ki aikido Japanese martial art tool for business management

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Teaching Leadership through Aikido
Article in Journal of Management Education · May 1996
DOI: 10.1177/105256299602000203
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2. 1
TEACHING LEADERSHIP THROUGH AIKIDO
Introduction1
Over the last 3 years, we have been
using the Japanese defensive martial art,
aikido, to teach principles of leadership to
participants in some executive education
programs and to second year MBA
students. Thus far, we have used this
process with participants in the "Power
and Leadership," "Mastering Visionary
Leadership," and "Building the Learning
Organization" executive programs as well
as the entire second year MBA student
body in the Darden School, University of
Virginia, MBA capstone, required course,
"Leading Strategic Change.” Despite
some initial skepticism on the part of a
few participants, the post session response
for both MBA and executive program
participants has been uniformly positive.
The aikido sessions have been rated either
highest or near the top out of 15 sessions
in most of these experiences. Participants
report "seeing" and "feeling" some
principles of leadership clearly for the first
time or "seeing" and "feeling" them in
new, exciting, and powerful ways. Some
students have gone on to study aikido to
further their understanding, and some
executive program participants have
requested on site instruction to pass their
experience on to their executive
colleagues. Although we have no
empirical data that says "people who have
completed a two hour introductory session
in aikido make better leaders than those
who haven't," we do have the anecdotal
feedback of our participants who are
outright enthusiastic. (See Appendix A.)
In both our experience and in the
comments of our students, we see
powerful parallels between the principles
and practice of aikido and the principles
and practice of effective leadership.
We have been successful by using
something called Ki Development2
to
provide physical metaphors for leadership
principles. Ki (prounounced "key") refers
to a combination of one's mental, spiritual
and physical energy; we'll describe this
more carefully below. "Ki development"
refers to a process for building a set of
physical and mental skills with which one
creates higher levels of coordination
between mind and body and therefore is
able to do things one could not before.
One of the appeals of this approach
is its distinctly non-Western flavor.
Americans tend to find this "Eastern"
perspective on leadership provocative and
persuasive. For instance, one principle
often taught in Western leadership
seminars using Kouzes and Posner's
1
Written by James G. Clawson and
Jonathan Doner. Published in the Journal of
Management Education, Vol. 20 No. 2, May,
1996 182-205 © Sage Publications, Inc. 2
Tohei, Koichi, 1976

3. 2
popular book, The Leadership Challenge,3
is "challenge the process." The very
phrase, "challenge the process," contains a
confrontational, antagonistic connotation.
An Eastern approach as manifest in aikido
principles would emphasize harmony as
opposed to confrontation and be worded
something like "harmonize with and
utilize the energy of the process." To the
extent that confrontation and challenging
are "Western" ways of thinking and
harmonizing and melding with are
"Eastern" ways of thinking, the ki
development exercises highlight and
dramatize the differences between
Western and Eastern approaches to
leadership. Another example lies in the
oft repeated "maxim" used to describe the
behavior of many Western managers:
Ready, Fire, Aim. It seems to us,
especially in these turbulent times, that
many Western managers take that
stereotype one step further and seem to
follow the principle of "Fire, Fire, Fire."
By this we mean, that many American
managers and leaders seem to be focused
on action as a first priority; there is a felt,
and we say predominantly "Western,"
need to do something. Where there is a
bias for action4
in Western thought and
managerial behavior, one might
characterize Eastern thinking as Aim,
Ready, Ready, Ready, Fire. American
business people working in Japan have
often noticed and commented on the
frustrations of doing business there
stemming from the implementation of this
alternative principle. The Americans are
ready to negotiate and create a deal before
the assets and details are worked out; they
don't want to commit too much time or
asset before a deal is struck. The
Japanese, on the other hand, often wait to
make sure that the necessary relationships,
assets, and internal commitments are in
line before committing. Then, just when
the Americans are about to give up in
exasperation because the protracted
negotiations, the Japanese come back and
say, "we're ready to roll, when do you
want the first shipment to arrive?" At
which time the Americans say, "Wait a
minute! We're just agreeing to the deal at
this point!" While these observations are
stereotypic in nature, they are
corroborated in principle in the literature
and in the experience of the authors and
countless business people dealing across
the Pacific.
At the same time, we recognize
that there are many similarities between
"Eastern" and "Western" ways of thinking
and leading. At least one Japanese chief
executive5
argues that there are more
similarities than differences.
Nevertheless, in our experience and the
experience of many business people
dealing in Asia in general and in Japan in
particular notice significant differences.
The ki development principles and
practices demonstrate effectively what
3
Kouzes, and Posner, Barry, The
Leadership Challenge, (Publisher, City,
Date)
4
Peters, Tom, and Waterman, Robert,
H., In Search of Excellence, Harper & Row,
1982.
5
Atarashi, Masami, in his book A Primer
on Japanese Management, Japan Times,
Tokyo, 1993. Mr. Atarashi is currently
CEO of Sara Lee Japan and a former
president of Johnson & Johnson Japan.

4. 3
some of those are. Using aikido for
leadership instruction has provided a new
and powerful way of helping business
people experience and think about
leadership in dramatic, often counter-
intuitive (to the Westerner) ways without
destroying their own points of view.
Aikido may be new to you, so let
us summarize quickly the scope of this art.
Though developed only in this century,
aikido has spread world-wide and become
highly regarded for its philosophy,
practice, and applications to life situations
outside the usual martial art context. In
fact, the principles of aikido have been
used to model the process of brief
psychotherapy6
, taught as an alternative
psychological technology in the military7
and form the foundation for a number of
books oriented toward personal
development8
. As far as we can tell, our
approach to using aikido in management
and leadership training and education is
new and unique. We are, however, aware
that a few others are also exploring the
application of aikido skills to business9
.
Given this introduction, this article will
explain what we do, how we do it, make
some observations about how and why
this has worked so well, and draw some
parallels to leadership in business. First,
we need to explain a little about aikido
and ki development. As we begin to
explain aikido and what we do, we invite
you to begin looking for parallels to your
understanding of leadership.
What is Aikido?
Aikido (prounounced "eye-key-
dough" with even accents) was developed
in Japan in the early part of this century by
Morihei Ueshiba who as a young man,
studied and mastered many of the
traditional "bujutsu" or warrior arts.
These included kenjutsu ("sword arts"),
jojutsu ("stick arts") and forms of jujutsu
(the "gentle" or weaponless arts). Some of
these traditional forms date back to 13th
century Japanese military training10
. Over
the course of his lifetime, Ueshiba came to
believe that the true essence of the warrior
path lay not in winning battles but in the
encouragement of cooperation and
harmony among people. He developed
aikido, which means "The Way of
Harmony with Energy," out of this basic
insight.
Philosophically as well as
physically, Ueshiba taught the importance
of harmonizing with and redirecting the
force of an attack so as to immobilize the
attacker without allowing or causing harm.
In so doing, he instilled in aikido an
ethical philosophy that encourages self-
development and cooperation with
others11
. This approach makes aikido, in
design and practice, unlike most martial
arts in that it is primarily a defensive art:
outside of the practice hall (dojo) where
people practice in pairs, one does not
initiate attacks using the ideas and
techniques of aikido.
6
Saposnek, 1985
7
Heckler, 1990
8
e.g., Dobson & Miller, 1978; Crumb,
1987
9
e.g., Reed, 1992
10
Stevens, 1987; Draeger, 1973
11
Westbrook and Ratti, 1970

