All In to Win: the Power of Will
“Gentlemen, go mad. Go!”—Shoin Yoshida of the Meiji Restoration before he was beheaded.
This was the rallying cry that kicked off the bloody revolution that made modern day Japan. We can learn a lot from old Japanese revolutionaries.
Half measures don’t work. This is what I see in the Western world of general prosperity, now showing the rot and complacency that comes with too much good times. If you want to win, you have to be all in. You have to commit everything. You don’t hold anything back. You do the things that others are not willing to do (as long as it’s not against the law, of course). This is the necessary mindset of everyone I know that is successful.
I live in the United States but am fortunate to travel all the time in Europe, Asia & North America like Mexico and Canada. I see the comparison of lifestyles and pace. As much as I think the quality of life is so much better elsewhere, I prefer the hustle and bustle of the USA. I appreciate ambition, big thinking and competitiveness here. Yet, on the other hand, the USA can be a vicious place. The business environment & workplace reflect this. It’s why this place engenders excellence at the individual level.
Nowhere in the world does fear and greed permeate the culture as much as it does here. Greed for wealth that is truly attainable here. And fear of ending up on the streets, as there are limited social programs and a widely viewed culture and opinion that people get what they deserve. It hones a pretty sharp blade and high standards. There are very few places in the world like this, for better or for worse.
A man with ambition, brains, the right attitude and willingness to work hard can go far here.
It also requires a ruthlessness that most people will not or cannot stomach. I saw this over the last 23 years here.
And you demand of others what you demand of yourself. As the founder of Royal Dutch Shell once said: “Whoever is not with me is against me, and I shall treat him accordingly.”(Aeilko Jan Zjilker BTW if you are curious). Or maybe the US Marines said it best: “No better friend, no worse enemy.”
Personally, as I meet the middle of my life, I have less time to waste and so much more to do. Just like America, I need to be more ruthless with how I use my time and with whom I spend my time with. All critical things if I want to have the impact that I am aiming for. Desperate times require desperate measures and we need to act accordingly. It’s time to go MAD.