David,

Thank you for showing us our shortcomings so we can improve our future customer’s experience. This situation is the result of an honest miscommunication as all three parties involved are at fault.

This was the first time I offered to market someone else’s classes on the Monarch Defense website. Selling a contract class means we can run two classes simultaneously at peak hour to better serve the customer beyond my personal limitations. It also entails a risk as I can’t be in full control of the customer experience. It was my fault for not working with Rick proactively to ensure that his class would run smoothly.

Rick’s shortcoming was not communicating to me clearly that he was going to cancel the class. This was his first time working with Monarch Defense, and he is unaccustomed to having someone else handle his registrations. While I did notify him that your order came in, it was too late by that time to warn you that this class was canceled. You must recall, Monday’s and Tuesdays are my admin days. Friday after a long day of work, before a 16 student class Saturday morning, is not a realistic time for us to troubleshoot customer service requests. We run a very small operation which requires enormous amounts of hands-on attention to run smoothly, and do not have the resources of a dedicated customer service team.

You knew about the class a week prior, yet chose to sign up on the last day. How are we supposed to make proper arrangements to accommodate you if you don’t tell us you’re coming? In this age, any email, phone call, or Facebook message ahead of time could have allowed us to prevent your disappointment. We serve our customers on a prior arrangement basis. It costs money to reserve a shooting range. Sometimes just we have to make a decision to reschedule a class. Had we known a few days prior that you were interested, I could have easily accommodated you.

My standard policy is to reschedule for cancellations, so any refunds are on a case-by-case basis. In this case, it was our error to have registration open for a canceled class. It is important to note that my offer to refund your class was before you posted a 1 star review to Yelp. Think about it David: I work very very hard to serve my customers. It’s not possible for me to be perfect on every front, but I sure will try. Of the roughly 100 customers I teach per month, there will always be one who I will fail to satisfy. I accept this, and if it means you will leave me a poor review anyways, where is my incentive to serve you? A professional such as myself has nothing but a reputation in business. I work very hard to satisfy my customers, and I will  work with you until you find what you are looking for, but it is not fair for you to judge me so poorly while I’m still working to make things right.

We all make honest mistakes David, we are all human. Unlike a larger corporation, we can’t afford to shrug off dissatisfied customers. The three of us share fault in what happened, and I ask all three of us to accept some responsibility in fixing it.

May I suggest a few potential solutions?

1. You insist upon keeping the 1 star review, I insist upon my no-refunds/reschedule only policy. You are upset and won’t reschedule. I have your money but I’m unhappy for not earning it. We lose you and many future customers. You lose your money and waste your time. No one gets to teach or take a good class, and all parties are unhappy.

2. I offer you a full refund and in exchange you remove your review. You feel like a sellout to the Yelp community, that I bribed you to take your bad review off. I feel like I’ve failed to serve my customer. We part ways unsatisfied, but without any significant loss.

3. In consideration of my sincere apology, I offer you a partial refund, and you reschedule your class. Rick and I learn from this mistake and improve our communication; You get a great deal on great training. If we disappoint you a second time, then we deserve it, but meanwhile you withhold your review until after the class, then you rate us a fair grade based upon the full experience, and document my willingness to make things right for future customers to read.

Which of these sounds most palatable to you? If you choose #3, you have my promise it will be worth the full 5 stars.

-B

Rick Meure is the lead instructor at Black Knight Training Group, formerly of the Redwood City Police Department, and veteran firearm and self-defense combatives instructor. Here he is demonstrating a close handgun defense technique for students in our Armed Self Defense series during the summer of 2017 in Fremont, CA. 

To my fellow professionals, have you ever had a difficult customer who challenged you to grow, and thickened your skin? If so I’m sure you can relate to this story below.

Juan,

I’ve given our interaction from yesterday some reflection, and I’d like to leave you with these thoughts. Read them as you wish, no need to reply.

It is disappointing to me that I failed as a teacher, unable to impart knowledge to you. It is disappointing to me that you as a student did not come to class open to gaining new knowledge.

There were many things you asked me for, and that I prepared for you, but first and foremost all classes begin with a detailed and nuanced discussion of firearm safety. If that is something you don’t have patience for, then I’m sorry, I can’t help you.

I understand that what you found in class was not what you were expecting. What then were you expecting? I have been a professional teacher for 10 years, 5 of which has been in the defensive shooting and firearm safety field. Every question, method, or order of discussion that I present in class has a lengthy reason which was developed through trial and error.

It seems my approach to teaching frustrated you. Please feel free to google “Socratic Teaching Method”. It is the best knowledge delivery method currently available to teachers. That is what you paid for. If you just want to go shoot, then why do you need me?

As a teacher, I don’t success when I present information for you, most of which you would forget. I succeed as a teacher when you leave with knowledge; when you succeed as a student. That means I ask my students to work during class, to engage, to think, to process and cement the new knowledge with old knowledge. This is a process that some just don’t want to do. Stretching your mind, like any other muscle, is uncomfortable. It’s tough to admit that you don’t have all the answers, but as a teacher I’ll be first to admit- You’ve taught me a good lesson yesterday.

