When I stopped trying to provide answers, my work started moving naturally

This past year.
As we continued to have dialogues every two weeks,
before I knew it, both myself and my work
had gradually changed.

What I feel after spending over a year making time to "inquire"

The community I facilitate, called Cent.22 (twenty two),
is not a business team where we exchange referrals
or compete for results.

It's not a place to provide "correct answers," but a place to re-examine them.

A time to gently discover
the things within myself
that have not yet been put into words.

I deeply feel how precious it is to be able to spend such time with peers.

The experience of "unlearning" for me

What I feel most through this space
is the importance of "unlearning".

Huh? What's that?
It sounds difficult...
Some of you might be thinking that, but it's okay.

It's not difficult.

Unlearning is about letting go.

Unlearning means
gently setting aside for a moment the things you previously thought were "obvious."

"I should do this"
"This must be correct"
It's about re-examining the "correctness" you've unconsciously built up like that,
and asking yourself if it's truly necessary for who you are now.

Before adding anything,lightening the load on your current self.That is what unlearning is to me.

I myself
have a troublesome side where I have very strong ideas of "how things should be" lol

At Cent.22, such "time for re-examination" is born naturally.
In response to everyone's reactions to the topics,
new questions are born again.

It is natural for everyone to be different there.
The fact that each person perceives things differently is actually interesting.

Because we are "different" in that way,
we can look at one thing from multiple perspectives,

and I realize that what I could only think of in one way on my own
is what "being myself" is,
and I think it also leads to a tolerance that allows us to enjoy our differences.

"Do not try to answer, rather ask"

One of the phrases we value in this community
is from Taizo Son's book, "The Book of Adventure"

is the phrase.

Instead of rushing to provide answers,
continuing to ask questions itself becomes an entrance to touching one's own essence.
I have experienced that feeling many times in this place.

“Gradual results” that cannot be measured by numbers

In this past year, while sales have grown,
I have felt the "depth of relationships" and the "depth of words" increase.

• Being able to face conversations with clients with a proper "axis."

• Collaborations and connections starting naturally without rushing.

• The moments where I suddenly understand, "This is what I want to convey," have increased.

Those things are surely because by repeating questions,
my own words have properly resonated within me.

It might be closer to a feeling that a "conviction" was born, rather than an answer.

Painting the future with important companions

The members of Cent.22 are not in a relationship where we chase each other's achievements, but rather,
they are people who truly try to look toward a person's
essence and the light within. they are people who truly try to look toward that.

That is precisely why I want to further nurture the future born from this place—
collaborations, partnerships, and the “sprouts” of something new.

What makes me deeply grateful that this place exists is that,
rather than searching for the correct answer,
I have become able to re-examine myself by asking, 'How am I feeling right now?'

And, while this community values its uniqueness,
what can we do to make it a place where people feel, 'I'm drawn to this...' or 'I'd like to join'?

That is a question I am currently nurturing as well.

Learning might not just be about increasing new knowledge,
but perhaps it begins with
“stripping things away.”

Questions might be a chance to
re-encounter the deepest parts of yourself.

While cherishing such questions,
I intend to continue carefully nurturing this community.