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posts and topics!

Michael Veltri, Chief Instructor & Owner

of Okinowa Aikikai, Washington D.C.

shares the story of how life’s path led

him from a successful business career

to creating a thriving dojo of over 200

students in downtown D.C.

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2

Recently AIO hosted its first teleconference. During

the call, one of our members asked a great question

that I thought would be worth sharing. The question

was: “I was thinking about contacting some of the

students that have quit training. Do any of you con-

tact old students and try to get them to come

back?” So now I pose this question to our AI Jour-

nal readers: How do you handle students after they

quit training? Do you just place their name in your

dead file; or do you continue to market to them, hop-

ing to get them back on the mat?

Before moving forward, let’s define an

inactive student. An inactive student is

a student who stops coming to classes

and no longer pays the dojo

dues. These students may or may not

notify you of their decision to

quit. Whether it is a software data-

base or a paper attendance card sys-

tem, it is important for dojo manage-

ment to have some sort of system for

tracking both active and inactive students. Regard-

less of which system you use, be sure that it is up-

dated on a regular basis.

Now that we know who our inactive students are, is

there anything we can we do with them after they

quit? Yes! The majority of students leave due to

scheduling difficulties or other reasons that are not a

negative reflection on your dojo. Rarely does a stu-

dent leave because he or she dislikes training. Tak-

ing this into consideration, why shouldn’t we con-

tinue to market to former students in hopes of re-

gaining their membership.

Marketing to inactive students is an area of dojo

management often neglected due to various rea-

sons. Contacting former students can feel awkward

for all parties if not done correctly. Marketing to

past students, however, does not need to be a diffi-

cult or involved proc-

ess. The primary goal in

dealing with exiting students

is to find a way to keep the door open for students

to return one day. At the very least, we want the

exiting student to refer other students to your dojo.

In a perfect world we would never lose a student

and we would be able to avoid this entire proc-

ess. Unfortunately, the ebb and flow of students is

a part of running a dojo. By monitoring your active

and inactive numbers, you will be able to notice

trends and make adjustments to de-

crease the amount of students who

quit. By tracking your exiting students,

you will be able to consistently improve

upon areas in the dojo that may need

some tweaking. If you stop reading

here and do nothing else except track

your active and inactive students on a

consistent basis to analyze trends, you

will still make a positive change in your

dojo. But don’t stop here, because tracking is just

one component to the process of marketing to inac-

tive students.

The other key component to drawing former stu-

dents back into the dojo is personal contact. Your

initial contact with an exiting student will either be

during a Missing Student Call (Members: See AIO

Package 2 for directions on how to implement a

Missing Student Call system); or during a student

conference where the student informs you that they

will no longer be training. During both of these sce-

narios, it is imperative to learn why the student is

quitting. In addition to finding out why the student

has decided to leave the dojo, use this opportunity

to see if there is anything that can be done to help

keep them training. For example, a temporary

scheduling conflict can often be rectified by offering

3

Editorial

AI JournalAI Journal B Y A I O P R E S I D E N T , S K I P C H A P M A N

Inactive Students: Gone But Not Forgotten

Marketing to past

students, however,

does not need to be

a difficult or

involved process.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 14

J U L Y / A U G U S T 2 0 0 9 - a i k i d o i n t r u c t o r s . c o m

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Interview by Skip Chapman

Cover Photo & Article Photos by Jaime Kahn

Jaime Kahn Photography - www.jaimekahn.com

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AIO: First, I would like to thank you on behalf of

all of the members of AIO for agreeing to do this interview. I know that you have been interviewed all over the world and more times then you can count. Seldom do the interviews, however, focus on the business side of the dojo. I know that AIO members and dojocho around the world would love to know about your thoughts on how busi-ness and aikido can coexist harmoniously.

If we could start with a bit of history about New York Aikikai (NYA), when and why did you come to New York?

Yamada Sensei: I arrived in New York City one rainy day in April 1964 by a Greyhound bus from Chicago. I left Japan in Febru-ary of 1964, right after my 26th birthday, and it took me almost two months to get to my final destination. I have called New York City home for the past 45 years.

