The Japan Business Mastery Show Podcast Por Dr. Greg Story arte de portada

The Japan Business Mastery Show

The Japan Business Mastery Show

De: Dr. Greg Story
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For busy people, we have focused on just the key things you need to know. To be successful in business in Japan you need to know how to lead, sell and persuade. This is what we cover in the show. No matter what the issue you will get hints, information, experience and insights into securing the necessary solutions required. Everything in the show is based on real world perspectives, with a strong emphasis on offering practical steps you can take to succeed.Copyright 2022 Economía Gestión y Liderazgo Liderazgo
Episodios
  • 270 Why Salespeople Can’t Wait for Marketing

    270 Why Salespeople Can’t Wait for Marketing
    Oct 2 2025
    Marketing plays a vital role in generating leads—through SEO campaigns, databases, white papers, and ads. But for salespeople, relying solely on marketing is a recipe for starvation. In Japan, where competition is fierce and decision-makers are shielded by layers of formality, sales professionals must take control of their own destiny. Success doesn’t come from waiting—it comes from disciplined activity, persistence, and a clear understanding of the numbers that drive results. Why can’t salespeople rely on marketing for leads? Marketing is powerful, but from a sales perspective it’s never enough. Even at major firms like Salesforce or Oracle, marketing produces part of the pipeline but never all of it. Salespeople who sit back and wait risk missing targets and losing control of their income. In Japan, where long sales cycles are common, the risk is even greater. To succeed, sales professionals must generate their own opportunities through proactive outreach. Mini-summary: Marketing supports the pipeline, but salespeople must generate their own leads to survive and thrive. What are KAIs, and why are they critical? KAIs—Key Activity Indicators—make sales measurable and predictable. If the average sale is one million yen and the annual target is thirty million, KAIs reveal exactly how many meetings, conversations, and calls are needed to get there. Yet many salespeople in Japan drift without this clarity. Without KAIs, sales feels like guesswork. With KAIs, it becomes a roadmap. Just as CFOs at firms like Hitachi or Sony use KPIs to track financial health, sales teams must rely on KAIs to ensure progress. Mini-summary: KAIs provide the roadmap for sales success, replacing drift with discipline and accountability. How can Japanese salespeople generate their own pipeline? Control comes from disciplined prospecting. That means cold calling, re-engaging past clients, and attending networking events. Salespeople know what an ideal client looks like, so they can aim directly at those prospects. In Japan, a single client win can open doors to competitors. For example, if you’ve helped one hotel chain, you can leverage that case study with others in the industry. This strategy is a proven way to multiply success across a sector. Mini-summary: Proactive prospecting and leveraging client wins create momentum and multiply opportunities in Japan. Why is cold calling in Japan so difficult—and how can salespeople break through? Cold calling is tough everywhere, but in Japan it’s brutal. Receptionists—the so-called “call killers”—are highly trained to screen out salespeople. They politely ask who you are, why you’re calling, and then promise to call back… but rarely do. Most salespeople quit at this stage. Winners persist. A script that works is: “We’ve been helping your direct competitors achieve strong results. Maybe we could do the same for you. Could I speak with your sales manager to explore this?” Then call back, again and again, until you connect. Persistence separates the successful from the average. Mini-summary: Cold calling in Japan is tough, but persistence, smart scripts, and discipline break through the “call killer” barrier. How does discipline turn prospecting into a habit? The biggest secret is treating lead generation like a client meeting. Salespeople would never cancel on a customer, but they cancel on themselves all the time. Prospecting time gets pushed aside for “urgent” tasks. The discipline is to block it in the calendar, defend it, and stick with it. At companies like IBM Japan and Panasonic, top salespeople treat prospecting as sacred time. Discipline turns cold calling from dreaded drudgery into predictable pipeline-building. Mini-summary: Protect prospecting time like a client meeting—discipline creates consistency and control. What mindset should salespeople adopt to succeed? Sales is about control. If you leave your future to marketing, you surrender your income to someone else’s performance. But if you generate your own leads, you own your future. In Japan, where rejection is constant, persistence and mindset matter most. Every call is one step closer to a meeting, and every meeting is one step closer to a deal. Success belongs to those who decide to control their pipeline instead of waiting for it to be filled for them. Mini-summary: A proactive, persistent mindset puts salespeople in control of their pipeline, income, and future. Marketing is a valuable ally, but it will never deliver enough leads on its own. Salespeople in Japan and worldwide must take control by knowing their KAIs, generating their own pipeline, breaking through gatekeepers, and protecting prospecting time with discipline. Persistence, smart strategies, and the right mindset separate those who wait for success from those who create it. In 2025, the path is clear: sales professionals who take ownership of lead generation will control not just their ...
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    8 m
  • 269 The Silent Killer of Leadership: Poor Listening

