A shadowy figure with deadly skills will be lurking around the Memorial Union this Saturday … and he means business.
Geordie Aitken — who claims to be a “world-renowned” ninja — is a consultant with the family-run, business counseling firm called Aitken Leadership Group. Aitken will be bringing his unique brand of business mentoring to the ASU community on Saturday to wrap up the celebration of Global Entrepreneurship Week, which runs from Monday to Friday.
Aitken and his father, David, offer several unique forms of counseling, and will offer one class they call their Ninja Training Camp on Saturday, where participants will play role playing games to teach them several skills related to ninjutsu training.
ASU will host 18 events to celebrate the week, which was started in the United Kingdom in 2004 as a way to aid and unite people interested in starting businesses across the world, according to the event’s website.
Though he said he must maintain a level of secrecy toward the actual content of his ninja teachings, Aitken will focus on helping business-minded people strengthen all aspects of their lives.
“The ninja is the integrated person,” Aitken said. “Spirit, mind, body, emotions all operating in a harmonious way.”
Aitken said that his camp uses the ninja as a metaphor for human potential.
“The ninja represents a depth of capacity to engage in life with courage and with resolve,” Aitken said.
Though participants will not take part in the traditional physical training the ninjas may be exposed to — which Aitken jokingly portrayed as fire pits and obstacle courses — he said that his training helps apply lessons of stealth that may be associated with the ninja toward becoming a completely well-rounded person.
One of the tactics used for this aspect of the training is Sabaki, a process that Aitken explains as balancing seriousness with humor.
“We’re going to study stuff that’s really deadly serious, but, it’s also going to be a lot of fun,” Aitken said. “People are going to laugh.”
In addition to Aitken, organizations at ASU are welcoming several other speakers and presentations geared toward succeeding in entrepreneurship throughout the week.
Tyler Metcalf, president of Entrepreneurs@ASU, a student-run club that is hosting Aitken and several other events this week, said the group tries to host events and speakers that break the traditional mold.
“It makes us out of the box,” Metcalf said. “That’s what’s great about entrepreneurship; it’s unique and out of the box.”
Along with speakers, ASU is also hosting events where student ideas are taking center stage. There will also be several events related to ASU’s Innovation Challenge, a competition where students can win up to $10,000 to help fund their business ideas.
The deadline to apply for the challenge is Friday, and the contest organizers will decide winners in February.
This week, students will be able to go through writing workshops and information sessions to help students prepare the best idea to present to the judges for the contest.
Charlie Lewis, director of Venture Catalyst — one of the many ASU programs that assist student entrepreneurs — said that multiple groups offering events represent the collaborative nature that goes into entrepreneurship at ASU.
“This is a very joint effort and collaboration among the different student entrepreneurial programs at the University,” Lewis said. “There’s a spirit of entrepreneurship that has taken on a life of its own.”
Reach the reporter at Michael.reppenhagen@asu.edu
