Author: Satoru Hirose

 

Come out of ignorance.
無知から抜け出そう。

 

Discrimination and stupidity come from the same root: ignorance.

I used to work for a company that is sales-oriented. Non-sales employees were discriminated. Lower pay, less recognition, and less chance for promotion. My job responsibility at the company was for accounting and finance. As one of non-sales employees, I felt I was always treated unfairly. Quite often, I actually was. I quit.

A few years later, I got a job of a business development manager. It was not a sales job, but one of the profit centers of the company. The problem is, the company was finance-oriented. I was regarded as a nuisance by the financial department. I was okay as I got used to be treated unfairly. I left the company by other reasons.

In Japan, there is discrimination in workplace. Job type. Age. Gender. Academic background. Nationality. Disability. People who discriminate against others don’t recognize the opportunities they are missing. They lack a holistic view. That’s why many Japanese companies lose momentum.

When we feel we are right, ask ourselves: From other people’s point of view, what am I missing? It helps us get out of the trap of ignorance.

 

 

Get what you need, even if it’s not fun.
必要なものを手に入れよう。たとえ楽しくなくても。

 

People say, “English is fun”. But this was never the case for me.

When I was a kid, I didn’t like studying English. But I did it anyway and got a perfect score on an exam. Because I had to. When I went to the United States, learning English was a real pain in the neck for me. But I worked on it and became good enough to communicate. Because I had to.

When we learn a new skill, the skill itself does not necessarily have to be fun. Public speaking. Chopping something with a knife. Adobe Photoshop. Plumbing.

We learn a skill when we need to use it and get the outcome we want. And we successfully acquire a skill if we want it so badly and keep learning no matter what happens. It doesn’t matter if it’s fun or not.

 

 

Your calling doesn’t always call you.
あなたの使命があなたを呼ぶとは限らない。

 

If someone says “this is how to find your calling” without listening to you, the person is lying. Or they just talk about their way to find their calling. Most likely, it’s different from yours. And there’s no quick fix.

Face your true self. Or find someone who helps you do so. Dig deeply into yourself. When you think is enough, delve more deeply into.

Quite often, no matter how hard we work on, our true self refuses to be found. It might take a lifetime. But that’s okay. This is our life. No need to compare it with others.

 

 

Embrace changes in relationships.
人間関係の変化を受け入れよう。

 

Either intentionally or unintentionally, people keep changing. People come and go. So do you. That’s the law of the universe.

Today someone might unfriend you on Facebook. Or ignore your post on their timeline. Or unfollow you on Twitter. Or delete your contact information from their address book.

But that’s okay. You don’t need to be offended. You would see them again when they really matter to you. Or you really matter to them. Just keep moving forward.

 

 

Avoid brainwashers.
洗脳を仕掛けるものを避けよう。

 

I spent more than 50k dollars for self-development programs. The majority of them are a con. That’s what I learned.

There are millions of people and companies that try to brainwash us in this world. They say, use this. Eat this. Read this. Believe this. Join a community. Get rich quick. And they try to get paid.

The problem is, while some of them do this with good intensions, the others don’t. We need to distinguish saviors from fakers.

This takes practice. Being deceived is one of the most effective ways to learn how fakers are. But don’t spend too much money. Start small.

Every day, consider every single expenditure as an experiment. Check the cost and the benefit. Be mindful of the outcome of the spending. That tells you the truth.