Hi. I’m Ichiro Takeda, a member of the Translated Books Section of the Editorial Department at Sunmark.

Do you realize the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 are approaching?

Last week everyone of the Sunmark staff members were talking about tickets for the Games because the final week of the ticket lottery for the Games was coming to a close.

Actually, I prefer watching sports on TV, sitting on the couch with beer and potato chips, even for the Olympic Games.

My daughters, though, really wanted to go and see the Olympics games on site, so we applied for tickets to the synchronized swimming and track and field events.

The results of the lottery will be announced on June 20.

Are you planning to come and see the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020?

If you are, please come and see us too!

If you have any questions or inquiries about this NEWS Mail, please contact Ms. Shino Kobayashi, Rights Manager (rights@sunmark.co.jp).

Topics of the Month

Japan’s two major national distributers announced semi-annual book sales rankings.

The semi-annual book sales rankings were just announced by TOHAN and NIPPAN, two major national distributers in Japan. According to TOHAN’s lists, Zero Training by Tomomi Ishimura is ranked #11 overall, and four titles from us including Zero Training are ranked in the top 10 by genre. God Is a 5th Grader is ranked #9 in the Non-Fiction list, and The Obesity Code, which is a translated title from Canada, reached #7 in the Health & Beauty category.The Trunk Muscle Reset Diet 2 hit #10, also in Health & Beauty, and Zero Training was #2 in that same category.

The Japanese Publishing Industry Newspaper Shimbunka featured Sunmark Publishing’s Global Strategy.

This report covers our history in the publishing business, especially the rights business, and talks about our strategy in the industry.
https://www.sunmark.co.jp/eng/wp/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/20190605ShinbunkaArticle.pdf

Hot Titles

The Stanford Method for Ultimate Leadership

by Stephen Murphy-Shigematsu

ISBN978-4-7631-3688-6 C0030

351 pages / May 2019 / 1,600 yen (w/o tax)

An indispensable Stanford lecture on leadership.
Learn more about “human nature science” as taught by psychologists.

Description

★Knowledge on leadership from a lecture about human principles given at Stanford University — never before released to the public

★Discover “realistic organizational theory” and a “concrete to-do list” based on elaborate company surveys, psychology, and neuroscience research.

★ There are various evidence-based methods for dealing with difficult group psychology, which every leader is faced with.

★ The knowledge of a Harvard, University of Tokyo, and Stanford professor is condensed into this one book.

Psychologists who have been recipients of this required Stanford leadership course analyze the mechanisms of leadership and how to acquire the utmost cohesion.
– People despise superiority

– One opinion becomes consensus, establishing a bad reputation

– Leaders receive no prize for effort

Leaders are up against the group psychology of their team on a daily basis.
What type of assertiveness is needed to create cohesion? Unlock four important skills needed to become an assertive leader. This book provides “concrete methods” that all leaders and organization members need to know.

From the table of contents

Prologue: Leadership principles — We are the Leaders

・Ivy League Leadership theory
・The “leader + follower” format will fail

Chapter 0: A difficult group — What creates walls in an organization? The reality of a leader

・What team you’re in can change how you feel

・The leader’s “splendid way of thinking” is not understood

Chapter 1: Assertive leaders mobilize people — A leader who fosters cohesion

・The logic that “it’s okay to be weak” is harmful to leaders

・Be a “strong leader,” if only objectively

Chapter 2: Authentic Leadership — Build a foundation to foster human nature
・Possess the mind of a beginner

・ Keep intervention “small and frequent,” to make goals reachable

Chapter 3: Servant Leadership — Foster real trust

・Distinguished people become servants

・The aim of medical treatment that reveals medical error

Chapter 4: Transformative Leadership — Transform your team

・Telling your staff directly what they’re worth provides the best results

・The importance of generosity

Chapter 5: Cross-Border Leadership — Establishing “ideal relationships” that last

・Even changing one’s post can make a world of difference

・Surround others with lots of gratitude

From the editor "Umechan"

This book covers “pragmatic leadership theory,” backed by scientific research, that deals with “group” conditions. I have been surprised to see so many leadership books claiming weakness is a virtue. I’m under the impression that people don’t follow soft leadership. When I shared this opinion with Professor Murphy, he agreed. But it’s also not a good idea to be all-powerful. What’s important in a leader is being assertive.

This book details an attitude not based on idealistic theory but one of locating a problem and implementing a solution strategy based on clear evidence. Not just pertaining to leaders themselves, the contents of this book relate to any position within an organization, as they offer insight into the inner workings of an organization and the intentions of its members.

Author:

Stephen Murphy-Shigematsu

Stephen Murphy-Shigematsu is a Stanford University psychologist. He founded the institution’s Heartfulness Lab. Born in Japan and raised in the US, he received a doctorate in psychology from Harvard University. Since 1994, he has been teaching as an assistant professor at the University of Tokyo International Center and Graduate School of Education.

