Conduct the great good, : Philosophy “ Show your true feelings”

This time, Inamori* spoke about the above motto in Kyocera philosophy.

What Inamori said is quoted with “”.

“ In some large companies, you can get promoted if you are good at getting along with others, flatter them, and keep things peaceful and safe by saying nice things in pretense. However, in small and medium-sized companies, every day is a hard day, so there is no way that a job can be done with pretense. If you want to grow your company in that environment, you must always be open and even clash with each other’s honest opinions. However, I don’t think this is easy to do…..

For example, when I say that the foundation of the Kyocera philosophy is “Conduct the right things as a human being, and it is important to stick to that,” everyone agrees. However, that doesn’t mean they can always be open to others. They are still considerate of others and hesitate to say what they think, fearing that it might cause trouble. ”

Our company is also a “small and medium-sized enterprise,” so every day is a battlefield. To pursue the mission and vision of our company; to seek the material and mental fulfillment of all employees, we, top leaders, must have courage and determination by keeping the following in mind, and confront things honestly.

Let me explain them one by one.

1. Recognize your true feelings

“ Among the mid-career recruits, were people who had graduated from so-called top universities, and some who had worked for central government agencies and blue-chip companies. It is these people who are clad in a lot of unnecessary stereotypes, but we, Kyocera leaders are going to take off their preconceptions. It’s like stripping away a coat, jacket, and even underwear that you’re wearing in the cold winter, although this is a very vulgar analogy.

That elite guy would desperately resist and won’t let go of their clothes, that is, their stereotypes or preconceptions. But we still strip away all the stereotypes that they’ve clad in. Once you’ve stripped away all your pretensions, you’ll realize how shabby you really are. People clad themselves in various pretensions, such as their educational background and work career, to somehow look good, but when you strip away all of that, you’ll realize how shabby you really are. “

(Quoted from the Inamori Digital Library.)

→ I use a method called UMI to remove mental blocks. This method allows you to become aware of your true feelings and thoughts. People who have the fixed mindset that Inamori talks about, usually have deep inside them a huge inferiority complex (they can’t be inferior to others, they have to be cleverer than others), great anxiety and fear (fear of losing what they achieved), and an attachment to the absolute values such as power (authority or money, which drives them to be egoistic). By becoming aware of this, you can face your true self and your true feelings. It will take time, but I think it is important to at least get your staff to face in that direction.

2. Courage to be bashed

” Such behavior will create discord within the company. Also, as the saying goes, ‘ A clever man often fails because of overconfidence in his cleverness’, overconfidence in one’s own abilities and running wild without cooperating with those around one will eventually cause a major mistake, ruin oneself, and cause great damage to the company. So in Kyocera, no matter how indispensable a person is and how talented a person is, if there is a problem with their personality, I have ruthlessly corrected that person’s deficit. ”

(Quoted from the Inamori Digital Library.)

→ Nowadays, if you say something for one person even slightly extreme on social media, in a video, or on the internet, it would immediately “blow up”. Even so, you should be prepared to be criticized, ignored and hated by your staff. If things go wrong, someone may attempt a coup in your company. Even if you face those risks, it is important to speak your true feelings and tell the truth.

3. Be prepared to do the greatest good  (eg. to be harsh to your child)

“ ’You’re trying to run over here because you’re scared of the bullets the enemy is shooting. You can run over here, but I’ll bring a machine gun and shoot you in the back. You’ll die anyway if you run over here, so there is no other way for you but go forward. Go ahead and die.’ I said to my team member those harsh words, but unless you push yourself that hard, you can’t either overcome difficult situations or make any breakthrough. It’s only when you’re faced with a cliff with no way out that you can be serious. ”

(Quoted from the Inamori Digital Library.)

→ People may not wake up until they’ve really suffered. If you want your staff to be better people, I think it’s necessary to make them experience the hellish situation that Inamori mentioned here and push them over the valley. I think the top management needs to be prepared to say, “I don’t care you hate me for the rest of my life.”

* Mr. Kazuo Inamori, the founder of Kyocera, KDDI (one of the top tele communication companies in Japan) and the top of revitalization project of JAL. As a well-known Japanese entrepreneur, he has been sharing his experiences and management know-how with managements of small to middle companies in Japan.

Further queries or doubts, please email to ytomizuka@abrilsjp.com

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