[TwoyearsagoIpublishedamemoirfromKodanshaGendaiShinshoThereasonforchoosingthesubtitle“SouvenirofaformerambassadortotheUnitedStates”is

Looking back, I realize that I have made many mistakes. The idea for writing this memoir came about when I had a conversation with Daisuke Kondo, a friend at Kodansha who has written many books related to China, and he asked me if I would like to publish a book. When I asked him if he could tell me about his failures, he said that was fine. That’s when I decided to write my first book.

The book is structured into three parts.

In Part 1, I wrote that I didn’t take any entrance exams and spent my high school days absentmindedly, so I should start thinking about my future as soon as possible. This is a counterargument to the advice that when you’re young, you should just focus on what’s in front of you. I also wrote that being involved in club activities and clubs even though I entered a university with a good study environment is like going to a Michelin-starred restaurant and only eating bento at a convenience store.

The second part is about my failures after joining the organization. He kept repeating his mistakes from when he was in his first year until he became an executive. He went on business trips abroad without doing his homework, prepared to visit important people without researching precedents, and took matters into his own hands without reporting them to his superiors, leading to him getting into trouble. I wrote one by one, giving examples and telling them that they shouldn’t make mistakes like this. In large organizations, there are many people who are good at what they do, and people who make a lot of mistakes are not valued. My career has not been smooth sailing either. As I mentioned in this “Talking Portrait,” there were many ups and downs. When I spoke with my boss when I was younger, he frankly told me, “I never thought you’d become ambassador to the United States.” I was a little disappointed, but when I thought about it, it was probably the majority’s point of view. When I was young, I never thought that I would become a senior official in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

He frankly wrote that in today’s world, people don’t get recognition, but in order to be recognized among many colleagues, it takes talent or hard work that is different from others. He also said that instead of repeating what others have said or written, it is important to think about it again for yourself. For example, he questioned Naval Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto’s opposition to the war and Saburo Shiroyama’s portrayal of Prime Minister Hirota Hirota. I once met a young man who wanted to join the Ministry of Foreign Affairs after reading Shiroyama’s “The Setting Sun Burns.” I think historical writers often draw too clear a line between talented and talented people when portraying people in order to make it more interesting. There are times when many people are admirable and times when they are not. That’s why I wrote that it’s dangerous to develop your brain by reading just one historical novel.

In Part 3, I wrote about how to interact with the international community and how I struggled to learn English. I also wrote about specific study methods and how to interact with foreigners. For example, some people admire the way Americans express affection and praise their relatives, but I also wrote that I honestly think that this is just a habit and that we shouldn’t take it too seriously.

《What kind of book do you have in mind》

I like memoirs and biographies and have read a lot of them, but what I didn’t really like were the stories that boasted about how they were the only one who could see through the problem or that it was actually me who did it. I get fed up with it. It’s interesting to see people talking frankly about their weaknesses. For example, “A Diplomat’s Life” (Chukou Bunko) by Ishitaro Ishiya, a prewar diplomat. So my memoir is a candid account of my failures. In the end, I will not be talking about my personal journey, but as I have said, I will be giving advice to students, advice to organizations not to follow in my footsteps, and how to interact with the international community. I decided to combine these three things into one book.

I came up with the title “There’s still time” as a common theme. One person said, “Considering the readership, it would have been better to make each book a separate book.It became a bit of a Makunouchi lunch box.” I intended this book to be my last souvenir.

I asked YOSHIKI, an old friend of X JAPAN, and creative director Kashiwa Sato to create the obi for the book. They kindly accepted my request. Most people say, “The obi is amazing,” before opening the book. I was told that she was wearing a Nishijin sash over her yukata. (Interviewer: Yasuo Naito)