AIO Package Contents Package 1 Found on AIO Member’s Webpage: Dojo Tour: Rick Stickles, Shihan of Aikido Schools of NJ welcomes AIO Members to tour his beautiful dojo. Your Questions Answered: How to maintain retention and attract new students during a questionable economy.
Found on AIO Member’s Package Disc 1: Powerful Press Releases: Learn how press releases can provide free and community friendly advertising for your dojo and charitable events. Does your Signage Describe your Service?: Learn how and why simple changes to your dojo sign can maximize your exposure and draw in new students. Improving Telephone Skills to Maximize Dojo Growth: Telephone conversations are the first step to welcoming a new student to aikido. It is an opportunity to gather information about the caller’s needs and to direct them in a structured way towards visiting your dojo or enrolling in an introductory program. Children’s Program: Classroom Management Strategies: Positive reinforcers and logical consequences are discussed to aid instructors in managing children’s classes while maximizing learning. Drills & Games: Learn new drills & games in each AIO Package to help maximize learning in a fun-filled environment. Giving Back: Marketing Your Dojo through Charitable Events.
Remember to keep your eyes open for Andy’s email sales tips. The next email tip is scheduled to arrive in April!
Package 2 Found on AIO Member’s Webpage: Dojo Tour : Bob Mason, Shidoin and dojocho of Aikido of Dallas, welcomes AIO Members to tour his beautiful dojo. Your Questions Answered: “I am confused. How do I calculate my attrition and retention rate? I think I keep somewhere around 7 out of 10 new students, but I am not sure. Can you help?” AIO explains how to calculate student attrition and retention rates and why keeping monthly statistics is so important to the health of your dojo.
Found on AIO Member’s Package Disc 2: The One Card Your Dojo Cannot Live Without: Learn how to generate new student referrals through dojo gift cards! Sample cards supplied in AIO Package 2. Are Your Students Missing in Action?: AIO takes the stress out of implementing a successful missing student contact program by explaining simple ways to keep your students on track and training. Sample missing student cards provided within AIO Package 2. Children’s Program Material: Classroom Management: Creating excitement through disguising repetition is critical to a successful children’s program. AIO gives you numerous examples on how to keep your students learning and loving aikido class! Drills & Games: Learn two new drills/games to add to your Children’s curriculum that will get your kids pumped up! Are you an “Asker” or a “Teller”?: Increase your telephone sales skills and schedule more new student introductory lessons and/or visits to the dojo by asking the right questions! Telephone scripts for adult and child prospective students explained in detail in AIO Package 2.
Attention New Members! Don’t want to wait to get Package 2? Just send AIO an email stating that you would like to be a “Fast Track Member” and we will send out your Package 2 immediately for an additional charge of $50.
The Magic Bullet
By Skip Chapman
Before creating Aikido Instructors Organization, I spent several years working with many instructors and dojo owners on ways to improve the business side of their dojo. The typical questions ranged from marketing to management. One question, however, came up time and time again: “What one thing did you do to turn your dojo around?” If creating a successful dojo was easy, everyone would do it. If it took only one good marketing idea, a billing company and training space, then we would see far more full time aikido instructors and far less very talented dojocho forced to close their schools. I wish I could say that one change is all it takes to grow the dojo. Unfortunately, there is no magic bullet. I completely understand the desire to have a quick and easy solution. I remember like it was yesterday having more bills than students and no idea how I was going to pay the rent. Years later and fortunately, with far more students, it is clear to me that it takes an open mind, a positive attitude, a strong desire combined with an equally strong effort, and continuing education on how to implement new ideas that truly makes a dojo thrive. Now believe it or not, I have heard some say, “What? Are you serious? That sounds like too much work!” I even remember one aikido instructor telling me: “I opened a dojo so I wouldn’t have to work!” Now, you are probably not shocked to hear that the dojo mentioned above went out of business less than five years after it opened.
cided to turn my dojo around years ago, and this was my intent when I formed AIO; to have a community of people who want to put effort into making their dojos as successful as possible, and understanding that to do this requires more than just teaching aikido. Many dojocho and instructors recognize the importance of continuing their aikido training long after they first open their dojo. Most good aikido students and instructors will make time to attend classes with other instructors or attend training seminars in order to keep up with their own aikido practice. This training does not only benefit themselves, but also every one of the students that train with them. However, many dojo owners do not allot the same amount of time to work on the business side of the dojo. Having a successful dojo requires much more than just being a great aikidoist.
