Thankfully, I Didn’t Hire Him

Konosuke Matsushita, the founder of the Matsushita Group, was a renowned businessman not only for his leadership skills but also for his humanistic philosophy of life and management. One day, Matsushita’s company held a recruitment event. Among the applicants was a young man who had just graduated from a prestigious university, standing out with an outstanding resume.

However, after the interview, the recruitment board decided not to hire him. Upon receiving the rejection notice, the young man fell into despair. He felt that his life had lost meaning and decided to end it all by jumping into a river.

When Matsushita heard the news of the young man’s death, he was deeply saddened. He realized that such a small failure had pushed the young man into despair, and this made him reflect profoundly on human willpower. To the regret of the employees in the company, Matsushita said:
“A person who loses faith in life after one rejection will hardly achieve anything great. In life, everyone will face failure. What matters is not how many times we fail, but how we rise from those failures. Fortunately, we didn’t hire him, because someone lacking resilience cannot succeed and overcome challenges in work.”

This story is often retold to emphasize the profound lesson about the importance of willpower, resilience, and how we face adversity. It reminds us that talent and education are not everything; rather, it is the persistent spirit, the ability to never give up in the face of difficulties, that determines a person's success.