Why did I come to New York? Is there any other city in United States besides New York City? (laughing) New York City was known, and is still known, as the place to go if you want to make it big, right? That is one reason why I ended up in New York; although there is a longer story behind my move which I would be happy to share with you the next time we talk.

AIO: We look forward to hearing it! To satisfy our readers’ curiosity, were there any other location choices besides New York that you considered?

Yamada Sensei: In the United States of Amer-ica? No way! I made a good choice when I came here over 40 years ago. (laughing)

AIO: I know that those of us in the Northeast are very happy you did, Sensei. Most dojocho en-counter hard times during the first few years of owning a dojo. From your experience, can you discuss some of the hard times you experienced

when you first started NYA?

Yamada Sensei: First of all, I’m not a dojo owner. I’m a spiritual leader. Don’t you know that? (laughing) No, really. In the beginning when I first started New York Aikikai, everything was hard. I barely had a place to live and I had abso-lutely no money at all to buy anything. When I came to the States, I left my family behind in Ja-pan, so not only was I poor, I was also alone. New York City had very little exposure to Aikido in 1963. Very few people knew or understood Aikido which made it very difficult to attract students and grow the dojo at first. If you think of hard times, you name it and I experienced it. Any hardship I experienced, however, was important for me. I

appreciate every-thing I have far more because I worked so hard for it. I still work hard. If I had been given everything early on, I would not know what it is like to struggle and suc-ceed. Everyone should have that part of their life to look back on. Only you

should do it earlier than later. That was one reason I chose to leave Japan when I did. The only time you can suffer that way is when you are young.

AIO: I am sure that many dojocho find comfort knowing they are walking in similar footsteps when they are struggling through hard times. Having reflected on those early days, do you recall any lessons that you learned as a teacher and businessman during this pe-riod. What did you do to help survive the times that were less than easy?

Yamada Sensei: First of all, I might have been a good teacher when I came to the United States, but a businessman? I was the worst businessman in the world. Everything I experienced with busi-ness was a lesson for me. I didn’t know how to be a good businessman. I have fortunately learned through life experience and trial and error through

7

“Listen, you have to pay rent. A dojo has bills and often employees who need to get paid. Whether you believe the dojo is a business or not, it is. As long as you can keep a good balance between giving back to the students and not becoming greedy, the dojo will

be fine.”

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the years and I am still learning. You should always be learning in aikido, both in learning technique and improving your dojo. What did I do to survive the early years? I drank a lot of Jack Daniels! (laughing) It was much cheaper here in the United States, compared to the price in Japan.

AIO: Sensei, we have found that most dojo owners in the beginning have little to no busi-ness experience, which is one of the reasons why we started AIO, to help dojocho get a jump start on their success. Was the change from the hard times to the good times a gradual process or did it happen suddenly?

Yamada Sen-sei: Slowly. For some it happens very slowly. You just have to have a lot of pa-tience and keep learning and trying to improve your-self. It isn’t just about knowing how to do a technique. It is about knowing how to teach people so they stay training, and about how to run the dojo so it makes money.

AIO: Yes, Sensei. Those two points, keeping students and having a positive cash flow, go hand in hand for growing a dojo. In all of your experience you have had the great opportunity to see the landscape of dojos across the coun-try change over the years. In your opinion, how are current dojos different than dojos forty years ago?

Yamada Sensei: Yes, the landscape of dojos has changed quite a bit and I am happy it did. If it didn’t, that would be a problem. In the old days, we were just happy if we had any space to train and any kind of mat to fall on. We didn’t care how the building looked from outside or where it was lo-cated. We just wanted to train and spread ai-kido. Many dojo now have nice tatami for training, lounges, private places where people

can talk business, and even ar-eas where students can shower. Dojos have definitely improved since I arrived in the States.

AIO: Sensei, in your opinion how would you de-fine a successful dojo?

