I’ve been keeping a secret. Well actually, more like 9.
That’s how many secrets I’m sharing with you in my new book. At the start of 2025, I sat down to write a book about manifesting but quickly realized that so many people, including myself at times, felt overwhelmed by the state of the world. And rightfully so. There was a LOT of chaos, change and uncertainty. So, I decided to start there. And answer the question:
How can I move forward toward the life of my dreams when it feels like the world is on fire?
That leads us to now. It’s official.
My new book, Secrets of the Sensei: Emotional Self-Defense for Protecting Your Peace and Reclaiming Your Power, will be published by Tarcher, an imprint of Penguin Random House, on February 23, 2027.
And it’s available for preorder.
This book brings together so much of what I’ve spent the past 25 years studying, practicing, coaching and teaching: martial arts, resilience, high performance, mindset, energy management, boundaries, emotional self-defense and the ancient wisdom that has helped me navigate some of the hardest moments of my life.
Why I Wrote Secrets of the Sensei
I started martial arts when I was 24 years old. At the time, I thought I was learning how to defend myself physically and honestly, just get a great workout. And I was. I learned how to strike. How to kick. How to get out of grabs and holds. How to fall down without getting hurt and, more importantly, how to get back up. And I sweated bucketloads, grew some muscles and increased my stamina, big time.
But somewhere along the way, I realized that the most powerful lessons I was learning had very little to do with fighting. Martial arts was teaching me how to stay grounded under pressure. How to become more aware and how to manage my energy.
How to work with fear instead of letting it control me. How to focus when there was chaos around me. And later, started taking those lessons out of the dojo and applying them to my life. Lessons like how to protect my time, energy and wellbeing. How to get knocked off balance and find my center again. And eventually, how to trust myself. Those lessons became even more important outside the dojo than they were inside it.
Over the years, I began bringing them into my work as a high-performance coach and keynote speaker, helping leaders and teams build resilience, prevent burnout, strengthen their boundaries and perform at a high level without sacrificing themselves in the process. Eventually, I realized something:
The world could use a lot more Big Sensei Energy.
What Is Big Sensei Energy?
To me, Big Sensei Energy isn’t about being the toughest person in the room. It’s about becoming more steady in the midst of chaos and uncertainty. The world doesn’t need more aggression right now. It needs steady leaders. Leaders who are less reactive and more responsive. Less frozen by fear and more ready to move. Less consumed by self-doubt and more able to trust yourself.
It’s knowing that you may not be able to control what happens around you, but you can train for how you meet it. And right now, that feels more important than ever.
We’re living and working in a world of constant stimulation, uncertainty, pressure and change. High performers are being asked to move faster, adapt constantly, lead through ambiguity and somehow stay energized through all of it.
More grinding isn’t possible when so much of the workforce is already burned out. In fact, in this Forbes article, a study claims that over 66% of the U.S. workforce reported burnout in 2025.
We don’t need more game rooms or pizza. We need better tools.
Some of those tools have been around for hundreds, even thousands, of years.
Ancient Martial Arts Wisdom for Modern High Performance
One of the central ideas behind Secrets of the Sensei is that ancient wisdom still has a place in modern life and leadership. In fact, with the rapid onset of AI adoption, we need it now more than ever. Martial artists train for uncertainty. We practice awareness before a threat appears. We learn to regulate ourselves under pressure. We conserve energy rather than waste it. We develop focus through repetition. We learn when to move forward and when not to engage at all.
Those principles translate beautifully to the modern workplace and to life.
In Secrets of the Sensei, I take lessons from the dojo and turn them into practical tools for building resilience, protecting your energy and creating sustainable high performance.
You’ll learn how to:
- Protect your time, energy and wellbeing with stronger boundaries.
- Work with difficult emotions instead of being controlled by them.
- Quiet the noise so you can make clearer, more confident decisions.
- Build practices that strengthen your body, mind and spirit.
- Become more resilient when life inevitably knocks you off balance.
- Move toward the future you want to create with more intention, courage and trust in yourself.
Throughout the book, I share stories from my own life, lessons from martial arts, and practices I’ve developed through decades of coaching and speaking.
And of course, I’ll introduce you to Big Sensei Energy and how to bring more of it into your own life.
The goal isn’t to turn you into a martial artist. It’s to help you start thinking and moving through your life like one, which is accessible to everyone.
From the Dojo to the Boardroom
For more than two decades, I’ve had the privilege of teaching these ideas in many different forms. I’ve taught physical self-defense. I’ve coached high-performing executives and professionals. I’ve spoken on stages around the world about resilience, burnout prevention, energy management, confidence and leadership.
I’ve worked with organizations and teams navigating tremendous pressure and change. And through all of it, I kept returning to the same realization:
The lessons I learned in the dojo belong far beyond the dojo.
That became the seed for Secrets of the Sensei.
This book is my way of bringing those lessons together and sharing them with anyone who wants to feel more grounded, courageous and powerful in their own life.
Secrets of the Sensei
Is Available for Preorder Now
Secrets of the Sensei: Emotional Self-Defense for Protecting Your Peace and Reclaiming Your Power will be published by Tarcher/Penguin Random House on February 23, 2027.
And you can preorder your copy now at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Booksellers, Penguin Random House, Books A Million, Walmart, Target or at your favorite local bookstore.
Preorders are incredibly important for a new book. They help publishers, booksellers and the larger book world see that there is demand before publication day arrives. Most importantly to me, every preorder means these ideas have a chance to reach another person who may need them.
So if you’ve ever learned something from me, trained with me, heard me speak, listened to my podcast, read The Art of Badassery, or simply believe that the world could use a little more calm, courage and Big Sensei Energy right now, I’d be incredibly grateful for your support.
PREORDER SECRETS OF THE SENSEI
Thank you for being part of this next chapter.
We can’t control the chaos around us. But we can train for how we meet it.
See you in the dojo. 🥋
Jennifer Cassetta
Keynote Speaker | Author | High-Performance Coach | Third-Degree Black Belt
Looking for a Women’s Leadership Keynote Speaker in California?
Jennifer Cassetta is a California-based keynote speaker, women’s leadership speaker, third-degree black belt, executive coach and author of The Art of Badassery and Secrets of the Sensei.
Her interactive leadership keynotes combine martial arts wisdom with modern strategies for resilience, confidence, wellbeing and high performance. Jennifer speaks at women’s leadership conferences, corporate events, association conferences and professional development events throughout California and across the United States.
Popular keynote topics include women’s leadership, Black Belt Leadership, resilience, burnout prevention, confidence, high performance, boundaries, energy management and leading through change.
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For inquiries:
Jennifer Cassetta
Website: jennifercassetta.com
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@jenncassetta