After studying at medical school he worked in various important Government positions. He became well known for advocating philanthropy and the principle of a ‘Large Family’ when he took the position of Governor of the Standard of Railways. As a politician his nickname was ‘Big Talker’. Shinpei Goto became the Mayor of Tôkyô in 1920 and it has been said that Mikao Usui had worked for him.
Shinpei Goto wrote a calligraphic work in Gichin Funakoshi’s first book in 1922 called Ryukyu Kempo: Tode. Gichin Funakoshi is also said to have been an acquaintance of Mikao Usui.
After the Kanto earthquake in September 1923, he played an active role in rebuilding Tôkyô. In 1924, Citizen’s forerunner, the Shokosha Watch Research Institute produced its first pocket watch. As a well-known Japanese personality Shinpei Goto had the honor of naming the watch CITIZEN with the hope that the watch (a luxury item) would become widely available to ordinary citizens and be sold throughout the world.