#1 | Lawyers

Have you found it difficult to understand how Japanese people think or behave? What are their mental models to do things in their ways? What are their values? When Japanese people are pressed to explain their behavior that seem irrational to the Western people, they quietly say “This is Japan” with a sense of deep pride. Then the western people feel their hands are tied and left with confusion and frustration. Right, it’s difficult to argue back to that logic. Dale Carnegie illustrates the importance of seeing things from the other person’s point of view in his book “How to win friends and influence people”. Let’s try to follow Dale Carnegie’s advice and try to understand how things work in Japan through their lens.

Very few resources can help you understand the Japanese mindset. Books do exist but they are often too detailed and too long to consume or cover very limited domains (i.e. manufacturing). The goal of this article is to quickly explain how Japanese mind works mainly in comparison to the American culture. You will consume less energy to understand them while quickly identify right questions to ask when you have to work with them.

Despite Japan’s quirkiness or its characteristics that seem incomprehensible to the Western people, you may encounter many “Japanese stuff”. In the liner notes of the most famous Jazz album, “Kind of Blue” Bill Evans started with “There is a Japanese visual art in which the artist is forced to be spontaneous.” In Showtime’s Billions, both good and bad guys talk about Japanese ideas. In a 2019 film “Where’d You Go, Bernadette”, there is a scene with a Japanese instrument Shakuhachi. And you see lots of Japanese cars on the American roads.

One day, I had a chance to talk to an American lawyer practicing in Japan. I asked him how it’s like to work with Japanese corporate clients. He explained that in the US, when you have a goal and you need your lawyers’ help, you simply tell them your goals. Lawyers will then show you possible plans with pros and cons. In Japan, you visit your lawyers with your plans to achieve them. Your lawyers then only go far enough to find problems or potential pitfalls with your plans followed by “permission” to proceed. Your lawyers don’t usually present better plans, even if they have them unless you have a very deep relationship. It’s your responsibility to obtain better ideas or plans from your lawyers.

Obviously, I took what he said with a grain of salt, because he spoke no Japanese thus his observation may be limited or purely inaccurate. Nonetheless, I agreed to what he had told me and I can identify three possible explanations for it.

First, lawyers are often called “Sensei”, a superior figure in Japan. (Physicians, dentists, school teachers, professors, politicians, or Karate instructors are also called that way.) People talk to lawyers to seek permission and lawyers give their clients “green light” if it’s OK to implement their plans. Second, some lawyers may believe it’s impolite to present better ideas or plans to their clients unless deep relationships exist. Third and the biggest, clients may not simply know how to be helped by their lawyers. They don’t know how their lawyers can potentially change the way they look at things to achieve their goals. Lawyers can often dice things up differently and show you different angles.

If you are in a situation to deal with Japan or its people, knowing how things work in Japan helps you maintain healthy relationship while achieving more with less friction and energy. Difference in the languages is hard enough. Many Japanese people try a number of years to understand the American way but they usually fall short, because they do not have right resources and materials that explain how things work in the US. Also, they are either too overwhelmed with dealing with the language, English, or confuse learning English with understanding the American mindsets.