““Having a successful dojo requires much more than just being a great aikidoka.”
Now, for the good news, if you have the desire and the discipline then these positive changes are not difficult to make. I am a true believer that with the right support and material, any dojo can reach their business goals, whatever they may be. In today’s martial arts market, and given the current economic state, it is imperative to set obtainable goals for your dojo and take action to meet them. The days of one big expensive yellow page advertisement that produced results are over. Instead we need to expand our aikido community across federation or affiliation lines and join together to grow our knowledge on how to run a dojo. We need to share our experiences, failures, and successes so that collectively we can grow and spread aikido to a wider population. I wish I had this type of support when I deAikido Instructors Journal
One easy way to improve the dojo is to designate a window of time each week towards researching and reading various material that centers around sales, marketing, and retention for your business. AIO members do not have far to look for this information. Every AIO package is full of new ideas and systems that are customized for the aikido dojo. Good instructors without a second thought, will spend time and money to improve their waza and to provide the very best instruction for their students. Why is it that we do not apply that same formula to the professionalism and business of our dojo? After all, don’t we want the very best experience for our students on and off the mat at our schools? I have seen firsthand that by scheduling time into your week towards implementing new business strategies, not only will it grow your dojo, but it will also grow and strengthen the art of aikido. So if I had to give one answer to the question, “What one thing did you do to turn your dojo around?” I would have to say that I became a student again. Only this time I was not learning how to teach aikido. Instead I was learning how to best run a dojo so that I could spread aikido to a larger population of students.
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Vince Salvatore
Maintaining the Balance By Ted Banta
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Salvatore Sensei, originally from New Jersey, started his training at the New Jersey School of Self-Defense with Robert Danza Sensei. In April of 1987, Salvatore Sensei was approved for a one year uchi-deshi term and moved to Japan to study under Saito Sensei in Iwama. Twelve years later, and at the encouragement of Saito Sensei and his sempai, Salvatore Sensei returned to the United States to share the knowledge and the instruction that he had been given during his time in Japan. In January of 2000, Savlatore Sensei took over as dojocho of the Aikido Co-op of Reno, thereafter changing the name to Aikido of Reno.
