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Do you know about "Digram Diagnosis"? Digram Diagnosis is the latest personality diagnosis tool born from the fusion of "psychology" and "statistics."
It is based on the psychological test "Egogram" for personality analysis. In the third installment, we interviewed Mr. Kihara, President of Digram Lab, who devised the mechanism of Digram Diagnosis, about sleep and creativity!
・Source of creativity… ・Secret story behind the birth of Digram Diagnosis… ・Media activities… ・Sleep and inspiration…
This time, we will bring you valuable stories from this idea-man. As you read, wonderful ideas might come to you too.
■Biography
President and CEO, Seitaro Kihara
In 2001, he joined Dentsu Research Inc. and participated in many projects as a research planner. After working at Newhands, Mixi, and Dentsu, he established Digram Lab Inc. in 2013. Currently, he is researching and developing "Digram," a personality analysis tool that combines statistics and psychology. He is the developer of "Working Women's Frustration Diagnosis."
[SLEEP HACK Point] The secret story behind the birth of Digram Diagnosis - Was the business idea inspired by sleep? -
Mr. Seitaro Kihara (hereinafter President Kihara): I am constantly thinking about work 24 hours a day, but I try to focus on input and output during the day, and organize my thoughts while sleeping. This is how I always sleep.
When I'm sleeping, it feels like I'm organizing messy cash in my head, so good ideas tend to come to me more easily when I'm asleep.
In fact, the idea for Digram Diagnosis came to me while I was sleeping. The moment I thought of it, I woke my wife up and had her record the idea (laughs).
I think I said something like, "I've got a great idea! There's something called an Egogram, and it would be great to apply statistics to it!" (laughs). This was the catalyst for the birth of Digram Diagnosis's framework.
"A new personality diagnosis combining psychology and statistics!"
From statistics expert to personality diagnosis
President Kihara: I was originally a marketing research expert and a data expert.
For example, regarding sleep, I would look into "what kind of people suffer from insomnia," or "what kind of actions do people with certain problems take," not just through personality analysis, but also by measuring "insights" (true feelings) and brand awareness. I have been working as a statistical research expert for about 20 years.
—Those who measure things see the essence—
President Kihara: The trigger for launching Digram Diagnosis was when I was working at mixi, which was the largest SNS at the time, around 2010.
At that time, I was thinking about what people cared about most and what they would share on social media, and "diagnostic content" was the most popular thing back then.
I created various diagnostic contents, but with my colleagues, we wondered "what psychological test is truly accurate," and we couldn't find anything definitive. Since I'm the type of person who sees something through once I've decided on it, I started studying psychological tests from that moment on (laughs).
In other words, a statistics expert seriously began studying psychological tests. There weren't many former statistics experts creating diagnostic tests. There might have been some individuals doing it, but not many companies were.
In the process of building the business and developing the service, I realized that "Egogram" was the most accurate. Amidst this, a question arose in my mind: "What percentage of Japanese people fall into each personality type?"
However, I couldn't find any information about it. That's when I decided to research it myself, and that was the trigger for creating Digram Diagnosis.
The position of Digram Diagnosis is to clarify the personality of Japanese people by combining "psychology" and "statistics." I believe we are the first to create this distribution.
For example, "N-type 2" is a feminine personality, a type of person who is kind, cares about others, and accumulates stress. I was very curious about what percentage of people are like that and what jobs they are suited for, and that's when the idea of "Digram Diagnosis" came to me.
Since incorporating in 2013, what significance have we pursued? At some point, during a drinking party or interactions with subordinates, I realized, including myself, that "everyone surprisingly doesn't really understand their own personality."
At that moment, I thought, "If I create a tool like Digram Diagnosis, it could have great significance both commercially and socially." And what we advocated was "Visible Personality."
I believe that in the coming era, if you don't understand your own personality, you won't survive in business, and it will also be important in marriage and relationships. Therefore, self-analysis and self-counseling will become necessary in those aspects, and those who engage in them will find it very interesting.
By diagnosing people's personalities, it also benefits society. The realization that "I am analyzing data for this purpose" has become my driving force.