Yamada Sensei: A successful dojo has several parts. It has to have a good teacher, dedicated students who are talented in many ways, a clean and pleasant dojo for its current students and to

attract new stu-dents, and, of course it doesn’t hurt if it also has a lot of money! (laughing)

AIO: If you could create the perfect dojocho, what character-istics would you want that chief instructor to have?

Yamada Sen-sei: Ideally you want to have a relationship where students respect their teacher and the teacher truly cares about his students. A teacher has to earn this respect from his or her students. You cannot force them to respect you.

AIO: Isn’t that true in all areas of life, right Sen-sei?

Yamada Sensei: Exactly.

AIO: You always encourage students, especially instructors, to travel and train with various talented Aikido instructors to improve their technique for themselves, but more importantly for their stu-dents. How important do you think it is to ap-proach the business side of the dojo in the same manner?

Yamada Sensei: I don’t think I have to say how important it is to attend as many seminars as you can. Seminars allow you to grow as an instructor and student which is necessary for you to be the best dojocho you can be. As for learning about

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“Your life is always a

gamble. If you are afraid to

make changes, you will be

a loser and will never win.

Actually, as a leader you

can do anything you want,

but just be ready to face

the mistakes you might

make and admit your

fault. “

9 Photographed by Jaime Kahn - Jaime Kahn Photography - jaimekahn.com

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“You have to have a plan on how you are

going to grow and improve.”

Photographed by Jaime Kahn - Jaime Kahn Photography - jaimekahn.com

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One of the special features in AIO is that its members are represented by just about every type of style of aikido and federation. Within AIO, we have many dojocho interacting and exchanging ideas from all over the world. Do you feel as though reaching out across federa-tion and style lines in this manner is beneficial to strengthening the art? Why?

Yamada Sensei: Whenever you discuss fed-eration lines, it can become a very difficult and touchy question to answer. Leaving politics aside, as long as the instructor doesn’t lose themselves or their goals, then sharing infor-mation to help grow the dojo on the business side is a good thing.

AIO: Obviously you feel that it is important to have a strong understanding of Aikido as a martial art as well as understanding the busi-ness of Aikido. How important do you think it is to be a good leader and decision maker? Can a dojocho learn how to be a bet-ter leader if they do not have these skills natu-rally? And if so, how?

Yamada Sensei: There is no question that it is important to be a good leader. It is very diffi-cult to be a decision maker. Like Yogi Berra said, “You can’t win them all”. Unfortunately, to make one person happy, you often make somebody else unhappy. A leader should un-derstand this and make decisions with no re-gret. Just do what you think is the right thing and move forward. If you do not have leader-ship skills naturally, well, you can always learn from your own teacher as my students have learned from me for years!

AIO: I have most certainly learned many of my leadership skills from you, Sensei. Thank you.

Yamada Sensei: You are welcome. (laughing)

AIO: Many AIO members are ready to make changes in their dojo but fear that their stu-dents may be resistant to change. After over 40 years in existence, New York Aikikai contin-ues to change, progress, and implement new procedures and systems to improve the dojo. Why do you think that progress and im-plementing new procedures is so impor- J

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the business side of the dojo? Just like anything else, you must try hard to achieve your goals, so continue learning on all lev-els to improve your dojo, business and training.

AIO: What do you think keeps some do-jocho from applying the same amount of commitment to the business side of their dojo that they apply to their physical train-ing?

Yamada Sensei: I think people just don’t know where to go for help. Now that you started AIO, they have a place to go where they can learn how to help their dojo make money and grow. That’s a good thing.

AIO: Thank you, Sensei. While we are on the subject of seminars, I am familiar with your traveling schedule, however, some of our readers are unaware of your extensive seminar calendar. Can you estimate how many seminars you teach a year? How many countries have you visited over your years of traveling?

Yamada Sensei: Oh, a lot. I teach some-where around two or three seminars a month and travel to six or seven different countries every year. I have been teach-ing this type of seminar schedule for years and I have met many very nice students all over the world. However much I love teaching, I hope to teach less seminars next year.