“We cannot spread aikido and the beautiful principles that it has if we are unable to keep our dojos open.” AI Journal: Salvatore Sensei, thank you very much for your time today. I appreciate the opportunity to speak with you, and it is especially nice as I was also born and raised in New Jersey. AIO's intention and objective is to discuss the success of your dojo and your intentions, plans, and strategies for your dojo's future. Would you mind please telling us about your history with aikido, and how you found your way to Iwama, Japan and then back to the states again? Vince Salvatore Sensei: My uncle was a black belt in aikido so, when I was eight years old, I saw a demonstration they were giving in southern New Jersey. I became interested at that time with the flowing movements seen in aikido. The students were doing randori and flying around. I really liked the whole energy that went along with aikido. So that is when I was first exposed to aikido. I also had three cousins around the same age as me and they all trained in aikido. I wanted to train as well, but the dojo was too far for my parents to drive, so I didn‟t start training until I was 18 when I had my own transportation. At that time, I started under Robert Danza Sensei and I also trained under Richard and Kathy Crane Senseis. In addition, I also used to go up and train with Rick Stickles Sensei in Elisabeth as much as I could. One day I came upon Saito Sensei‟s series of books and I started doing some research about aikido. I was at a time in my life when I wanted to really experience aikido at a deeper level. When I found out there was an uchi-deshi program in Japan, I sold everything I owned, stopped my career and moved over there. I trained for 12 years as an uchi-deshi
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and soto-deshi at Iwama under Saito Sensei. People from all over would come out to Iwama to train with Saito Sensei, so I became friendly with people from all over the world. In 1999, I came back over to the states. I went to Los Angeles, Reno and then back to New Jersey. I taught several seminars in Reno and at that time their current chief instructor was moving back east. The students who were running the dojo cooperatively were looking for a bit of a new direction. My wife and I liked the area, so we decided to relocate. AI Journal: How many years have you been training in aikido? Salvatore Sensei: Something like 27 years. AI Journal: And when you took over as dojocho in Reno, how was the transition for you and the dojo? Salvatore Sensei: Well, I was living in Japan for a good amount of time, and I really had to assimilate into the culture. Then when I came back to the states, I had to assimilate back into the culture here. That was the hardest thing for me. Many things required an adjustment for me. Even the reasons that people practice aikido are a bit different in Japan compared to the states, so I had to really rethink things and look at teaching a bit differently. That shift was a challenge. AI Journal: What were the some of the differences that you noticed? You mentioned that the practice and motivation of the practice was different between the cultures. Do you mind elaborating? Salvatore Sensei: Iwama dojo is a special place. The Aiki Jinja, or shrine, is just across the street
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the fundamentals are really stressed as important. When you train there, you have a solid base in the basic movements, but of course that was my teacher‟s big focus. Saito Sensei‟s goal was to really teach the basics that he learned from O Sensei. AI Journal: For the business itself, the Aikido Co-Op of Reno transitioned into Aikido of Reno. Did the training facility also involve a transition?
Salvatore Sensei at Aikido Schools of New Jersey
which is inspiring. The way of training in Japan at the Iwama dojo is a harder kind of training. Iwama in itself is a special place because a lot of people who came to Iwama were already teachers. The Iwama Dojo would also get local beginners as well that would train there, but primarily it was higher ranked people from all over Europe, the States, Canada, and South America. These individuals were very committed to training and it showed in their practice. In the states, in a regular dojo you have sempai and higher ranked people, but primarily you are trying to bring in new students. The motivations of a new student, the way they look at the art, and how you present the art are all going to be different. This change in perspective from my time at Iwama to teaching in Reno was something that I really had to approach with an open mind. Many times I had to sit and think, “Ok, how do I do this?” AI Journal: And when you came back to the states, how did you perseve the training of the people back here? Salvatore Sensei: When I first came back, I was basically hypnotized when I was over in Japan so I had to go through the cleansing period (laughing)...just kidding around. I thought the training in the United States was good, and in some ways I thought the level was higher here because students travel a lot more and train with a lot of different teachers. For Japan, I think
