"Attracting good fortune is also a skill"—Learning organizational theory of encounters and decisions from Yokohama High School Manager Hiroaki Murata
"Attracting good fortune is also a skill"—Learning organizational theory of encounters and decisions from Yokohama High School Manager Hiroaki Murata
There is one thing in particular that left an impression on me from the words of Yokohama High School baseball team manager Hiroaki Murata.
«"I believe that attracting good fortune is, in a sense, part of one's ability."»
At first glance, this might seem like a story about how "luck and connections are important in life."
However, when you read the sentences that follow, what Manager Murata is saying goes a bit deeper.
What is important is not simply "meeting good people."
It is how you engage with those people after you meet them.
I believe that "fortune" includes that aspect as well.
---
It is not just "encounters" that change one's life
We sometimes look back on our lives and
"I am who I am today because I met that person"
think.
Of course, there is an element of chance in encounters themselves.
Which school to enter.
Which company to join.
Which boss to work under.
Which site to be assigned to.
Who to work with.
You cannot completely control these things yourself.
However, Manager Murata does not end the conversation there.
What is truly important is
"How you engage after meeting someone"
is what matters.
Even when meeting the same person, some people try to learn something from them, while others just let them pass by.
Listen to what they have to say.
Ask questions.
Put what you have been taught into practice.
Express gratitude.
Maintain the relationship.
Through each of these actions, a chance encounter transforms into a "connection."
Therefore,
a connection might not be purely coincidental, but rather the product of chance multiplied by action.
---
There is a reason why some people "attract connections"
There are people who seem to be "blessed with good people around them."
Of course, there are cases where they are truly just lucky.
However, when looking at the long term, there are many things that cannot be explained by that alone.
Being introduced by others.
Being helped when in trouble.
Being invited to new work.
Important information gathering around them.
People who experience these things repeatedly may have faced their past encounters with sincerity in some form.
In other words,
Good connections → Good actions
is not the only way,
Good actions → Next connection
There is also a reverse effect.
Relationships with people do not end in a single instance.
A relationship with one person leads to an encounter with another.
Work with that person leads to further opportunities.
In this way, over a long period of time, a network of human relationships is formed.
When viewed this way, Manager Murata's words, "Attracting connections is also a skill," seem quite rational.
---
And the managerial profession is a "series of decisions"
On the same page, another important phrase is written.
«"Managing is a series of decisions."»
A baseball manager is constantly forced to make judgments.
Who to put in the game.
Who to substitute.
What kind of practice to do.
What to tell the players.
How much to delegate.
And, the team will not move forward without making decisions.
While Manager Murata has become able to make judgments without hesitation,
«"it is also a fact that it is tiring as a result."»
he also writes.
I think this is very realistic.
An excellent leader is not someone who never wavers.
They are likely someone who can make decisions when necessary, even while carrying that hesitation.
---
"Fate" and "decisions" are actually connected
What I found interesting while reading this page is
that the topics of fate and decisions are placed on the same page.
A leader cannot know everything on their own.
That is precisely why connections with people become important.
Teachers.
Seniors.
Colleagues.
Players.
Staff.
External experts.
Gaining information and experience from relationships with various people.
However, no matter how many opinions one hears from others, it is the manager themselves who makes the final decision.
In other words,
Increasing the material for judgment through connections, and making the final decision oneself.
These two are not contradictory.
Rather, I believe they are the two wheels of excellent decision-making.
---
Isn't this the same in a corporate organization?
The structure is quite similar for managers and project leaders as well.
In the field,
"I cannot make this decision on my own"
is a problem that occurs frequently.
At such times, what becomes important is who you can consult.
People you have worked with in the past.
People in specialized departments.
Experienced seniors.
Partner companies.
Manufacturers.
Personnel from other departments.
The relationships you have built on a daily basis become the "options for consultation" during critical situations.
Therefore, human relationships are not merely a matter of communication skills.
It can also be considered a resource that influences the organization's decision-making ability itself.
---
However, this is not about simply "building a network."
If you misunderstand this point, this discussion suddenly becomes shallow.
What is important is neither the number of business cards you have nor the number of acquaintances you know.
What is important in Manager Murata's writing is
"how you engage with others after meeting them"
is the part that matters.
Relationships that only consider what can be gained from the other person do not last long.
Rather,
What can I learn from this person?
What can I give back?
What can we do together?
The accumulation of such relationships leads, as a result, to the next connection.
Therefore, the "ability to attract connections" is not just about sociability.
I believe it is the power not to let encounters with people end as one-time events.
---
A career cannot be built on "plans" alone
The same can be said for careers.
Setting goals for five or ten years from now is important.
However, real life does not proceed according to plan.
A job you were assigned to by chance.
A project you happened to join.
A boss you met there.
A book you read casually.
A study group you happened to attend.
Careers can change significantly due to such unplanned events.
Therefore, in career development,
both the ability to plan for the future and the ability to leverage accidental opportunities are necessary.
This is a concept close to what is known in career research as "Planned Happenstance."
Mitchell, Levin, and Krumboltz argue for the importance of actions that transform unexpected events into career opportunities, rather than treating them as mere coincidences.
One cannot equate Manager Murata's words with this theory.
However,
Rather than waiting for coincidence, make the most of the opportunities born from it
is a point of interesting commonality.
---
"Lucky people" may be amplifying coincidence
In life, there are coincidences that you cannot control yourself.
However, how far that coincidence grows afterward depends on the individual's actions.
Meet.
Listen.
Learn.
Practice.
To be trusted.
To be introduced.
To meet new people again.
When you think about it this way,
Chance → Action → Trust → Next chance
a cycle becomes visible.
Even if the first encounter was a coincidence, everything that follows is not necessarily a coincidence.
That is why Manager Murata
«“Attracting connections is, in a sense, part of one's ability”»
likely thinks this way.
---
Summary
The way I interpret Manager Murata's philosophy from this page can be summarized as follows.
You cannot choose the encounters themselves.
However, you can choose how you engage with the people you meet.
That way of engaging builds trust, and that trust brings about the next encounter.
And while gaining wisdom from relationships with many people, you must take responsibility for the final decision yourself.
This is not just a story about a baseball manager.
I believe it is the same for work, organizations, and careers.
You cannot control every aspect of your life.
That is precisely why,
I value "how I engage with the people I meet" more than "who I meet."
When looking back years later, the accumulation of those moments
"That encounter changed my life"
might be what becomes a "fated connection."
---
Reference
- Photo page: Manager Hiroaki Murata's book, p.56 (User-provided image)
- Mitchell, K. E., Levin, A. S., & Krumboltz, J. D. (1999). Planned Happenstance: Constructing Unexpected Career Opportunities. Journal of Counseling & Development, 77(2), 115–124.