Why not start that project with a wild idea? "A Thinking Method That Bridges Intuition and Logic"

This is a story from my days as a new employee. Back when I honestly didn't know left from right, or even front from back.

While looking back and forth between my face, trying to "logically" figure out the "right answer" for the project I was working on, and the (honestly boring) idea my rigid mind had come up with, a senior colleague asked me this:

"So, what do you want to do?"

I remember being shocked—wouldn't my personal opinion just get in the way of the work!? After all, I was convinced that what mattered in business was strategy, logical thinking, and clear evidence.

However, it seems that times are changing. People and companies who successfully combine seemingly unfounded intuition with reality are making one impact after another on the market. Take American entrepreneur Elon Musk, who boldly declared that "humans will be able to migrate to Mars by 2035."

He deliberately does not start with logic or strategy. The book I would like to introduce this time, "Vision Driven: Connecting Intuition and Logic" (Diamond Inc.), teaches us the thinking skills for the coming era with such punchlines.

Why delusions are essential to your work: They become your driving force

Is delusion essential to work? Really? The author, Kuniyoshi Saso, had been involved in various new businesses for a long time before launching the strategy design firm BIOTOPE. He says he made a discovery during that time.

At Sony, where I used to work, successful projects always had a "visionary" individual at their core, someone who started with a certain kind of "intuition." (P.4)

Why does intuition work in business? The reason is simple.

"Because you can't sustain long-term efforts without using 'delusions' born from your own inner passions and interests as your driving force." Yes, delusions are actually indispensable for work you pursue over the long term.

While the pace of societal change has accelerated, the time it takes for individual actions to yield concrete results has actually lengthened. Moreover, whether the results will match expectations remains profoundly uncertain. (P.254)

Shortening the trial-and-error cycle and repeating iterations over the long term. Only then might success finally await... in such an uncertain period, isn't it tough? To overcome it, fueling yourself with fantasies born from passion is the strongest approach. There seems to be no time to lie to yourself. It brings to mind the proverb: "Love makes the master."

The brain has an "others mode" and a "self mode"

Returning to the opening story. When asked, "What do you want to do?", I was completely stumped. I couldn't even begin to imagine what I wanted for myself. I was taught that creativity, like muscle training, is honed through daily accumulation. But the reverse is also true: if you slack off every day, you might even lose the ability to daydream.

One reason for this is that time spent in "Other People Mode" keeps increasing. Being swamped with work, managing subordinates, or juggling household chores, childcare, and caregiving.

We spend more time thinking about "how to satisfy others" than "how we feel." (P.2)

When your brain gets hijacked by this "other-person mode," your intuition dulls. It's like a lifestyle disease for imagination. Consequently, you can't cultivate strong feelings of "This is what I want!" and ultimately lose the ability to drive projects forward long-term. Even Amazon took ten years to turn a profit, so you absolutely must escape this hijacked "other-person mode" state as soon as possible.

Four Prescriptions for Becoming Prone to Constant Delusions

Struggling to enter "Self Mode"? There are four typical reasons for this.

① Lack of Intrinsic Motivation
② Narrow Input Range
③ Lack of originality
④ Insufficient Output

The fourth reason is said to be the most common stumbling block, but many people will likely recognize themselves in the other three as well. Rest assured, there's a solution for each.

① Visualize (give shape to your vision)
②Perceive (Increase the resolution of your vision)
③ Rearrange (give it your own unique perspective)
④ Express (Translate into your own unique expression)

From Chapter 2 onward, the book offers concrete advice on building habits. It generously shares techniques developed by the author through over 100 projects and workshops, such as "Fantasy Questions," "Favorite Collage," "Upside-Down Sketches," "Discomfort Journal," and "Self-Challenge."

My personal favorite is the "Contrarian Canvas" training, which hones the power of rearrangement to break free from mundane thinking. Write the subject you want to deconstruct—say, "Cafe"—in the center of a sheet of paper. Then write down the "obvious" things that come to mind around it.

・A server with a refreshing smile
・Clean-looking cups
・Found anywhere in the world
・Wooden furniture

Then, for each of these elements, you become contrary and think of the exact opposite. That's the "Contrarian Canvas." Doing this in a team would surely be a lot of fun. I also think it's an interesting exercise because it seems like it would neatly tear down that wall in your mind that says, "I have to think logically."

Will that fantasy become mere daydreaming or everyone's shared vision?

Daydreams alone, stuck in your head, won't change anything. You can't just be a "daydreamer." You must engage those around you and move the project forward. You must transform it into the power to do so.

When you speak your dreams, intangible assets gather. When intangible assets gather, tangible assets move. (P.265)

These words come from Takeshi Okada, former coach of the Japanese national soccer team. Connecting fantasy to reality and becoming a visionary. This is difficult. What should we do? Earlier, I introduced four prescriptions. Continuously spinning this cycle is the very heart of the visionary thinking this book describes. Especially the fourth step, "Express," which might seem like the final step.

One could even say, "All vision thinking begins with expression." (P.215)

Why? Because expressing your wild ideas invites feedback from others. You can then refine your expression based on that feedback. Iterate the cycle: "Concretization → Feedback → Concretization." Precisely because we live in an era of certainty within uncertainty,

"how quickly you can fail" is crucial. (P.220)

Don't worry if you think, "But... I'm bad at fantasizing, let alone expressing it..." or "Isn't that only for creators...?" The book also includes methods for expression you can start right away. Beautiful sketches like those from art school graduates, or apps brought to life by engineers' code—these are merely options for prototyping. They absolutely don't need to be impressive.

In the world of vision-based thinking, the "final deliverable" doesn't exist as a rule. What always exists is a prototype awaiting "updates"—the so-called "eternal beta version." (P.223)

Don't hesitate to fail. That's the best way to nurture your imagination.

【Dentsu Inc. Modern Communication Lab】