When working as an engineer, I sometimes get asked, “Where did you learn your skills?” and “Which university did you acquire your specialized knowledge at?”

Of course, studying at a school or university has great value.

However, for me, there was another very important place for learning how to think as an engineer.

That was home.

My mother and father used to work for Hitachi.

My mother worked as a designer, and my father worked as a systems engineer, each involved in specialized work in a different field.

From parents like them, I naturally learned two important ways of thinking.

From my mother, “a way of thinking about design.”
From my father, “a way of thinking about building systems.”

Today, I am involved in AI-centered system development, but when I look back, much of what I learned from my parents remains at the foundation of my current work.

This time, I would like to write a little about that.

1. What I learned from my mother: Design is not just about making things look good

The approach to design that I learned from my mother continues to have a major influence on my work.

When people hear the word “design,” many of them may think of colors, shapes, fonts, layouts, and so on.

Of course, those are also important elements of design.

However, what is truly important is thinking from the perspective of the person using it.

For example, what would you do if, when opening an app you use every day, you had no idea where to tap?

No matter how beautiful the screen is, if you do not know how to use it, it cannot be called good design.

Organized in my own way, the approach to design I learned from my mother is as follows.

• Thinking from the other person’s perspective.
• Organizing information so that people viewing it do not get confused.
• Placing the necessary information in the necessary places.
• Giving meaning to each color and shape.
• Not cutting corners, even down to the smallest details.

For example, even when placing a single button, it is important to ask, “Is this button really necessary?” and “Can users operate it without confusion?”

The same applies to UI/UX design for websites and applications.

I currently spend a lot of my time developing systems that leverage AI, but no matter how advanced the AI technology is, a system that users find difficult to use cannot provide value in the true sense.

Think not only about the technology, but also about how the people using it will feel.

That is an important thing I learned from my mother.

2. What I Learned from My Father: System Development Is Not About Jumping Straight into Writing Code

My father worked as a systems engineer.

What I learned from my father was a way of developing systems that involves organizing problems and solving them one at a time.

When I first started programming, whenever I thought of making something, I would immediately want to write code.

However, what is truly important in system development is the preparation that comes before writing code.

For example, no one building a house would immediately gather materials and begin constructing walls.

First, you think about what kind of house you want, create a blueprint, and prepare the necessary materials before beginning construction.

System development is very similar.

Organized this way, what I learned from my father can be expressed as follows:

• First, clarify what you want to solve.
• Break the problem into smaller parts and organize them.
• Think about the structure of the entire system.
• Implement it one part at a time and check how it works.
• If an error occurs, investigate its cause.
• Don’t consider the work finished when it has been built; also think about future modifications and maintenance.

For example, when developing a customer management system, rather than implementing every function from the outset, you organize the work into functions such as registering, editing, searching for, and deleting customer information.

You verify each function and ultimately complete it as a single integrated system.

This approach is just as relevant to the development of today’s large-scale web systems and AI systems.

Especially in AI development, merely introducing a model is not enough.

You need to combine a variety of elements, including data management, API design, databases, security, user interfaces, evaluation methods, and operational methods.

The attitude my father taught me—“think about the whole thing first, then build it one piece at a time”—still forms the foundation of my development style.

3. Design and Systems: Value Is Created Only When the Two Come Together

The design I learned from my mother and the system development I learned from my father.

At first glance, these may seem like completely different fields.

However, in actual development, the two are deeply connected.

For example, no matter how high-performance a system is, if the screen is difficult to understand, users will struggle.

Conversely, no matter how beautiful the design is, if the underlying system is unstable, it cannot be used with peace of mind.

In other words,

• Design considers ease of use from the perspective of the person who will use it.
• System development puts that ease of use into practice through technology.

Both of these are necessary.

Even as I work on system development centered on AI, I am constantly mindful of these two ways of thinking.

Rather than pursuing AI performance alone, I think about who will actually use it, what problems it will solve, and how it can be used with peace of mind.

I believe technology and design are not separate things, but two wheels that work together to create a single value.

4. Schools and universities are not the only places to learn

This is what I most want to convey this time.

Learning at a school or university is very important.

An environment in which one can systematically acquire specialized knowledge and grow alongside teachers and peers is extremely valuable.

However, the value of education is not confined to schools and universities.

There is also a great deal to learn at home.

For example, the mindset a parent values in their work, how they respond when facing a problem, how they interact with others, and their determination to see things through to the end.

I think such things, too, are an important part of a child's education.

In my own case, I learned a design perspective from my mother and a systems development mindset from my father.

It was not simply a matter of being taught knowledge.

How to look at things, how to think about them, and how to solve them.

I think it was an opportunity to learn that basic mindset.

At schools and universities, you can learn specialized knowledge.

At home, on the other hand, you can also learn a practical way of thinking from daily life and from your parents' attitude toward their work.

This is not a question of which is better.

I believe it is when the two are combined that learning becomes richer.

5. Finally: Gratitude to the Parents Who Made Me the Person I Am Today

Currently, I work as a systems engineer specializing in AI.

I research new technologies, design complex systems, and work on development efforts to solve the challenges faced by users.

Of course, I also possess a great deal of knowledge gained through my experience to date and through daily learning.

Even so, when I look back at the basic way I approach my work, what I learned from my mother and father remains inside me to this day.

The design mindset my mother taught me—putting oneself in the position of the person using it.

The systems development mindset my father taught me—organizing problems and solving them in an orderly way.

For me, these two are not merely technologies, but important ways of thinking for approaching my work.

And once again, I realize.

For children, parents may be their first teachers.

A parent’s knowledge, experience, attitude toward work, and small daily lessons can have a major influence on a child’s future.

Learning at home is just as valuable as learning at school or university.

I hope to continue learning new skills while cherishing what I learned from my parents, and to create systems that will be useful to someone.

Mom, Dad, thank you so much.

And everyone who has read this article, please take a moment to reflect on what you have learned from your family and those around you.

Perhaps the important foundation that shaped the person you are now may be found there.