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Salvatore Sensei: In the beginning, we were training in a space and it wasn‟t conveniently located. It was downtown, but it was in a high crime area. It was hard to maintain the dojo because of the graffiti and other factors. I just didn‟t see a future for the dojo staying in that location. We needed a bigger place. When I first moved to Reno I was lucky to meet a mutual friend of one of the students. He became a business mentor for me and he helped me write a business plan for the dojo. That experience was really educational and it made me redefine what my aikido was about. Similar to when I first came over to the states and had to get re-acclimated to living in the states, for the business plan, I had to really think about what my intentions were in owning a dojo. What did I want to accomplish. What I realized was that I am not here to show a particular style of aikido, or how great a teacher I am, or about aikido‟s lineage or its philosophy...which, of course, I do anyway. I am primarily here to help people. When I came to the realization that the dojo is here to help people in the community, then the dojo became more successful and everything else fell in line. About the building, I was very lucky because I had a few people helping me along with a really good business plan. I formed a relationship with the vice president of the bank that lent us the money. It‟s a very “aikidoish” thing being in harmony with others, especially being in harmony with a banker if you need money. It is important to be able to show to others, including your banker, where you have come from, what your intentions are for the dojo and where you March/April 2009
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want your business to go in the future. The bank also used the dojo for their TV commercial which ran for almost two years. AI Journal: I think that sometimes instructors, traditional or not, do not take the time to execute business principles when establishing a dojo. It is interesting to hear about not only going back to the basics with aikido training, but also going back to the basics in starting with a business plan. With locating the building, how did you begin your search and did you find something helpful in your search? Salvatore Sensei: We are on the east side of the sierra mountain range, and on the other side is the bay area of San Francisco. The political organization we belong to is the California Aikido Association, and I traveled there for training with Pat Hendricks Sensei and I liked the feeling she had in her dojo. She had an uchideshi program and some other things that I just felt, in our current location we couldn‟t implement. So when I was driving I was thinking “How we could make it happen.” I got back at midnight on a Saturday, woke up at 4:00 am and I just started to drive around town. I didn‟t sleep much that night because I couldn‟t stop thinking about a new space. I remember specifically because there was a snow storm so it was slow going during the several hour drive. As I was driving around looking for new spaces, I happened to call a realtor regarding a big commercial property that had been unoccupied for the past two years. When I looked at it, I knew it was the place. We had the business plan and now we had the location. It just all fell in line.
“For me, monetary compensation is important because I need to provide exceptional service to my students.” the entire building. The inside had to be refurbished. Previously it was a coffee warehouse, so it had high ceilings, and was a cool building. We just did it with a lot of sweat and effort. I think that process also made all the students „buy into ownership‟ of the place, not shares of the business, but that they feel vested in it like it really is their place. Having that level of participation by the students is really nice. AI Journal: Regarding the structure of your programs and schedule for the dojo. What type of programs do you offer? Salvatore Sensei: We have both adult and children's classes. My approach to it is this...not to get off the subject, but one of the distinctions that my mentor shared with me that was very helpful, was that there is another side to the dojo if you are really going to do it and sin-
AI Journal: When you started the dojo, did you have to do a lot to renovate it? Salvatore Sensei: Yes, it was a slow process. We took our time and did it gradually. We didn‟t have a lot of funds to do it, so the students all got involved. One of my students whose is an electrician basically rewired Aikido Instructors Journal
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Salvatore Sensei, left - Stickles Sensei, center, Saito Sensei, right www.aikidoinstructors.com
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cerely help people. There is a business side. When he first asked me about my goals for the school, I was like, “I want to make enough money where I can survive.” He responded with, “Well, that is probably not good enough because, if you are simply getting by, you are not going to really be able to give the service you would like to give to your students. For example, if you want to travel back to Japan to study and grow as a teacher, you won‟t be able to because you will not have the extra funds.” It is just like yin and yang. The balance of energy for the business is the same thing. For the dojo the way I look at it, you want to have a strong and powerful curriculum and an equally strong business side of the dojo. The business has to be equally as balanced because if it isn‟t, you will have an imbalance and it will create struggle in your life. Not that I don‟t have any struggles now, it is just that a dojo has to be a win-win for the students, the dojo and the teacher. I joined one of the larger martial art consulting companies when I first came over to the United States. I got some ideas from them, but what I realized is that you have to do it your way. You have to find a way that makes sense for you. That is why I think AIO is a really great idea because it will help dojos get out the meaning