5. 4
Various styles of aikido have
spawned from Ueshiba's original form. Of
these, only Shin Shin Toitsu Aikido
(meaning "aikido with mind and body
unified"), developed by Koichi Tohei, one
of Ueshiba's chief disciples, explicitly
teaches both aikido technique and ki
development. "Ki Development" seeks to
train the individual in coordinating the
mind and the body so they are acting in
unison and harmony, rather than in a
disjointed, counter-productive, and
unintended way. The first third to a half
of a typical 2-3 hour Shin Shin Toitsu
Aikido class is focused on ki
development; this includes exercises in
relaxing, sensing another's ki (again,
prounounced "key"), extending one's own
ki, being strong while being "soft," and the
general coordination of mind and body.
The second half of the class then uses
those ki principles to study related aikido
techniques, which are physical moves that
seek to diffuse an attack in such a way as
to protect one's self from harm and to keep
from harming the attacker.
These joint goals of safety for both
attacked and attacker are difficult to
achieve. The most common responses to
threat, especially in the West, are either to
freeze in panic or to "meet fire with fire."
The first response is dangerous to the self
while the second can escalate the situation
and increase the risk of harm for both self
and the attacker. Understanding and using
ki allows the aikidoist to avoid both of
these two common, and dangerous,
responses.
The same kind of responses are
common and equally as dangerous, we
assert, in the social and business aspects of
life. In relationships, personal or business,
if we seek to solve disagreement with a
win/lose mentality, someone will be hurt
or frustrated and the experience will not
build a strong foundation for future
intercourse. If we approach disagreements
with a win/win motivation, we may be
able to find ways of allowing both parties
to have what they want. The win/win
perspective has been taught in the West
for decades, but it is still not the usual
mode of reaction for most people.
Furthermore, many people understand the
concept at a mental level, but have
difficulty envisioning or creating win/win
situations. Ki exercises demonstrate the
power of the win/win philosophy in
dramatic ways that discussions cannot
generate.
Ki Development
Koichi Tohei taught the importance
of ki development training in both aikido
and in everyday life12
. He developed the
Shin Shin Toitsu Aikido style specifically
to help people live more calmly and
harmoniously.13
As a part of his teaching,
Tohei developed a series of "Ki Exercises"
which must be mastered along with the
techniques by the aikidoist of this style.
The student receives testing in these
exercises and is ranked in ki development
along with and parallel to his or her testing
and ranking in the techniques of aikido.
"Ki" is a Japanese word that does
not translate easily. In Japan, it is used
both conventionally and esoterically.14
12
Tohei, 1978
13
When we refer to aikido hereafter, we
mean Shin Shin Toitsu Aikido.
14
Reed, 1988

6. 5
Conventionally, "ki" is used in numerous
Japanese expressions to mean "attention,"
"energy," or "heart." One common
example is the phrase, "ki wo tsukete
kudasai" which literally means "Please
apply your ki" or "Be careful." On the
esoteric side, some refer to ki as a basic
energy force that pervades the universe
with which one can harmonize. For our
purposes here, ki can be thought of as the
mental directing of the body's strength in a
manner which does not produce stress or
tension in the musculature.
The heart of ki development
training is expressed in what Tohei (1976)
termed "The Four Rules of Mind and
Body Coordination." These are:
1. Keep One-Point
2. Relax Completely
3. Keep Weight-Underside
4. Extend Ki
Rules 1 and 4 are often referred to as rules
for the mind, whereas rules 2 and 3 are
rules for the body. All four rules are
interrelated and are considered to be
different expressions of the same principle
so that achieving any one of them results
in the achievement of the other three. This
"holographic" characteristic is another
manifestation of the Eastern perspective
which we we can contrast with a Western
reductionist and linear perspective in
which each principle "should be"
independent of the others and necessary
but not sufficient for the desired result. In
aikido, the principles are distinguished
because it is often helpful to emphasize
the core principle in different ways under
differing circumstances. We will
introduce the concepts and principles here
and then describe how we teach them to
management students.
"Keep One-Point" refers to the
concentration of the mind at a single point,
termed the "one-point"or "center," which
is located in the center of the body, about
two inches below the navel. This point
roughly corresponds with the body's
center-of-gravity. By focussing one's
mind on the one-point, an individual
increases the stability of his or her posture
and removes mental distractions which
might interfere with physical performance.
"Relax Completely" refers to the
elimination of tension in the musculature.
This form of relaxation, sometimes called
live or dynamic relaxation, is very
different from dead relaxation or "going
limp." Dynamic relaxation produces a
state of readiness to respond and allows
more immediate and more efficient
utilization of the body's energy resources.
"Keep Weight-Underside" is more
difficult to explain. Tension in the
musculature tends to shift the body's mass
upward. For example, most people, when
told to take a deep breath, will raise the
chest by tensing the shoulders and upper
body. The result is "weight-upperside,"
which lifts the center of gravity, decreases
the stability of the body and slows
response times. Relaxation, on the other
hand, tends to shift the body mass
downward. This is "weight-underside." It
results in increased stability and therefore
provides a more effective basis for the
performance of technique.
"Extend Ki" refers to the mental
direction of the body's resources in the
performance of a task. In performing an

