The Way of the Samurai meets Entrepreneurialism
Entrepeneurialism and the lifestyle successful entrepreneurs lead are driven by a single concentration; Striving to make real, their desire to implement a vision and ultimately, for big or small, change the world. There is what I find to be, an interesting parallel in this goal to the single minded focus of the Samurai. Although clearly dated and not always applicable, many interesting lessons can be derived from the collection of Japanese samurai wisdom compiled by Yamamoto Tsunemoto’s “Hagakure”. Below are what I felt to be key take-aways, relevant to entrepreneurs, from just the first Chapter.
Heads up, this is a very long post. It is however structured such that you don’t have to read to the end to find value in it.
The Way of the Samurai is found in death. When it comes to either/or, there is only the quick choice of death. It is not particularly difficult. Be determined and advance. To say that dying without reaching one’s aim is to die a dog’s death is the frivolous way of sophisticates. When pressed with the choice of life or death, it is not necessary to gain one’s aim…To die without gaining one’s aim is a dog’s death and fanaticism. But there is no shame in this. This is the substance of the Way of the Samurai. If by setting one’s heart right every morning and evening, one is able to live as though his body were already dead, he pains freedom in the Way. His whole life will be without blame, and he will succeed in his calling.
The true entrepreneur commits from the bottom of their heart, and as a result, their souls swell with the passion of their vision. Commit to your vision freely and resign to accept failure and you will free yourself from the fear of failure. Commit, and even if you fail, you will have not failed your soul.
Because we do most things relying only on our own sagacity we become self-interested, turn our backs on reason, and things do not turn out well. As seen by other people this is sordid, weak, narrow and inefficient. When one is not capable of true intelligence, it is good to consult with someone of good sense. An advisor will fulfill the Way when he makes a decision by selfless and frank intelligence because he is not personally involved. This way of doing things will certainly be seen by others as being strongly rooted. It is, for example, like a large tree with many roots. One man’s intelligence is like a tree that has been simply stuck in the ground.
The successful entrepreneur surrounds themselves with the counsel of others intelligence and wisdom. The best decisions take into consideration the many different opposing and supporting views and vantages and ultimately lend themselves to stronger results. The man who makes decisions all by himself is a fool waiting to fail.
It is a fact that ash will not live where the water is too clear. But if there is duckweed or something, the fish will hide under its shadow and thrive. Thus, the lower classes will live in tranquility if certain matters are a bit overlooked or left unheard. This fact should be understood with regard to people’s conduct.
This quote just kicks ass, and so I put it in. However, I do believe a lesson that could be learned from it is: Resist the urge to micromanage your employees. The result will be that they spend their time inefficiently making sure they don’t make the smallest of mistakes, ever, and they will grow to resent you for it. Find employees who have high levels of integrity and can manage themselves after given directions. Checking in regularly with them then is all that will be required.
These are the levels in general;. But there is one transcending level, and this is the most excellent of all. This person is aware of the endlessness of entering deeply into a certain Way arid never thinks of himself as having finished. He truly knows his own insufficiencies and never in his whole life thinks that he has succeeded. He has no thoughts of pride but with self-abasement knows the Way to the end. It is said that Master Yagyu once remarked, “I do not know the way to defeat others, but the way to defeat myself. ”
Throughout your life advance daily, becoming more skillful than yesterday, more skillful than today. This is never-ending.
I’m just going to quote another awesome quote cause I think the above is pretty self explanatory. “Intellectual growth should commence at birth and cease only at death” - Albert Einstein. So should it also be for the entrepreneur. Ever learning, ever vigil.
A man who makes a mistake once will be considerably more prudent and useful because of his repentance…A man who has never once erred is dangerous.
A failed entrepreneur has learned many lessons that one who has never failed has not. That being said, I would also say an entrepreneur who has made many mistakes and has not learned from them is useless.
By thinking that you must complete the job you will run out of time. By considering things like how many men the enemy has, time piles up; in the end you will give up. No matter if the enemy has thousands of men, there is fulfillment in simply standing them off and being determined to cut them all down, starting from one end. You will finish the greater part of it.
Think too hard and you’ll over think the problem. Consider the size of the problem too much and you’ll make a mountain out of a mole hole. Often, the agility of entrepreneurs favors execution and action. Once you’ve taken the action, its time to rethink. Entrepeneurial agility allows for problems to be corrected easier. That being said, don’t make critical design flaws! I’m looking at you Twitter!