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of aikido in a more professional way. The more professional dojos function, the better it will be for the art overall. It will help everyone who does aikido. I have heard of so many schools that have closed down. When something like that happens, it is really negative for the art. But in regards to my adult and kids programs, I have a very family orientated approach. I let parents and kids train together in my kids program, and I have all of the ages mixed together. Many schools say „don‟t do that,‟ but the older kids in my program become leaders. Some of that I learned in Japan and also my wife is a Montessori teacher, so some of the ideas are from them. I want to have family orientated types of programs in the school, so this style works for me. AI Journal: I find the explanation that you discussed with regards to how to run a dojo and that there is another side, the business side, very informational to our AIO membership. That is essentially what AIO is about. All of us are dedicated to aikido, however, how much business experience we have is questionable unless we have another vocation in that area. Unfortunately, as you said, some dojos are failing and not doing very well. We cannot spread aikido and the beautiful principles that it
has if we are unable to keep our dojos open. Interestingly enough my wife is a Montessori teacher, as well, and the mentoring for children is very helpful in giving them a sense of empowerment. It is very interesting how you have incorporated these principles on the mat. Earlier you eluded to classroom management. Could you elaborate on that? Salvatore Sensei: The last four years I have been writing up curriculum books and creating a flow for the classes. For example, for ten minutes in a class I have the beginners working together with one sempai running a group. They will work on a particular skill or principle. Sometimes I‟ll run a class based more on technique, and sometimes I will work it based more on principle. I usually have soto-deschis or sempais that will help me run the class. So I have a lot of different ways that we will manage a class. Sometimes you have to scrap the lesson and go with your gut, like when you have a bunch of 5th kyus in class. Teaching a lot of 4th kyu techniques in that class just makes sense and that comes with experience as well. When I teach, I am just trying to convey and also apply the whole principle of kaizen, continual improvement. Looking at the way I teach, it is difficult sometimes to be objective. I have to say, “Okay, what am I really trying to get across here?”, “Are the people enjoying this?”, “Are they getting better?”, “Are they motivated?” and, if they are not motivated, the first thing I do is kick them right out into the street (jokingly). AI Journal: (laughing) You get that strategy from New Jersey, right? Not from Reno. Salvatore Sensei: Exactly! Once a "New Jersey-ian", always a "New Jersey-ian". AI Journal: It is interesting that you write curriculums or lesson plans. What is more important is that you see the necessity to them, but also see the importance in being flexible with them when you teach. Salvatore Sensei: For example, my teacher, Saito Sensei, is very structured. I think he was very misunderstood because he was so strict. Basically from going to many Aikido Instructors Journal
parties and listening to his speeches, his message was: “I am trying to share with you what I learned from O Sensei over the period of time that I studied with him. I am trying to do it in a structure so that if someone comes here for two weeks they can get the idea of what the basics are that I learned in that time.” I am not as strict as Saito Sensei, but basically in a two year period of time if someone came to every class, they would see almost all of the basics of what you would need for a shodan test. So that is somewhat the basis of the curriculum. I don‟t claim to be an expert, I just want to share from my experience, but one thing I did learn from being a part of some other organizations is that you do not have to do cardio kickboxing to bring in more students. You do not have to do Brazilian Ju-Jitsu, or Muay Thai or this and that to get more students. You just have to do aikido. If you look at aikido, there are so many fascinating attributes in the philosophy and the physical practice that attracts students: the win-win, the harmony, the blending, the intention, the philosophy, etc. When you read some of O Sensei's writing, it is pretty deep stuff. It is not just like, “How do I get someone in a ground and pound.” It is important to remember that. You want to create a relationship with the students when you teach. You want to create a dojo you want to go to. If you are creating something that is strenuous, that is not fun to do, you have to change it. I learned that from Rick Stickles Sensei and a couple of other teachers I would consider mentors and leaders in the aikido community. It‟s important to understand this, because many businesses forget why they are doing what they do. For me, monetary compensation is important because I need to provide exceptional service to my students. I want to have health insurance for my family. Maybe if I need to retire, I want and will have that ability. I don‟t see myself ever retiring, however, if we are all hit by a meteorite tomorrow, I am able to retire. That whole thing about enjoying what you do is extremely important. So is still being a student of the art. I don‟t consider myself a master at all. I am still a
