Ganbatte!: The Japanese Art of Always Moving Forward

By Albert Liebermann and Héctor García

Ganbatte (gan-ba-tay) is a Japanese philosophy focused on doing the best you can with what you have. Though there is no direct translation, "keep going," and "give it your all," embody the sentiments behind the word. Just as wabi sabi shows the beauty of imperfection in life, ganbatte teaches you how to get past obstacles and be motivated to keep moving forward.

In Ganbatte! author Albert Liebermann provides an inspirational, yet practical guide to becoming more resilient the Japanese way. In 50 short chapters, some deeper and some more playful, Liebermann guides you through ways you can adopt the ganbatte approach to achieve a happier, more fulfilling life--and a happier, more fulfilled self.

These include:

• Separating "difficult" from "impossible"
• Making use of failure
• Cultivating patience
• Working mindfully with a sense of awareness
• Continually improving
• Practicing meditation
• Pushing through a crisis
• Taking the slow route

Sprinkled throughout the book are "Ganbatte Rules"--short, actionable steps you can take to move forward in a part of your life where you may be stuck (whether it's fitness, love or starting a business). A foreword by Hector Garcia, author of the bestselling Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life, introduces the concept of ganbatte and how he learned of its existence from one of Japan's centenarians.

While many aspects of life are beyond our control, how we deal with setbacks and difficulties is as much of a choice as how we approach everyday tasks. This book helps you tap into your own ability to persevere and encourages you to stay motivated and hopeful in difficult times. If you apply the tenacity and resilience of the Japanese in your daily life, difficult becomes easy, and impossible becomes possible.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
• Release date: Oct 12, 2021
• ISBN: 9781462922703

Book preview

Preface

Never Give Up, Keep Moving Forward

In today’s difficult and challenging times, many people feel the need to rebuild their lives, just as the Japanese have always done following wars or natural disasters.

The secret to this nation’s phoenix-like ability to be reborn time and again from its ashes is to be found in the ganbatte philosophy—a Japanese term we may translate as Do your best, never give up, keep moving forward.

Just as in many countries people say good luck before someone takes an exam, has a job interview or begins a competition, the Japanese say "ganbatte" to encourage the person to make an effort. There is a great change in attitude implied by this:

•Good luck depends on external factors—it places fate outside the person’s control.

•Ganbatte calls on a person’s internal strengths and resources–whatever happens depends on the effort you make.

Through this book’s 50 inspiring chapters, we shall get acquainted with this Japanese philosophy of tenacity and resilience, which is the art of overcoming adversity.

Just as wabi sabi shows us the beauty of life’s imperfections, ganbatte shows us how to overcome all its obstacles and to carry on with whatever you may have set your mind to doing, with energy and motivation.

If you apply the tenacity and resilience of the Japanese to your everyday life, difficult things become easy and the impossible becomes possible.

The ganbatte mindset starts early in Japan, where children are taught from day one the value of determination and perseverance. On Kodomo no Hi (Children’s Day) carp streamers fly high to celebrate the powerful spirit of youth. It is said that if a carp persists in swimming upstream into China and climbing the rapids of the Yellow River, it becomes a dragon.

1

Ganbatte!

Ganbaru 頑張る is a Japanese verb that we could translate as Do your best, Don’t give up, Stand firm, Work at something, or Persevere.

Ganbaru 頑張る is made up of three characters:

•頑 : pig-headed, recalcitrant, stubborn.

•張 : pull, tauten, firm, expand.

•る : a hiragana character used to end verbs in the infinitive.

In many cultures, before an acquaintance is about to face a challenge, such as a competition, an exam, or a new life adventure, we tend to wish them luck. In Japan, they use the verb "ganbaru, conjugated in the second person form: ganbatte 頑張って. Ganbatte is the most commonly used verb form of ganbaru and may be translated as: Do your best and don’t give up!"

The most commonly used verb forms of ganbaru.

•Ganbaru or ganbarimasu 頑張る、頑張ります : first person singular, I’m going to do my best!

•Ganbatte 頑張って : this is used to address someone and encourage them.

•Ganbatte kudasai 頑張ってください : the same as ganbatte but more polite.

•Ganbare 頑張れ : like ganbatte but more imperative, almost giving the other person an order.

•Ganbarou or ganbarimashou 頑張ろう , 頑張りましょう : Let’s do our best, to encourage all the members of a team.