It is not good to settle into a set of opinions. It is a mistake to put forth effort and obtain some understanding and then stop at that. At first putting forth great effort to be sure that you have grasped the bastes, then practicing so that they may come to fruition is something that will never stop for your whole lifetime. Do not rely on following the degree of understanding that you have discovered, but simply think, “This is not enough.”
One should search throughout his whole life how best to follow the Way. And he should study, setting his mind to work without putting things off. Within this is the Way.
Do not let your opinions become stale with comfort that they are right. Always be flexible and willing to welcome challenges against your entrepreneurial vision. An idea grows from resisting and accepting the right kind of changes. Like your vision, so too should you allow yourself to be challenged and learn through resistance and acceptance, always.
Inside the skin of a dog, outside the hide of a tiger.
Being an entrepreneur requires significant a fortitude within. Convincing the world you’re the real deal requires a powerful demeanor. Another perspective. Sometimes, to land customers, you need to demonstrate you’re a tiger, even though in reality you’re still just a little dog.
It is said that one should not hesitate to correct himself when he has made a mistake. If he corrects himself without the least bit of delay, his mistakes will quickly disappear. But when he tries to cover up a mistake, it will become all the more unbecoming and painful.
Honesty lends itself to integrity. Integrity lends itself to reliability. When speaking the truth, you will free yourself from the burdens of lying, and demonstrate your character for reliability. Business is built on relationships, and relationships grow stronger through disclosure and reliability. This is also known as the “Don’t bullshit” principle.
When meeting calamities or difficult situations, it is not enough to simply say that one is not at all flustered. When meeting difficult situations, one should dash forward bravely and with joy. It is the crossing of a single barrier and is like the saying, “The more the water, the higher the boat.”
Challenges faced with excitement are much easier to overcome then when faced with doubt. You can move a mountain stone by stone, but the job goes a hell of a lot better when its not counted stone by stone. There is a lot to be said about the great strength of optimism in the face of pessimism.
If you think that you will be inferior in doing something, you will be on that road very soon
This should be straightforward, but often overlooked. The way you choose to see things very significantly affects how they happen.
In the words of the ancients, one should make his decisions within the space of seven breaths. Lord Takanobu said, “If discrimination is long, it will spoil. ” Lord Naoshige said, “When matters are done leisurely, seven out of ten will turn out badly. A warrior is a person who does things quickly.”
When your mind is going hither and thither, discrimination will never be brought to a conclusion. With an intense, fresh and undelaying spirit, one will make his judgments within the space of seven breaths. It is a matter of being determined and having the spirit to break right through to the other side.
The entrepreneur will always struggle with decisions. A decision may not be the right way or the best way, but unless you have the will to make it happen, it will never be any way. Nothing will result from anything, lest you have the courage of your convictions.
No matter what it is, there is nothing that cannot be done. If one manifests the determination, he can move heaven and earth as he pleases. But because man is pluckless, he cannot set his mind to it. Moving heaven and earth without putting forth effort is simply a matter of concentration.
A daunting task can only be accomplished when the entrepreneurs determination has been concentrated on putting forth an effort.
If one is but secure at the foundation, he will not be pained by departure from minor details or affairs that are contrary to expectation. But in the end, the details of a matter are important. The right and wrong of one’s way of doing things are found in trivial matters.
Know you’re visions northern star and never falter. Big decisions are easy to make, but it is in the trivial matters that the results will show.
During happy times, pride and extravagance are dangerous. If one is not prudent in ordinary times, he will not be able to catch up. A person who advances during good times will falter during the bad.
It is bad when one thing becomes two. One should not look for anything else in the Way of the Samurai. It is the same for anything that is called a Way. Therefore, it is inconsistent to hear something of the Way of Confucius or the Way of the Buddha, and say that this is the Way of the Samurai. If one understands things in this manner, he should be able to hear about all Ways and be more and more in accord with his own.
In the end, everything is relative. Wisdom can be found in things that seem to be irrelevant, even samurai codes! That being said, one’s path is not determined by another’s and the true Way for all is determined on the journey for each travelers path. In short, all advice should be taken for face value; Its only when synthesized internally to your own thoughts that it may become of any real value. Or not.
“Hokey religion and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side, kid” -Han Solo
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This post had so many good quotes, I had to make a list. Agreed on the parallel. I think the rapidly changing nature of early markets matches the culture of the samurai. In fact, the Samurai attributes are key to seize emerging opportunities from the jaws of bigger fish.
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