There is a German proverb that says:

“There are so many trees that you can’t see the forest for the trees.”
If we blindly stick to just one or two small methods, we are likely to get lost in those small methods and miss the bigger picture—the change, growth, core principles, truth, consciousness growth, and humanity—that those methods point to.
If our goal is to live a meaningful, fulfilling, and authentic life, it's difficult to achieve it with just one or two methods.

In this book, I pursue a much more comprehensive approach.
Rather than focusing on how to plant one or two beautiful trees in life, we focus on creating a beautiful forest called life on a macro level.

--- p.18, from “Introduction”

Often, we just eliminate uncomfortable or threatening situations and say, “Phew! I’ve overcome it again!”
But even when we gain a moment of freedom from the problem, we don't know what to do next, so we can't take action and just wait for new problems to arise.
There's a strange secret here.
The thing is, as soon as you solve one problem, a new one inevitably arises.
We are so bored that we even deliberately create new problems and justify our existence by solving them, believing that solving them is the only way to feel worthy of our existence.
Eventually, you become a problem addict.
The negative motivation of "problem solving" will never create the drive to live a meaningful life.
In problem-solving orientation, happiness is devalued as a short-term relief gained through escape.
We often mistakenly believe that our lives are somehow happy as long as we are not mentally or physically distressed, but we become frustrated because we lack persistence in solving problems.
--- p.38, 「Principle 1.
From "Creation (rather than Problem Solving)"

When you explore with genuine curiosity, you gain knowledge, wisdom, ability, and skills, and your consciousness also increases.
These are the real assets we need to survive in life.
It goes without saying that if you know how to do a lot, you can accomplish a lot.
As your validity grows, you gain stability, money, recognition, wisdom, and reputation, and within that stability, you can explore more, re-engaging the entire virtuous cycle.
Curiosity is not a luxury for the wealthy; it is one of the secrets to living well.
The key to following this secret is to never stop exploring, following the 'right path' as ​​long as you want.
If you want to live a stable life, it should always start with curiosity and exploration, not stability.
--- p.87, 「Principle 4.
(From "Curiosity" rather than "The Right Path")

A good secret to introspection is to intuitively allow the unconscious to awaken without logically criticizing or deconstructing yourself.
Our lives are governed by principles, laws, and driving forces that are far more powerful and dynamic than reason.
The most effective self-observation is to ask questions intellectually and simply wait without attachment.
You can't force lofty enlightenment using forced logic and reason.
Many people, when they first begin meditation, think that they must come up with some answer.
In fact, it is not about thinking and coming up with an 'answer', but rather simply 'seeing' a truth that was not visible before.
Conclusions drawn rationally and forcibly are meaningless.
The truth is already the truth.
We're just figuring it out.
Write down your insights as they come to you with an open mind.
--- p.138, 「Preparation 2.
From “Self-Observation”

Because of conceptual misunderstandings, that is, low consciousness, we collectively create so much suffering, competition, and fighting.
If we are to cultivate a happier and more loving society, we need to improve the consciousness of each individual and revive our own divinity and humanity.
If my small efforts can shift the culture, even just a little, from ego-contraction to ego-expansion, if I can help people grow in consciousness and show them that life is not a struggle but a celebration, and if I can create a framework for people to freely pursue love, truth, exploration, play, beauty, and higher values—right or wrong, this is a meaning that excites my heart.

--- p.190, 「Pillar 2.
From “Establishing the Meaning of Life”

We don't live for the 'end,' for the weekend, for getting off work, for next year, for ten years from now, for achieving a goal, or for finishing something.
We live every moment.
That is, we live our lives when we sit in an office for eight hours, when we prepare coffee behind a cafe counter, when we meet with clients, and when we realize a project according to our own ego-expanding standards.
The values, purposes, goals, strategies, and actions of self-expanding standards do not guide us to a brighter future, but rather enable us to live fully in the present moment, in whatever form that may take.
Action is not a sacrifice that causes disgust.
Action is life itself.
Life isn't just about results.
The 'meaningful life' defined in this book does not refer to short, intense, thrilling moments.
Goals are simply a means to an end to fully enjoying the present moment.
The real meaning is 'how do you spend this moment?'
If you want to live a meaningful life, you must view your goals and your process as a whole.
In other words, we must not be obsessed with the goal, but rather accept the process itself as our life.
--- p.250, 「Execution 2.
From "Action"

What I learned while majoring in business administration is that 'the purpose of business is to maximize profits.'
The underlying meaning of profit maximization is to produce as much value as possible and make as much profit as possible.
However, the direction of that purpose is often misunderstood as 'making as much money as possible'.
The blind spot of this is that, in the value structure explained above, money is merely a means, but the means becomes the end, overlooking or missing the core of value creation.