7. 6
aikido technique, or for that matter any
task in daily life, two things often happen.
First, the individual's mind can be
involved in various thoughts other than the
task at hand. This will decrease the
effectiveness of the task performance and
can lead to mistakes or accidents. Second,
the mind can become overly focussed on
or "caught" by some sub-aspect of the task
or situation. This, too, decreases
effectiveness and can lead to problems or
failures in performance. For example, it is
common for the beginning aikidoist to
focus attention on an attacker's grasp, say,
on the arm. Thus focussed, one's mind is
"caught" by the attacker's grasp, and one
begins to struggle physically against the
grip. This "catching of the mind," creates
a conflicted interaction, diverts one's
attention from the whole situation,
debilitates the beginner's ability to
respond, and results in a loss of
confidence. In business, one's attention
can be caught similarly by one aspect of a
problem. With that focus, one can lose
sight of the larger interrelated problems
and become unable to solve either.
The concept of "ki extension"
teaches one to think beyond the point of
attack, in fact, to attempt to apprehend and
comprehend all of what is happening in a
larger sphere of attention. This principle
was noted in chapter one of R.G.H. Siu's
book, The Master Manager,15
as "act from
instantaneous apprehension of the
totality." Extending ki and being centered
while simultaneously apprehending and
attending to events in all directions allows
a person to act with confidence and to
avoid the pushing and shoving that comes
from being "caught" by attention to a
single point of attack. This is a paradox
and difficult to explain. It is much easier
demonstrated as we will describe below.
These principles may seem obscure
or esoteric for readers with no prior
experience in aikido. They can, however,
be demonstrated physically quite easily so
that even a beginner can experience the
marked difference they bring about in
performing simple tasks like standing
without moving or resisting the pressure
of another. (We can compare standing
without moving to "staying the course" in
a business and resisting the pressure of
another to confrontations and arguments
with colleagues and peers in the
organization). Ki development principles
and skills are therefore readily accessible
by anyone with proper instruction; they do
not form an obscure system that can be
learned by only a few. However, just as
no one could comprehend the components
of a good golf-swing without instruction
and practice, so too, ki development is
difficult to understand without practicing.
Like any skill, gaining expertise in ki
development requires an experienced
instructor, a systematic instructional
program and the dedication of the student
for the full benefits to be realized.
Applying Ki Development to Leadership
Training
Our goals in utilizing ki develop-
ment training in our leadership courses are
two-fold:
1) To help students develop a simple
awareness and appreciation of the
four basic ki principles through the
practice of a structured series of ki
development exercises.
15
Siu, R.G.H. The Master Manager,
Mentor, 1980.

8. 7
2) To provide a set of "physical
metaphors" for the application of ki
principles to the leadership process
in organizations. By physical
metaphors, we mean that we
provide the participant with a
clearly recognizable experience
that has immediate and clear if
parallel application to the
intangible world of social relation-
ships. For example, when we have
someone push on another during ki
development exercises, the
students can liken the experience to
the non-physical social and
political pressure they receive from
others in their organizations. Ki
development teaches a mental
approach to understanding and
dealing with those pressures that is
different from the usual.
With these two goals in mind, we
seek to engage students in doing the ki
exercises rather than just talking about
them. Accordingly, we schedule our
sessions in the multi-purpose room of one
of two nearby university exercise
facilities. We arrange in advance for
velcro-connected mats to be available so
we have a relatively soft, stable surface to
work on. We invite participants to wear
loose fitting clothing and to remove their
shoes and socks when they enter the room.
We note that any who are uncomfortable
with being touched may wish to watch the
session from the sidelines and take mental
notes on what they see. We also announce
that we will not be doing any strenuous
exercises. Then we have a brief period of
loosening up and stretching. These
movements are loosely patterned after a
more rigorous series of exercises done at
the beginning of each regular aikido class.
At this point, some participants are clearly
skeptical and are displaying low energy;
others are curious and watching carefully.
When participants have loosened up their
joints and muscles, we ask them to sit on
the mat, and we begin the ki development
training.
Exclusive of the warmup, we
structure our two-hour sessions around
four modules designed to teach the basic
principles of ki development. We do not
do any instruction in aikido techniques,
but focus only on the aspects of ki
development which we feel will have an
immediate effect and demonstrate
leadership related principles. Our four
modules are:
1. Centering
2. Ki Extension
3. Sensing the Ki in a
Situation
4. Harmonizing and Leading
This structure begins with a focus
on the individual and moves toward larger
perspectives involving other individuals
and groups. We start working with the
person's frame of mind and move toward
the projection of this frame of mind onto a
"situation." Each concept section
succeeds, extends, expands and is
dependent upon preceding sections.
1. Centering
Aikido and many martial arts teach
the importance of being "centered" in
order to perform well. Centering is
establishing and maintaining one's mental
and physical center-of-gravity. If off
balance, confused or emotionally
disturbed, one will have a difficult time
dealing with important or dangerous

9. 8
events happening around one. Hence, an
introduction to centering is critical.
Centering relates to the first three rules for
Mind and Body Coordination, "Keep One-
point," "Relax Completely" and "Keep
Weight Underside." The purpose of this
module is to provide an experimentally
based understanding of how one's body
and mind can work together to achieve
dramatic results through the application of
these rules. This understanding is an
essential foundation for all later training.
We break this module down into
three segments. First, the one-point is
explained as a non-anatomical point of
mental focus in the lower abdomen.
Participants are taught how to "find" their
one-point and how to let their
concentration settle at this center. As
people focus on their one-points, they find
that the other muscles of their bodies
naturally begin to relax and their weight
begins to shift underside.
In the second phase we teach
breathing techniques. The concept of one-
point is static; breathing introduces the
notion of being able to be centered while
doing something physical. Under stress,
our breathing typically becomes rapid,
shallow, and less rhythmic. "Ki
breathing," however, remains deeply
rhythmic even under stress. This results in
greater relaxation and paradoxically
produces greater focus and effectiveness
in behavior. The idea of being calm and
relaxed under stress is counter-intuitive to
most Westerners, yet when we are calm
and attending to all of the forces around
us, we are most able and capable of
dealing with them.
We teach participants how to
breathe "to the one-point," which,
physiologically, results in breathing with
the diaphragm rather than the chest
muscles. Instead of lifting the chest to
breathe, we encourage them to breathe in
through the nose down to the one-point so
that the stomach distends with each
breath, and then to exhale slowly through
the mouth, again, from the one-point. We
teach them how to slow and deepen their
breathing and lengthen their breaths to as
much as 30 seconds each and how to use
their breathing as a means of emptying
their minds of distracting images.
Although some participants at this
point have become more skeptical and
uncomfortable with the "Eastern" flavor of
the class and the meditation-like breathing
exercises, some participants later report
that this part of the class alone was well
worth the session; some even volunteer
commitments to continue using this
method of relaxation while at work. Dr.
Dean Ornish16
and others have
documented well the salutatory benefits of
deep breathing and meditation. What
breathing does in the context of
leadership, though, is center a person's
thoughts and feelings. Deep, slow
breathing allows one to collect one's
thoughts, apprehend the environment, and
replace an emergency state of
preparedness with a calm one.
The third segment of the centering
instruction serves as a transition between
the concepts of Centering and Ki
16
Ornish, Dean L., M.D., Dr. Dean
Ornish's Program for Reversing Heart
Disease, pblisher, city, date.