    269 The Silent Killer of Leadership: Poor Listening
    Sep 25 2025
    Dynamic leaders get results. They are resourceful, relentless, and often admired for their energy. But their very drive can hide a fatal weakness: poor listening. In Japan, where leaders must push hard against resistance to get things done, the risk of steamrolling staff and clients is even higher. The result is lost opportunities, frustrated teams, and organisations where only the boss’s voice is heard. Real leadership is not just about vision and energy—it’s about creating space for others to contribute. That begins with listening. Why do dynamic leaders struggle with listening? Ambitious leaders are trained to act decisively. In meetings, they often dominate the airspace with passion and ideas, leaving little room for others. This urgency is magnified in Japan, where leaders battle entrenched bureaucracy and cultural resistance to change. Over time, the habit of “push, push, push” becomes ingrained. The cost? Missed signals. Clients drop hints. Staff offer clues. But if no one listens, those opportunities vanish. Mini-summary: Energetic leaders often talk too much, missing signals from clients and staff that could unlock opportunities. How is poor listening especially damaging in Japan? Japan’s business culture prizes harmony and subtlety. Signals are rarely delivered bluntly; they come in hints, pauses, and indirect language. Leaders who don’t listen carefully fail to catch these cues. Staff then disengage, and clients feel misunderstood. Over time, organisations develop a culture where employees stop contributing because they expect the boss to decide everything. This “player-manager” dynamic is already widespread in Japan, reinforcing silence instead of dialogue. Mini-summary: In Japan’s subtle communication culture, poor listening destroys trust and creates passive, disengaged teams. What’s the link between sales and leadership listening? In sales, we say “selling isn’t telling.” The same applies to leadership. Leaders are always selling—whether it’s vision, culture, or strategy. But when they dominate every discussion, they don’t persuade; they bulldoze. People may nod along, but as the saying goes, “A man convinced against his will is of the same conviction still.” Leaders who mistake compliance for commitment are fooling themselves. True persuasion requires dialogue, mutual respect, and listening. Mini-summary: Leadership is persuasion, and persuasion requires listening—not monologues. How can leaders build trust by listening consistently? Listening isn’t a one-off event. Staff need to see leaders ask questions repeatedly before they believe their voices matter. And when employees share ideas, the leader’s reaction determines future engagement. Dismissing contributions slams the door shut. Encouraging them opens it wider. Over time, consistent listening creates psychological safety—a culture where employees feel their opinions are valued. In Japan, this consistency is crucial to break the habit of waiting silently for the boss to decide everything. Mini-summary: Consistent listening, encouragement, and respect build trust and transform passive staff into active contributors. What practical steps can leaders take to improve listening? The first step is to slow down. Stop filling the silence. Ask thoughtful questions, then resist the urge to jump in with solutions. Use eye contact and silence to show attention. Acknowledge contributions without immediate judgment. Leaders should also check their own self-awareness. Are they dominating meetings? Are staff shutting down? Like in sales training, practice matters: role-playing, coaching, and feedback can sharpen listening skills. Dale Carnegie’s leadership programs in Tokyo focus specifically on these habits, helping leaders replace monologues with real dialogue. Mini-summary: Slow down, ask, listen, and encourage—habits that can be strengthened with deliberate practice and training. What balance must leaders strike between drive and inclusiveness? Drive alone moves projects forward, but it doesn’t build commitment. Listening alone creates harmony, but without direction results stall. Effective leaders balance both. They empower rather than overpower. They multiply their own energy by combining it with the insights of others. In Japan, where projects demand persistence, this balance is especially vital. Leaders who only push create passive order-takers. Leaders who also listen create allies—staff who feel engaged and clients who feel understood. Mini-summary: Great leaders balance dynamism with inclusiveness, gaining allies instead of silent resisters. The silent killer of leadership is poor listening. In Japan and globally, too many dynamic leaders undermine themselves by talking more than they listen. The fix is deceptively simple: ask questions, listen consistently, and encourage contributions. Listening doesn’t weaken leadership—it strengthens it. It builds trust, ...
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    8 m
  • 268 How to Balance Relaxed Style with Professional Authority

