Tomoe Gozen: A Journey in Leadership

I’ve had the chance to not only experience that development in myself, but to witness it as the guiding light that I had once looked up to. The commonalities I’ve witnessed as I’ve developed as an instructor and witnessed others grow in that role are to see the core elements that make a good leader develop and blossom over time.

Flexibility.

Sometimes when we get comfortable teaching a certain way, or when we feel that there’s a ‘tried and true’ way to approach a topic, we depend too much on it. Every student learns differently, and while that’s one reason we leverage multiple instructors, it shouldn’t stop us from finding new ways to foster growth. As instructors, it’s just as important to keep pushing the boundaries for ourselves, as that what inspires students to do the same.

Balance.

While we work to ensure students receive well-rounded training, I’ve found that it applies on a whole other level with leadership. Not only may I have a goal in mind for class, but I also need to provide guidance to some who may struggle and be just as ready to offer challenges to those who thrive. It’s a game of prioritization, and one that’s helped be navigate other areas of my life and career that otherwise feel like chaos.

Community.

While martial arts can be viewed as an individual activity, it’s anything but that. Leadership isn’t merely taking charge of a group, but wanting success for every member and inspiring comradery within it. When we see students help one another practice, and when we see friendships spark, it reflects the culture we’ve built within our dojo, and that comes down to the role models within our student body and team of instructors.

I make he effort to foster the elements that make up leadership our Tomoe Gozen Class every first Saturday of the month (save for the snowstorm for this March), it’s something I see from each instructor at Independent Martial Arts. As I’ve touched on in a previous post about the impact of the learning environments where female students thrive and grow, being able to train with peers had a significant impact on my own martial arts journey. While a part of my calling as an instructor is to guide students as they work to achieve their goals, another part is to inspire them to be positive leaders beyond the dojo walls.