example, Elon Musk resolved to undertake what was in many people’s view the “crazy idea” of building rockets capable of taking off and landing; with his private company Space X he duly accomplished in less than ten years something that NASA had not managed to do in over fifty years of research and development.
Elon Musk has also designed the hyperloop, a land transport system that could reach speeds of 1200 km/h and, as a personal bullet train objective, he aims to send the first human to Mars. Will he accomplish it?
And what about you? In which area of your life do you want to apply the Shinkansen effect?
Set Your First Shinkansen Objective
For a dream or aspiration to deserve this label, it has to be seemingly impossible to achieve. If you feel you can achieve it relatively easily, it cannot be classed as a “bullet train objective.”
Visualizing seemingly impossible goals helps you to think laterally and to get rid of old ideas or processes.
Don’t be scared to write down your Shinkansen objectives.
Do you want to fly your own helicopter? Write it down.
Do you want to travel to Alaska and see the aurora borealis? Write it down.
Do you want your family business sales to triple? Write it down.
Do you want to direct a film? Write it down.
We insist on the writing it down part because the first step to achieving a personal milestone is as simple as writing it down.
Get started now:
My number 1 Shinkansen objective is:
Of course, just writing something down is not going to make it happen. Next, write down ten initiatives you will undertake to make it easier for you to accomplish your first bullet train objective. State the action, how you will do it and when you will start:
What you will do How you will do it When you will do it
1. —————————————————————————––––––
2. —————————————————————————––––––
3. —————————————————————————––––––
4. —————————————————————————––––––
5. —————————————————————————––––––
6. —————————————————————————––––––
7. —————————————————————————––––––
8. —————————————————————————––––––
9. —————————————————————————––––––
10.—————————————————————————––––––
For example, if my number 1 shinkansen objective is to give a speech in front of a thousand people, my action list could be as follows: buy books on how to speak in public, meet speakers who can give me advice, watch YouTube videos of speakers I admire, record myself practicing on camera and watch myself on the computer screen, prepare a simple talk for some local event with a small audience as practice, join a public speaking course, enroll in theater classes to overcome stage fright…
The Uruguayan coach Mario Reyes recommends specifying what we will do in each one of these actions, how we will do it and when we will start. For example:
| What you will do | How you will do it | When you will do it |
| Read books about | Ask for guidance in a | Tomorrow at 2.30 pm |
| public speaking | specialized bookshop | on my work break |
Once you have specified the ten actions, each one of them with its what, how and when, sign below this sheet, making a binding commitment to yourself and put it someplace you can see it during your daily routine.
Once signed, there is no turning back.
The bullet train will have started rolling.
Notes
* From the book Jack Welch speaks: Wit and Wisdom from the World’s Greatest Business Leader.
2nd STATION
MOUNT FUJI
Stretching the boundaries
Our train stops at the peaceful town of Mishima, which announces the upcoming view of Mount Fuji. Will the mountain most revered by the Japanese be visible today, or will it be hidden behind a curtain of mist?
Expert travelers ask for a seat “on the Mount Fuji side” when they book a Shinkansen ticket from Tokyo to Kyoto, or vice versa. From these seats they wait impatiently for the imposing spirit-mountain to reveal itself in all its splendor.
However, if the day is not entirely clear, the bullet train will pass within touching distance of this dreamed-about place without our managing to see it. Mount Fuji is always there, as are all the great objectives in our life, but sometimes the worldly mists make them invisible to us.
The Mountain of Immortality
The first written reference to Mount Fuji known to us appears in a tenth century tale. The central character is a young girl named Kaguya, who came from the moon and had rejected the emperor’s marriage proposal. One August night, under a full moon, a great light absorbed Kaguya and the Moon people took her back home. The emperor, who was still in love, wrote a letter to the girl and ordered an army of men to take his words to the summit of Mount Fushi (不, “without,” 死, “death”), the closest place to the moon known to the ancient Japanese.
When the soldiers reached the summit, they burned the letter in the hope that the smoke would reach the Moon and the emperor’s words could be read by Kaguya. Along with the letter, they also burned the elixir of immortality, since the emperor did not wish to live forever.
The word fushi means “without death” or “immortal.” With the passing of time, the pronunciation evolved into fuji (富, “full of, wealth,” 士, “soldier”),
