Aikido has been a major influence on my life and in my business. I worked worldwide for a non profit organisation called Aiki Extensions that uses principles and practices from aikido in “off-mat” applications such as with young people, in peacebuilding and with the business community. Three years ago I settled down back in the UK and started a business training people in stress management, team building and leadership, using what I had learnt in my time with Aiki Extensions.
Here is what a number of business owners and aikidoka from the UK, USA, Poland and The Netherlands have to say about the connection between aikido and business
…………………
Richard Strozzi-Heckler, PhD
(6th Dan Mitsugi Saotome Shihan, California Aikido Association – Petaluma, CA, USA)
President of Strozzi Institute – The Center for Leadership and Mastery
Consulting and training in embodied leadership and somatic coaching and somatic spirit
How has training in aikido influenced your business?
Aikido essentially informs everything I do in life. Aikido is a sensibility in which one learns to relate to others in a deeper and more contactful way. Bringing forth these principles into organizations makes people more fulfilled and more productive. My coaching and training curriculums in organizations have people move together, have people touch, and have people engage in deeper conversations; all these activities are informed by aiki principles.
What do you think the wider business community could learn from aikido?
How to dignify all relationships in a manner in which there is an increased social equity, a decrease of violence and aggression, and to treat the earth in a more sustainable way. How to contact the spirit of life in others and relate to them from that perspective.
Anything else you’d like to share about aikido and business?
I have placed Leadership Dojos in a number of business organizations, non-profits, NGOs, and the military. These are dojos in which individuals and teams can practice embodying pragmatic wisdom, grounded compassion, and skillful action. All this is influenced (among other disciplines) by aiki principles.
……………………………..
Paul Linden, PhD
(6th dan, USAF – Columbus, OH, USA)
Columbus Centre for Movement Studies (body awareness as a foundation for everything from trauma recovery to computer ergonomics.
Sixth degree black belt, affiliated with the United States Aikido Federation.
How has training in aikido influenced your business?
Aikido training pointed me in the direction of becoming aware of my body and gave me the opportunity to developed different methods of doing that.
What do you think the wider business community could learn from aikido?
Very little, simply because aikido takes too long to learn. The wider business community would find more use in aikido derived body/self awareness training. In another sense, aikido could serve as stress management and ethics training.
…………………………….
Lance Giroux
(Shodan, CAA – CA, USA)
Allied Ronin Leadership Training & Consulting
How has training in aikido influenced your business?
Aikido directly influences my work -blending, listening, somatics,
embodiment of constructive principles, maintaining integrity. These
are relevant to everyday life – private, public, business, organizational behavior. In a world otherwise dedicated intellectually to learning sound leadership and management practices, this approach (i.e. using aikido movement and translating into everyday language and business terms) really sticks with people. They open to a whole new world of appreciating themselves, their partners, their families and who they have previously considered their adversaries and competition.
What do you think the wider business community could learn from aikido?
Most importantly: (1) the profound need to become present to what is
happening around you (be here now); (2) to remain in contact with self
and others; (3) be mindful in all your actions and behaviors; (4) daily
strive to serve others, no matter what; (5) every day is an opportunity
to increase one’s capacity to relax under pressure; and (6) each and
every day presents THE opportunity to practice – practice – practice
what is important in life. These are crucial elements and particularly
relevant during these times of global economic and political stress (on
the macro scale) and family life or being a good student (on the micro
scale).
Anything else you’d like to share about aikido and business?
Aikido became a platform for the transformation of my work when I first
met George Leonard Sensei and Richard Strozzi-Heckler Sensei in the
late 1980’s. But I didn’t give myself permission to step on the mat
until 2000, and then only after suffering a major accident – severely
breaking my hip. I figured if I didn’t at least give it an honest
effort I would forever be saying, “Maybe I could have and I wish I
would have.” Since then the art:
(a) has provided me a foundation for gracefully handling the pressures
and stresses of being in business for myself in a highly dynamic and
changing world;
(b) has become a most effective way to communicate basics that are
important fundamentals to business and personal relationships –
fundamentals that need reinforcement every day off the mat no matter
how successful one is or becomes;
(c) provides dynamic and undeniable evidence for individual and group
understanding (or lack thereof) of what it takes to be effective in the
world – as single person, a person in relationship, a dad, a mom, a
teammate, a manager, an executive, etc.; and
(d) provides a way (even if only infrequently practiced) to increase
constructive capacities regardless of one’s career path.
…………………………….
Quentin Cooke
(5th Dan Aikido for Daily Life/ Aikido Yuishinkai International – Cambs, UK)
Independent Financial Sollutions
How has training in aikido influenced your business?
Aikido is a philosophy and set of values to me it governs everything I do.
What do you think the wider business community could learn from aikido?
If everybody really respected everyone else, including in business, the world would be a much happier place.
Anything else you’d like to share about aikido and business?
