Yokoi Kenji: "Discipline will, sooner or later, overcome intelligence."
Yokoi Kenji, "the Chinese of the video", developed an unforgettable presentation on the myths and truths about Japanese culture that "block the progressive mindset of Latinos".
The Colombian speaker of Japanese origin, Yokoi Kenji, spoke years ago about one of the myths that has been believed for many years, which is that Japanese people are a superior race and are smarter than Latinos. He exemplified this with Colombian customs, a large part of the idiosyncrasy of Latin Americans in general. However, what he marks as the great difference between these two cultures is the value of discipline.
Are Japanese People Smarter?
Transcript of Yokoi Kenji's presentation
In Japanese, it is said: "To be unaware of a truth makes me a slave to a lie". Or that knowing a half-truth is a double lie, or that "you will know the truth and the truth will set you free". There are many phrases about truth. You cannot imagine the amount of myths and lies that Latin Americans have about a country called Japan... and that is my job in Latin America. To dismantle those myths that block the progressive mindset of Latinos.
Every day we say myths. We say "the Sun rises", but the Sun does not rise, we revolve around the Sun, which is different. "The clothes fit me small", no, the clothes do not fit you small, you are gaining weight, which is different. I grew up with a not very harmful myth, those are not harmful. "-Are you Chinese?, they ask me. -Not Chinese, Japanese. China and Japan are different in language, culture, everything is different. -Ahhh -they say to me- and do you speak Chinese?... -Japanese, because I am Japanese. -Ahh right, right, yes, but you fight like the Chinese..."
In reality, what people always want to ask is, when they feel comfortable, children and adults. -Do you eat rat or not?... I don't know how many times I answered "I don't eat rat, I don't eat rat, I don't eat rat..."
When I arrived in Japan at the age of 10, I felt free from this question, but the children at school surrounded me and said: "-how different, right? Where do you come from?. -I come from Colombia. -Yes, your features are different, and where is Colombia?. -In South America, next to Brazil. -Brazil? So, the Amazon... -Well, yes, Colombia has a large part of the Amazon River. -And do you come from the Amazon River area?. -Yes, I replied. And then they asked me the big question: "so you eat snake!".
There I realized that I would spend my whole life answering that kind of questions. For some reason here I eat rat and there I eat snake. But the Japanese do not eat rat, that is false, it is a myth. The Chinese neither, the Chinese eat stranger things but not rat. In Colombia, snake is not a typical dish, however, those are the myths that exist, but I repeat, they do not harm the mindset. There are some that do harm and it is my job, my duty, and my passion to end those myths.
If you have ever heard it as a young student, there is a myth with which I grew up traumatized: "Japanese are intelligent".
Imagine me, my grandfather on my mother's side, Colombian, used to tell me: "-my son, they will take you to Japan. -Yes, grandpa. -That is a "superior" race, they are intelligent..." and he showed me an old Sony radio "-they make that there". I came to hear teachers say "they give Japanese cables, circuits, and they make radios at their desks". And a terrible pressure because many looked at me... "-Japanese?, -yes, Japanese. -You must be very smart, right?, because they are intelligent, everything comes from there." And I began to stress and put on a good face but inside I said "My God, I am already doing poorly in Colombia, how will it go for me there... Facing a superior race that makes calculators, radios... at their desks!".
So I arrived very stressed in Japan at the age of 10, very worried on my first day of class, I will never forget it. I was sitting in the back seat, like every newbie, analyzing, watching. And I began to be flooded with a feeling of joy, because they screamed the same, jumped the same, pushed each other the same, laughed the same, in Japanese but it was the same. They looked even like the same children from Colombia. What marked the difference there was when the teacher entered. The teacher entered and everyone ran out as if they had seen a ghost, aligned their desks, sat down. One of the young people said "-stand up, straight. -Good morning. -Good morning, they replied. -Sit down", they sat down. From then on, all the time they listened and wrote. No one talked to the person next to them. There was a resounding silence in elementary school. Everyone listening to the teacher and at no time did I see the teacher struggling to say "listen, look here, write, open your notebook...", they did everything without being told. The teacher left, another one entered, they misbehaved, shouted but when the next teacher entered once again the protocol and once again attentive.
I began to get very scared because I said "how do they behave so well if they are children?". It must be that in Japan there are cameras and they torture those who misbehave at the end of the hallway. But no. There were no cameras nor do they torture them. Simply the Japanese have a phrase that says: "discipline will, sooner or later, overcome intelligence". They are not interested in being smart, but disciplined, because it is in discipline where, according to them, success lies.
