---
title: "Kazuo Inamori: When the Economy Is Down Is the Best Time for Business Development"
description: "When the economy is in crisis and businesses are struggling, Kazuo Inamori, the saint of management in Japan, offers a different perspective: difficulties are opportunities, and the moment you think 'it's over' is actually the starting point for a new beginning. This article presents his full speech on how to turn crises into opportunities through perseverance and strong will."
author: "稻盛和夫"
publisher: "New Distribution"
email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com"
telephone: "+8615854817671"
published: "2015-10-13"
language: "en"
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original_source: "https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/6hZJ-qzTjLOMv_kEejDk-Q"
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---

# Kazuo Inamori: When the Economy Is Down Is the Best Time for Business Development

> When the economy is in crisis and businesses are struggling, Kazuo Inamori, the saint of management in Japan, offers a different perspective: difficulties are opportunities, and the moment you think 'it's over' is actually the starting point for a new beginning. This article presents his full speech on how to turn crises into opportunities through perseverance and strong will.

Black clouds press down on the city, threatening to destroy it! With stocks plummeting, economic crisis looming, and every enterprise operating under extreme difficulty, every boss is extra cautious, even abnormally pessimistic. But Kazuo Inamori, the saint of management in Japan who sparked a learning frenzy in China's business community, says:
Many times, we face difficulties that seem impossible to solve, like an insurmountable chasm. At such times, you might choose to give up and seek another path, but do you know that this difficulty that seems 'already hopeless' is actually the starting point for your new beginning?
Here is the full text of Kazuo Inamori's speech:
Hardship and difficulty are precisely opportunities—we should have this understanding.
Why?
Because suffering can educate people and promote their growth. On the contrary, people tend to make mistakes when everything is going smoothly.
For example, there are many highly successful business owners who, intoxicated by the wine of success, fall into arrogance, make mistakes, and end up losing their integrity in later years, causing the enterprises they painstakingly built to decline. Such cases are not uncommon.
Although the rise and fall of prosperity and decline is the norm in the world, heartbreaking tragedies still occur repeatedly, and abnormality seems to have become normal.
When encountering failure and hardship, one should not complain or blame heaven and others, but rather endure the test, persist in efforts, accumulate small but certain successes bit by bit, and finally turn adversity into prosperity.
In times of success and good fortune, one should not be arrogant or impatient, but maintain a sincere heart of gratitude, continue to work hard, and ensure long-term success. Both hardship and success are tests for us.
"Research projects that have already been started must achieve a 100% success rate!" This is my belief.
About 15 years after the founding of Kyocera, I was invited to give a speech on how to conduct research and development at a famous large enterprise, with an audience of over 200 researchers. They were all excellent talents usually engaged in high-tech development, many of whom held doctoral degrees.
After the speech, during the Q&A session, someone asked: "What is the success rate of Kyocera's R&D projects?"
When a project encounters insurmountable difficulties and you think 'it's already hopeless,' it is not the end but the starting point for a new beginning.
"All research projects that Kyocera undertakes must have a 100% success rate!" I answered.
After a burst of exclamations, someone immediately questioned: "What you said is unbelievable; it's impossible."
I then replied: "In Kyocera, R&D must continue until success. There are no cases that ended in failure." This answer immediately drew laughter from the entire audience.
However, I was serious. No matter what project, once started, it must be carried through to success. This persistent, strong belief, and the 'continuous power' of not stopping until the goal is achieved, are necessary conditions for success. I firmly believe this.
When a project encounters insurmountable difficulties and you think 'it's already hopeless,' it is not the end but the starting point for a new beginning. Before success, you must never give up, be unyielding, and persevere.
You must not set limits for yourself; you must be tireless and keep challenging. Only then can you turn 'crisis' into 'opportunity' and 'failure' into 'success.'
Hunting peoples, armed with spears or blowguns, carrying several days' worth of food and water at their waists, chase after prey to sustain their families, but capturing prey is not easy.
They must follow the animal's tracks, tracking day and night without rest, and after reaching the prey's lair, they must risk their lives to attack and kill it.
Then, they must carry the spoils, travel for days and nights over long distances, and return home to provide food for the waiting tribe members.
To survive in such harsh conditions, the most important thing is to have a will as strong as piercing through rock.
Once you set your sights on a target, you must continue the pursuit until you succeed, persevering and never giving up. This persistent heart is a strong will and an indispensable element for success.
"The moment you think 'it's already hopeless' is when the work truly begins"—this thought has taken deep root in Kyocera.
Even when work is pushed to the point where 'plans are exhausted and strategies are spent, with no way to think of a solution,' and you are forced to give up, it is not the end but the starting point for a second beginning. From here, you must enter the battle with even stronger will and more intense passion.
No matter what obstacles you encounter, you must pursue relentlessly and persist to the end—this tenacity of hunting peoples is indispensable when we need to achieve our goals. Hardship will not last forever, and of course, good fortune will not last forever either.
Do not be carried away when things go well, and do not be discouraged when things go badly. Working diligently every day is more important than anything else. In the tests of victory and setback, striving hard every day is itself nurturing the seeds of success.
**-END-**
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