•Isshokenmei ganbatte 一 生懸命頑張って : do your best, giving everything you have, putting your entire life into it.

When we say, Good luck, it appears the result is in the hands of fate and outside our control. Whereas, in Japanese, when we say "Ganbatte!" to someone, what we are conveying is that a great deal of what they are going to have to face depends on them.

Within the meaning of ganbatte, the bit about your best is very important, since it allows for things not to work out completely, given that there are some aspects that are outside our control.

It is the wabi sabi essence of reality. Effort is more important than luck.

The philosophical message of ganbatte is: Do everything you can the best you know how, and if things don’t turn out as you would like them to, that’s fine; you don’t need to feel bad, because you did everything that was in your power.

In Japan, we use this word on a daily basis. One of its most common uses is when we say goodbye to our family in the morning as we set off for work or school.

We also use "Ganbatte!" at sports events, at any kind of social function, when we are with a friend and we feel that we should give them encouragement, when a natural catastrophe devastates these islands….

If you have done your best, it doesn’t matter if the result is not what you were hoping for, because you know in your heart that you didn’t waste the opportunity.

Act in life doing things the best you can,

using your abilities as well as you can,

work at it,

persevere,

keep moving forward,

don’t give up.

And if you don’t achieve your goal,

don’t get downhearted,

don’t feel bad.

It´s OK,

you did everything you could.

Ganbatte!

頑張って！

Japanese children putting heart and soul into a dance performance at a festival. The pleasure of working hard to accomplish something, especially as part of a team, encourages a spirit of ganbatte, and the enthusiasm of kids is an inspiration to adults.

The Great Wave off Kanagawa from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji, Woodblock print, c. 1829-1832 by Katsushika Hokusai (1760–1849).

2

The Great Wave off Kanagawa: The Art of Carrying on

The Great Wave off Kanagawa is one of the most emblematic works of art of all time. It was created by the artist Katsushika Hokusai, an expert in ukiyo-e (Japanese prints).

Hokusai’s print has captured the imagination not just of the Japanese but of the entire world. The rowing boats are battling the sea’s fury with Mount Fuji observing on the horizon. The whiteness of Fuji’s snow contrasts with the whites and grays of the foaming waves, which look like they are leaping upon the sailors with sharpened claws.

What happens moments after the wave breaks? Will they be shipwrecked? Will they manage to change course and skillfully outsmart the wave? If they are to stand any chance of surviving, they cannot freeze, but must row, hoping they can manage to ride the top of the wave to the safety of the next trough.

The Great Wave off Kanagawa represents the spirit of Japan’s ganbatte; the sailors don’t give up, but row, putting all their effort into moving forward in order to live.

The sea waves are a fabulous metaphor for life.

Sometimes everything goes smoothly and seems to flow by itself. We feel like an old sea dog for whom the sea has no secrets. Whatever we try to do in life comes at the right time and we are ready for it. But on other occasions, we get stressed out by something unknown that suddenly overwhelms us emotionally. Then we are the rowers of The Great Wave off Kanagawa.

Whatever the situation may be that you are facing, there is something you can always be sure of: even the most gigantic waves always break up.

We may suffer accidents or there may be times when there seems to be nothing but bad news, but whatever happens, we can always choose to fall forwards.

Sail through your life in the spirit of ganbatte.

The novice sailor who fails to put out to sea because they misjudge the tides always returns to the shore having learned something—a precious lesson.

Do your best. Join the waves and learn from them, knowing that some of them will overwhelm you and sweep you onto the shore.

There is always a third option, the worst one of all—the sailor who remains on the beach, like someone waiting at home for easy opportunities to come along. That condemns them to being a mere spectator of life, as they will never learn anything by standing still.

The British philosopher Alan Watts found something in common between the waves and man—their origins:

"You didn’t come into this world.

You came out of it, like a wave from the ocean.

You are not a stranger here."

He also used the rhythmic movement of the sea to show us that we don’t need to worry too much about the large-scale repercussion of our acts:

"You are a function of what the whole universe is doing in the same way that a wave is a function of

Reviews for Ganbatte!

[Silver Raghubeer · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book is a very insightful intro to the ganbatte spirit. I loved that it was so easy to understand and that there were other tidbits of information on some amazing people sprinkled throughout the book. I can't wait to start applying the things I learned into my everyday life! This is definitely one that I need on my shelves.