After returning to the US, he began working as a specially appointed professor at the Stanford School of Medicine. He is currently an instructor of the new Leadership Innovations course within the Health and Human Performance program, teaching global skills, diversity and leadership skills based on Mindfulness and EQ Theory research to medical school undergraduates. He is also the director of the Global Youth Leadership Program.

Outside of the university, he conducts leadership workshops and lectures at US government institutions, Japanese companies, medical and educational institutions, and so on, and gives lectures in other Asian countries and in Europe.

His authored works include Stanford University Mindfulness Classroom (Kodansha), Multicultural Counseling Narrative (University of Tokyo Press), Amerasian Children—An Unknown Minority Problem (Shueisha Shinsho), Multicultural Encounters (Teachers College Press), When Half Is Whole (Stanford University Press), and From Mindfulness to Heartfulness: Transforming Self and Society with Compassion (Berrett-Koehler Publishers).

Unbelievable World Principles the Sadistic Universe Didn’t Teach Me When I Was 20,000,000 Yen in Debt

by Hiroshi Koike

ISBN978-4-7631-3757-9 C0030

254 pages / April 2019 / 1,400 yen (w/o tax)

The popular series with 200,000 books sold!
The conclusion of the hit “wish-fulfilling book” has finally arrived.

Description

Feeling helpless in your efforts to change your life? Turn things around with lessons from the universe and the final teachings of the “talking scroll”!

Everything was going well for 51-year-old Hiroshi Koike. He paid off a 20,000,000-yen debt in nine years, work was going well, and he had acquired the foreign car, family, and detached house that his family had always wanted. Although everything was going his way, lately he hadn’t been hearing from “Mr. Universe,” the sadistic provider of life-changing advice.

Could this mean his life was coming to an end? While packing up to move, Koike discovered an old scroll with the words “Do not reveal this to humans” written on it. It was the “Re-education bible,” used to help turn around the lives of unhappy humans.

Those who revel in negative energy, hold themselves back, and live in poverty will see their lives turn around.

The third and final installment of this series tackles the mechanisms behind the mind, the spirit, and wish fulfillment. Even skeptical readers are in for a real surprise.

Knowing these unbelievable principles of the world will turn your life around.

From the table of contents

I knew it all along. There were extremely important world principles written on the secret scroll that Mr. Universe was hiding.

One: Teach about speaking habits

Two: Teach how to escape unhappiness

Three: Teach how to master the habits of mind

Four: Teach what is holding people back

Five: Teach that wealth comes from paying in advance

Six: Teach traumatized people to love

Seven: Teach that you can’t change others

Eight: Teach how to thoroughly choose and enjoy life

○Reason why speaking habits can change your life

○Reverse negative speaking habits with a single piece of paper

○However dispirited you are, there is a road to happiness

○If you’re truly ready to be happy, you have nothing to fear

○The “wiring of the soul” can keep dreams from coming true

○How the words “thank you” renew your subconscious

○Feeling as though happiness escapes you is a habit of mind

○What happens when you dive deeply into world news
○Three steps Koike took in radically changing his mindset that helped him escape debt
○Are you saying a happy “thank you” at the checkout?
○Saying “There are no good men out there” sends a negative message to the universe
○Why 90% of wishes to reconcile with past lovers don’t come true
○The one thing husbands should do when their wives are nagging

From the editor "HANA"

The final installment of the “Mr. Universe” series has finally arrived. The protagonist, Koike, once miserable and 20,000,000 yen in debt, turned his life around by changing his speaking habits and actions. The 200,000 responses we received relating to Koike’s transformation reduced me to tears. But the story wasn’t over yet! This time, we learn the reason the universe called upon Koike, and the secrets to living a peaceful live are revealed. This book explains why our mind and soul tend to be cluttered, and it dives deeper into topics mentioned in the previous book. I hate to say it, but this might just be the end of the tale of Mr. Universe and Koike. I hope you laugh to the very end.

Author:

Hiroshi Koike

Hiroshi Koike is a psychologist and representative director at Indigod Sendai. Fifteen years ago, he fell into 20,000,000 yen of debt — 6,000,000 yen of that from illegal loans — while managing a clothing store. He recalls making a spiritual connection with the universe just when he thought filing for bankruptcy was the only step left. His life changed suddenly after he began using the power of words to purify his subconscious and communicating with the universe in a more positive way. The cosmic messenger he corresponded with, whom Mr. Koike referred to as “Sadistic Mr. Universe,” sent clear and helpful hints that helped him improve his life. He left the clothing store to start a bracelet shop, which attracted nationwide attention after being featured on local television. His debt was paid off in 9 years, and profits continued flowing in. He now lives a fulfilling life with his wife and two daughters. His previous book, Lessons From a Sadistic Universe When I Was 20,000,000 Yen in Debt, in which he speaks to his bracelet shop customers about the order of the universe and how to make their dreams come true, became a bestseller. The following comic spin-off version was also well received. The popular series has sold more than 200,000 copies.