5. People Try to Show Superiority
Itoi There exists an odd value that "the more pain you put in, the better", don't you think? I think you should just do what you're good at, and drop the opposite.
Iwata I know what you mean. People working overtime are somewhat thought to be working harder than those who can finish work on time, right? People complain about their colleagues leaving work early, but that's just wrong. People tend to complain comparing their strong points with other person's weakness.
Itoi It's like saying "Itoi can't even code programs."
Iwata (laughing) Well, that's a pretty extreme example.
Itoi Getting back on the subject, I understand your point.
Iwata This is my personal theory, but all living creatures bear the task of passing down their DNA through reproduction. To reproduce, there's the necessity to show your superiority. The individuals who can do this well are the ones that were able to pass down their DNA.
Itoi I see, I see.
Iwata So I think it's natural for us to try to show that we're better than others. That's why we tend to compare our strengths with other people's weakness. This happens in any type of social organizations, such as in companies. Therefore, it becomes a priority to define an axis, a mutual agreement on evaluation. There is a need to create a fair basis.
Itoi That' a persuasive theory.
Iwata I've never felt any contradictions so far.
Itoi It's like Sanma Akashiya (Japanese comedian) saying "Men like women who can slip us into self-complacency."
Iwata (laughing) I don't know about that, but I guess yes, in a way.
Itoi Existence that gives them advantage among others.
Iwata There are times when you just have to grit your teeth and do it. Society will fall apart if everyone just quits doing what they don't want to do.
Itoi It will, yes.
Iwata Even when everyone can agree to make our company "the group of people who will devote our efforts to do things we are good at," we still have to identify and assign the minimum amount of works that employees have to do even when they know they are not good at. Otherwise, we cannot work together. It is the management's job to make efforts to minimize this "minimum amount of necessary works that employees are not good at," I believe. For example, some people just cannot communicate with the others. But things won't work out if there's someone in the company who will never try to communicate his or her thoughts with the colleagues. After all, a company is a group of individuals with different talents. That group of people tries to accomplish something large that an individual can't do. For everyone to move forward, the least amount of communication must always be made by each individual even when he or she is not good at talking with the others.
Itoi So you try to contain the "minimum amount of labors" and encourage people to grow by doing things they are good at.
Iwata Yes, I think it's very important. There's also one other thing. There are people with talent that they themselves haven't realized. They may even think they're not good at it. For example, nobody thinks that they're talented in management from the start.
Itoi Come to think of it, that's true. Nobody in grade school understands the notion of management completely.
Iwata No. No one chooses management from the start.
Itoi Probably not.
Iwata I didn't think I had talent in management at first. It's easy to keep on thinking you're not made for it. However, in my case, there was nobody else up for it. It was like destiny that the position came to me.
Itoi That happened twice in your life, becoming president.
Iwata Of course it was my decision in the end to become president. But it wasn't my initial aim. I've given the same kind of opportunity to other people. Although they might consider themselves as "not the type", I assign tasks when I see their potential. They seem to find it tough in the beginning, but by advising them with new ways of thinking or new views to look at matters, they discover themselves getting interested in it as a result.
Itoi Is this something that occurred recently?
Iwata Yes. There were people who thought they weren't the "manager type". They used to declare that they loved to make games so much so that they would like to make it their sole career. But they have changed. I've heard them say how fascinating it was to teach others and watch them grow. It's a potential they already had. It's just that they didn't realize it. When you help others find that potential, you see people bloom in such a way you never expected.