I slowed you down before you unpacked the rifle, then you unpacked it facing other people. I tried to guide you in questioning just exactly why that was unsafe, and you closed your ears. Remember we cannot run until we walk, we cannot walk until we crawl. I don’t know you, and I don’t know your assumptions. That means we start shooting and getting to the “good part” when you demonstrate to me that you understand safe handling habits.

If that is too much for me to expect from you, then yes it is best to call it a day. As you said, perhaps seek out a different instructor who is less conscious about gun safety. I’m sure you’ll find many. Good luck. Thanks for the tuition!

-B

Interested in learning more about private lessons or custom training opportunities in the Bay Area? Visit http://www.monarchdefense.org or email to info@monarchdefense.org.

Dynamic Drills Day at Monarch Defense is a challenging event where students can apply and practice what they’ve learned in gun handling. This is an opportunity to draw, shoot on the move, engage multiple targets and explore case studies that reflect real-life shooting scenarios.

In this video, Brian explains what Dynamic Drills day is all about, why we run these events, what you can expect to learn, and whether or not they are a good fit for you!

Sign up for the next Dynamic Drills day! Limited spots!

July 1st in Lytle Creek, CA  (Almost full!)

August 6th in Morgan Hill, CA

Yesterday my student Ron brought an older 9mm Ruger P85, and towards the end of our lesson we discovered with alarm that he was dripping blood everywhere! It took us several minutes of wiping and rinsing to figure out where the blood was coming from and what had caused it. Turns out, the extractor slot on that pistol is as sharp as a knife, and a vigorous slip while punching the pistol’s action outward caused Ron to slice open the ventral surface of the third and fourth fingers on his left hand.

In five years of teaching on a shooting range, this was the first time that I’ve actually needed to use the first aid kit’s contents to stop bleeding, and (fortunately) it wasn’t even close to a life threatening injury. Sure we’ve seen the occasional boo-boo from a slip-and-fall, or sharp piece of frag coming off a steel target, but thus far no serious injuries.

Last month I ordered 6000 rounds of ammunition to keep pace with how much ammo we use up in day to day gun safety classes. Last month’s Defensive Handgun Skill Builder, with only 12 students, generated enough brass to fill a 5 gallons bucket! Let’s run some simple math: A typical student might shoot 150-200 rounds of ammo per day in class. I see 120 or so students per month, so that’s 20,000-24,000 rounds of live ammunition per month being discharged within a few feet of me.

20,000 rounds per month times 12 months per year gives us 240,000 rounds per year. Multiply that by the 4 years I’ve been teaching full time (5 years with a break in the middle) and we’re looking at 960,000 rounds of perfectly lethal ammunition that we have discharged while I was present on the range. This does not even count the “personal” time spent in IDPA matches, on the public line, or all the opportunities for unintentional discharge while carrying a loaded gun and being around others carrying loaded guns.

In one million rounds fired I can only recall a few notable safety incidents, none of them resulting in serious injury:

• While we were doing a photo/video shoot, a guy who should have known better started banging away on a steel plate with his .22 rifle while I was crouched downrange servicing the targets, peppering me with lead fragments.
• There was an indoor range in Florida that we worked at in the early years that had a bench behind the firing line. This caused patrons to unpack their handguns facing up range before turning to walk to the line. One particular evening my colleague Matt and I watched incredulously as a guy with a loaded, gold plated, tiger stripe .50 Desert Eagle crossed us with his muzzle! FYI, this was where we as a company began the practice of wearing body armor to work.
• On an outdoor range four years ago a student caught, with the tender part of his jugular, a heavy .45 ACP slug which had bounced back off a tire that was cluttering the berm (Redneck country, don’t ask).
• Just last month I was puzzled at a tender pimple like infection on my right thigh that wouldn’t heal. When I finally squeezed the boil, it burped pus everywhere and out came a bloody fragment of copper jacket which had embedded itself into my leg.
• And yesterday, Ron cut his hand.

A million rounds of deadly ammunition, and yet no one has been killed. (Other than that English guy who capped himself, but that’s another story for another day.) In fact, none of those incidents even warranted first aid treatment until yesterday! 5 notable incidents in the last million rounds! This means a real shooting would have a probability of less than .000005 to 1, or that we have a safety success rate upwards of 99.9995%.

If you could score that high on your college exams would you waste your time in the library? If you could expect that low probability of car accident wreck, would you bother wearing a seat belt? The answer is simple: Range accidents, at least in our classes so far, are statistically zero. Ergo, we should stop wasting our time obsessing over safety. Right?

The world is full of sheep who live by denial. Clearly by the numbers, you could get along just fine for most of your life simply by denying That something bad might happen. By the sheer grace of probability, you’d be right. But that’s not why you are reading this article, is it?

So do you need to learn first aid? You already know the answer. The fact is, you and I don’t train in firearms, self-defense or first aid because of the statistical improbability of needing it. We train because the statistical certainty that some day, not if but when, a medical emergency or violent crime will catch us off guard, and the only thing between life or death are the tools in our hands, and the will in our hearts.