When your only goal is to make a lot of money, it's pointless to ask, "How can I make money?"
This is a question like 'how do you acquire the means?'
If you neglect value and only pursue the means, you have missed the essence of money.
--- p.297, 「Execution 5.
Among "Money"

Although we often make light preparations with the intention of achieving a certain purpose, goal, or outcome, we are often hesitant to act when the moment comes.
That doesn't mean we experience real monsters, evil spirits, high mountains, mazes, and dark forests like heroes.
We probably won't be slaying dragons or fighting wizards on top of volcanoes in our daily lives.
The enemies we face in real life are emotional resistance, fear, anxiety, compulsions, impulses, addictions, laziness, procrastination, low self-esteem, victim mentality, self-doubt, perfectionism, nihilism, depression, apathy, pain, self-punishment, lack of persistence, negative stereotypes, and internal defense and protection mechanisms.
These internal obstacles are reactions we create because we don't want to change, and they block our own actions.
This is the dragon we must face.
Only by letting go of or eradicating them one by one can we overcome the final hurdle and be reborn as a new, freer 'me'.

--- p.314, from “Obstacles, Traps, and Adversity: Why We Don’t Act”

This is why the declaration, "I will live confidently starting tomorrow!" is ineffective.
If I present myself as a shy loser, the chances of me suddenly becoming confident tomorrow are not very high.
Even if you try obsessively for three days, you will fail.
If you resolve to become a different person from this very moment, can you change instantly? Can a naive and timid person suddenly make a 180-degree turn, acting confidently and without hesitation? Of course, you can dream of becoming that kind of person, but because you're not that kind of person right now, you'll likely fail repeatedly.
It is not easy to overcome an ego that has been hardened over decades with naive 'will'.

This is self-survival.
For better or worse, I can't let go of 'me' so easily.
This dynamic of self-survival continually creates obstacles in our lives, making it difficult for us to change.
That is, even if we try to live a full life, the ego that was established when we were five or ten years old does not allow us to do so.
--- p.327, from “What is the Self”

Unfortunately, we are somewhat obsessed with self-improvement, even without reading any self-help books.
Because of that, I waste my efforts and pursue various ideals under the illusion that growing up and becoming a better and greater person will strengthen my ego and justify my existence.
Rather than setting goals with genuine meaning, we obsessively try to prove our ego in the hope that those goals will make us special and superior.
--- p.335, from “What is the Self”

Every time we try to realize the ideals we have created in the real world, the same ego does not allow it.
The 'ideal-deficiency-ideal-deficiency' cycle is nothing more than a delusion and fantasy of my own self that exists only in my head.
You may be emotionally struggling and think you've accomplished something, but in reality, you're just running through a cycle of suffering you've created in your head without actually taking action.

The ego does not want change.
It's all about reinforcing yourself with a conceptual cycle.
“I wanted to work hard, but I still feel inadequate.” The role of the above is not to grow, but to maintain my own (inadequate) belief structure.
Compulsion usually prevents action.

--- p.347, 「Obstacle 1.
From “Obsession and Ideal”

The list of reasons for not taking action is long.
We search through various dimensions, people, situations, and eras, piling up various 'victim layers'.
So every day, they try to justify their inaction with different explanations.
Victim mentality is the consciousness that sees oneself as a victim of others or the outside world.
The creativity of excuses is endless.
He argues that everything external to us, from our parents to the climate, noise, bad memories, and the education system, is hindering our growth.
The victim mentality is a brilliant self-survival strategy.
Those who do not shy away from hardships embark on a lifelong journey of struggling with their own shortcomings, while victims sit comfortably behind the "mask of the weak" and simply point fingers.

--- p.415, 「Obstacle 5.
From “Victim mentality”

The truth is this.
When you create something, its quality does not depend on the pain you feel during the production process.
Whether you do something hard or easy, the result is the result.
The results I create don't care whether I made them painfully or joyfully.
Likewise, it is an irrelevant factor to the person who checks or uses the results.
Just because I work hard doesn't mean my customers and boss are more satisfied.
I don't think others will think I'm more valuable because I live in pain.
It's only me who thinks that way because I'm crazy about my personal values.
The price is 'giving up happiness'.

I get asked this question sometimes.

“Coach, one book tells you to work hard through discipline, and another tells you to accept it and go with the flow. Which one is more helpful?”
Neither of these will help! Only our purpose will tell us the right course of action.
Our purpose determines our actions.

--- p.495, 「Obstacle 10.
Among the two most dangerous stereotypes in our society