“Who Just Wants Free Pajamas?” Why Time-Wasters Are a Mindset, Not a Problem

One of our owners put it to me bluntly: “People come in and take advantage of a situation where they can’t afford it or they’re not serious — and I don’t like having my time wasted. Who just wants free pajamas?” I get the frustration. But here’s the reframe that will change your business: nobody took advantage of anything. Time-wasters are a mindset, not a problem — and the way you and your team treat those people decides your reputation in the whole community.

Nobody “Took Advantage” Of Anything

Let’s dismantle the whole premise. You put an enticing offer in front of parents for something they thought their kid might enjoy. You marketed in a vacuum — they hadn’t sat down and evaluated the ongoing cost of martial arts, because they weren’t shopping for martial arts. They were looking for “something fun for Billy this summer.”

So of course you’re going to attract some people who are genuinely broke, and some who only ever wanted a week or two of fun. That’s not them ripping you off. That’s inevitable, and it’s baked into the exact strategy that fills your school. They never once intended to take advantage of you. They responded to an offer you designed. Own that.

The Van Gogh Exhibit And The Empty Movie Seat

Let me give you a couple of analogies. I went to the Van Gogh immersive exhibit. Bought my ticket, watched the whole show, and then walked through a gift shop with roughly 9,822 Van Gogh mouse pads, iPhone cases, and coffee mugs — and I bought exactly zero of them. Did I rip them off? Of course not. I paid for the show, I enjoyed the show, and I wasn’t in the market for a mouse pad.

Same with the movie theater. You buy a discount ticket, you skip the concessions, and you did not rip them off. And here’s the kicker — most showings have empty seats anyway, so the empty seat next to you costs the theater exactly nothing. A theater’s number-one problem is being understaffed at peak, not the guy who doesn’t buy popcorn. Your school is the same. The prospect who tries a couple of free weeks and doesn’t join filled a seat that was empty anyway. They cost you almost nothing, and they may cost you nothing at all.

Assume Incompetence, Not Malice

Here’s a rule I run my whole life by. When there are several ways to read someone’s behavior, I default first to “poorly trained, incompetent, or just not that sharp” — none of it meant to disparage anybody — rather than “they’re trying to screw me.” Some people default to assuming malice in every interaction. I think that’s a miserable and inaccurate way to move through the world.

Emotionally, assuming incompetence over malice is a far better way to run your life and your business. The parent who “wasted your time” wasn’t scheming against you — they were confused, or broke, or just looking for a fun afternoon. Read it that way and you stay generous, you stay professional, and you keep your reputation intact.

Every No Gets You Closer To A Yes

Tom Hopkins had a line I’ve never forgotten: if you know you’re going to get nine no’s for every yes, get excited about every no, because each one means you’re one closer to the yes. If you do 40 intros to get 20 enrollments, treat all 40 exactly the same regardless of outcome. Because some of the no’s this month come back in six months. They refer a neighbor. They become the local schoolteacher who raves about you to thirty families.

One of our top members, Jason Purcell, frames this perfectly. When a family genuinely can’t afford it, he flips his whole challenge to: “How do I send them home happy, still giving me a five-star review?” That’s the right question. Every no just means you’re statistically closer to the next yes — and every family that walks out happy is marketing you did for free.

Be Very Careful Who Talks To Your Prospects

Now here’s the part that should scare you a little. This mindset isn’t just about your own attitude — it’s about everyone you let near a prospect. I once fired a top producer in the middle of his all-time record month, at a record-setting school, because he treated anyone who wasn’t ready to yank out a credit card poorly. I didn’t care what the books said that month. Long term he was building a retention problem, a word-of-mouth problem, and a dozen other problems I’d be cleaning up for years.

So be very careful who you let talk to prospects, and be just as careful about how you personally talk to them. The goal is as much traffic as possible, and don’t over-sort people on the way in the door — other than the neighborhoods and drive distances you already know don’t fit. Then impress them so hard that even the people who think they can’t afford it, or think they don’t have the time, figure out how to make it work. Nobody wants free pajamas. They want a reason to say yes. Give it to them.

Want your whole team treating every prospect like gold? Call or text 1-720-256-0208 for a FREE 1-hour strategy session with Stephen Oliver & World Champion Jeff Smith — 30 minutes with each, real actionable steps, not a sales pitch. Get your free copy of Six Simple Steps to Add 100 Students to Your School at FillYourSchool.com, and explore the full sales and enrollment hub.