Digram Diagnosis received after 20 questions from Digram Lab's official website.
"Digram Diagnosis x ○○" for infinite possibilities
President Kihara: Companies operate according to life stages, and in that sense, as data experts, what we can do to support everyone is to provide a life map and a human health check that allows people to look back at themselves and move forward at any time.
Our personality diagnostic tests can be created in "infinite variations," so we can also create them related to sleep. We can use personality diagnostic tests to understand what kind of people suffer from insomnia, and then we can determine what actions those people should take.
However, we are not doctors, so we cannot 100% cure insomnia, but we can diagnose it probabilistically, indicating "these people are at risk." Sleep is deeply related to stress and mentality, so I believe simply eliminating those factors can lead to better sleep.
Personality diagnosis is not a panacea, but I want to continue developing it as a "mental supplement." In addition, we have collaborated with Toyota on car sales promotion, Anfa on hair diagnosis, and JT on smoking etiquette. "Digram Diagnosis" can be combined with any field.
The only thing it can't do is "lie." As statistical experts, if the data shows something is bad, it's bad, which I believe is valuable for users. Most of the people who come to us are in trouble.
Our business has two main axes: B2B and B2C. For B2B, we create diagnostic content to address clients' concerns about "products not selling." For B2C, people who are struggling in life, similar to those who visit fortune tellers, use our services.
The Cognitive Revolution through Media
The path of Digram Diagnosis development
President Kihara: That's because the moment I created the service, I appeared on TV as a talent, and the business had a rocket start.
What I struggled with was the conflict between my persona as a "talent" and my persona as a "company president." (I still have this dilemma.) So, when I appeared on TV, multiple servers crashed, meaning there was almost no struggle in terms of service recognition.
However, I struggled considerably with the development of the logic. The diagnostic logic has changed up to version 4. The current latest version is quite accurate, but in logic 1, the diagnosis didn't quite resonate, and I felt that frustration.
It was a daily cycle of tuning. Also, while recognition spread significantly, I struggled to make people understand the meaning of the word "Digram."
The word Digram is a coinage of mine, meaning "depths insight gram," which refers to measuring deep psychology in gram units, but I hold the trademark personally, not the company.
So, in that sense, starting from scratch was a very difficult experience. When I started Digram Diagnosis, other statistical experts would say things like, "Have you finally started fortune-telling?" I felt like an outsider, and from the TV side, I was seen as an oddball, so they didn't know which genre to categorize me into.
However, while these are struggles, they are also commonplace challenges that anyone starting from scratch would face. Speaking of Digram, the origin of psychological tests lies in "Egogram."
Egogram means measuring the ego in gram units, but we focused not on the ego, but on depths insight (deep psychology). In other words, we started thinking about measuring the self that even you don't realize, in gram units.
One of 20 questions from Digram Diagnosis.
While we want to spread Digram Diagnosis in all directions, our initial benchmark was "people who like fortune-telling."
In other words, people who are troubled about themselves. I thought that if we didn't create something that allowed them to express themselves, even if it was just about daily topics, life would become more suffocating than before, given the prevalence of social media now.
That's where self-production becomes incredibly important. By the way, I often get asked for advice when I'm in off-mode, and at those times, I wanted to provide appropriate answers rather than vague ones.
At that moment, an idea sparked: "Why don't I apply the marketing I've been doing for large corporations to individuals?" And so, I developed it into a counseling tool. By knowing about the Digram Diagnosis tool, some people can choose a restaurant that suits their companion's personality, for instance.
Having this alone can enrich one's life, thus clearly highlighting the information gap between those who know and those who don't.
Transition from "Diagnostic Content" to "Consultation Content"
President Kihara: While diagnosis is essentially a medical questionnaire, recently, the concerns from the general public received by Digram are about "what to do after the diagnosis."
The same applies to businesses; there's no place that offers solutions after diagnosis. For example, regarding sleep, if you're diagnosed with "you can't sleep," you'd ask, "Then what should I do?" So, if we can propose solutions like "let's do such and such to reduce stress," that person's life will move forward positively.