10. 9
Extension. The central exercise in this
phase is learning to stand stably while
being pushed backward. This pushing is a
formal aikido ki test and, as with all ki
testing during instruction, is done to
provide information and feedback to the
participant. Testing is never done in a
manner that might place the participant at
risk physically or psychologically.
To conduct this ki test, we invite
five volunteers to step forward and try to
stand, feet apart, without being pushed
over while the instructor tests them. First,
they use their natural instincts which
usually involves leaning forward or
tensing up and pushing back. Next, we
ask them to breathe to their center as they
were taught, then to rise on the balls of
their feet and let themselves settle in a
relaxed way while maintaining their focus
on their one-points. Sometimes, we ask
them to say while being tested, "Thank
you for your energy." This simple
procedure results in an immediate
relaxation of the musculature, a shifting of
weight underside, and a dramatic
improvement of their ability to stand
stable and immovable. The instructor can
push much harder, even twice or three
times as hard, before the "volunteer" is
pushed over. The five standing in front
can easily feel the difference. People in
the audience can readily see the
difference. This result is surprising and
counter-intuitive to most Westerners so
that, now quite suddenly, the skeptics'
curiosities are aroused, and they are
immediately more attentive. "How does
that work?" they begin to ask.
Now we invite them to choose a
partner and try this test. We watch while
each person takes two or three tries at
remaining stable while their partner tests
or pushes on them. We encourage them to
try a "hard" muscle approach first, then to
center, breathe deep, settle on the balls of
the feet and be tested again. This
approach highlights the contrast between a
tense, emergency response and a relaxed,
centered response. Students can then
readily feel as well as observe the
difference and note how much more stable
it makes them. For each of the exercises
below, we follow this general structure:
teacher demonstration with one or more
volunteers, and then a practice period in
which everyone pairs up and practices on
each other what they have just observed.
With the "standing stable" exercise,
participants learn that our "normal"
responses to external pressure usually
creates conflict and inability to perform.
By applying the principle of centering,
however, two things occur. First, their
physical stability increases dramatically
and second, their frames of mind remain
calm, positive and receptive.
The importance of the centering
instruction recognizes the principle that
the outcome of a situation often depends
critically on its beginning. A person's
initial response to a problem may worsen
and intensify it or begin its resolution.
The breathing exercises provide real
methods for relaxing and centering the
mind as one enters any situation, physical
or social. The "standing stable" exercise
provides a physical metaphor for
demonstrating the impact of our frame of
mind on a situation with which we are
trying to cope. Participants later report
that by this point in the session they are
thinking about the ways in which they are
"pushed" on at the office, how they

11. 10
typically respond, and how they'd now
like to modify that response.
2. Ki Extension
The next module, Ki Extension,
further develops the ideas of coordinating
mind and body to respond to difficult
situations. As with the concept of ki, the
idea of ki extension is difficult to
comprehend without direct experience.
Our procedure lets the participant
experience the nature and consequence of
ki extension without having to understand
it intellectually. Our instruction in ki
extension involves two main phases.
The first phase utilizes variations
on the "standing stable" exercise.
Through a series of exercises, participants
learn that their mental state can either
increase or decrease their stability.
Simply asking a person to think of what
could go wrong today significantly
weakens their ability to stand stably so
that a gentle test by a partner easily pushes
them over. Asking them a moment later to
think of what could go right in the day
immediately makes them much more
stable. Again, reading about this may
seem silly, but the physical metaphor is
striking. This "power of positive
thinking" demonstration is dramatic and
more memorable than reading about it
from a book. By now, people are wearing
bemused smiles and visibly wondering
how this "ki stuff" works.
Although we don't explain how at
the time, you may wish to know that
aikido teaches that a positive mental state
increases stability by being both expansive
and inclusive. A positive mental state is
expansive in that it results in the person
naturally having a greater awareness of his
or her surroundings. In addition, the body
is relaxed and therefore tends to take on a
more open and outward-directed posture.
This state is inclusive in the sense that the
person becomes more naturally and
directly responsive to other people.
Negative frames of mind, however,
produce the opposite effects. The body
tends to collapse and slump, and the mind
becomes inward-directed and exclusive.
These changes are directly relevant to the
idea of ki extension. In a positive mental
state, ki is naturally extended, while a
negative state inhibits the extension of
ki.17
The second phase of this module of
training utilizes a fundamental exercise in
ki development termed by Tohei the
"unbendable arm." In this exercise the
person extends his or her arm while the
tester attempts to bend it by pushing down
on the inside of the elbow and up at the
wrist. The normal response to this test is
to use one's strength to prevent the arm
from being bent. This then becomes a
contest of strength, with the bigger,
stronger person winning. In addition, it
results in a great deal of tension,
discomfort, and even pain for the person
being tested. The arm and shoulder
muscles become quickly fatigued and the
two cannot continue the contest for long
nor can they focus on other things.
Through instruction, however,
participants learn that they can use ki
extension to keep the arm unbendable.
The use of ki here results in a dramatic
shift in performance and experience. The
17
Tohei, 1978

