Jiro Ono's Lessons: How to Achieve a Breakthrough in Your Profession

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Jiro Ono is an acknowledged master of sushi, a true professional in his field. With Japanese methodology, he honed his skills for decades and achieved amazing heights. And he really has a lot to learn.

In 2011, the documentary "Jiro's Dreams of Sushi" was released, which told about the life of 85-year-old sushi master Jirō Ono and how throughout his life, like water wears away a stone, Jiro achieved the highest level of skill in their profession.

Jiro is considered the best sushi master of all time. Three Michelin stars. In 2014, US President Barack Obama and Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo dined at his establishment. His restaurant has only 10 seats, and those who want to try Jiro's sushi have to sign up several months in advance. Yes, that's pretty damn good sushi. Possibly the best sushi on the planet.

It took Jiro 85 years to achieve universal recognition, during which he daily, step by step, honed his skills.

I do the same thing over and over again, improving piece by piece. Jiro Ono

So how did he do it? There must be some secret, something that made Jiro's work famous all over the world. Film critic Roger Ebert's subtle observation has helped us uncover this mystery - "tunnel vision," as he calls it.

Behind his counter, Jiro notices details. Some visitors are right-handed, some are left-handed. This helps determine where they will sit.

When he serves the perfect piece of sushi, he watches as it is eaten. He knows the history of every seafood. He knows the material he is working with. For example, that an octopus needs to be processed for 45 minutes, no more and no less. He looks for a response in the eyes of the visitor. Did he like it? Should I change something?

Realize the tragedy of Jiro Ono's life: he does not and never will have four stars.

This is a man who was obsessed not with money, not with power, not with fame, but with a perfect piece of sushi.

If Jiro listened to the opinion of the majority, he could choose one of many other, easier paths. But Jiro's path was not well trodden. It has been the journey of a persistent quest for high quality. Jiro narrowed his focus like a camera lens directs a beam of light to a single point.

Take a look again at Roger Ibert's description. Jiro notices details, even minor ones, such as a left-handed or right-handed visitor. He serves. He's watching. He knows the history of each product, but is constantly looking for more. He makes a difference in the way he cooks. He looks for a response in the eyes of the visitor. Looks to see if he liked the improvement. These are the hallmarks of true mastery.

Observation

Do you want to become a professional? Learn to observe. For development, it is necessary to receive feedback.

Jiro made small observations all the time: what hand the visitor has, how he reacts to the dish, how he eats. Jiro was constantly gathering this kind of feedback. Unlike common marketing surveys, this is not an indifferent questionnaire filling. This is communication of a deeper level.

Jiro doesn't speak very much throughout the film and most likely speaks even less in real life. But nevertheless, he is constantly exchanging information. The communication between him and the visitors is the lifeblood that helps him move on and gives him a stream of responses that he can continue to use indefinitely.

He doesn't speak, but, like a stand-up comedian, he tests how the same material can be presented in different ways. His decision to process the octopus 15 minutes longer was a deliberate experiment. The quality search process is actually very similar to tuning a radio receiver. And Jiro always checks to see if a cleaner signal can be achieved.

The study

Sushi in Japan has a long history, to put it mildly. Becoming an established sushi master in Tokyo is like being the best programmer in Silicon Valley. To be recognized as the best of the best, you need to really be able to surprise.

Feedback isn't just about customers. It also applies to history.

For a sushi master, the first place is the pursuit of quality. The irony is that the pursuit of quality has no upper limit. In addition, no matter how high you climb, even to the upper layer of the earth's atmosphere, the further you go, the more and more difficult it is to get higher.

Because when you go beyond the known limits of quality, you are faced with difficulties that no one else has overcome before you. It is literally an unexplored country.

Thus, there are several paths you can take. Based on the discoveries of your predecessors, try to go beyond them, to where no one has been. Or analyze everything that has been achieved by predecessors and try to do something exactly the opposite. By itself, no decision will be wrong.

To achieve a high level of quality, you can start with a clean slate and go through your own trial and error. But why not save time and see what and why the masters of their craft did before you? Then you can decide what to take from them and what to leave.

Repetition

Repetition is critical to quality. All professionals go through an endless cycle of trial and error to improve their creations. Repetition resembles practice, and only during practice the initial skills are formed and improved. But the purpose of repetition is somewhat different - discoveries and experiments.

The significance of the repetition process does not end there. It teaches you to think methodically. This makes any professional activity related to science. Yes, all modern science is built on repetition: first thoroughly testing, and then observing the results.

Design

Understanding your own intention is critical to the repetition process. Jiro formulated his goal as follows: "I will not rest until I deliver you the most perfect piece of sushi on the planet."