[LefterisJP]

I have been living in Japan for the last 3 years and there is also another Japanese saying. "出る釘は打たれる". Very well known in the West as "The nail that sticks out gets hammered down". This is a culture of uniformity and always taking the safe route and making sure to never lose face. It's not easy for someone to go the start-up way here.

At the same time the Japanese are really hard working and there are some Japanese companies out there which are trying to change the norm and I do sincerely hope they succeed.

To the question if start-ups can grow in Japan I believe so yes. But not in the same way and context as in the west and in the silicon valley. The culture is just too different and as a result so will the start-ups.

I have met some really bright people here and I have also come across many social barriers and rules that don't make sense (to my way of thinking). For the sake of the Japanese economy I hope that the culture slowly but steadily becomes more accepting of start-ups and entrepreneurship and encourages these bright people to create instead of smothering them.

[toddmorey]

When I was living in Japan, my mother would use the game Clue to teach English. The interesting cultural component we noticed was the Japanese players had a really hard time not sharing their cards with the other players. Clue, played cooperatively, doesn't really work that well!

I can't help but think that the American tradition of rugged individualism, though it brings other baggage, has helped create a good climate for startups and innovation.

[newnewnew]

How much of this risk aversion is due to aging demographics and a shrinking population? You could argue that the west has lost its appetite for risk since the early days of the baby boom as well.

[obviouslygreen]

+1, partially because a lot of people here explicitly conflate "cultures conducive to startups" with "Silicon Valley culture," which is nothing short of ridiculous.

The Japanese in particular have a very tough cultural hill to climb in order to remove the various taboos associated with startups and their potential downsides (as well as their non-conformist nature). Hopefully they get off the deflation-is-our-cure train at some point and start moving in this direction; it might help when addressing the other serious problems Japan is facing.