I Want to Be an Expert Who Lights the Way

“No consultations mean no problems.”
Experts who feel reassured by that thought might actually be in the most precarious position of all.

Many people carry anxiety without being able to say, “Help me.”
It is not that there are no problems; it is just that they haven't been put into words yet.
While those “incomplete emotions” swirling in their hearts are still taking shape,
we are being tested on whether we can gently reach out a hand.

For example, human resources personnel at companies sometimes say things like this:
“We haven't really received any consultations from employees.”
But when you dig a little deeper,
“I feel like there are more employees lately who look gloomy.”
“There are small troubles, but I don't know if they're worth mentioning one by one.”
Words like these start to emerge.

This is exactly where the anxiety that hasn't been verbalized yet is hidden.
If someone doesn't ask, “Is something the matter?”, it will never surface and will quietly continue to erode the organization.
I believe that those who can act before that realization are the true professionals.

As a labor and social security attorney, I have been involved with many companies.
Among them are companies that say, “We are fine,” or “There are no particular problems,”
yet one day, a domino effect of resignations suddenly occurs.
What they all have in common is mistaking the silence of consultations for peace.

Silence is not proof of peace of mind, but ratherthe disappearance of signs.
When more employees give up on speaking out, the workplace may look calm at first glance, but it is actually growing cold.
I want to remain sensitive to that “silence.”

Acting only after being consulted is, in a sense, “reactive work.”
But value always begins with reaching out before the other person even realizes it.

“How have you been lately?”
“Are you concerned about this topic?”
“Cases like this are increasing at this time of year.”

A single word of outreach can become a light toward peace of mind.
It is not about digging up the other person's anxiety, but about bringing it to the surface.
Creating that opportunity is the power of questioning and the power of engagement.

An expert is not someone who waits, but someone who lights the way.
To light a fire in the darkness called anxiety.
Just by having that light, people can find the contours within themselves.
And they become able to put it into words themselves and start walking forward.

Being told, “I'm glad I talked to you,” is not because I solved something,
but because I created an atmosphere where they could talk.

What I want to aim for is not to be “someone who receives consultations,” but “someone from whom consultations are born.”
In other words, someone whose very existence is a sense of security.
What is needed for that is not correctness, but warmth.
And the courage to reach out first.

There may be people around you who are still carrying anxiety that hasn't been put into words.
Today, please try saying a word to someone.
Perhaps, with that one word, a light in their heart might be ignited.

Now,whose anxiety will you light the first candle for?

In my paid magazine “Map of Questions,”
I write about hints for deepening thought, with the theme of this “power to act before realization.”

Also, in the membership “Questioning Skills Practice Lab | Labor Attorney's Dialogue School,”
we are polishing the “questioning patterns” and “dialogue techniques” that can actually be used in the field together.