Dear Students, Teachers and Friends,


On November 15th we will be having our annual chop and shop. This is
where we bring the students in and teach them the proper way to
break a board with their bare hands. We will also have a special set
up for those wishing to order any martial arts items so they can get
here before Christmas. Special discounts will be given on that day
because we will get a discount when we order in volume. The chop and
shop will be held at the north dojo located at 1581 York Road, one
block south of Woodman Road, just west of Academy Blvd. The event
will run between 9:00 and 10:00. Everyone will be allowed to break 1
board, but there will be a fee if they want to break multiple
boards.

The Pikes Peak Championships will be held on November 22nd at
Coronado High School. See you Sensei for a registration form. This
is open to all our students.

Quotes of the Week

PETER DRUCKER:
The leaders who work most effectively, it seems to me, never
say "I." And that's not because they have trained themselves not to
say "I." They don't think "I." They think "we"; they think "team."
They understand their job to be to make the team function. They
accept responsibility and don't sidestep it, but "we" gets the
credit…. This is what creates trust, what enables you to get the
task done.

SANDRA DAY O'CONNOR:
We don't accomplish anything in this world alone ... and whatever
happens is the result of the whole tapestry of one's life and all
the weavings of individual threads from one to another that creates
something.




Soujoukouka – Teamwork & Synergy

I recently re-read Steven Covey's book on the 7 Habits of
Effective Leadership while at about the same time was working on
this particular section of the leadership program. The concept of
Soujoukouka basically translates as a unification of purpose for
joint benefit or I guess in other words … teamwork. I remember
seeing that the word team is better defined as Together Everyone
Achieves More and I think that is very true. Those individuals that
see themselves as a member of a team working for the joint good do
indeed achieve more.
In Steven's book he talks about the process of going from
dependency to becoming independent – where you feel comfortable
doing it on your own. But the process does not stop there but if
nurtured continues to a state called interdependence where
independent people come together because they know that by working
as a team they indeed can be more productive.
The staff at the American Black Belt Academy indeed strives
to uphold a high level of teamwork. Each member has a duty and
interacts with all other members to insure that we are consistent
with our mission plan and core values. In fact each student finds
themself soon becoming a Senpai and begins adapting to this role by
helping the beginning students as they begin to explore the world of
martial arts training. Soon they find themselves as assistant
instructors, instructors or excelling as a leader in some other area
of their life.
On a personal note, I recently witnessed a great example of
teamwork within our organization. Just a few months ago I was faced
with a serious medical problem that required immediate attention.
Even though I have a tendency to work long hours our team members
took over all my responsibilities and the organization ran just
great without me being there. This allowed me to tackle my problems
and even allowed me time to help with strategic planning for the
organization while taking an absence from day to day business.
The real key to teamwork is to have a vision of where you
truly want to be somewhere down the road and then make clearly
defined and written goals on how you want to get there. Then you
need to identify what information and who you need on your team to
help you reach your goals. Once this team has been identified, each
team member will decide what they bring to the table and how best
they can aid to the benefit of the whole team. Pick your teams,
coaches and mentors wisely because they are the shortest path
towards black belt excellence.

Respectfully,

Terry Bryan