How You Do Anything, Is How You’ll Do Everything.

𝗗𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘀: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗹 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗘𝗺𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴

After more than two years away, I touched down yesterday in a city that has long felt like home. Since 1999, I’ve visited Japan at least 40 times (I lost count somewhere along the way) and lived here for over four years. Each trip has been a teacher: it has piqued my curiosity, challenged my perspective, and shown me new ways of seeing and being.

With time and maturity, I’ve also come to understand the things more clearly that draw me back again and again. One is an unmatched attention to detail, which the Japanese call 気配り(kikubari). This thoughtful consideration accounts not only for the user but also for the broader impact on one’s surroundings.

Take this morning at a local Starbucks. It’s subtle, almost invisible, but there’s a small basket behind each chair for personal belongings. It keeps bags and other items off the floor, the next chair over, or the countertop, ensuring that fellow guests can utilize the space. A micro-detail, yes, but in a culture of consideration, it’s an act of exceptionally high impact.

As someone who deeply values service, hospitality, and the consumer experience, I’ve learned invaluable lessons here about what it really means to serve and consider. Often, it’s not in the big gestures, it’s in the quiet, thoughtful details (kikubari) that honor both the individual and the collective.

Tokyo, it’s good to be back home 🙏🏾

Tokyo morning café culture — attention to detail and Japanese hospitality (kikubari).