In that sense, I want to create a roadmap and encourage people as a "consultation tool" rather than just a diagnosis.
Not just data research, but also media appearances as a data information anchor
President Kihara: Statistical experts are excellent at analysis, but I feel that many of them are not good at communication or talking.
I can speak a lot, so I want to improve this area. More specifically, since Digram Diagnosis grew through media exposure, I want to become a presence that accurately conveys survey data directly in this rapidly changing world.
Furthermore, I want to disseminate data as a commentator on informational programs, and I plan to expand into that field while running the business.
Visualizing humanity's three major concerns with Digram Diagnosis!
President Kihara: I've come to understand humanity's three major concerns. First are "one's own personality," "work," and "love and marriage."
We handle the analysis of one's personality, so if we prioritize by theme, it's "work" and "love and marriage."
I believe we can visualize and reduce cases of mismatch where compatibility issues are discovered after marriage, or in work, where one thinks "Why did I join this company?" after being hired.
Digram Diagnosis is also conducted objectively, with clear scientific boundaries and narratives.
For example, if someone is struggling with sleep, creating a tool specifically for "people struggling with sleep," and distinguishing between "insomnia in 40-year-olds" and "insomnia after a breakup," can lead to problem-solving.
By continuing with Digram Diagnosis, you can notice changes in your personality. 75.5% of people experience a personality change within a year. The turning points for personality changes are shifts in life stages or mood changes, but especially, being "dumped by someone of the opposite sex" causes significant personality changes (leading to a state of lost confidence...).
So, how do you get back to normal from that state? Well, you just have to "clear your mind."
Also, give it time! It's not entirely untrue that time heals. Changes happen frequently due to time and environment, so personality is similar to blood pressure. (※This is just an image.)
"The New Digram Personality Diagnosis for 14 Million People" published by President Kihara in 2016.
Training of Digram Diagnosticians (Digram Diagnosticians Association under preparation)
President Kihara: Since I've become like the head of the school, I want to increase the number of Digram diagnosticians in various fields.
I'm actually holding Digram courses, and through them, I've realized how important it is to "create Digram comrades." So, I want to promote the spread of Digram diagnosticians even more actively in the future.
The Digram Diagnosis method has the potential for further expansion, so I would like to encourage those who are interested to participate in the Digram Diagnosis course and spread it further.
Kihara's Sleep Habits
Knowing your sleep type
—Don't force yourself to sleep—
President Kihara: I wear a CPAP when I sleep, and I always measure my sleep time, which is usually around 6 and a half hours.
Since I turned thirty-five, I've stopped pulling all-nighters, but even when I'm busy, I get at least 3 to 4 hours of sleep. I sometimes take a short nap during the day, but perhaps not often during my on-time.
When I nap on weekends, I sometimes force myself to nap during breaks because I have two children. I think that once you're over 40, your body automatically gives you sleep alerts, and perhaps because I do personality analysis, I quickly recognize my mental alerts.
My sleep becomes lighter, and sometimes I wake up at 3 or 4 in the morning even when I'm sleeping at night, but in those cases, I try not to force myself to sleep and just stay awake.
—Tuning both bedding and mental state—
President Kihara: I adjust my pillow and futon to suit me. Also, I try to avoid getting too excited by taking a good bath before sleeping.
I don't really pay much attention to the quality of my sleep, but I do care about how I sleep when I'm irritated or stressed.
Finally
Campaign Announcement
Digram Lab, in collaboration with Mental Health Technologies Inc., released the mental health-specialized personality assessment "ELPIS - Mental Check" in 2019.
Mental balance constantly changes due to environment and circumstances. By performing self-checks with Mental Check and observing over time, it is possible to accurately diagnose the mental state of employees and provide care.
We are currently offering account issuance for even one week as part of a campaign, so please feel free to contact us!
Contact: t.suzuki@digram.co.jp (Contact person: Suzuki)
"Psychology" x "Marketing" to unravel your true feelings. Click here for Digram Diagnosis!