AIO: Your travel has been a great contri-bution to the art. You have helped spread aikido all over the world. Many dojocho have in turn attempted to open dojos, as well as travel and teach seminars. Do you have any advice for the dojocho trying to balance teaching seminars, attending seminars, and running their dojo?

Yamada Sensei: Well, you should know. You are doing a good job with it. (laughing)

AIO: Thank you, Sensei. My supportive staff and family makes it easier for me than some to find a balance.

tant? You have some students training at your dojo for almost as long as New York Aikikai has been around. Do you get resistance to change from these stu-dents? If so, how do you deal with this?

Yamada Sensei: Your life is always a gamble. If you are afraid to make changes, you will be a loser and will never win. Actually, as a leader you can do anything you want, but just be ready to face the mistakes you might make and admit your fault. Life is about taking chances and making choices. Some-times the choices are wrong, but a lot of times the choices work out and you are better off because you made the change.

AIO: Speaking of taking chances, I un-derstand that New York Aikikai has re-cently hired a billing company for the first time? Was it difficult to get all the current students on board with using a billing company? Has it made life easier for you, and if so, how? Seeing the benefits of using a billing company first hand, would you recommend it to other do-jocho?

Yamada Sensei: To be honest with you, I was against the system at the begin-ning. I was worried that we might lose some members simply because it is New York City and New Yorkers have a differ-ent way of looking at things. To me, it was a gamble to go with a billing com-pany, but it paid off. We have switched over completely and things are going really well. Surely, I recommend it.

AIO: Can you tell us, from a business perspective, how has your dojo changed over the years? Are these good changes and why? Do think that a strong busi-ness plan helps in the process of secur-ing the future of New York Aikikai?

Yamada Sensei: Sure, New York Aikikai has made changes. Just look at the bill-ing company. New York Aikikai made a big change doing that. It is up and work-ing now and my uchideshi are happy, so I am happy. You have to have a plan on how you are going to grow and improve.

AIO: That’s great for our readers to see that even large and well established do-

jos, such as New York Aikikai are continuing to grow and make positive changes.

As a leader and founder of a large Aikido organi-zation, you have had the experience of dealing with many challenges all over the world. Many dojocho come to you for guidance, placing their problems on your desk. On a smaller level, the average dojocho has many internal dojo problems that arise. Do you have any advice for the dojo owner on how you personally deal with problems using a patient and steady hand? Is there a com-mon theme to many problems that dojocho bring to you, such as location issues, etc. Can you give some advice to dojocho on how to avoid problems within their dojo?

Yamada Sensei: No matter what, there are al-ways some headaches that arise when running a dojo. You cannot avoid them. You just have to deal with each problem as they arise. Just like you have to pay taxes. I would tell dojocho to use common sense when handling problems. How can dojocho avoid having problems? I would like to know how to avoid problems as well, so if you know how, tell me!

AIO: I wish I knew as well, Sensei! (laughing) One problem some dojocho are con-cerned about is losing the traditional and technical side of the dojo if their dojo grows too large. With New York Aikikai being such a large dojo with a deep history, do you feel that this is a problem for New York Aikikai? What would you advise do-jocho who are afraid of losing tradition and techni-cal teaching while growing their dojo?

Yamada Sensei: Fortunately, New York Aikikai never lost the technical teaching or traditions of Aikido. What I would tell dojocho is that, if your dojo is growing and you are getting more stu-dents, you must be doing a good job, so don’t worry. Just keep doing what you are doing and keep improving yourself and your dojo.

AIO: You have had the unique experience of watching Aikido spread significantly over the years since you first arrived in 1964. You have seen dojo pop up all over the world and many directly due to your hard work in spreading the art. How do you see the art progressing and continuing for the next 40 years?

