If you are lost in management or work, I want you to read this story
A hint for a comeback that a certain book taught me—
In February 2004, Sapporo was freezing cold.
That business trip was just an extension of my usual work. The only thing different was that I was handed a book there.
“Everything happening at your company right now is written in this book!”
The person who said that with a laugh was K-kun, an SE who visited our company. He worked for a telecommunications equipment company in Sapporo and visited our office once a month, so he was well-versed in our internal affairs.
It was when we met up in Sapporo.
For some reason, those words stuck in my chest strangely.
The night I returned home after the business trip. In the silence after my family had fallen asleep, I suddenly decided to pick up that book. I intended to just flip through the pages casually, but before I knew it, I was reading it all at once. I couldn't stop.
Indeed, it depicted many events—as if it had been written while watching the current state of my company.
Back then, I was truly in the middle of a rough sea.
I had taken over from my father and was leading the company as the second-generation president, but I was on the verge of being crushed by the gap between my ideals and reality.
One day, one of my employees suddenly disappeared with the company's funds.
Starting with that turmoil, conflicts with executives, friction within the company... troubles came one after another.
“Why do problems keep happening one after another...” were the days when I felt like my heart was going to break.
That was the book I was handed just at that moment.
As I read on, the words written there reflected my situation and state of mind like a mirror.
Strangely, every time I reached a "landing" in life, I have encountered such books through people for some reason. At times that I cannot believe are coincidences, books give me hints. I couldn't help but think that I am truly blessed.
That one book that grabbed my heart and wouldn't let go. That is Masanori Kanda's "Confessions of a Successful Person".
"Confessions of a Successful Person" is a self-help and management book that depicts the "inner conflicts" and "human relationship crises" lurking behind business success in a story format.
The protagonist of the story is the manager of a rapidly growing venture company. While he achieves business success, he creates serious distortions in his relationships with his family and colleagues.
Before him appears "a certain person" from the future, who unravels the "cycle of success and collapse" that occurs in his life.
What is interesting about this book is that while it is in a story format, it theoretically explains a "certain cycle" common to successful people. Mr. Kanda shows that "inner conflicts" and "walls in human relationships" inevitably visit each stage of entrepreneurship and business growth.
If you are currently worried about management or work, or feel stuck in something—this book should surely be able to help you.
"Confessions of a Successful Person" is a business novel that depicts the success, frustration, and rebirth of an entrepreneur.
But it is not just fiction. As you read it, realistic events appear one after another to the point where you might think, "Wait? Isn't this about my company?". I was the same way. The more you are in the middle of management, the more you will find the conflicts and choices of the characters impossible to think of as someone else's business.
When you close the book, your heart might feel a little lighter, or your position might be organized—it is a book with that kind of power.
When you are in the middle of trouble, the book you need will somehow reach you properly. "Confessions of a Successful Person" was exactly that kind of book.
That is why I want to gently hand this book to you now.
[profile]
Former SME manager and former management consultant. After working at a general construction company, I took over the family business and faced the realistic challenges of the field.
On note, I share practical information for SME managers and successors, such as how to read financial statements and financial analysis using AI.
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