07/07/2026
On June 25th, the International Business Circle of Denver held an Aikido Executive seminar at One Dojo. The seminar report link is attached. It was a great session with the executives and for us.
Let us quote a write-up by Maggie Fouquet, who is the President and CEO of the International Business Circle, on her LinkedIn post.
"A few days ago, I watched something happen that I don't think any of us expected.
Twenty global executives — CEOs, founders, investors, board members, from twelve countries — took off their shoes, stepped onto a martial arts mat, and let a 7th Dan Aikido master show them what leadership actually feels like in the body.
I've been running IBCircle for 16 years. I've hosted hundreds of events. And A Day at the Dojo with Kei Izawa at One Dojo in Boulder was unlike anything I've created before.
The insight that has stayed with me most: "Fluidity beats force. The strongest position is not the most rigid — it is the most adaptable."
How many of us are exhausting our organizations by forcing outcomes that a little more alignment — and a lot less collision — would achieve far more elegantly?
Kei Izawa has spent 57 years at the intersection of Aikido and global business — as a 7th Dan master, as former Chairman of the International Aikido Federation, and as a senior executive at GM/Opel. He's distilled it all into his new book: 'The Victory Paradox'. And last Wednesday, he brought it alive in a room full of internationally active business leaders who will not forget what they felt on that mat.
We were also honored to welcome Sanae Kanno, the Japanese Consul for PR and Public Affairs from the Consulate General of Japan in Denver — whose presence said something important about the cultural and diplomatic weight of what Kei has built.
Thank you to Kei Izawa, to Abel Villacorta and the beautiful One Dojo community, and to Nia Harianto for the wonderful Aikido-inspired catering.
And thank you to every executive who showed up, took off their shoes, and stepped onto the mat. You were braver than you knew — and I think you left knowing something about leadership that you can't un-feel.
The IBCircle Event Report is available at the link below. And if you missed this one — watch this space. IBCircle's next Think Tank events are August 25, September 23 and October 22, 2026."
Link to Event Report: https://lnkd.in/guwYJ-v4
https://www.linkedin.com/.../urn:li:activity.../
