[:en]Sanguine Leadership[:ja]楽観的リーダーシップ[:]

virus

[:en]The COVID-19 panic that has enveloped Japan and other countries in the world is primarily driven by sensationalism in media reporting giving people around the world a skewed perception of a personal health risk, which in Japan and the U.S. alike, is in reality exceedingly remote. Yet the real health risk is largely illusory. My wife told me of a news report of a passenger on a Tokyo commuter train who hit the emergency stop button. When railway staff came to investigate, the passenger told them there was a guy in the carriage without a surgical mask who was coughing.

[:en]The Good Permanent Side-Effects[:ja]良い副作用は一時的なもので終わらせないこと[:]

family in park

[:en]There are side-effects to Coronavirus. I suspect some of them will be permanent, and this is not a bad thing. As my wife and I were walking around our neighborhood on Thursday afternoon, we noticed a lot of husbands and wives out walking, shopping, spending time cafes and restaurants, and enjoying themselves on a weekday when you would not have normally seen working-age people at leisure. As many companies in Japan are encouraging people to work from home, this is likely what a telecommuting lifestyle looks like—a stark contrast to the salaryman lifestyle with its crushing commutes into the city and late night drinking with colleagues and customers.

[:en]Make Your Own Era[:ja]自分自身の時代を築くこと[:]

Make your own era

[:en]The passing of an era in a company is often so subtle as to create an illusion of inertia, like the pushback from the jetway of a passenger jet that is only discernible by looking out the window but otherwise goes unfelt. Such changes in era are only remarked when someone asks, “Were we always like this?”

[:en]Labor Shortage? No Such Thing! [:ja]労働力不足など存在しない[:]

Labor Shortage? No Such Thing!

[:en]There is no such thing as a labor shortage. There are more excellent people out there right now than you can possibly hire, and you can have them—if you do things right! Last week, I discussed what to let go in order to grow your business in the midst of a labor shortage. This week, as promised, I discuss what to take on. Below are my top four. 

[:en]No Such Thing as a Labor Shortage[:ja]人手不足と「手放す」ことについて[:]

No Such Thing as a Labor Shortage

[:en]There is no such thing as a labor shortage. In reality, there are more excellent people in Japan than you could possibly hire. You can have them, if you do things right. The first step in growing a business, even in a labor shortage, is deciding what to cut. If you find that your business is dealing with the current labor shortage by taking more on and clinging to what you have, then heed my advice. If you want to grow, you must first let go. Let go of what, you ask? Read on, and I explain the top four.

推定ではなく、価値を提案すること

JR新幹線の一等席はグリーン車と呼ばれています。私はフランスのTGVやアムトラックのアセラ・エクスプレスといった超特急列車にも乗った事がありますが、そのどれと比べても、グリーン車が一番乗り心地が良いと思います。JRは、いくつかの路線において、さらにその上を行く「グランクラス」という特別座席まで提供しています。しかし、このグランクラスの存在はほとんど知られていません。JRが故意に秘密にしているわけではないと思いますが、JRの社員を見ていると、秘密にしようとしているのではないかと考えさせられてしまいます。

jaJapanese