🌸Management Future Notebook - Friday (Issue 67) - Complete Preservation Edition: Why was Tokugawa Ieyasu able to build Edo, one of the world's largest cities? Learning 'Type 6 State Management' from Ieyasu and Qin Shi Huang
🌸Management Future Notebook - Friday (Issue 67) - Complete Preservation Edition
Why was Tokugawa Ieyasu able to build Edo, one of the world's largest cities?
Learning 'Type 6 State Management' from Ieyasu and Qin Shi Huang
(Written by Akifumi Yasumura / Business Capability Development Co., Ltd.)
On Fridays, we deliver 'Stories that Connect to the Future'.
Through historical and cultural episodes, we share inspiration that will stay with you over the weekend.
■ Introduction
Tokugawa Ieyasu is one of the most representative figures in Japanese history.
He undertook a massive project to transform Edo, a cold village in a marshland, into one of the world's largest cities later on.
However, why did Ieyasu
decide to build such a massive city?
Was it merely a political decision?
Or was it a coincidence?
When viewed from the perspective of human understanding known as the Enneagram,
this question can be explained in a very interesting way.
In conclusion,
Tokugawa Ieyasu can be called a typical example of a Type 6 leader in the Enneagram.
And even more interestingly,
there is another person in world history who is very similar.
That is
Qin Shi Huang,
the First Emperor of Qin.
■ Characteristics of Type 6 - Eliminating Anxiety through Structure
Type 6 in the Enneagram is a personality that values:
• Security
• Risk avoidance
• Careful judgment
• Alliance formation
• Long-term stability.
The biggest theme for Type 6 is
'How to control anxiety'.
And looking back at Ieyasu's life, this characteristic appears very clearly.
In his childhood, Ieyasu was raised as a hostage of
• the Imagawa clan
• the Oda clan.
In other words, he was always in
betrayal, power struggles, and an unstable environment.
It is said that such an environment easily forms a Type 6 psychology.
That is why Ieyasu became a leader who pursued
'long-term stability'
rather than 'short-term victory'.
■ Ieyasu who built Edo as a 'Safe Base'
Ieyasu's creation of Edo was not just urban development.
It was a massive project to make his own foundation of rule safe.
For example,
• The diversion of the Tone River (one of the largest river modifications in Japanese history)
• The outer and inner moats of Edo Castle
• The grid layout of the castle town
• The reclamation of wetlands
These were all structural reforms to reduce risks such as floods, famines, and military invasions.
In other words, Ieyasu eliminated anxiety through systems and terrain.
And as a result, the Edo Shogunate supported 260 years of peace.
■ Surprising Commonalities with Qin Shi Huang
Looking at world history,
there is a person who is very similar to Ieyasu.
That is
Qin Shi Huang.
The First Emperor also grew up in an unstable environment of
• life as a hostage in an enemy country during childhood
• court power struggles
• constant danger of betrayal.
Ieyasu's childhood anxiety also had a psychological background of
'separation anxiety from his mother'
in addition to being a 'hostage'.
The First Emperor had the anxiety of his birth, not knowing who his father was.
This is also a strong formative factor for Type 6.
And he also carried out massive state reforms.
Representative examples include:
• Zheng Guo Canal (massive water conservancy project)
• Lingqu Canal
• Development of road networks
• Standardization of weights and measures
• The Great Wall of China
The common point of these policies is to structurally eliminate the causes of national anxiety.
Ieyasu's Edo and the First Emperor's Great Wall.
Both were based on the idea of 'creating safety as a structure'.
■ The Growth Direction of Type 6 is Type 9
In the Enneagram, it is said that when Type 6 matures, it moves toward the nature of Type 9.
Type 9 is a person who creates peace.
Interestingly,
Ieyasu's Edo Shogunate realized 260 years of peace.
He ended the turbulent times of the Warring States period and created a society of long-term stability.
This can truly be called an example of a Type 6 maturing and moving toward Type 9.
■ When a Type 6 Becomes a Corporate Top
In corporate management as well, Type 6 leaders have great strengths.
That is becoming a genius of security.
Type 6 is excellent at the ability to:
• Read risks in advance
• Assume the worst-case scenario
• Prevent problems through structure.
Just as Ieyasu did, they create long-term stability by organizing systems, mechanisms, and organizational structures.
However, an immature Type 6 can be dominated by anxiety and become suspicious.
But when they mature, they become rulers who create peace.
Ieyasu was exactly that example.
Organizational anxiety can only be eliminated through systems and structures.
■ Editor's Postscript
When looking at history through the Enneagram,
there are times when a person's actions can be explained surprisingly well.
Ieyasu and the First Emperor.
They are leaders of countries far apart,
but a common psychological structure of 'eliminating anxiety through structure' can be seen.
History may be a massive experimental ground for human psychology.
■ Today's Question
Do you process anxiety with 'emotions'?
Or do you solve it with 'structure'?
Excellent leaders
turn anxiety into systems and mechanisms.
■ Cat's Murmurs
We build castles because we have anxiety.
We create systems because we have anxiety.
Perhaps humans
built civilization because we are fearful.
■ Conclusion
Tokugawa Ieyasu's leadership was
cautious, prudent, and defensive,
yet it involved
designing a structure to create long-term peace.
The same applies to corporate management.
Rather than short-term victories,
a structure that creates long-term stability
is necessary.
If you are struggling with organizational relationships or structure,
please feel free to consult with me.
I provide support in reconstructing organizational structures based on an understanding of human nature.
■ Please send us your feedback
■ Next Issue Preview
'Why is Japanese culture Type 6?'
■ Appendix Charts
