Inspired by a talk given by Kazuo Inamori on June 2, 2010, at the Seiwajyuku Chugoku-Shikoku Regional Meeting, when he was 78 years old.

This week, I would like to share some thoughts inspired by a talk Kazuo Inamori gave at a Seiwajyuku meeting in Japan on June 2, 2010.

Throughout his life, Inamori consistently emphasized the importance of doing what is right as a human being and acting with an altruistic spirit—putting the well-being of others into practice through our actions.

Recently, we invited one of Japan’s largest coaching companies to speak at a training conference we are holding in July for Japanese companies.

Their response was:

“We cannot participate in an event where another company offering similar executive coaching services will also be participating.”

They also asked me a very straightforward question:

“Why would you invite us when we are competitors?”

My answer was simple.

“I believe the era in which companies refuse to collaborate simply because they compete in the same industry is coming to an end.

And if we truly want to address the comparatively low level of investment in employee development among Japanese companies, I believe those of us in this industry need to work together to communicate its importance.”

I did not receive another response.

Of course, I was disappointed.

But I still intend to invite them again to our next conference.

Why?

Because I don’t want our relationship to be about winning or losing.

I would rather see us learn from one another, improve together, contribute to a better society, and—above all—help Japanese companies and the people who work for them.

And this brings me back to Inamori’s message.

Business, Love, and Altruism

In his talk, Inamori discussed the word “love” as the idea of devoting ourselves to the good of society and others.

It is a form of unconditional love: giving without expecting something in return.

But importantly, Inamori argued that this altruistic spirit does not contradict the pursuit of profit in business.

In fact, the two can coexist.

This brings to mind the traditional Japanese principle of sanpō yoshi (三方よし):

Good for the seller. Good for the buyer. Good for society.

It is a way of thinking in which benefiting ourselves and benefiting others are not opposites.

Inamori therefore taught that even our ambitions and desires should be altruistic.

Competition between companies should not be about destroying the other side.

We compete and strive to improve because we have responsibilities—to our employees, our customers, our business partners, our shareholders, and ultimately society.

Seen from this perspective, competition itself can become a force for making society better.

There is nothing inherently wrong with wanting to grow a business.

The question is why we want to grow.

If our ambition is not to eliminate our competitors, but to build a healthy, successful company that can better serve its employees and customers, then that ambition can itself become altruistic.

And according to Inamori, there is no need to make such an ambition small.

Choosing to Grow Together

The nature of competition between companies is changing.

As the business environment evolves, sometimes our ability to adapt and thrive requires us to cooperate with others—even those we might traditionally consider competitors.

Competition and collaboration do not necessarily have to be opposites.

We can compete.

We can learn from one another.

And we can still work together when doing so serves a larger purpose.

So, when we hold our next conference in January, I think I’ll try inviting them again.

Perhaps they will say no again.

But that’s okay.

“Always do what is right as a human being.”

With this teaching from Kazuo Inamori in mind, let us continue moving forward with an altruistic spirit.

Our upcoming Compliance and Leadership Forum will be held on July 18, 2025, beginning at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time.