Japanese leadership involves genuine mutual obligation, not one-way command. Those in authority owe care, protection, guidance, and investment to those they lead. Those who follow owe respect, effort, loyalty, and appropriate deference.
These obligations bind both directions and carry moral weight. A leader who neglects subordinates’ welfare or development has failed fundamentally, whatever else they accomplish. A subordinate who disrespects a leader fulfilling their obligations violates basic expectations. You honor those who have invested in you by becoming someone who reflects well on their guidance.
Your leader depends on you just as you depend on them. These relationships are not transactions to be optimized but bonds to be honored.
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