Because I am. It has been fun to to build this site and produce its constant stream on content and tutorials.
Judging from the public response, you’re all enjoying it too.
And if I’m to believe some of you, I should really be charging for all this.
You’ve been lucky that I’m happy to give all of this away for free, despite many repeatedly telling me I’m making a huge mistake by not demanding payment.
But as much as I love sharing, it does cost me to put this together.
Since we’re both in agreement on how awesome the journal is, I think it’s only fair that I clue you in to what it’s costing me.
With the year just drawn to a close, I have a string of renewal fees to pay.
What will it take to keep me around for 2 more years?
Right now, I’m looking at spending…
$130 in web hosting for the journal.
$50 to Flickr membership for the photos.
$20 for domain name registration.
So the baseline for operating costs for the next 2 years is about $200.
Here’s where you can do me a solid.
If you’d like 2 more years of open source BJJ…
If you’ve found my advice helpful…
If you’ve pulled off the moves I share…
If you gained new and deeper insight into the game…
Or if you just find me remarkably handsome…
Please consider:
- Looking below and selecting an amount you feel I’ve earned.
- Hitting “Make a Donation” and proceeding through Paypal.
- Nod approvingly to yourself, knowing you are supporting the best of independent self-publishing in BJJ (optional).
Not sure how much to donate?
As a beggar, I can’t be too picky.
But if I must, I’d suggest donating $10-20. That’s probably less than you’ve spent on Gene Simco books.
You can become my hero by picking one of my costs (web hosting, Flickr or domain registration) and covering it.
Or you can become my new personal savior by laying down the phat kash for all $200.
I can’t even tell you how I’d repay you for that, but I can tell you this: it’d be with an exorbitant amount of awesome.
What am I not charging for?
The time and effort spent training to work out the best details of the moves I share.
The hours spent planning tutorials, shooting and editing photos, then writing descriptions.
Answering questions across a dozen forums, myspace and one-on-one over IM and email.
So what if I get more than $200?
Well, I have been eying an awfully nice video camera lately.
Imagine that—the reverse omoplata in full motion.
Thanks for your support. More goodies to come soon.
But I demand a private lesson devoted completely to making me more awesome.
As you know I’ve already donated (I was probably one of the early ones to do so), so I am definitely in favor of “user supported blogs” on topics that are of interest to me AND provide a lot of valuable content for the $$$. Plus I lost a bet to you and paid up on that, too (no welching, here!).
Thanks for setting the threshold of “user support” low. If $200 is all you are trying to hit for now, great! Let’s see how many other people recognize this “pledge break” as an opportunity to keep a lean machine running, instead of as a Simco/Furey hustle (with all their money making angles).
Here’s the math of utility:
1. Amount requested by Aeso = very small. Content returned by Aeso = very great. All content available regardless of donation. No “come-ons” or teasers. No over promise, under deliver.
2. Amount requested by Simco/Furey = very great. Content returned by Simco/Furey = disappointingly small. Taste in mouth – bad.
What I think you should also put on your “wish list” at some future time is support for “off-campus” training. For example, your explications of Eddie’s materials are pretty good (and I appreciate the ethics involved in getting his clearance before posting).
So, I keep wondering why you don’t use some of your vacation time to spend a week or two at 10th Planet and roll out there for a week or two. As has been hammered into me, there’s no substitute for rolling with experienced players.
Last I checked, Southwest has some pretty inexpensive “book ahead” airfares from the swamps of Florida to the sunny beaches of L.A., and mat fees/short term tuition at 10th Planet are pretty cheap, so far as I can tell. I, for one, would certainly be willing to cover the airfare if you could get some other supporters to cover your other expenses.
Think of it – you could wander the earth, like Caine, learning cool stuff and then post tutorials based on what you find. Benefit to you = good, benefit to us = great.
I did buy a simco book and I didn’t use it at all. You win this round. Donation incoming.
I will donate even more moeny if you start a section more on theory and less focused on application. I’m really most interested in the lost grappling kata and wooden dummy forms of BJJ. Beyond that this is probably th best free MA site on the web. Keep it up!
Your site is one of the best BJJ ones out there. Will send some contribution to you in due course…
I’ve given money to sillier causes.