    268 How to Balance Relaxed Style with Professional Authority
    Sep 18 2025
    Introduction We’re often told that presentations should feel like chatting with a friend—relaxed, natural, and conversational. That sounds appealing, but does it really convince a CEO in a Tokyo boardroom? Will a casual tone carry weight with industry experts or win over a cautious client? The truth is, a one-size-fits-all “chatty” approach is risky. In Japan, where formality and credibility remain essential in business, presenters must strike a balance: relaxed enough to engage, but professional enough to earn authority. Why can a conversational style backfire in business presentations? A conversational style can work in casual contexts, but in high-stakes business settings it often undermines credibility. Imagine presenting to the executive committee of a multinational like Toyota or Rakuten. Go too casual, and leaders may conclude you aren’t serious. Japanese clients in particular interpret excessive informality as disrespect. While warmth and natural delivery are important, professionalism must remain the anchor. In business, you’re not simply sharing ideas—you’re signalling competence, respect, and authority. Mini-summary: Relaxed delivery alone risks damaging credibility; Japanese business audiences expect professionalism at the core. How should presenters tailor their style to different audiences? The key is tailoring. Use too much jargon, and non-experts will be lost. Simplify too much, and specialists will feel patronised. Executives often want clarity and actionable insights without drowning in detail, while technical experts demand precision and depth. In Japan, tailoring is also cultural—hierarchical audiences require more formality than peer-level discussions. The bridge between conversational and professional delivery is knowing what level of detail and tone will make each audience feel respected and included. Mini-summary: Success comes from matching tone and depth to the audience’s expectations, knowledge, and culture. What techniques help combine professionalism with engagement? Professional doesn’t mean boring. Presenters can bring energy through vocal variety—powering in and powering out to highlight key points. Natural gestures reinforce words, and steady eye contact builds trust. Storytelling, especially when drawing on personal successes and failures, creates authenticity. Japanese audiences, like those elsewhere, appreciate vulnerability blended with authority. These techniques give structure and credibility without stiffness. The audience doesn’t just hear information—they feel it, remember it, and are more likely to act. Mini-summary: Energy, stories, gestures, and eye contact create engagement without sacrificing professionalism. How can evidence be presented persuasively without losing the audience? Persuasion requires evidence, but raw numbers rarely stick. The solution is layering data with vivid comparisons. For example, instead of saying “1,000 metres,” frame it as “ten football fields.” A massive volume becomes “an Olympic swimming pool.” This technique transforms abstract data into something instantly visual. Global companies like Microsoft and Hitachi use these methods in Japan to make presentations resonate across diverse audiences. When evidence is paired with imagery, logic with testimonials, facts with examples, the argument becomes both credible and memorable. Mini-summary: Pair data with vivid comparisons to make evidence persuasive, memorable, and audience-friendly. What role does inspiration and energy play in presentations? When the goal is to inspire action, energy is non-negotiable. If the presenter isn’t passionate, why should the audience be? Word pictures—describing a future where adopting your idea leads to market share growth or operational efficiency—make abstract gains concrete. In Japan, where business leaders are cautious decision-makers, showing both vision and bottom-line impact is critical. Energised delivery motivates executives, while clear business benefits convince them to move forward. Mini-summary: Energy and vivid imagery inspire Japanese audiences to see both vision and bottom-line benefits. How does clarity of purpose determine the right balance? The first decision in any presentation isn’t about slides—it’s about purpose. Are you aiming to inform, persuade, inspire, or entertain? Each requires a different style. Information-heavy sessions can lean conversational but must be precise. Persuasion requires structured evidence. Inspiration demands energy and vision. Entertainment allows more humour and informality. Without clarity of purpose, style and delivery will be mismatched to audience needs. In Japan’s formal business culture, aligning purpose with delivery is what makes presentations credible, memorable, and impactful. Mini-summary: Decide whether to inform, persuade, inspire, or entertain—this choice drives every delivery decision. Conclusion Presentation ...
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    8 m
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