Former England national team captain Alan Shearer once said that every night he wanted to be able to look in the mirror and honestly say he had given “110%” for his club, Newcastle United.

Shohei Ohtani carries a similar philosophy.

For Ohtani, true satisfaction does not come from fame, money, or even statistics alone. What matters most is whether he can honestly feel that he fully used the day he was given.

Before the 2023 World Baseball Classic, a reporter asked him a simple question:

“When do you feel small moments of happiness?”

Ohtani answered by describing something surprisingly ordinary.

He said he felt satisfied with daily life itself:

“I practiced well today. I can go home and eat. At night, there’s a comfortable bed waiting for me. Tomorrow I’ll wake up and practice again.”

What mattered to him was living without anxiety and being able to focus completely on what he loves doing.

That is why Ohtani says the most important moment comes at night, when he asks himself:

“Did I truly give everything I had today?”

If the answer is yes, he can sleep peacefully.

To Ohtani, that peace of mind is deeply connected to health and routine. Being healthy allows him to practice at full capacity, and practicing wholeheartedly allows him to feel mentally fulfilled.

Many people might describe those things as “small happiness.”

But Ohtani disagrees.

For him, being healthy, training fully, eating well, sleeping peacefully, and waking up ready to improve again are not small blessings at all.

They are the foundation of happiness itself.

Source

This quote comes from a Japanese book published in Japan and is not currently available in English.

Number 1069, p.15