When people move to a new workplace, they sometimes complain:

“No one talks to me.”
“No one welcomed me.”

And while it certainly feels reassuring when others greet you first, many people who feel that way never take the initiative themselves.

If you want communication to begin, sometimes you have to start it yourself.

Shohei Ohtani understands that well.

During the 2023 World Baseball Classic, most of the Japanese national team players were meeting one another for the first time.

Even though he was already a global superstar, Ohtani actively approached teammates himself, asking questions like, “How old are you?” and making a point of learning everyone’s names and faces.

That simple act became the first step toward building strong team chemistry.

He approached his first season with the Dodgers the same way.

According to Ohtani, when he enters a new environment, he prefers to speak to people first and introduce himself properly.

He explained it simply:

“When I meet someone for the first time, I make sure to greet them properly and introduce myself. I actually enjoy that kind of thing.”

When Ohtani first joined the Dodgers, some players were reportedly cautious around him because of his enormous fame and record-breaking contract.

But Ohtani’s friendly and approachable personality quickly erased any tension.

No matter how famous he became, he never acted as if introductions were beneath him.

Instead, he believed communication begins with a simple greeting.

And in many ways, that humility became one of the foundations of the Dodgers’ chemistry during his first season with the team.

Source

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

SHO-TIME 3.0: Shohei Ohtani and His First World Series Championship in a New Land, p.85