting, do a quick role-play. Have instructors give feedback on mock techniques, but challenge them to avoid vague praise. Praise speed, power, or technique.

Get everyone practicing how to spot something real and call it out with detail.

By the way– I created a “Praise with Purpose” one-pager that you can use to train your staff at your next instructor meeting. Want it for free?

Reply “praise” below and I’ll send it your way.

And yes, this goes especially for junior instructors and assistants. They usually mean well but haven’t been trained on this skill, so they fall into “cheerleader mode.”