At the last session of Seiwajuku, which Inamori created as a workshop for small to middle size business leaders to share Inamori’s business know-how, Inamori mentioned the following under the theme of “The most important thing in our lives”.
“Looking back on my life, I think that I have been well determined. With all my soul and spirit, I have worked hard and devoted myself to achieve each of our goals that we have set out in our business growth. I feel this is just my life and my personality helped me to commit myself to those dedications. That my personality and attitude have always been key drivers for me to secure business success. Therefore, I would like to tell you guys, don’t be afraid to work hard toward your objectives. Don’t be afraid, even if you can’t see anything in front of you. If you decide the direction you should go, all you can do is just work hard toward it. This is the motto that I have followed for my life. That has made me as of today. So, from my own experience, I think the most important thing in life is to think positively and to work hardest no matter how dificult environments you are in.”
I would like to think about Inamori’s message from the episodes of other business leaders, who learned management from Inamori.
Episode 1 Andy
Andy, who completed M&A deal and promoted a tourism community
Inamori reviewed Andy’s presentation and said,
“The phenomena that occur around us, including interpersonal relationships, are actually the representation of our minds. Bob, who threatened you over the M&A deal, had been known as a nasty guy in your local community. However, Andy, before involving Bob into your M&A deal, you had already had such a prejudice. Your mindset invited Bob as an actual buyer of your entity. If you really wanted to sell your company, you could have sold anyone. If you did not like to sell your company to Bob, you could have declined Bob’s offer by just telling him that you were no more interested in selling the entity to Bob. You could have done that. But you actually reacted cautiously assuming Bob as a notorious villain. You created a lot of obstacles in front of you and got stuck with those obstacles set out by yourself. That’s why, as I have always been telling you guys, you have created by yourself all the issues and troubles that come to you.”
→ I think that’s exactly what’s happening to me. I have experienced the trouble that Andy demonstrated in her presentation. Perhaps my subconscious mind has brought me about people who look problematic and somehow vicious. I feel this phenomenon allowed me to stimulate my insights and allowed me to come up with solutions.
I decided to change my mind. I decided not to force myself to do things that don’t seem to follow the universal rules. Then, under the given circumstances, I thought it was important to work hard and to do my best to solve any issues.
Inamori also continued,
“For both your business and life, you should not get lost. I often tell you that you should believe that your life always has wonderful prospects for the future. That’s it. Is a prerequisite for success, and you should not have any doubts for this belief. ”
→ I think it is very important for us to be sensitive enough to find out something unusual or weird in our daily business scenes. If we keep following that wired way, the result should not be the right one.
Under the rules of the universe or fundamental principle governed by the universe, sometimes we encounter the situation where a dominating party is trying to control everything. I have compromised myself under such wired conditions however, instead of compromising ourselves, we should keep our mind clear and ponder to find out the solutions: how we can avoid being involved in such problematic situations.
Episode 2 Matthew, the rebellious and charismatic entrepreneur.
Inamori described Matthew as follows.
“Look at Matthew, guys, obviously he looks quite energetic and he wears a brilliant aura. I could describe him to be very clever and a guy of leadership. However, guys, please keep in mind; that kind of person like Matthew never fails to experience a rolling coaster life with various ups and downs. When he entered a General Japan Co, it had only 20 staff but over the three years, the staff increased to 300 and Matthew increased the sales to 100 mil USD from 1 mil USD. Matthew also got promoted as a board member. He was not happy with the decision made by the top management of General Japan Co, as he decided not to go public. Matthew quitted General Japan and started his own company, Super General Japan Co,. Look, how clever and dynamic Matthew is. Without any exposure to business philosophy, what had driven Matthew was always the egoistic desire. He wanted money, fame, and higher social status. However, now he has become enlightened with altruistic values. I don’t think he has brought full energy to the business administration yet. But now he can motivate people based on the altruistic philosophy. He had never got controlled by anyone nor empowered anybody. Now he has been learning how to follow others and how to support others as well as the top management. I believe his company is for sure to grow rapidly. Guys, please keep in your mind this is the prerequisite of a leader. He should not be motivated with his egoistic desire but with the altruistic philosophy.
→ As Inamori always mentioned, I realized how important our mindset is. Egoism has never secured our long-term business success and prosperity. I found myself to be a fortunate and blessed one as I have found out such an important fundamental value.
Thanks to others’ support, I have been enjoying my business with fulfillment and gratitude towards others. At the end of the year, as Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony has been played in the world, I feel that the actual delight has been brought by the fulfillment to conduct right things as a human being.
Further queries or doubts, please email to ytomizuka@abrilsjp.com
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