Suffice to say that aikido can be used to provide management consultancy principles and they work.
……………………………..
Christiaan Zandt
(Sandan Aikikai – Netherlands)
Bisho (Smile) – Facilitates people and their organisations in softening what is rigid, to become more and more able to act and communicate based on compassion.
How has training in aikido influenced your business?
It has helped me experience psychophysically that to connect is a valuable alternative to fight, flight or freeze; and since I often use Aikido in the communication trainings I provide, my own understanding of Aikido (which is, I think, only cultivated through training) enhances the service I provide.
What do you think the wider business community could learn from aikido?
Interconnectedness – it is possible to take care of your own safety AND that of others; it is, in the long run, a not sustainable approach to think and care about oneself only – all the major crises in the world show how connected the phenomena in this world are; taking care of others is the best way of taking care of yourself. Aikido is in a sence a practice in interconnectedness.
……………………………
Pawel Olesiak
(4th dan Aikikai – Krakow, Poland)
Aiki Management – solutions for people and organizations based on aiki principles.
How has training in aikido influenced your business?
For me personally this question works in two directions. So the first part is How has training in aikido influenced your business? And the second part is How has business influenced your training in aikido? So my answer for both this questions together is, that there are many Aikido principles which are applicable to the business world. I’ll concentrate on my favorite one which is maximum effects with minimum efforts in business it’s called Pareto rule 80/20. I understand this statement in the way, that every thing we practice as during Aikido class as during business workshops has to work. Because if not we will do maximum efforts with minimum effects and nobody want to pay for it, no one want to loose the time, no one want loose the contract or the customer because of using wrong final question in the last part of difficult negotiation. From my personal position as Aikido teacher it often means, to give feedback which help the people to growth in the dojo and outside of it. To make the people more confident on themselves.
What do you think the wider business community could learn from aikido?
The first one is the Harmony (AI).
It can be done with attacks, situations, stress, boss, colleagues etc. and for doing this, to find this harmony, the first step you need is to reframe an attack as the gift. Then you can blend with it.
The second is the Power called KI.
Where did it come from? How can we find it? How to demonstrate it? How to be protect against?
The best way is awareness, concentration, breathing and holding the center on different levels, individual, team, organization. And then next questions are coming: What is the center of organization and who is responsible to keep it? How to do it? Or may be we don’t need it?
There is no different way than practice. Practice is the best method to generate flow in organization and to be sure we are going in good direction we need clear ecological vision, which is own by everybody in the organization.
The third is the Way (DO) or attitude (Zanshin)
And now the questions are: What kind of attitude do we want to show to the world as a company, as the team and as a individuals as well?
Be positive, take positive action, be helpful, base your action on the rules like Honor, Dignity, Responsibility, Truthfulness.
For every of this questions we can find the answers during Aikido classes, but to find it we have to ask for them before and during the training. Be concentrated on the subject not only on physical part of techniques. To find out the answers you have to put the question before, during and after each techniques and than be aware what happen.
So the forth is the real physical contact between the people. And there are the questions what kind of massage I send to my partner? How is the reaction of my body, for strong heavy attack? How can I deal with. I refuse, surround, fight or play? Is there any lesson to discover?
Anything else you’d like to share about aikido and business?
One of the most important thing is to create the bridge between them. To invite the people and show them the real benefits and opportunity of using Aikido in the world just to do less effort and have better results. Save their time, be more healthy. Have better relationship with others. Be sure of myself, be congruent and more happy.
…………………………………………
Trevor Schrotz
(1st kyu, Aikido in Fredericksburg – VA, USA)
In Home Music – Music education (also real estate management, business development & market analysis)
How has training in aikido influenced your business?
In many broad ways, but specifically in ability to deal with conflict, to control myself, build confidence, and interact with others positively.
What do you think the wider business community could learn from aikido?
To work together positively, think about the community’s need in addition to the self.
Anything else you’d like to share about aikido and business?
I have found that the only thing you can control (some of the time) is yourself, and dealing with yourself helps immensely to deal with others and complicated situations.
……………………………………………
Aviv Goldsmith
(5th dan Aikikai,Takemusu Aikido Association – VA, USA)
Renewable Energy Project Development
How has training in aikido influenced your business?
People ask me if I’ve ever “used” Aikido. I say “everyday”. In each encounter, I look to understand the counterparty’s position and work with them to develop solutions
What do you think the wider business community could learn from aikido?
Centeredness, calmness, problem solving skills.
………………………………………….
Tom Hume
(Ikkyu, Airenjuku – Brighton, UK)
Future Platforms – Software for mobile phones
How has training in aikido influenced your business?
I finish at 6pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Difficult meetings feel like gradings. I’m less physically intimidated than I once was.
What do you think the wider business community could learn from aikido?
Bloodymindedness.
Anything else you’d like to share about aikido and business?
It’s all in the basics.