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EXPERIENCE
"I love this class and the convenience of working out at same time as my son is great." -- Keesy |
Leadership
Defined and What Makes Royal Court Academy Unique "Always dream and shoot higher than you know you
can do. Don't bother just
to be better than your contemporaries or predecessors. Try to
be better
than yourself." William Faulkner
(1897-1962) American novelist and short-story
writer Nobel
Prize laureate What is Leadership? What are your values in life? How do you define them?
A good friend of mine asked me these questions. He is head of the leadership
department at Northwestern Mutual Insurance Company in Milwaukee, and he is
finishing up his PH.D in Leadership at Marquette University. His department is
responsible for selecting the leaders of that company. His questions really made
me think about the importance of this subject in my life, my business and to
those whom I teach. The advice he gave was incredibly inspiring and very useful
not only for my business but for me personally. For the betterment of all my
relationships, I hired him as my personal leadership coach and mentor. I believe
to be truly effective in your field, and true to your clients, you should never
stop learning or improving yourself. To begin, I needed to find out what values
in life I think are most important and rank them in order of importance. Values
include family, ethics, spirituality etc. With reflection based on my personal
experience and his professional guidance, I began my journey to edify myself, my
staff and our school. My first real Leadership experience came as a counselor at a children
center in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin. I was dealing with kids that had major medical
and emotional problems. Many were abandoned and literally left on someone’s
doorstep when they were babies, or the state took them away because of neglect
and mistreatment. The abuse these kids suffered from family members was
horrific. Our job was to be a positive presence in these lives, keep their
behavior in check, and establish a sense of normalcy with them. We were
forbidden to be big brothers and sisters to these kids. Our association needed
to be kept professional and for good reason, to get attached to these kids would
make our job so much harder. I hated it my first two weeks, I was never exposed
to anything this extreme and sad. I really dreaded going to work and wanted to
quit until I started to notice a change in the kids I was working with. They
would smile more, behave better and even started having fun in there pent up
surroundings. To my surprise I was reaching these kids. This experience helped
me grow into a leader and developed my ability to find the positive in the
negative, persevere and not let emotion tendencies override common
sense. Most of the kids at the center were mildly retarded. This was due to
natural as well as abusive circumstances. For some unknown reason this condition
would give them great strength. I saw some amazing yet scary displays of
strength from these kids. My Martial Art skills came in handy a few times when a
group of kids attacked a fellow student and I had to fend them off. It was an
extreme learning process, dealing with children facing incredible obstacles and
hardships. How do you give hope to a child you know will be institutionalized
for the rest of his life and never have the love of family, friends or spouse?
That experience made me really appreciate what I have in life, but even more it
taught me the basic steps in making positive changes in people and striving to
help them achieve good attitudes. I left that job after one year to work for the
Harley Davidson Motor Company. The experience of working in that facility will
never be forgotten and it helped shape the leadership programs at
HARLEY
– DAVIDSON “Leadership
for Harley is the process of creating and sustaining an environment in which
people work together toward the achievement of common goals – and not because
they have to, but because they want to. Leadership is a process whereby
everybody could make contributions to the success of the company. Leadership is
a process whereby ordinary people could achieve extraordinary things” – Rich
Teerlink, former CEO of Harley - Davidson
In 1991 I became employed at the Harley Davidson Motor Company. During my
orientation the CEO, at that time Rich Teerlink gave us a synopsis of the
company, its goals and how we fit in. I was very impressed with the leadership
style this company exhibited. This was right before Harley skyrocketed into
financial bliss. As a union employee I would hear all kind of complaints like
“Harley’s bikes are poorer quality then the other bikes" or "they are too
expensive”. I was completely intrigued by these conversations and I wondered how
Harley would be able to compete with so-called "cheaper", better made bikes?
Rich Teerlink retired from Harley in the mid-nineties and wrote an incredibly
inspiring book entitled "More than a Motorcycle – The Leadership Journey at
Harley Davidson". He wrote about Harley’s endless pursuit for quality,
commitment, and what it takes to compete and stay successful in one of the
toughest markets. Without a doubt, Harley is a prime example of successful
leadership in an unforgiving market. After 15 years of working for Harley I can
truthfully say that each year with this company is better then the last. Every
year the quality of the bikes get better; customer satisfaction is higher as
well as employee moral. It doesn’t take an employee with years of experience to
truly appreciate the genius leadership plan in action. Harley’s action plan for
leadership, customer care and continuous improvement is another basis for our
own leadership and black belt programs at Royal Court Academy. I call it the
Kick Smart Leadership program. I began teaching Martial Arts at Harley Davidson in 1992. I went through
the union and company at the request of fellow employees who wished to learn
Martial Arts. After both groups accepted my proposal I became the head Martial
Arts Instructor for the Harley Davidson Motor Company in Milwaukee. I taught a
combination of Tae kwon do, Hapkido, Kenpo Karate and Japanese jujitsu. This
wasn’t easy. I found myself working long hours at Harley and then teaching
Martial Arts. I also enrolled in college courses at Carroll College in Waukesha
because Harley Davidson was generous enough to pay for it. I juggled this mix of
long work hours, Martial Arts classes and college for two years. The blessed
experience of working for one of the most successful companies in the world
taught me how important a good leadership program is to any business, as well as
the importance of time management. Today at Harley - Davidson I work in the safety department. I have
developed programs that help people in our machining areas and assembly lines to
counter the harmful effects of repetitive motion, poor posture and unhealthy
movement. The excellence of this job is all the knowledge of Martial Arts, Yoga,
stretching and wellness I have gained is being used to help employees stay safe
at work and home. All my passions in life are paying off in more ways then I
could imagine.
Chung
Do Mu Sool Won “Courage does not always roar.