Brian Wang is a full time firearms and self-defense instructor who resides in the San Francisco bay area. He is trained under the Massad Ayoob Group to guide everyday students like yourself through the complex physical and psychological aspects of using a firearm in self-defense. He and his fellow instructors offer group and private classes every day of the week in and around the Bay area. You can find more information about upcoming classes here.

“Avoid Brian at all costs.
Brian was bullied as a kid and decided when he grew up he would return serve.
Our class was a nightmare as he criticized, maligned, put down and embarrassed each student.
One couple enrolled simply to learn something new – both very educated and gracious and Brian made a point to belittle them.
He wrote all of our names on his arm in sharpie. In a circle. One guy, Al, was chastised because he didn’t call himself his proper name, Alexander.
He launched into a rant about ISis…he passed around a plastic gun…
Waste of time and money.”

Thanks for the feedback Laurel! Thanks for your bravery to openly comment and criticize. I can’t please everyone, and all teaching styles have their drawbacks. I’m sorry you didn’t find my style to your liking, but if you left having retained knowledge after I critically encouraged all of the students to engage with the material, to be accountable for everyone’s safety, to think hard, to work for their knowledge and exercise precision in their words, precision in their thoughts and precision in their actions….well then it was all worth it in the end.

Remember readers, my job isn’t for you to like me or like my style necessarily. While I hope you do, my job is for you to be safe, and learn critical life saving skills. If that means not pleasing everyone 100%, I’ll accept that and I know you will too. Sorry guys, the world isn’t a nice place; You pay me to prepare you for it, not to hold your hand, tie your shoes, and feed you easy answers. Thanks again Laurel!

PS. To my students out there and to my peers who teach firearms safety: Do you agree that passing around the plastic (blue) gun is a waste of time and money? Haha.

Brian Wang is a full time firearms and self-defense instructor who resides in the San Francisco bay area. He is trained under the Massad Ayoob Group to guide everyday students like yourself through the complex physical and psychological aspects of using a firearm in self-defense. He and his fellow instructors offer group and private classes every day of the week in and around the Bay area. You can find more information about upcoming classes here.

“Your ad wasn’t approved because it doesn’t follow our Advertising Policies. Your ad promotes the sale of ammunition, firearms, Paintball guns, BB guns, or other weapons, including knives, daggers, swords, bows, arrows, knuckle dusters, and nunchucks. Advertising the sale of weapons or leading to destinations where the business primarily focuses on the sale of weapons is not allowed.

Keep in mind that ads can promote advocacy or interest groups that help connect people who have interests related to these products, as long as it doesn’t lead to the sale of any weapons.

If you think your ad follows our Advertising Policies , you can appeal this disapproval.”

Appeal

Facebook. You disappoint me. I am a professional, there are thousands of us around the country who devote our lives to teach real people like you and your spouse and your parents real life saving self defense and first aid skills, at legitimate local businesses. Your company on the other hand, which now has its head in the clouds after a good decade of monopolizing social media, is happy to censor and block my paid content to pretend that crime doesn’t exist, that bad people won’t come if good people just don’t go to places that sell weapons! Your policy is bullshit. It is not in the interest of the community, nor your company, nor your business advertising partners. Think about it! Have I advocated for any crime? Did my advertisement promote any sort of violence towards the innocent? Does Facebook write and enforce the law? No! Your company is happy to spread useless brain numbing viral video content of rioters fighting in the street, but when it comes to supporting local businesses that actually offer a legitimate service to the community you censor my ad due to your head-in-the-sand ignorance? Hypocrisy. Look up the definition.

I suggest you go up the ladder so the right person can have an honest conversation with the community. May I suggest you amend your policy to say: Ads can’t promote violating the law, and violence towards others. Get to the point, is it the tool that is harming innocents or is it people with bad intentions who harm others?
Brian 408-892-5460

Brian Wang is a full time firearms and self-defense instructor who resides in the San Francisco bay area. He is trained under the Massad Ayoob Group to guide everyday students like yourself through the complex legal, moral, and social  ramifications of the use of Deadly Force in self-defense. He and his fellow instructors offer group and private classes for civilians every day of the week in and around the Bay area. You can find more information about upcoming classes here.

Defensive firearms instructor Brian Wang delivers a fantastic fumble and recovery while demonstrating an exercise on 2/4/17 Dynamic Drills Day! Lesson learned, wipe the majority of dirt off on your jeans, and a glock will still work fine. See the hand change at 0:33!

The secret to mastery is slow, meticulous and precise repetition of the basic fundamentals upon which all other techniques are built. Train your body to be consistent, and when it comes time to be fast, it will already know what to do.

Looking to learn more? Contact Brian to set up your own custom training package. Your time is valuable, your life is valuable. Schedule private classes at your convenience on a private range in the Bay Area with a dedicated full time professional educator in the firearm field. Call (408) 892-5460 or email info@monarchdefense.org.