12. 11
person remains relaxed and comfortable.
The arm feels "soft" yet cannot be bent
even by one possessing greater strength.
Paradoxically, the person "exerts" less
energy but is able to accomplish more. At
the same time, the attackee can carry on a
conversation with the audience and move
about all the while maintaining an
unbendable arm. A mental image often
used to teach this principle is that of a fire
hose. Participants are instructed first to
resist the bending of their arms by tensing
up and using muscle. Next they are
instructed to relax, center, breathe deeply,
and imagine a fire hose extending out
through the end of their fingertips to the
wall. As they practice this, they notice
that when they focus their minds on the
points where their tester is touching them
they lose this flexible strength. When they
can focus on their one points and maintain
this image of a fire hose shooting water
past the attacker's grasp to the wall, their
arms become flexible but unbendable, like
a high pressure fire hose. The energy or ki
extending outward through their fingertips
to the wall and beyond creates a conduit of
force that the straining tester cannot bend
with muscle. Participants enjoy trying and
retrying this exercise and are amazed at
the difference between their muscle-based
attempts and their ki-based attempts.
The "standing stable" exercise and
the "unbendable arm" exercise allow
participants to experience physically
different ways of dealing with physical
aggression. By parallel, we invite them to
think how about these experiences can
help them see business situations
differently, how seeing beyond the point
of attack can enhance their ability to deal
with the attack, and how relaxation,
paradoxically, can enhance their ability to
deal with external intrusion.
3. Sensing the Ki of a Situation
In a self-defense context, the
proper response to an attack depends on
the nature of the attack. The defender
must quickly determine the direction,
speed, and force of the attack in order to
respond with the most effective technique.
This ability to perceive correctly and
quickly the nature of the attack is of
particular importance in aikido, since the
ultimate goal is not simply to counter or
block the force of attack, but to harmonize
with and the redirect this force18
. In
aikido, the perception of the attack is
called "sensing the ki of the attack" or
more generally, "sensing the ki of a
situation." This ability is dependent upon
good centering and, paradoxically, one's
own ki extension. This is a paradox
because one extends one's own ki in order
to understand another's incoming ki.
The relation of this concept to
leadership is perhaps readily apparent. A
good leader is capable of perceiving
correctly the forces at play in a situation
so that he or she can mobilize an effective
response. If a leader lacks the emotional
and social counterparts of centering and ki
extension, the response is likely to be
incorrectly focused, egocentric, and weak.
Response strategies will be more forced
and stereotypic, the motivation of others
will be weakened, and the resulting
leadership behavior will be inadequate or
even detrimental.
18
See Westbrook & Ratti, 1971, for an
excellent discussion of the theory of defense
in aikido.

13. 12
Peter Senge in his book, The Fifth
Discipline,19
discusses this concept under
the heading of "systems thinking." This is
the ability to see beyond the current event
or locally patterned behavior to the larger
system. The value of this mode of
thinking lies in the fact that what may
seem like singular, unrelated events from
a limited perspective are in fact
dynamically interconnected within a larger
system.
In our "sensing the ki of a
situation" training procedure, we utilize a
number of exercises to demonstrate and
teach "ki sensing" ability. Two primary
exercises can illustrate the approach. The
first involves a variation on the "standing
stable" exercise. In this case, the person
being pushed practices moving with the
push rather than resisting it. Here we
invite pairs of participants to take turns
pushing on each other's shoulders forward
and back. The person being tested closes
his or her eyes and tries to sense how
much energy the tester is putting into each
push. The goal of the receiver is to move
with the push 1) without adding to or
subtracting from the energy of the push,
and 2) without being physically displaced
from their location.
The accomplishment of the first
goal requires that the individual be
relaxed, centered and extended, and that
they be sensitive to the energy of the push
without resisting it (hence, subtracting
from the energy) or moving away from the
push under their own power (hence,
adding to the energy). Both of these
responses indicate a failure to sense the
situation accurately. The goal is to yield
to the ki of the tester, but no more or no
less, while remaining unmoved in space.
To be pushed without being
displaced, the second goal of this exercise,
requires that the individual be relaxed,
centered, extended, and sensitive to the
direction of the push. If one can do this,
one can move with the push by pivoting in
place, sensing and harmonizing with the
push while maintaining location. If the
person yields to the pushes without
pivoting or resists the pushes, he or she
will be displaced, that is pushed across the
floor.
In a more complex second
exercise, one member of a pair is the
"leader" and the other becomes the
"follower." Followers stand behind their
leaders and place one hand on the leader's
shoulder. Followers then shut their eyes.
At a signal, all pairs begin moving
randomly about the mats. The only
communication allowed between a pair is
the touch of the follower's hand on the
leader's shoulder. The speed of the
group's movement is gradually increased
from a slow to very rapid walking pace.
Leaders must maintain the tenuous contact
with their followers while also
apprehending the moving dyads about
them and avoiding collisions.
This exercise presents the greatest
risk of all the exercises in the leadership
training and is therefore closely monitored
by the instructor. The motion is stopped
before any dangerous situations can
develop. After the motion is stopped, the
partners switch roles and try again. (In
more advanced versions with different
19
Senge, Peter, The Fifth Discipline,
Doubleday, New York, 1990.

14. 13
objectives, we put the "blind" person in
front so that the leader is in the back,
again communicating only by the touch of
hand on shoulder. We also use chains of
three, four, and five people with again,
either the front or back person alone
allowed to see.)
This exercise and its variants
demand that the two individuals be
sensitive to each other's ki and to slight
variations in it. The speed of motion and
the limitation of the senses heightens the
ability of the participants to realize the
value of this subtle but powerful form of
communication and influence. In
addition, the pairs become aware of the
larger pattern of behavior of the
participants as a whole. They learn that
unless they do this (and not get "caught"
with what's happening just in front of
them), they are unable to navigate the
room successfully without colliding or
coming to sudden stops.
This exercise invariably produces a
spontaneous, excited, and positive
discussion among the participants. They
begin talking about their habitual
strategies for both leading and following
and how understanding and being
sensitive to ki in complex situations could
help them function more smoothly in their
organizations. They talk about the
tenuous threads of connection between
leaders and followers and how to maintain
and develop them. They note that habitual
and ineffective strategies for leadership
that become evident during this exercise
include the exertion of undue caution and
the exertion of undue force, principles that
build from the shoulder pushing exercise
earlier. Some headstrong followers grip
tenaciously to their leaders and hold them
back, some determined leaders move
independently without regard to the
follower's situation and bull their way
through the crowd often with painful
effect for the follower and other
participants.
This "leader/follower exercise"
also allows the exploration of the varied
ways in which we must sense ki in daily
life. To follow effectively, the follower
must both trust the leader and be sensitive
to the leader's energy. At the same time,
the leader must be sensitive to the ki of the
follower. Failure to do so can lead to
separation and loss of leadership or to a
situation that puts the follower in
jeopardy.
In addition, the leader must sense
the ki in the motion of all the other
participants in order to avoid collision. As
the speed of motion increases, it becomes
impossible to develop individual strategies
for moving in the midst of the others; the
situation changes too quickly. In this case
the leaders learn to perceive the ki of the
group's motion as a whole. This allows
them to respond immediately to the
rapidly changing patterns. The parallels to
today's rapidly changing society,
organizational designs, and industry
structures becomes apparent to the
participants--but not through thinking
about them, but rather by experiencing
and feeling them.
Even though this exercise is
structured in terms of leaders and
followers, its optimal performance
involves the mutual interaction of both
participants. The reactions of both leader
and follower provide feedback for the
subsequent reactions of the other.