The proof that what I am saying is true is that the Japanese did not invent cars, motorcycles, computers, radios, or calculators. But who owns Toyota, Suzuki, Kawasaki, Yamaha, Nissan, Mitsubishi, Sony Vaio, Toshiba, Hitachi, etc... the Japanese.
Everything that came into the hands of the Japanese, not by their ingenuity - they did not create it, it came to them - they improved it thanks to their discipline, because they are a people disciplined to death. Discipline is the secret to their success.
A Japanese never arrives late to an appointment. If you tell him it is at six, it is at six, if it is at seven, it is at seven. He never fails and if he is going to fail, he warns you two days in advance: "I think I will arrive 15 minutes late the day after tomorrow". It is exactly like that. For them, time is honorable and it does not matter to be smart, it matters to be disciplined with time, because sooner or later discipline will overcome intelligence.
The Colombian is indeed intelligent. I have been to fourteen countries and I enjoy, I delight in talking about Colombians, how they are doing, what they are doing, what work they are in, how they behave, do they get along? The Colombian has something, that wherever he goes - as we say - he fits in, he is liked, he is appreciated, he says what people want to hear, he adapts to the system, to the language, he even adapts to the climate. He learns the format of the country and is an innovative person, he does not like to stay in one place, he grows, he invents, he has a phrase like "if we don't know it, we invent it", but we do not stay in the same place, we grow.
The Colombian is indeed intelligent. A Japanese waits or takes one, two, or three hours to make a decision, he is very indecisive, very insecure. The Colombian takes risks, he does it. I usually say outside the country that if you tell a Colombian: "Colombian, come, get up there. Do you know what he says? Why or for what? But phrase it differently... "-Colombian, you are not capable of getting up there. -What not??? wait and see" the problem is getting him down from there! Do not challenge a Colombian because he will do anything just to prove any nonsense because he was challenged. The Colombian invents things, he engineers things. He is an intelligent person, the Japanese is not. Now, are they disciplined? better not to talk about that. If we have an appointment at 6, we meet at... 7, or on Monday... "-what happened, did you go to the appointment? -no. -me neither", that is why we love each other, we care for each other (laughter).
And if the phrase says that discipline will, sooner or later, overcome intelligence, I assure you that the lack of discipline, no matter how much talent you have, at some point, will make you lose the best opportunities of your life. It is not about you taking them, yes, grabbing them, understanding everything very well, it is about disciplined people, because according to Japanese thought, it is in discipline where success lies.
I still suffer today with the issue that Japanese are intelligent. They still tell me: "-you are...." and inside I am "not Chinese, Japanese.... -Japanese!" I, "-yes Japanese. -Ahh, fix my TV, look it is Sony. -No, I don't know anything about that, no".
It is not true, the Latino is intelligent but the issue of discipline is diminishing from our children to our adults, not to mention titles.
Discipline is very important and necessary for the success of a nation. Words that I cannot translate into Japanese. "I will arrive in a second". I can tell a friend on the phone in Japan, "wait for me, I will arrive in a second". If I say that, literally my friend will be waiting for that second. To arrive in a second, it must be that he is falling from a building. "I am already there, I am already there", if he is already there, he is already there, either you are dead or I am dead or we do not see each other. "I am already there" cannot be. And so we call it a force of expression, in "I will arrive in a second" it can mean "I have 14 traffic lights left", "I am still showering", "the truth is I do not want to go, maybe I will not go"... In some other way we have not understood that it is not just about having talent, but discipline that can lead us to success.
The secret to success is in discipline.
Who is Yokoi Kenji?
Yokoi Kenji is a Colombian-Japanese speaker, motivator, and community leader, known for his inspiring talks that combine his Japanese and Colombian cultural heritage. He was born in Colombia, the son of a Colombian mother and a Japanese father, which has allowed him to have a unique perspective on both cultures. Yokoi Kenji has become famous for his motivational talks, in which he addresses topics such as discipline, hard work, and the value of culture and identity.
One of his most notable approaches is the comparison between Japanese culture, characterized by its discipline and methodical work, and Colombian culture, known for its warmth and creativity. Through these comparisons, Yokoi Kenji seeks to inspire people to adopt life habits that lead them to personal and professional success, while still valuing their own cultural roots.
Kenji has gained notoriety mainly through his videos on social media and conferences in different countries, where he has managed to capture the attention of a global audience, motivating thousands of people to improve their lives by adopting positive values and principles.