Truly strong people do not draw their swords. — A mindset of 'preventing problems' rather than solving them

Truly strong people do not draw their swords.

In this context, 'not drawing the sword' means checking the situation in advance so that there is no need to draw it, nipping problems in the bud, and preparing for any eventuality. It is not about refusing to fight, but about acting before a state of conflict arises.

This is not just an ideal;
I feel it is the same in actual practice.

At my previous job, the phone would ring in the middle of the night,
and I would go into the office to handle incidents.

At the time, I thought,I am working so hard.
But now, I see it differently.

People who can solve problems are excellent.
But even more excellent peopledesign things so that problems do not occur.

This is a story from when I was continuously developing
a system that operated 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

At 12:30 AM, the phone rang.
I was notified that the application was running slowly.

'I must go to the site immediately.'
I judged that way and rushed to the site.

At the time, I lived in a place where I could arrive within 30 minutes and was prepared for emergencies. Naturally, a faster response is better, but looking back now, an operation that assumes someone will rush in during the middle of the night had room for improvement.

Fundamentally, the moment a failure occurs, you have already lost.

It is a harsh way to put it, but from the user's perspective,
the moment a failure occurs and business is affected, you have lost.

No matter how quickly you restore it, the customer's business has already been affected, and a quick restoration only means the damage is smaller. More excellent people lower the possibility of failures occurring and design systems so that even if they do occur, the impact is less likely to spread.

How to create a state where you do not have to draw your sword

In system development, 'creating a state where problems are less likely to occur' does not just refer to special things.

• Confirm in advance whether it can withstand the expected load

• Prepare monitoring and notifications to detect anomalies early

• Decide on check items and judgment criteria before release

• Prepare rollback procedures for when problems occur

• Clarify who makes decisions and who to contact

The work of someone who sets up such monitoring and procedures to reduce late-night calls in the first place is less visible than incident response. However, it can have great value in keeping projects and operations stable for a long time.

The strength to persevere when a failure occurs is necessary.
If no one responds, the problem will not be solved.
However, you must not assume that you will get by on someone's hard work every time.

If you continue to work that way, the person in charge will be worn down both physically and mentally, and eventually the project itself will become unsustainable.

This way of thinking is not limited to system failures.
It is also common to how we approach work and make daily choices.

"I'm busy, so I'll work harder"
is only a temporary measure.

Even if you push yourself to get through it, if you break your health, it will be a long-term negative.

That is why what is needed is the perspective of
"Is it designed so that this doesn't happen in the first place?
".

・Is the workload sustainable in the long term?
・Is it something that needs to be obtained even if you have to push yourself right now?
・Can schedules or roles be adjusted before problems arise?

I have experienced being a firefighter for projects that were in flames. That is precisely why I value not only the ability to solve problems, but also the ability to find them early and take action before they grow.

Working hard itself is not bad.
However, a job or life that assumes it will eventually collapse.

Design it, or keep dealing with it.

This difference affects not only your work, but your entire life.