15. 14
Leading and following, per se, fade in
importance as the participant learns that,
within the aikido perspective, both
partners play equally important though
different roles of the same whole. This
concept, again, is Eastern in its origin.
Taoism teaches that the seeds of one
opposite are found in the other and that
both are parts of a complementary whole.
Leadership and followership are
complementary. When thought of and
"exerted" as if they were separate entities,
they become less powerful.
4. Harmonizing and Leading
The leader/follower exercise
represents a clear transition to the final
concepts, Harmonizing and Leading. In
fact, generally at this point in the training
the participants begin to be aware of the
close interrelation of all the exercises; and
how, to some extent, each involves all of
the concepts under consideration.
Harmonizing is the act of blending
with, or joining with, the ki of a situation.
Leading, in this context, is the act of
shifting the ki of another to your control in
order to accomplish your objective. In
aikido, we often speak of leading the
attacker's ki in order to redirect that ki and
control it. Harmonizing and leading form
an inseparable whole as just outlined.
To harmonize is to initiate leading,
and to lead is to maintain harmonization.
Leading without harmonization is
coercion. This interrelation of
harmonizing and leading is important
because what one learns in ki development
training is not some mystical force that
allows one to dominate or control others
against their will. Rather it is a method
for encouraging cooperation and mutual
action that requires a keen sensitivity to
the ki of all parties involved.
We utilize many different exercises
to teach harmonizing and leading. One
exercise, "palm moving," however, is of
particular relevance. In certain respects,
this exercise represents the apex of the
training for our leadership participants.
This exercise would be virtually
impossible for the participants at the
beginning of the training a mere 90
minutes before, but is generally performed
well by the end of the two-hour session.
In this regard, "palm moving" also
provides a dramatic demonstration of the
effectiveness of ki development.
In the "palm moving exercise" the
partners stand side by side. Person A
extends the arm closest to the other person
(Person B), forward, with the hand flat
and the palm up. Person B then lays the
hand nearest A on top of A's hand, also
palm up so that there is no connection
between the two people except flat hands
resting on top of each other. At this point,
it is the goal of Person B (whose hand is
resting on top of Person A's hand) to move
Person A forward. Note that B is not
holding A, nor is A holding B. A is only
supporting B's hand with a flat palm.
Thus, though there is physical contract
between A and B (and this contact is
important to the exercise), B has no
physical means or leverage with which to
move A. (Attempting to move A using
only the frictional "force" between hands
is impossible. B's hand will simply slide
off of A's.) In order for B to move A, B
must harmonize with and lead A's ki, not
simply A's body.

16. 15
This sounds, in print, to be "high
weird" and esoteric, if not impossible. At
this point, many participants' skepticism
re-emerges. Yet shortly, most participants
find that by applying all of the principles
they have been taught, they can, in fact,
make it work. First, they watch the
instructor do it with a volunteer. Then
they watch the volunteer, their peer, move
the instructor. Then they practice in pairs
throughout the room. They find that they
can move their partners forward!
Most people in A's role ask how
much they should resist. What if A resists
B's attempts to join with their ki and move
them? This question reveals a number of
psychologically interesting aspects of
human interaction, but for our purposes, it
provides a basis for making two points.
First, if B is truly harmonized with A, then
when A senses they are being moved and
resists, B should sense the ki and respond
appropriately rather than trying to force
the situation and creating conflict. By
relaxing, extending and reharmonizing, B
can begin again to lead A. If B has lost a
ki connection with A, then A's resistance
will result in the physical separation of the
two as B's hand continues forward after
A's has stopped.
Second, what if A's resistance is
absolute? What if A is dead-set against
being moved by B? In this case,
harmonizing with A's ki means that B lets
A "be" (so to speak). As stated before, ki
is not a magical force for coercing others
against their wills. It is a way of creating
harmony and cooperation among people,
allowing each person to fulfill their
capabilities.20
We note that in aikido
technique this process of harmonizing and
leading is essential. An attackee senses
the energy in the attack, harmonizes with
it, and then leads the energy beyond what
the attacker intended to move the attacker
off his or her one-point, off balance, and
then settle them to the floor.
At this point, we usually end the
session with a short story21
about a
samurai who had three sons, each at a
different stage of life and of ki
development. When the father's master
instructor came to pay a rare visit, the
father called his sons in to meet the
instructor. He also placed a rare and
valuable vase over the sliding paper door
as a sort of ki test. The eldest son coming
in sensed the vase in advance, slid the
door open, reached up and held the vase in
place, closed the door, resettled the vase
and turned to bow. When his turn came,
the second son stepped into the room
without realizing the vase was there until
it began to fall. Sensing the motion, he
pivoted and caught the vase before it hit
him or the floor, replaced it and then
turned to bow. Finally, when the youngest
son burst into the room, he was oblivious
to the presence of the vase, was hit on the
head by it as it fell, drew his sword
instantly and smashed the vase before it
hit the floor--and before he realized what
had happened.
The story demonstrates that each of
us are in different stages of development
of understanding and awareness of the
20
Ueshiba, 1991.
21
Urban, 1989.