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student and will always be a student. I still love the practice and that adds a dynamic energy to your school. In order to have the ability to have balance in your life, to be able to give back to your students, to be able to love and live the practice, you have to have a business that can support those goals. AI Journal: You mentioned that you have a deshi program. Could you explain a bit about that? Salvatore Sensei: I have been blessed. Some of the things we have been able to do I probably would not have been able to do without having a deshi program. We also have a soto-deshi program and we have sempai and these are all borrowed words from Japan. I am actually excited about a new program I am introducing called the Kaizen Journal. In this program I meet with every respective rank level in the dojo. Generally I donâ€&#x;t like talking too much on the mat. I will explain things and the intention behind the exercises, but I wonâ€&#x;t get up there for more than 2 minutes with an explanation. Usually much shorter than that. Instead, once a month I will get together
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with students in a semiprivate meeting and we will go over what they are working on and give them information on what is the most appropriate thing for their training at that moment. AI Journal: I find everything you are talking about very compelling, How you are balancing the tradition of aikido, the instruction... Salvatore Sensei: I hope so, Ted, because I am trying to be compelling. I am doing my best (laughing). AI Journal: You are, you are, and this is one of the fundamental premises of AIO; how we as aikidoists can have a dojo, teach aikido, spread aikido, keep the tradition but also conduct it as a business as well. Salvatore Sensei: That is why I am a member in full accord with AIO. Somebody had to do it! I was waiting for somebody to step up and I just didnâ€&#x;t want to do it, man. So I am glad Skip Chapman Sensei did it, so I can just be a contributor, member, whatever. The same thing with O Sensei, he was totally an innovator. I have talked to people who were his close students. I have talked to people from other martial arts that were his students and some who were not his students but March/April 2009
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knew him, and he was definitely an innovator. Look at O Sensei. He should be the ultimate mentor. He started the whole thing and anytime we get stuck in our ego or in the political thing, we need to open up and say “Okay, what was it really about?” He talks about masakatsu agatsu, winning over the self is really the journey. It‟s easy to get caught up in all of the “This guy did this” and “This guy did that,” into the lower level stuff. We want to stay in the higher energy, stay in the higher intention. Anyone who commits to aikido, commits to really being a teacher and doing it for the right reasons, doing it for themselves and their students, they are going to do okay. They will prosper. If you are becoming an aikido teacher to just be a multimillionaire, well, that‟s just not my thing. I mean, what was O Sensei‟s name if you translate it, abundant peace. Why not live in abundance. But abundance is more than just making money. It is also about health, having great relationships with people, and, boy, if you can do something you really enjoy doing, like helping people, that‟s a great thing. AI Journal: Absolutely. What type of membership plans and options do you offer to your students? Salvatore Sensei: I have a month to month option where they pay automatically through an EFT (electronic funds transfer), six month memberships, and one year memberships. What I have learned from my teacher is, generally speaking and it applies to the business of aikido, you have to have people commit to at least six months. The same with their memberships, so we encourage a minimum of six months of training. If people are not willing to commit to at least six months, they are really doing a disservice to the dojo. A student needs about 6 months to get acclimated to the dojo, to learn how to move their body and find success in their training. If I have people who are not as committed as they should be or are still unsure, I have a beginners program that is eight classes total. The students keep a file or folder and every time they come into regular class for 5 minutes they work on one aikido principle, for example breathing, relaxation and a simple rocking backward and forward. We have a specific structure where we take those people Aikido Instructors Journal
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Aikido of Reno Fact Sheet Location: Reno, Nevada Dojocho: Vince Salvatore Number of Adult Students: 160 Number of Children Students: 40 Years in Business: 9 Own or Rent Location: Own Number of Employees: 0
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through the steps of each class. We enroll around 80% of the beginner students into our full time aikido program. I know some schools will do one or two beginner lessons. For me, the 8 lessons works best for my dojo. AI Journal: Do you have additional instructors, administrators, any paid administrators, or are they volunteer? Salvatore Sensei: Everyone is volunteer. The way I do it is I grandfather in all my sempai and do not raise their dues. In return, I ask them to teach one class a week. There are eight or nine teachers now teaching in the dojo. I like the energy to that system, because it doesn‟t become a career for them unless that is what they choose to do. AI Journal: How do you market your dojo?