Yamada Sensei: This is a very difficult and touchy question. I have a lot to say on this sub-ject, but I do not want to reveal my thoughts right

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Skip Chapman has been practicing Aikido for 18

years and holds the rank of Godan. Skip began

his career as a professional Aikido instructor and

dojocho in 1995 and, since then, has helped

numerous instructors grow their dojos all over

the country. In 2005, Skip was honored to be

the first Aikido instructor ever featured in the

international martial art business magazine,

MASuccess. In addition to being the founder of

Aikido Instructors Organization, Skip is also the

Chief Instructor/Owner of Jersey Shore Aikikai, a

Level One Certified CrossFit Trainer, and an

active member of the United States Aikido Fed-

eration Board of Directors. You can contact Skip at skip@aikidoinstructors.com

AIO: You and others have made tremendous sacrifices to spread this art. When you look back at your years of teaching, what is the one thing you would have done differently if you could?

Yamada Sensei: I don’t have any regrets. I would repeat everything again if given the chance. I might have made mistakes in the past like everyone, but I learn from my mistakes.

AIO: What is the one thing you are most proud of in your career?

Yamada Sensei: Proud of myself? Look around you. If you see many nice people, that is good. That is what I’m proud of: being surrounded by many nice people.

AIO: Thank you, Yamada Sensei, for spending time with AIO. I know I can speak for all of the AIO members that your advise and experience is inspiring for dojocho of all lev-els. It has been a true honor interviewing you. Thank you, Sensei.

now. You will all know what I would like to happen over the next 40 years when you read my will.

AIO: Well, I hope that we do not read your Last Will and Testament for a very long time, Sensei, but I am sure it will be very enlightening. Many dojocho are still reluctant to embrace the concept that a dojo is a business and that we can maintain the integrity of the art while still running it like a busi-ness. What would you say to them and this reluctance?

Yamada Sensei: Listen, you have to pay rent. A dojo has bills and often employees who need to get paid. Whether you believe the dojo is a business or not, it is. As long as you can keep a good balance between giving back to the students and not be-coming greedy, the dojo will be fine.

AIO: Talking about finding balance, you have had to find a balance with your traveling and dojo. Because your seminars are always very popular and in high demand, your travel schedule allows you to visit dojo all over the world on a monthly ba-sis. Through all of your years of experience, what would you say are some com-mon characteristics that you see in a successful dojo. What would you say is the one factor that makes a dojo successful: the instructor, the loca-tion, the students?

Yamada Sensei: No question. The one factor that makes a dojo successful is the instructor’s person-ality.

AIO: Overall, what are some things you feel do-jocho should be doing better?

Yamada Sensei: Simply, just do what you have to do to be a better teacher and have a better dojo. You should know what you have to do. Just do it.

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one or two free private lessons to supplement

missed classes.

If a speedy return to the mat is impossible, at the

very least you will want to keep the door open for

a future return. Often students will quit Aikido for

various reasons with positive intentions to start

training again. How many times have you seen

an old student at the supermarket who tells

you: “I didn’t quit! I’m just taking a break!” The

student often talks about how he or she will be in

any day now to start practicing again. Unfortu-

nately, without a positive push, these students

will often not take the initiative to return to train-

ing. Why? A common reason is that past stu-

dents may feel embarrassed that they quit or feel

as though they may not be wanted back. Main-

taining contact on a regular basis can help

avoid the possibility of former students experienc-

ing these feelings. Contact may be an occa-

sional email, newsletter, or telephone call to say

hello. During these contacts, take the opportunity

to promote dojo events and specials, as well as

to cross-sell your various programs. Adults will

often have children or nieces and nephews who

may wish to train. Even though little Johnny may

no longer have time to train, his mom or dad may

decide that they would like to train in-

stead! Keeping communication open allows you

to market to the inactive student’s entire family as

opposed to just one person.

Any student who leaves the dojo stating that they

will be returning in the future merits the effort of

continual marketing. By doing this, the student

feels as if they are still a part of the Aikido com-

munity. Students who have a positive connection

with the dojo are more likely to fall into training

again, either personally or through referring fam-

ily and friends. By maintaining a welcoming and

positive connection, you will be surprised how

many of your inactive students will become active

students again. So, do not give up on the stu-

dent who has “taken a break”. Instead, continue

to maintain a harmonious relationship, letting

them know that there is no better time to start

training again than today.

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