We recently connected with Jennifer Waters and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Jennifer, thanks for joining us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?
At 7 Figure Dojo, our mission is to help service-driven businesses grow sustainably—without losing the heart of why they started in the first place. We specialize in helping founders who want to make an impact through what they offer: whether that’s martial arts, tutoring, fitness, or any other business built on real relationships and real results.
This mission is personal for me because I grew up in a family-owned martial arts school. My father started it in 1982, and I saw firsthand how much impact a small business can have on a community. But I also saw how hard it was to balance passion with profitability. So many service-based business owners pour their heart into their students or clients—but they struggle with systems, sales, or scaling. That’s where we come in.
What drives us is helping purpose-driven founders turn their mission into momentum. We don’t just focus on revenue—we focus on freedom, fulfillment, and the ripple effect that happens when a good business becomes a great one. Because when these types of businesses grow, communities get stronger. People get better care, deeper relationships, and real transformation. And that’s why our mission matters—it’s not just about growth, it’s about the kind of growth that leaves a legacy.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I’m Jennifer Waters, founder of 7 Figure Dojo, and my journey started long before I ever thought of myself as a business coach or agency owner. I grew up in a family-run martial arts school—Seigler’s Karate Center—founded by my father in 1982. I’m a 6th degree black belt, former kickboxing champion and MMA fighter, and I’ve trained in martial arts my whole life. But what I really fell in love with over the years was building something—taking a small, community-driven business and turning it into a powerful vehicle for transformation.
That’s what led to the creation of 7 Figure Dojo: a strategic growth agency for service-based businesses that want to scale without losing their soul. We work with martial arts schools, tutoring centers, gyms, and other relationship-first businesses that exist to make an impact. We help them grow by generating more leads, converting those leads into clients or students, and building systems that allow them to scale sustainably—without burning out or losing what makes them special.
We offer a full range of services: done-for-you ads, AI-powered follow-up tools, high-converting websites, and business coaching. But more than that, we’re partners in growth. Most of our clients come to us stuck—either they’ve hit a ceiling in growth, or they’re wearing too many hats, or they’re just tired of doing it all alone. We step in with proven systems, a high-accountability coaching structure, and a team that genuinely cares about their success.
What sets us apart is that we don’t just teach theory—we’ve lived it. I scaled my own school to seven figures while juggling a family and deeply invested in the day-to-day operations. I’ve experienced the challenges of trying to grow something meaningful without sacrificing your values or your vision. Our strategies aren’t just built in spreadsheets—they’re tested in the trenches. And we’re not some faceless agency; we build real relationships with our clients. Many of them say we feel more like a business partner than a vendor.
What I’m most proud of is seeing the ripple effect. When our clients grow, they hire staff, create jobs, serve more people, and gain the freedom to live more present, purpose-filled lives. That’s the legacy I want to build—helping others build theirs.
If you’re a founder who wants to scale your business without selling out your values… if you believe in service, impact, and building something that actually matters… that’s who we’re here for. We’ll help you grow with strategy, structure, and support every step of the way.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
One of the most defining moments of resilience in my journey came during the years I was scaling our flagship martial arts school to seven figures. On the surface, everything looked like it was going well—we had consistent student growth, a strong presence in the community, and real momentum. But behind the scenes, I was carrying a tremendous weight.
At the time, I was juggling every major role in the business—teaching classes, managing staff, handling finances, running marketing, taking sales calls, and still trying to carve out time to think strategically about how to grow. I was married, preparing for our first adoption, and trying to build a business that wouldn’t collapse if I stepped away for even a moment. There were no shortcuts. We didn’t have the tools and automation we use now—I had to build everything from scratch.
I vividly remember nights where I’d finish teaching class, put on a hoodie, and head straight into the office to keep working—creating class curriculum, juggling finances, or coming up with new marketing campaigns. I was exhausted, but fueled by the belief that we were building something bigger than just a business.
Resilience, for me, wasn’t about pretending I had it all together—it was about staying committed to the vision when things felt uncertain. It was choosing not to quit when it would’ve been easier to stay comfortable. And it was about learning to lead in a way that didn’t just rely on hustle, but on systems, team, and structure—so I could eventually build something that didn’t require me to do it all.
That experience shaped everything I do now at 7 Figure Dojo. I know what it’s like to feel overwhelmed, stretched thin, and still want to serve people at a high level. That’s why we exist—to help other service-based business owners build with resilience from day one, so they can grow without burning out and scale without losing what makes them special.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
One of the biggest pivots in my life came when I realized that growing our martial arts school to seven figures wasn’t the finish line—it was the beginning of something much bigger.
I had dedicated years to building Seigler’s Karate Center alongside my family. We poured everything into it: teaching, community, leadership, marketing—you name it. And when we finally hit the milestone of becoming a seven-figure school, it was a huge achievement. But almost immediately, I started getting messages from other school owners asking, “How did you do it?” “Can you help me?”
At first, I just answered questions and gave advice casually. But as more people kept reaching out, I realized something: the same skills I used to grow our school could help other businesses do the same. That’s when the real pivot happened. I shifted from being just a martial arts school owner to becoming a coach, mentor, and eventually the founder of a full-service agency.
Leaving the comfort of running one successful business to build something entirely new—something that could serve hundreds of business owners—was scary. I had no roadmap, and I was building an entirely different kind of company. But I believed in the mission. I knew there were so many service-based entrepreneurs out there—people with passion and talent—who just needed the right systems and support to thrive. And I felt called to be the one to help them.
That pivot is what led to the birth of 7 Figure Dojo. It started with martial arts school owners but has since expanded to serve all kinds of impact-driven businesses—tutoring centers, gyms, creative academies, and more. We’ve now built a company that helps entrepreneurs grow with strategy, structure, and support—so they can scale without burning out or compromising what they believe in.
It was never the plan to build an international coaching agency. But that’s the beauty of a true pivot—you step into something unfamiliar, trusting that what you’ve built before is preparing you for what’s next.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.7figuredojo.com
- Instagram: thejenniferwaters
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jennifer.waters.92
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jen-waters-a62294114/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@JenniferWaters