the next UFC champion walking through your door. You will instead get better prospects because they already have a good idea of what aikido is all about. AI Journal: Yes, they have a clearer understanding of what they are there for. How many students would you say you have? Salvatore Sensei: That‟s a good question. It depends on how many students quit yesterday. AI Journal: Hopefully none. Salvatore Sensei: After one of those lousy classes, they are out the door. (laughing) I think we have about 160 adults and at least about 40 committed kids but there are another 30 students, kids, so somewhere around 200 to 230.
“In order to have the ability to have balance in your life, to be able to give back to your students, to be able to love and live the practice, you have to have a business that can support those goals.” Salvatore Sensei: What I have found, which is more important than how you market, is that you need to market continuously. What I have noticed is if you market for two months and do things like demonstrations, have open classes where friends can come and try aikido, run conflict resolution and verbal aikido seminars, etc., the consistency has to be there. Like extending energy or ki or the unbendable arm, you reach out and extend the positive energy. Marketing is the same. Once marketing stops you might not feel it that month, but a few months down the line you will probably feel it. Specifically, we are not doing the telephone book any more. Instead, we are redoing the website in a specific way to draw in students. The main thing with marketing is being a part of the community. Holding community events and really educating people on what aikido is based on will draw in more educated students. That way you won‟t get the people who say they want to be
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AI Journal: You mentioned your membership plans. How do students pay their dues? Salvatore Sensei: Hopefully on time. AI Journal: Yes, that would be nice, right. What is the system to collect those dues? Salvatore Sensei: Basically I have it set up so that I am not a bill collector. A lot of it is EFT. I really don‟t want to talk to people about money. I want to talk to them about aikido, personal growth, how do they go out of their lower level existence and move up to the higher level stuff. AI Journal: It seems to get really challenging when the chief instructor has to talk about finances. Salvatore Sensei: Let me say one thing too, that there is a big aversion I had that I think a lot of aikido people
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have too. There is a big poverty consciousness in aikido, and the only strategy that I guess I could share that made sense to me is that energy is money and money is energy. It is like when you are going to talk to somebody, you have to be totally confident in what you do, that you are doing your best and are really trying to help people to improve their lives. Quite frankly, I think aikido is the best personal growth tool out there. If people are really applying the principles to their career, their family, their relationships, they will succeed and prosper. Like the Tony Robbin‟s thing. He talks and gets all excited and jumps up and down and all that stuff. Aikido is just as good at helping inspire people to be grounded and centered. I actually heard Tony Robbins talk once about aikido, but unfortunately he was recruited to Tae Kwon Do. We won‟t hold that against him, though. AI Journal: I understand you have a primary dojo and at one time offered classes elsewhere. Salvatore Sensei: When I first moved to Reno, I worked for a sempai in the dojo. He has a fabulous auto body repair shop and I worked there in customer service. Basically my job was to be the liaison between the customers, insurance agencies, and the technicians that were returning the vehicles. Very early on when I got the job they hired a communications expert who later became my aikido student. It was kind of like a Reese peanut butter cup relationship, like, “I got the chocolate and you have the peanut butter.” He said to me “What you do is the physical manifestation of what I teach,” and we taught a lot of seminars together on how to create a win-win situation for yourself and your customer. I have done that class with many companies, such as the local branch of IRS, police groups, the art museum, and several banks. Any type of community service class, paid or unpaid, used to educate others about the principles of aikido spreads the word of aikido. Then when those people come in your school from that experience, you get a good chance of that person being a good prospect because they already buy into the aikido philosophy. They have already seen what it can do for their Aikido Instructors Journal
