What do a 2,500-year-old philosophy and your startup’s ESG goals have in common? 🤔 Enter Confucianism’s concept of li (ritual)—the ancient art of balancing ethics and ambition that’s resurfacing in boardrooms from Shanghai to Silicon Valley.
Japanese biz legend Eiichi Shibusawa—think Steve Jobs meets Confucius—argued in his 1916 classic The Analects and the Abacus that true success lies in harmonizing benevolence 🕊️ and profit 💰. His playbook? Treat stakeholders like family, prioritize long-term stability over quick wins, and make decisions that 'serve both soup and shareholders' (our metaphor, not his 😉).
Modern companies are now reviving these principles:
⚖️ Using li to design fair supply chains
🌱 Applying Confucian harmony concepts to sustainability strategies
🤝 Building trust through ritual-like corporate governance
From Kyoto’s century-old firms to Seoul’s K-startups, East Asia’s business ecosystem proves ethics aren’t just good karma—they’re killer ROI. 💸 As one Tokyo tech CEO told us: 'We don’t choose between being Gandalf or Gordon Gekko. Through li, we’re both.'
