Shinji Takeda: Only those who try can experience failure. Never give up. Keep trying.

2020.10.01

Actor Shinji Takeda

He is an actor and saxophone player. On September 9th, he will release his first solo album in 24 years.
Released "BREATH OF LIFE" (Warner Music).

Focus on what you want to do and do what you can
　In my second year of high school, I was accepted into the Junon Super Boy program and transferred from my hometown of Sapporo to a part-time, metropolitan night school. I decided that it was more important to train my young body and do what I wanted to do than to study for university entrance exams. At the time, there was a band boom, and I was truly inspired by the many unique bands I saw performing on the pedestrian streets. I guess I wanted to freely express myself through music. If you're prepared for twists and turns and ups and downs in life, I recommend that you spend some time passionately devoting yourself to something you want to make your core. I think that having something like that and a period of time will allow you to boldly take on new challenges.
　I started out aspiring to become a musician, but I was fortunate enough to meet new people and was able to branch out into acting and the variety show industry. After 30 years of challenging myself in these three different fields, the dots started to connect and form lines, and the lines spread out to form a "surface," and I was able to create my own "face." I wonder if this is what people call a "brand."
　So I think it's better for your mental health to not ask yourself too many questions about who you are when starting something. Especially in the coming age. Rather than starting something after branding yourself, people will call the path you've walked a brand. I think it's good to try anything, even if people wonder what you want to do.

What's important is characteristics rather than individuality
　Hoping for the best and getting better. Sometimes you have to run away, sometimes you have to attack in vain, and by trying different things, you can only find your own balance. This takes time.
　There's no point in focusing on individuality if you can't use it in the workplace. This applies to any genre. I believe that what's absolutely essential in society is "characteristics" rather than individuality. Even if you're clumsy, someone who has lived honestly will one day be appreciated for it, and even someone who is good at presenting can stumble when it comes to putting it into practice. Individuality is merely a matter of taste, so it goes with the times, but characteristics are timeless.
　If you want to achieve your long-term goals in life, I recommend doing muscle training, even if it's just a little at a time, because it will help you develop the mentality to turn even unpleasant things into positive ones.
　What I want you to know is that "patience has its limits, but effort becomes a habit." Dieting requires patience, but muscle training requires effort, right? If you can tell whether what you're doing is patience or effort, you can prevent your mind and body from breaking down. I think this is an important judgment skill to have no matter what you do.

Message to university students
　You have the right to fail! Whatever you do, you can make up for it. Reflect on your mistakes, get scolded, and fail as much as you can. Failure is a joy in life that only those who try can experience (laughs). After a few years, these mistakes will have turned into fond memories that you can laugh about again and again whenever you get together with your friends.

From the October 2020 issue of the Student Newspaper (Naoto Kajima, 4th year student at Chukyo University)