Sometimes, it is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, I will try
again tomorrow". -Anonymous 1996 was my year of change. By now I had experience in 8 different forms of martial arts. Sometimes I would go to three different martial arts schools a week. I loved the Martial arts but it stated to get stagnate. I was looking for a change. Something more then what the regular Tae kwon do or Karate class had to offer. I didn’t want to keep going to different martial arts schools to get what I wanted. A good friend of mine started teaching me Brazilian Ju-jitsu he learned from Royce Gracie seminars. It was good stuff and I still further my knowledge in it to this day but my sense of traditionalism needed to be fed. At the same time I didn’t want an art that was so stuck in tradition it wouldn’t be practical for today’s needs. During this time I was paging through a copy of Tae Kwon Do times magazine and noticed a very small ad for Royal Court Martial Arts. It intrigued my curiosity for I heard about these mighty ancient Korean warriors from my Korean Tae Kwon Do instructors. So I sent for information, in fact I sent out 20 applications all over the county to various martial art schools with styles that looked appealing. Being the Head Martial Arts Instructor for Harley – Davidson has its
appeal. Most replies were instructors who were teaching their new style of
combat arts or martial science. Most were nothing more then a concoction of
stuff they put together over the years, which in fairness can be good but also
can be very bad. With my experience, I could do the same if I wanted. I wasn’t
looking for the latest fad or trend. I was looking for something that would
surprise me. Master I developed a good joint locking knowledge from all the Hapkido and
Jujitsu classes over the years but this art of Chung Do Mu Sool Won is superior.
This art incorporated trapping, re-directions and pressure points into their
joint locking skills. The secret of Chung do’s Joint locking skills is in its
vintage. They practice the rare and rarely seen art of Chi Na. Chi Na is the
grandfather art to all the joint locking arts. Most of my old training was
either thrown out or improved upon. The same would be said for my weapons
training, stretching, chokes, kicking, health breathing and throws. This art was
so complete it even had grappling skills. Grandmaster
Hwang is the head of the Noble Hwang family and Head of the world Chung Do Mu
Sool Won organization. His family traces their ancestry back 3,000 years to the
Royal courts of China and later to the ancient Royal Court of Korea. He was a
colonel in the Korean Rock Army (Graduated first in his class), did two tours of
Korea and Vietnam. His family risked everything too secretly preserved their art
through the Japanese occupation in the 1940’s when all forms of Korean martial
arts were banned on punishment of death. Almost all Traditional Korean arts
became extinct at this time. In the early 1970’s Grandmaster
Hwang brought his family to America to give his children a better education.
Master Augsburger would meet and eventually marry his daughter. But, it would
take many years for Grandmaster Hwang to teach his art to anyone. He felt
Americans didn’t have the patience to learn this art properly. It’s the classic
karate kid tale. Today the home for this Art is in the United States and not Korea. With Master Augsburger persistence this very rare art again has hope. I can honestly say this is the rarest Martial art I know. And what an Honor it is to be part of a tradition like this. The Hwang family faced incredible odds and persecution for preserving this art in their native land. Also, for the Humble graciousness of Master Augsburger to empty himself from his former teaching and take the torch passed to him and eventually to his son Daniel. Like Master Augsburger I had to empty myself from most of my old training and practically start over. This was one of the hardest things I have ever done and one of the most humbling. I have
incorporated Chung Do Mu Sool Won skills in Royal Courts S.W.A.T. (Special
Winning Attitude Team) Royal Lions leadership team. They love the forms and are
honored to be the few in the world learning these rare
forms. Going
through this experience was some of the best Leadership training ever. I learned
incredible humbleness, and most of all I learned to stick to something and not
quit no matter how frustrating things can get. Perseverance and Persistence is
key trait to any leader or leadership program. For me it would be impossible to
define leadership without these skills. This quote from someone long ago rings
so true - “Character
cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and
suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success
achieved”. Lastly, is the definition of Chung Do Mu Sool Won itself? The name is a mouthful, and people often ask me what does it mean? The English translation is True way (right way of doing) Martial arts. How perfect and true that is.
“If you hear a
voice within you say ‘you cannot paint’, then by all means
paint and that
voice will be silenced”. In 2002 I opened the Harley Davidson will always strive
to improve itself yet it won’t lose its value system nor forget the people who
were with them during the lean years. Chung Do always refines it’s self because
it’s not stuck in tradition, yet it doesn’t sell out its traditional value
system to become something more trendy. Royal Court will always strive to
improve though the value system of its mentors, the humble experience of its
leaders and the perseverance and continuous improvement we demand from each
other. How is Leadership defined and what
does it mean to Royal court Academy? Our definition in simple; Leadership is
experience, Leadership is humbling yourself to continually learn and improve,
Leadership is rising above what others may think of you, Leadership is
understanding and improving the lives of those you touch and Leadership is
having the courage and confidence to make your own
path”. Faith is the most important value to
me. Faith to me runs the engine of Leadership. You need faith in yourself and
you need it in something higher for a supreme positive example to live by and to
keep a humble attitude. Some have it in Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism or other
religions. I have been involved and studied many religions and have respect for
their teaching, but eventually my path lead to faith in Jesus Christ. After
years of mingling in other religions and philosophies, only he could fill the
void within me. I just like the “Grace” approach. I’m saved through grace not
works. There is nothing I can do to work my way to him. It’s all through humble
acceptance. I don’t need to meditate for hours under waterfalls, I don’t need to
shave my head or do chants. I make a choice and believe it. With respect to
marrying my wife and learning Chung Do Mu Sool Won this, by far was the best
choice I ever made. “First
clean the inside of the cup, then the outside will be clean
also.” Jeff C.
Growel |
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