Shinkansen Effect: Method To Manage A Crisis

The Shinkansen effect, whose name comes from the famous Japanese “bullet train”, is a method for managing and resolving any type of crisis, whether industrial, professional, personal, sentimental or spiritual.

The Japanese developed the first high-speed train in history in the mid-twentieth century, after losing World War II and facing a severe crisis. The country is betting on a social and industrial transformation that led it to adopt a new mentality, known as the ” Japanese economic miracle”. This situation presupposed incredible economic growth, especially between the 1960s and 1980s. Let’s take a closer look at the Shinkansen effect .

The Japanese revolution and the dawn of the Shinkansen effect

Although the Japanese economic miracle began after the Second World War, it  was only in the early 1990s that the world began to really realize the phenomenon,  baptizing it as the Shinkansen effect.

To be exact, it was Jack Welch, former president and CEO of the North American company General Electric, who realized this phenomenon in 1993. In recent years, his company was going through a moment of severe crisis in which employees were implementing the law of minimum effort. For this reason, and after meeting Eiji Mikawa, the head of the General Electric branch in Tokyo, he began to apply new methods.

The Japanese branch performed far better than the parent company, and this was due to the mindset of  sacrifice and capacity for change that the Japanese employees displayed.

The Japanese governing council explained to the North American partner that  the country had radically changed its own in the 1960s,  when the government wanted to improve its rail network for the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games.

At this juncture, Mikawa explained that: if you want a train to increase its maximum speed by 10 km / h, it will be enough to add more horsepower to the engine; however, if you want it to go from 150 km / h to 300 km / h, you have to do a completely different project . In addition to generating the Shinkansen effect, this different mindset has been applied to numerous situations across the country.

Japanese revolution with the Shinkansen effect

The Shinkansen effect originates with the Japanese industrial revolution in the mid-20th century. Thanks to this new mentality, the country was able to develop the first bullet train, representing one of the greatest advances of the twentieth century in terms of transport.

Throughout our life, we go through  numerous personal changes.  Some of these involve small improvements and help us break free from bad habits. Others even allow us to initiate a transformation so radical that it starts a new life.

The Shinkansen effect teaches us that to achieve small improvements in our life, we can limit ourselves to making small changes. However, if we want a more radical transformation, we will be forced to change completely, from start to finish. Easy to say, but a little less to do, given that the resistance to change what generates some income, even if insufficient, can be many.

We can apply the  Shinkansen effect to members of a couple who, after numerous problems and discussions, realize that they cannot be together because they are unable to understand each other or find an agreement. Perhaps this is the right time to move to a completely different phase of their relationship, a phase of growth, in which to make new plans, modify some projects and abandon others.

It can also be applied to a professional difficulty or convalescence from a serious health problem. In these moments, it may be necessary to question your daily routine and apply changes to start living in a completely different way.

How to apply the Shinkansen effect?

Adopting a new mindset can be difficult, but not impossible. To begin, the goal will be to identify the area that requires change. After that, it is necessary to face the problem and become aware of which habits need a ‘revolution’ to try an innovative solution.

Finally, it  is always  convenient to seek the support of other people who have experienced a similar situation, as  well as that of friends and family who always support us in our choices. In this way, it will be possible to bring about a radical change in our life, leaving behind any serious problems and moving on to a new stage, as in a kind of rebirth.