Entrepreneurs in Japan
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This trip to Japan has been interesting. I’ve been in a meeting everyday and find meetings with traditional “salary men” to be frustrating. There just aren’t enough entrepreneurs in Japan and the few here have a lot to overcome to become successful. The salary men here have a tendency to ask things like “Is that REALLY possible?” while entrepreneurs are always asking “Why NOT?”
I’ve blogged about the entrepreneurs mind before but its a real contrast here in Japan. I would imagine that entrepreneurs in Japan are hard people for traditional salary men to relate with or deal with. I’ve come pretty close to telling people “Let me worry about what is or isn’t possible and you just do your job.”
Maybe this sounds harsh but my feeling is that many salary men are very talented and good at what they do, they just can’t dream. And dreaming is the foundation of entrepreneurship, its the foundation of innovation. Anything else is just a job. How do Japanese entrepreneurs deal with being surrounded by people who can’t dream?
Disclaimer: My description of salary men applies to both men and women. It also doesn’t include all Japanese employees, just a specific mentality common in many Japanese employees. Especially those at large slow companies.
thanks, you’ve encouraged me.