If I have a strength, it’s that I don’t love volleyball or my teammates as much as everyone else here３

 

“I come from a volleyball family. Both my parents, my older brother, and my older sister all graduated from prestigious schools. Naturally, I started playing volleyball too, thinking I would become a player who could shine on the world stage…

I was blessed with a good physique and was skilled, so I enjoyed playing. Without hesitation, I joined the top team in the prefecture for middle school…

I want to get better. I want to score spikes. I want to serve aces. I want to make great saves…

Volleyball is all connected. My mistakes are my teammates’ mistakes. Don’t make mistakes. Don’t make mistakes. I don’t want to lose. I don’t want to lose…

‘Ah~ I really have no talent…’

‘You just had a bad day, that’s all.’

‘Akira-kun, you haven’t been in good form lately, huh?’

‘He said he’s in a slump.’

What’s the excuse for being in a slump? There’s only one reason for not getting results. I didn’t work hard enough. I slacked off somewhere. I gave up…

I’m bad at it. They’re not bad people at all, yet I struggle with my teammates. It’s strange to be uncomfortable with your own team. Besides, blaming others is something weak people do. If I just do my job properly, it’ll be fine. If I get stronger, it’ll be fine. If I…

‘Sorry.’

‘Huh? What for?’

‘I couldn’t block that last one.’

‘It was one of those shots that couldn’t be helped.’

But at least I could have narrowed down the angle. There were more chances for me to score anyway…

Volleyball is all connected. I get frustrated with my own mistakes. I get frustrated with mistakes that are connected. These hands are no good. These hands that make mistakes are the problem…

‘What the hell are you doing, man?!’

‘…I might not really like volleyball that much after all.’

‘…Then why don’t you just quit? It’s not like you’ll die if you stop. Even if you quit, the strong muscles you’ve built won’t disappear so easily.’

‘Muscles…?’

‘Maybe you’re just full of volleyball right now. You’ve been going at it so hard, after all.’

…Full…

This is from Hirugami’s flashback in ‘Haikyuu.’

This week’s ‘Haikyuu’ really struck me. I realized this could apply to things beyond just volleyball—being full…

 

 

A company is a community where you work and produce results.

But there are other communities beyond work.

…Family, friends, hobbies, etc…

These are different from the work community.

What is expected in a company is to produce results.

It’s not about getting along with everyone.

Of course, good communication is necessary to keep work running smoothly.

But many people are still haunted by the curse in their minds that they must get along in the work community, as if it were a family or a group of friends.

There is an interesting study conducted by Oxford University.

The research team divided participants into three groups based on their work behavior and then conducted follow-up studies.

  1. The group who does what they love as work.

  2. The group who works passionately.

  3. The group who separates work from personal life.

The results of the follow-up studies showed that the group who separated work from personal life was the most successful in their jobs.

You might think that the groups who love their work or are passionate about it would perform better, but the reality was different.

Moreover, the group who separated work from personal life improved faster in their tasks and was less likely to quit their jobs.

It’s important not to mix your work community with your personal communities.

  • Acting like it’s a family at work.

  • Acting like work is a family at home.

This kind of mixing is at the root of all interpersonal problems.

If you ever come across a company that claims to be ‘like a family’ or ‘a homey environment,’ it’s best to stay away.

This is also why organizations collapse.

Wanting someone to confide in. Wanting someone to talk to honestly. Wanting someone to see the real you.

It’s natural to have these feelings.

But don’t seek these feelings in your work community.

Instead, satisfy these needs within your family, friends, and hobbies.

As long as you belong to a company, you will be evaluated by your superiors.

If you go independent, you won’t be evaluated by superiors anymore, but you will be evaluated by society.

The risk is significantly higher, and if you can’t gain society’s approval, you won’t be able to earn your salary.

Just as you switch on and off between work and personal life, you should also switch your mindset in different communities.

Many people treat the work community and the personal community as the same thing.

This is causing a lot of people to suffer.

 

 

‘When I was feeling down, Kourai-kun told me to just quit, and I thought, yeah, that makes sense.’

…Just quit? That makes sense?…

‘Well, if you really quit, there will be some complications, but thinking that you can always quit made my perspective clear. So I decided to keep going for a bit longer.’

I thought I should love volleyball. That it should be at the center of my life, like it is for my siblings. But I can’t go any further in volleyball from here. I can’t be like my siblings or Kourai-kun. If I have a strength, it’s that I don’t love volleyball or my teammates as much as everyone else.’

These are Hirugami’s words and thoughts from ‘Haikyuu.'”