[Mindset Habits for Financial Independence] Part 8: From 'Being Swept Away by Peer Pressure' to 'Being Someone Who Says Something Is Wrong When It Is'

Strategic consulting for companies is a battle against peer pressure.

Regarding changing a company, people agree in principle, but object when it comes to the specifics that involve them.

There are many such people in the leadership classes of companies.

If there is an opponent among them who holds power and is somewhat strong in logic, the peer pressure against that person's opinion suddenly intensifies.

And once that conformity progresses to a certain extent, such an atmosphere is created, and Japanese people, who are easily influenced by the atmosphere, have no choice but to succumb to the pressure.

There is no end to the number of companies that have fallen into dire straits as a result.
This applies to sales challenges and quality fraud alike.

And this can also be seen in the world of social media.

Once a somewhat prominent person tries to express their opinion on a piece of news, their social media will be flooded with comments that conform to that opinion.

And only people who are equally prominent can argue against that opinion. Arguments from ordinary people are either ignored, crushed, disliked, or blocked.

As a result, only 'conformists' who have been swept away by peer pressure remain on that person's social media.

I don't really like this kind of thing.

So, what can you do to avoid succumbing to this peer pressure?

In times like these, it is best to ask the legendary genius AI.

It is an answer as if reading a textbook. The daily evolution of the genius AI is amazing.

Regarding ① of the above answer,
a strategic consultant who must not succumb to peer pressureis required to have their own unique opinions from a young age.

However, the difficult part is that it doesn't mean any unique opinion will do.

A common trait of young strategic consultants who head in the wrong direction is 'arguing against everything no matter what.'

Whenever I say something, they say, 'Ayanokoji-san, that is wrong. I think it is like this.'

At first, they think, 'What a spirited young person,' but gradually, it becomes a nuisance.

In fact, I have seen an executive snap at a noisy young employee.
'Don't argue with everything I say. Listen, there are many things in this world that you should just say yes to. However, there are some things you absolutely must argue against. In those cases, feel free to argue as much as you want. You have it backward. You argue about trivial things, but you don't have an opinion on the important ones.'

That is quite a good point.

In short, 'how you can stick to your own opinion when you shouldn't give in to peer pressure' is the key.

So, how exactly can you do that?

Next, you will see the struggle of a new employee trying to stick to their opinion against an executive managing director who is the embodiment of peer pressure.

I hope you find something in this that resonates with you.

< Executive Managing Director vs. New Employee Fresh Out of Graduate School >

Executive Managing Director: 'We are going with Plan A this time. Any objections?'
New Employee: 'Statistically, the probability of success is clearly higher with Plan B than with Plan A.'
Director: 'Huh? What are you talking about?'
New Employee: 'As I said, this is strictly from a statistical standpoint, but statistically, the probability of success is clearly higher with Plan B than with Plan A.'
Director: 'Business is different from the world of academia. It's not about probabilities.'
New Employee: 'I understand. I don't think it's such a simple world. However, looking at such clear results, I can't help but wonder if going with Plan A is the right move.'
Director: 'I'm not asking for your personal opinion. You're just here shadowing an executive today, aren't you? Who brought her along?'
Research Institute Director: 'I apologize... it was me.'
Director: 'It's holding up the discussion, so please tell her not to say unnecessary things.'
Research Institute Director: 'I apologize. But Director, what she is saying is correct. I verified the data with her.'
Director: 'What are you talking about?'
Research Institute Director: 'As I said, statistically, the probability of success is clearly higher with Plan B than with Plan A.'
Director: 'If you say things like that, are you going to take responsibility?'
Research Institute Director: 'I don't think this is about who takes responsibility. I believe it is important for us all to seriously think about a project that our company's future depends on.'
Director: 'What's gotten into you all of a sudden? You never say anything.'
Research Institute Director: 'I didn't think I had the right to express an opinion because I don't understand business. But I have had many things I wanted to say for a long time. When I verified this project with her, she said to me: 'It looks like it's going to be Plan A, but isn't that clearly wrong from a statistical perspective?' I couldn't properly argue against that... because I had the same opinion. I couldn't say that business is different from academia... because I believe that academia is very useful for business.'
Executive Managing Director: '...' (Inner thoughts: She's saying something that sounds good, but if I admit that, my judgment becomes unnecessary, doesn't it? What happens to my 30 years of experience? Maybe I should just let AI make the final decision. I don't care what happens. Business decisions aren't that simple.)