The Los Angeles Dodgers are on a historic run — not just because they’ve stacked a roster, but because they’ve anchored their franchise to one of the most disciplined and intentional athletes of our generation: Shohei Ohtani.

You watch him and you see talent, sure — but what you’re actually seeing is architecture: a life structured on purpose.

Recently, a chart resurfaced from Ohtani’s early development that revealed he wasn’t simply chasing greatness; he was planning it.

And the system he used wasn’t random. It was the Harada Method, a Japanese framework for self-reliance and goal mastery that many call “the world’s best system for developing people.”

It helped turn a teenager into the most complete baseball player we’ve ever seen.

And it gives us a blueprint for something every leader, advisor, and business needs right now:

A system for prioritization, daily discipline, and intentional growth.

The Harada Method

Because you don’t rise to the level of your goals.

You rise to the level of your systems.

And the Harada Method can give you that system.

Why This Matters for Us (and for Wealth Management)

Most people and most teams aren’t short on vision.

They’re short on structure.

Big goals? Everyone has those.

But the daily habits?

The scaffolding?

The rhythm that makes progress consistent and predictable?

That's where we can fall short.

The Harada Method fixes that — and it translates perfectly to how we run our firms, our teams, and our own lives.

The Harada Method (Translated for Real Life & Real Business)

1. Set the One Goal

Harada is ruthless about this:

One single priority.

Not five. Not three. One.

"A person with two priorities has zero priorities."

Your world might require:

• Build a data-driven advisory firm.

• Reduce operational drag by 50%.

• Become the top growth firm in your region.

• Increase the average client size by 20% in 2026.

Pick one. Own it.

2. Envision the Ideal Future

Describe the world where the goal is achieved:

• What does your firm feel like?

• How do clients behave?

• How does your team operate?

• Who have you become as a leader?

Clarity turns into fuel.

3. Identify the Required Skills

Harada's mantra:

Don't envy excellence — reverse-engineer it.

For advisors or leaders, required skills might be:

• Data literacy

• Communication

• Process discipline

• Delegation

• Decision-making

• Pipeline management

Now your goal is no longer fuzzy.

It's a skill stack.

4. Build Daily Habits (The 64-Tasks Sheet)

Harada had his students break their goal into 64 micro-habits — small, repeatable actions that create compounding results.

For example:

• Review the pipeline for 10 minutes.

• Capture one client insight daily.

• Improve one workflow weekly.

• Reduce one inefficiency per day.

• Review firm data every morning.

• Coach one advisor weekly.

Greatness lives in tiny daily actions, not heroic bursts.

5. Anticipate Obstacles

This is signature Harada:

List every challenge upfront.

• "My schedule is packed."

• "Our systems are messy."

• "People resist change."

• "Interruptions steal my day."

Naming removes the challenge's power.

6. Identify Your Support System

Harada taught self-reliance, not isolation.

Support includes:

• Your COO

• Your CTO

• Ops

• Advisors

• Milemarker

• Your tech stack

• Your spouse

• Your routines

• Your mentors

Elite performance happens inside a structure.

7. Establish Personal Standards

This is the cultural engine.

Harada's students committed to things like:

• Show up early

• Never complain

• Always improve

• Respect the process

• Take ownership

For your firm:

• "We are drivers, not passengers." (Our number 1 cultural value at Milemarker)

• "We don't let clients guess."

• "We close the loop."

• "We own our numbers."

• "We make progress every day."

Culture is the sum of enforced standards.

Why This Especially Matters Now

Wealth management is in a pressure cooker:

• M&A consolidation

• Macro uncertainty

• Technology noise

• Advisors overstretched

• Clients expecting more

• Leaders carrying more weight

• Data everywhere — except where it's useful

Most firms aren't failing from lack of compounding.

They're failing from lack of intentionality.

This is no longer an industry where winging it works.

You need clarity.

Discipline.

And a repeatable system.

The Harada Method provides a very solid blueprint.

What This Looks Like Inside a Firm

Imagine every advisor, operator, and leader having:

• One clear quarterly goal

• Required skills identified

• Daily habits documented

• Obstacles listed

• A support plan

• Personal standards

• Weekly review cycles

Now imagine your operations team matching it.

Your leadership matching it.

Your AI workflows matching it.

That's alignment.

Intentionality.

That's cultural momentum.

This is how teams become dominant.

The Truth

Shohei Ohtani isn't a miracle.

He's a byproduct of structure.

His days are engineered with intention.

His habits are trained on purpose.

And his goals are supported by disciplined systems.

Greatness — in any domain — is not spontaneous.

It's systematic.

The Harada Method is his system.

And it can be ours.

Go Giants & I hope you have a Happy Thanksgiving!

—Jud