17. 16
situations that we face and therefore can
either influence those situations or are left
to be influenced by them. The
development of ki, the ability to sense and
respond appropriately to all of the energies
in a situation, can greatly enhance a
person's ability to take the lead in
resolving complex problems before they
get out of hand. At this point, we release
the participants and they begin walking
back to the classroom building, buzzing
about their experience.
Connections with Leadership
Sometimes we schedule a
debriefing session to talk about what the
participants saw in the ki session, often we
do not. Whether it's in a debriefing
session or at breaks between other classes
or at meals, we find that they will make
many of the following connections to the
leadership realities that they face.
1. Leadership emanates from one's
center. Without clear core values,
beliefs and passions, leadership
efforts become unstable and
untrustworthy. In response, we
may note that at the Matsushita
Leadership Institute22
, for instance,
the 5 students out of 250 who are
accepted into the 5 year program
spend the first year with no faculty
and no classes and a single
assignment--to clarify the purpose
of their lives. The underlying
philosophy is that unless one is
clear about one's own life's
purpose, how can one presume to
lead others? People who attempt to
be leaders without being centered,
that is, clear about their core
values, goals, and purposes, will
not meet with much success.
2. Relaxing and accepting is more
powerful than fighting and
resisting. We note that it is easier
to move a 100 pound rectangular
box than it is to move a 100 pound
sack of wheat or rice. In response
to pushing or lifting, the myriad
slack spaces between the hard parts
each yield a little and leave the
body whole intact and unmoved.
3. Sometimes we add fuel to a fire by
presuming what others may be
intending. This can create more
problems than otherwise. If we
wait, and sense accurately the goals
of the others, we can better
understand how to rechannel those
energies.
4. Sometimes we resist the intentions
of others and create friction and ill
will in our relationships. If we
would sense those intentions and
move with them at first, we might
be able to redirect others' energies
and find a solution in which we
both get what we want.
5. When we resist others, they fight
harder. When we harmonize with
them, they come along even if
they're no longer sure they want to.
6. A relaxed, centered approach to a
situation is more rewarding and
less stressful and fatiguing than a
tensed approach. Pausing before
meetings, in meetings, during
speeches, etc. to breathe to one's
one-point, to center one's self is
much more healthy and helps one
to perform well.
22
Founded by Konosuke Matsushita, the
founder of Matsushita Electric Company
and a reknowned business leader in Japan.

18. 17
7. Seeing and acting beyond the
present problem (as opposed to
fighting brush fires) while still
dealing with the present problem
can produce strength and direction
that is superior.
8. If my people can't follow me while
I'm walking around the room with
their hands on my shoulder, how
can I insure that my people in the
organization understand and are in
sync with what we need to be
doing? I have to pay attention to
the connections between leader and
follower.
9. If I'm involved in an individual or
organizational change effort, I'd
better understand and respect the
forces at play in the present
situation. If I can understand those
forces, perhaps I can utilize them to
support the change rather than
resist it.
10. With small and subtle influence, I
can move large organizations if I'm
attuned to the energy there and the
direction it's flowing. This teaches
me timing, too, and not moving too
quickly or too slowly.
11. Every disagreement doesn't need to
be a confrontation. If I listen and
really sense the intentions of the
other, perhaps I can find a way of
getting us both what we want. But
when I tense up and become
defensive, we immediately get into
a straining conflict that generates
anger and often not a good result.
Relaxing and flowing with the
energy is more rewarding and less
stressful--for all involved.
While every participant won't come
away with this set of conclusions, the
group collectively will be able to articulate
these principles. Sometimes, in our own
leadership training we often present our
own distillation of principles into what we
call six steps to effective leadership:
1. Clarifying Your Center
2. Clarifying Your Vision
3. Clarifying What Others can
Contribute
4. Supporting Others so they can
Contribute
5. Being Relentless
6. Measuring and Celebrating
Progress toward the Vision.
Clarifying Your Center comes from the
early parts of the session. Clarifying your
Vision comes from learning to see and
apprehend beyond the immediate problem
(of an attacker gripping your arm).
Clarifying What Others can Contribute
comes from sensing and respecting the ki
that others bring to a situation. Supporting
Others So They Can Contribute comes
from the need to restructure a situation
(organizational and systems re-design or
re-engineering) so that both parties can get
what they want from it. Being Relentless
comes from the importance of extending
ki constantly both in order to understand
and sense others' ki and to deal with
changes occuring about one. And
Measuring and Celebrating progress
comes from the sense of confidence and
good will that comes from handling a
difficult, even dangerous situation,
without causing harm to self or others and
walking away in control, having created a
higher, more powerful outcome than
typical responses generated.
We also note that Ueshiba's
philosophy as introduced earlier was not

19. 18
just a martial arts philosophy. Both he
and his student, Tohei, intended to teach
improved social relationships through the
physical metaphors of martial arts
training. In our experience with MBA
students and executive program
participants, the principles and exercises
of ki development provide a dramatic,
easily experienced, and very memorable
way of demonstrating effective leadership
principles and of encouraging people to
think about them in new and powerful
ways.
The question then is, "What will
they do with them back on the job?" To
encourage this, we invite participants in
executive programs to select one to three
things they'd like to do differently as a
result of their insights from this session.
We ask them to write these down in a
letter addressed to self and seal it in a self-
addressed envelope which we collect and
then mail six months later. In this way,
participants can check on themselves
confidentially to see how they're doing in
practicing the key principles of leadership
as demonstrated in the aikido-ki
development session. In this way, they
learn the lessons that are powerful for
them and have a chance of reinforcing
them when the daily habits of
organizational life are so likely to be
overwhelming.
Takeaways for the Leadership Instructor
Unless you are an aikido instructor
and familiar with business practice, you
will not be able to do what we describe
here after reading this article; aikido is not
something that can be taught effectively in
an article nor over a short period of time.
Furthermore, believing that a written
article is not the place to teach physical
exercises, we have intentionally not
described in minute detail how we teach
the principles outlined above. So,
although you may not be able to
experience the concepts we've described
here (and that experience makes the
learning much more powerful), you can
gain a new perspective on leadership skills
and concepts from reading about what we
do. Though you probably won't be able to
experience the concepts presented and feel
the "Eastern" differences from this article,
if you were interested in using them, there
are several avenues you could pursue.
First, you could begin your own
study of aikido. Two hours a week for a
year or more would provide you with a
basic knowledge of ki concepts that you
could use in the classroom. This study
would also be very calming in your
lifestyle and lend a new sense of
confidence in your ability to protect
yourself. Second, and more immediate,
you could form a partnership with a local
aikido instructor, as we have, and work
out your own program for melding
leadership studies and aikido. Third, you
could teach the ki concepts cognitively.
While this approach loses the impact of
the experience, it does give students
something new to think about and still
allows discussion of their applications to
management situations.
Conclusion
We have presented an overview of
the method of ki development training we
have used as one important aspect of
training and education in leadership. Our
conclusion from teaching and participating
in these sessions, as well as from the
consistently positive post-program
evaluations, is that this is a valuable and

