My Ikigai and Kokorozashi: Conveying What Globis Can Offer to the World

Tomoya Nakamura shares that his ikigai or kokorozashi is that he wants to convey what Globis can offer to the world. He also discuss the idea of gratitude: if people and businesses can practice gratitude, he believes it can benefit society.

Gratitude is the strongest form in martial art

Nick: Tomoya, at the end of my podcast, I usually ask my guests what their ikigai is. I'm assuming it's going back to your practice and passion for Aikido.

Tomoya: Actually, I am Japanese born in Japan, but from my father's business I was raised in North America, in Canada. 

So when I came back to Japan at high school, I wanted to do something Japanese and that's how I encountered Aikido. Aikido took me quite a long way.

Initially, I just wanted to throw people and understand Japan but eventually, when I was at Harvard Business School because I practised Aikido, I met a great professor called Professor Urban.

He was the CEO of Pioneer Hi-Bred, that was bought of Monsato. He told me that "If you act like an American student, there is no use of you in Boston", so I learnt about Japan and learnt about ki. 

Ki is a principal in Aikido and that kind of led me to write about Eastern philosophy and Japan. 

So my ikigai or kokorozashi is similar to Nick, I want to convey what we can offer to the world. There are many things I like about this interview but if I may mention your word, you said gratitude, gratitude is the strongest form in martial art. 

If you can say thank you to your opponent, your opponent will go flying. If you think you want to beat up your opponent, he's not going to fly.  It's very controversial but 'thank you' or 'gratitude' is a very strong word.

I think it's not only for business or individuals but if a business can think in a similar way I think business has a bigger role to play in society, not just making money.