Suga hails from a rural area of Akita Prefecture and is known as someone who set his sights on becoming a politician from a position with no backing, driven by a desire to change his hometown.
These words express that the conviction at the core of Yoshihide Suga’s beginnings has not changed even after many years in politics.
They convey his determination to press forward along a difficult path if necessary, because without changing politics, the nation cannot change.
It is a memorable quote that reflects his commitment to cherishing his original intentions and dedicating himself to building a better country.
Strive not for success, but to become a person of value.Albert Einstein
Einstein: “Strive not to be a success, but rather to be a man of value.” #shorts
For most people who want to accomplish something, the goal is likely to be success.
However, Albert Einstein, regarded as the greatest physicist of the 20th century, stated in this famous quote that we should strive to become a person of value rather than to be successful.
Success generally refers to gaining wealth or fame, but becoming too fixated on it can at times lead to unnecessary conflicts and friction with others.
When that happens, we distance ourselves from happiness.
To avoid this, perhaps he is teaching us that our talents should be used not only for ourselves but to truly help others, and that we should find value in that.
Even if you compare yourself to others and find yourself inferior, it is by no means something to be ashamed of. However, if you compare yourself to who you were last year and find that you are worse this year, that is truly something to be ashamed of.Konosuke Matsushita
Konosuke Matsushita’s saying: Even if you compare yourself with others and find yourself inferior, there is nothing to be ashamed of. But if you compare yourself with who you were last year and find that you are inferior this year, that is truly something to be ashamed of.
Konosuke Matsushita, one of Japan’s leading entrepreneurs known as the “God of Management,” is famous for building Panasonic Holdings in a single lifetime and serves as a role model for many business leaders.
This quote teaches us about the right way to grow.
When there’s someone who shares the same goal, we tend to compare ourselves with them.
However, the focus should not be on rivals but on ourselves.
Even if you outperform others, if you are inferior to who you were last year, it cannot be called growth.
Have aspirations and stay true to your convictionsSanae Takaichi
These words succinctly capture her guiding principles and approach as a politician.
Ms.
Takaichi has embodied the importance of maintaining consistent convictions through concrete policies such as strengthening economic security, enhancing education policy, and promoting regional revitalization.
For example, in her remarks on stabilizing people’s livelihoods and disaster preparedness, we can see a commitment to pursuing policy from a long-term perspective, unswayed by short-term trends or political pressure.
It is also a message that in our own lives and work, staying true to our goals with consistency can determine the outcomes we achieve.
In the new year, even small things are fine—let’s set tasks for ourselves one by one and keep to them. Isn’t that the shortcut to building what we call our true selves?Kazuko Watanabe
This is a famous quote by Kazuko Watanabe, a Catholic nun.
Life refers to the time we have spent so far—but then, what is our true self? When we think about it, it’s difficult, isn’t it? She suggests a shortcut to creating our authentic selves: bring change to yourself.
It could be habits in daily life or goals for your life—anything is fine.
What matters is expanding your own potential and discovering what is important to you.
The accumulation of that may, before you know it, become your true self.
Hardships are the best trials that forge me.Sanae Takaichi
These are words that convey a will to look forward and keep moving—something only Ms.
Takaichi, who has faced headwinds and criticism throughout her career, can truly speak to.
The higher the spotlight, the greater the challenges; it’s the kind of situation that would discourage most people.
Yet she frames the fact that she has continued to move forward as a source of strength.
The resolve to keep going without giving up, and to hold fast to one’s convictions in any circumstance, are also points that inspire reassurance and trust.
The more she confronts difficulties, the more she is tempered; it raises expectations for how much strength she will continue to build and what the future may hold.
Laughed at, laughed at, I grow stronger.Osamu Dazai
If you like novels, you may have encountered his works at least once.
Osamu Dazai, the novelist who wrote many famous works such as Run, Melos!, No Longer Human, and The Setting Sun.
He is renowned as a novelist, but his tumultuous life is also well known.
This quote is one of the words he left behind: “Be laughed at, be laughed at, and grow strong.” When you’re striving for something, you will sometimes fail and be mocked.
Yet these words convey the strength to turn even that into your own power and push forward.
It wasn’t by chance that we made it back alive. This is our mission.Sandwich Man
These are words from Sandwichman, a comedy duo from Sendai, that express a determination to keep moving forward.
The key point is that at the time of the Great East Japan Earthquake, they happened to be in Kesennuma, Miyagi—one of the disaster areas—while filming a TV show.
They convey what it means that they survived: being alive in that place was both fate and a mission, and they believe they are called to walk forward and pass on the story to the future.
You can feel their love for their hometown and their resolve to carry it on their shoulders as they move ahead.