20. 19
effective approach. We feel this approach
should have a broad application as one
means of integrating aspects of Eastern
thought and practice into the training of
future leaders of business globally. We
are mindful that not everyone can simply
read this article and begin using these
techniques. We have worked together in a
variety of ways for over two years, one an
accomplished aikidoist and the other a
novice; one an experienced business
educator and consultant, the other
relatively new to the field. We are both
excited about the results that we have seen
as participants experience the dramatically
powerful ways that the principles of aikido
can inform their thinking, feeling, and
values about leadership.23
23
We wish to recognize and thank
George Simcox, Chief Instructor of the
Virginia Ki Society, whose instruction and
inspiration have indirectly but greatly
influenced the development of this program.

21. 20
Appendix A
Selected comments by second year MBA
students, Class of 1996, after the aikido
experience.
“Good leadership requires not only
an understanding of one’s environment
but of oneself. Aikido is an excellent
discipline for MBAs because it
incorporates so many basic principles.
First of all, mind and body are one. You
learn to center yourself, an invaluable skill
in any stressful situation. You also learn
that resistance is not the only answer.
Any strategy that is flexible can react to
the market much more efficiently than one
that breaks at the first sign of force.
Finally, Aikido offers a different
perspective from the outward focus that
we traditionally maintain. All in all, even
a two hour session is extremely valuable.”
“Aikido teaches resilience and
focus. Resilience and focus are
necessities to a corporate manager, or to
any person who strives to attain a goal.
The focus of Aikido teaches a student to
maintain an awareness of where he or she
is centered, as well as to concentrate on a
goal being pursued. The resilience aspect
of Aikido teaches a student to minimize
the obstacles that confront or distract us
from our true goals. The art of Aikido is
that these two concepts are intertwined
and together are a subtle but powerful
system for pursuing goals. Focus enables
one to internally form and concentrate on
a goal, and resiliency allows one to
maintain that direction despite how events
might urge you to change course.”
“I enjoyed the Aikido training
because it provided an Eastern perspective
on leadership that we rarely get at a
Western business school. A couple of the
exercises worked for me particularly well.
For example, the exercise in which one
person leads while the partner follows
with his or her eyes closed made me
recognize the fundamental principles of
leadership such as the need for vision and
trust. Also, the bending arm exercise
made me understand the power of
extension versus conflict.”
“I truly enjoyed the aikido
exercise. Although I was suspicious at
first of the connection to the topics in our
Leading Strategic Change course, I soon
found that many of the concepts of Aikido
are very transferable to the concepts of
leadership. For example, in our Aikido
session we learned about the power of
centering, which entails focusing on your
center of gravity and transferring outward
pressures/attacks to that core. In some
way, this is comparable to being in touch
with your inner values and not allowing
yourself to sway from those values. As
leaders, we need to be true to ourselves
and thus we need to develop our inner
strength. I believe that Aikido can help
one to discover and maintain that inner
strength and sense of being.”
“A few of the insights that Aikido
provided regarding relationships with
others and leadership include: ! The
successes of followers and leaders are
closely tied to one another. Followers are
limited by the abilities of their leaders, and
leaders are often limited by the abilities of
their followers. ! Key leader attributes
include the ability to listen well to one’s
followers, care and consideration of one’s
followers, the ability to communicate
clearly with one’s followers, and an ability
to fully engage with the entire external
environment. Key follower attirbutes

22. 21
include the ability to trust one’s leader, the
ability to listen well, and the ability to be
open and flexible, ready to receive and
resopnd to communication from one’s
leader. ! Key to all relationships is the
ability to empty one’s mind, to sense the
environment and listen to those around us,
and to have the capacity and will to truly
care for others.”
“Last week our Leading Strategic
Change class took part in an exercise in
Aikido, which is a Japanese martial arts
technique. The experience was structured
around several different learning exercises
which were intended to be leadership
metaphors. I found the experience to be
worthwhile. I found the perspective of the
Aikido instructor to challenge many of the
assumptions with which we engage others.
The key learning for the experience for me
was that engaging someone with different
objectives need not be viewed as a
conflict, and need not necessarily be
countered with resistive force. In many
situations, the energy of your “opponent”
can be redirected into an outcome that
may bring positive results for both parties.
While I feel the applications of the Aikido
perspective may not be unlimited, I found
the experience to be a worthwhile
demonstration of how our misperceptions
and assumptions can limit the possibilities
of our interaction with others.”
“At first, I must admit, that I was
very skeptical (cynical) about the whole
concept of having an aikido class for
Leading Strategic Change. However, I
can now say that I was truly amazed. Not
only did I find the physical demonstrations
totally amazing, but found that I left the
session with many takeaways I hope to
apply to my own life. Takeaways
regarding leadership, what it takes, the
responsibility of the leader/follower, the
power of positive thinking, being at peace
with one’s self . . . the list could go on. In
short, the session was incredibly valuable.
By having the session, instead of reading
it in a book, and coupling it with the
physical demonstrations, the lessons will
likely stay with me forever.”
...”I experienced things that I never
experienced or thought about before, by
participating in several simple exercises. I
was amazed how applicable those
learnings were to today’s challenging and
competitive business environment.”
“The world of business is often
likened to war. We are trained to punish
competitors, win through positions of
superior strength, and always be prepared
for any contingency. Today, I had an
interesting experience that made me
question the validity of this conventional
thought. During an Aikido session, I was
able to master situations and outcomes
through utilization of my Ki, my spirit and
energy. What was truly fascinating about
the experience was that I could exert more
power by using my counterparts’ energy
against them. By reducing the sense of
conflict which I felt during a challenging
situation, I was able to succeed with less
energy and less stress. Thus, I encourage
you to sample Aikido and see what it
offers in practical applications in our
everyday and hectic lives.”

23. 22
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Heckler, R.S., In Search of the Warrior
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