career. AI Journal: Is there any one or two challenges that you might be able to discuss with our members? Salvatore Sensei: Any challenges…..hmmm….I don‟t know. Just staying open. If you stay open and you have the courage to call people and network with them and ask them what are they doing to stay open, you are on your way. If any AIO member wants to contact me and just bounce an idea off, I am open to that. I have done that, and it was tremendously helpful to me. My biggest challenge would be on how to keep sempai students motivated. Sometimes people reach a level of training where they feel like, “Is this all there is?” As you get higher up in the ranks, it takes longer to break through to the higher levels of enjoyment and training with aikido. To help students, just try to keep an open dialogue with them. The former doshu, Kisshomaru Ueshiba, talks about minichi keiko, every day there is training. I like that approach, even if you learn just a simple thing and then transfer that into your life. I guess for me one of the other challenges is that I‟ve tried to create a teaching system for adult students. Think about your time and day. People are so busy. They are giving up their valuable time to be at the dojo, so you don‟t want to waste it. On the other side of that is teaching them how to apply aikido to their career. If you ask people, “Are you happy with your career?” a lot of people will say “No.” So I try to share some of the information of aikido to the adult members and say, “Hey, man, are you applying these principles to your career?” If they are applying it to their career, they will probably make more money, they will be happier to be at work, they will have an easier time dealing
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“But if you are thrown into the street, at least you will know how to protect yourself in a harmonious fashion.” www.aikidoinstructors.com
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with their colleagues and subordinates, and their personal relationships are going to be easier. By applying aikido to their work and life, they are going to see the benefits of aikido a lot clearer and this will help them to keep coming to the dojo as well. AI Journal: I have to tell you that it has been a pleasure interviewing you and I am sure it will be for the membership as well. Thank you. Was there anything else you would like to add? Salvatore Sensei: O Sensei started this thing and anytime we get lost, just come back to it. We have many great teachers in the states. We have Yamada Sensei and great leadership. We just need to trust our teachers and anytime we get lost, which can happen, just come back to O Senseiâ€&#x;s message, which was to live a life of integrity, do your best for your students, and try to get across the higher meaning of aikido. When we share that kind of information, when we trust each other, when we share ideas with each other, the whole community gets stronger. Look at Tae Kwon Do or some of the other martial arts. Some of them have been very successful in how they promoted the professionalism of their art and some of them have not. I personally am not saying that we are superior in aikido‌.well, maybe a little. It is just that what O Sensei tapped into is some high level stuff. There is nothing wrong with being professional. There is nothing wrong with really trying to help people, to be able to provide for your family, to be able to have health insurance, and to maybe be able to retire without being thrown in the street. But if you are thrown in the street, at least you will know how to protect yourself in a harmonious fashion. AI Journal: (laughing) Thank you once again, Salvatore Sensei, for the opportunity to speak with you on behalf of Aikido Instructors Organization, AIO. It has been an honor.
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Aikido Instructors Journal
Ted Banta III - AIO Journalist: Ted has been training in Aikido for 15 years under Y. Yamada, Shihan and Skip Chapman Sensei, and holds the rank of Yondan. Ted is a licensed Realtor, Real Estate Instructor and investor, as well as devoted father and husband. In his spare time, Ted is AIO's roving reporter supplying AIO members with enlightening and entertaining interviews with aikidoka across the US.
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“There are very few instructors who are making a living by operating a dojo as a business, and it is no secret that there is some kind of criticism or envy from people who are often saying Budo should be pure and should be done voluntarily. I understand that kind of philosophy, but at the same time I also understand that nothing is free in our society. Instead, I recommend that you learn how to make a lot of money and then spend it on your students.� Y. Yamada Shihan Chief Instructor - New York Aikikai Chairman - United States Aikido Federation
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