Frequently Asked Questions
What is Aikido?
Aikido is a revolutionary martial art developed in Japan in the early 20th century. Aikido’s unique characteristics make it a potent training system that cultivates resilience, respect, awareness, confidence, creativity and adaptive capacity. The martial nature of Aikido injects a tension into the training system that forges the ability to put skills into practice in real world high-pressure interactions.
If you want to learn more, read the presentation about Aikido our CEO gave at Summit LA19, one of the world’s premiere ideas festivals. Other presenters included the CEO of Uber, COO of Starbucks, A$AP Rocky, and Harrison Ford, among others.
How does Aikido relate to leadership?
Aikido specializes in teaching constructive collaboration, especially with those from divergent or oppositional positions. Aikido is a powerful training ground that teaches us to create non-zero sum relationships in every interaction in our lives — with ourselves, another person, an organization, or even an idea.
The potency of Aikido as a personal development and leadership training system has been recognized by leaders in government, business, and even the US Military, which has used Aikido-influenced training programs to not only increase warriors’ performance, but also to cultivate compassion and wisdom. Objective and subjective evaluations of participating US Special Forces showed, on average:
Increased by 85% their ability to manage stress and shock
Increased by 65% their ability to coordinate mind, body, and emotions
Increased by 40% their leadership skills
Increased by 70% ability to solidify key values (e.g. accountability)
Aikido principles have been used for leadership by Daniel Russel, former U.S. Assistant Secretary of State under the Obama Administration, Michael Ovitz, one of the world’s most legendary entertainment entrepreneurs as co-founder CAA and former President of Walt Disney Co., and Mark Tercek, former CEO of The Nature Conservancy, the world’s largest environmental NGO.
Do I need to know anything about Aikido to join?
No.
Will we be learning martial arts in this program?
Yes! You’ll learn from world renowned martial arts masters, young up and coming instructors, and from other students in the program. Our training is designed to build skills and attributes that can be applied to your existing martial arts practice (if you train) or any sport or movement art. If you’re a martial artist already, you can level up your skills and broaden your experience. If you’re new to martial arts, you’ll have an epic time learning something awesome with students from around the country.
What kind of tech gear do I need for this program?
You’ll need a mobile device or computer (preferred) with a camera and internet connectivity to participate. We’re currently using Zoom for online classes.
What happens if I miss a session?
We’d like you to attend all the sessions, but it’s not a problem if you need to miss sometimes. All speaker sessions and important training sessions will be recorded, so you can view them later.