[Johnnys 101] So You Have Begun to Stan A Johnnys Group – All the basics you need to know

May 21, 2019May 21, 20194 Comments

So… you have begun to stan a Johnnys group. Welcome! It’s going to be a very sparkly and emotional ride, but let me give you some tips to help you start out.

This is a new series on my blog called “Johnny’s 101”, where I answer as much in depth about the infamous Japanese boyband agency Johnny’s and associates as I possibly can. As a bit of background, I have been a Johnnys fan for over 10 years now, and have also written my graduate school thesis on the business of Johnny’s. I don’t know everything (as Johnny’s can be mysterious in a lot of ways) but I hope I can give an insight into Johnny’s that you might not know yet.

But first… What is Johnnys?

Johnnys is an all-male talent agency founded in the 1960s by Johnny Kitagawa. The agency is mostly known for training boys (called Johnny’s Juniors) in different parts of the entertainment industry (singing, dancing, acting, etc.) from a young age by having them back dance for the debuted groups, seeing which ones are popular, and then debuting a select few. They aren’t just simply boybands but are involved in many different activities in the entertainment industry in Japan, such as television, movies, fashion, and even novel writing and newscasting. Some of the most popular groups that have come out of Johnnys are SMAP and Arashi.

Now with that out of the way, let’s get to today’s topic which is basics of the agency and the fandom that you should know as a new fan (and maybe a reminder or refresher for those OG fans out there!)

1. Johnny’s is extremely strict (as are the fans) and behind the times

Johnny’s hasn’t digitalized yet (even worse than the rest of Japan… which is saying something) which means there are no YouTube videos or digital music downloads. Hard copies only, my friends! They are super strict with what is uploaded to social media and media sites as well. Around 2014 or so is when they actually put their artist’s pictures on their OWN website and their fan club was super analog until about 2 years ago (hard copy tickets, paying via bank transfer and all) Shocker isn’t it? In my opinion, this is a huge barrier to growth for them, especially internationally. BUT! With that being said recently they have made some huge changes, like Johnny’s official shop goods being sold online within Japan, revamp of the online fan club system, and especially so with the juniors YouTube channel, which is promising. My question though: is it too slow? Let me know what you think!

As for the fans, concert manners and sharing media online is policed pretty strictly. This varies from group to group though, as each fan base has a different “culture” so to speak. An example of this is with my favorite group NEWS, concert spoilers during the tour are kinda a big no-no, as NEWS themselves said a few years back they prefer all the fans to be surprised, so…. you won’t see the set list and hardly any detailed spoilers until after the final show is finished. It’s not to “end game” level, but we protect from spoilers as much as possible. MC is perfectly fine to spoil so bring all the weird things they say!

2. Johnnys is based in Japan and caters mostly to a Japanese audience

Johnny’s is based in Japan and caters to Japanese fans within Japan. I see a lot of fans getting upset that Johnny’s doesn’t do much for international fans and say “Johnny’s hate international fans” but at this point in time with the current stage of the agency, I think these thoughts are misguided. I could make an entirely separate blog post about this (comment below if you want it!), but to sum it up the Japanese music industry is #2 in the world only after the United States. Because of this, Johnny’s can make enough money just within Japan no problem only catering to Japanese fans. Why should they spend the money to expand overseas when they dominate the Japanese market and make enough money anyway? Even fans inside of Japan have a hard time getting concert tickets even when they are in the fan club and the artists only have enough hours in a day, so how can they expand and think of going overseas when they are at capacity inside of Japan? If you think about it that way, you can see why Johnny’s wouldn’t want to cater to foreign fans, as they have their hands full inside of Japan already. Does this mean they shouldn’t share media outside of Japan? No, I think YouTube and social media is essential, but in terms of an international fan club and translating things into many languages, it’s not going to work for a long time and not a good choice business wise. They first need to get the digital infrastructure up and running in Japan first.

3. The Twitter community is probably the strongest to find fan friends (Japanese and foreign)and get the latest information.

Back in the day, LiveJournal used to be the community of choice but in the past 5 years or so that community has pretty much died and everyone is on Twitter. If you want to make fandom friends, make a twitter account and get started by talking with other fans! Japanese fans are also heavy users of Twitter (as Twitter is the dominant social media platform in Japan besides Instagram) so you can get almost any piece of information you need on there. For the most part, us fans are extremely friendly and are more than happy to point you in the direction of what you see looking for. Just be sure to respect the other fans and don’t assume that the way things are done in your country are done that way in Japan and in Johnny’s.

4. No Johnny’s talents have individual Twitter or Instagram accounts or even social media

Okay okay, there is 1 exception that literally happened when I was writing this, which is Yamapi! He was on Weibo, but then on May 16th, he made an Instagram, a Johnny’s first. In general, though, Johnnys do not have social media (including youtube… except the Junior’s channel I mentioned above!) and their “blogs”, called Jwebs, are behind a paywall and are only in Japanese. This poses an interesting dynamic, as the world has moved rapidly towards an era of social media and digital music downloads and streaming, in which Johnnys is pretty archaic. So, if you want to find any information about the group or see their music videos you will have to go on a hunt around the internet.

Did I miss anything? What information would you like as a new Johnnys fan or as an OG fan what advice would you give to new fans?

“When are you moving back home?” Answering the Question of Do I want to live in Japan for my entire life?

February 12, 2019February 13, 2019Leave a comment

“When are moving back home?”

That phrase is something I get commonly asked when I make my way back to the US, especially at social functions. It’s almost like there is this default setting on everybody that one day you will just press “home culture” and return back. Everyone is fascinated by the fact that I live overseas, like I am that “weird Aunt” that lives in some exotic place and is always talking about her adventures that no one can relate to, but somewhat enjoys hearing about. Ultimately it comes down to “well, are you even planning to come home?”. Now, this question is a very valid question to ask, whether out of pure curiosity or simply they assume that you wont stay “away” your entire life but when I was younger, I dreaded this question. Mostly because I thought it was rude, but also because I didn’t know how to explain in words how I felt about the subject.

For one thing, I never felt comfortable living in the US anyway. I was a small person (4’11 or 147cm) in a place with so much space and excess, as well as I never felt like I was listened to because I wasn’t as loud and extroverted as others around me. My formative adult years were all in Japan and I blossomed when I moved here, rather than in High School or University, because Japan gave me the opportunities to, rather than the suppression I felt in the US. On the other hand, I learned quite quickly that Japan will never accept me like a real Japanese person, no matter how much I try to culturally integrate into their society. I never want to become Japanese, but being accepted as knowledgeable and culturally aware is something that I am passionate about, but because I am as foreign looking as you can get, I get a lot of default English and awkward questions about things from abroad.

This question is hard to answer because I feel this pressure to press that default “home culture” button eventually because if I don’t, I will be in this kind of purgatory of cultures because I wont be in my home culture, but I also will never fully be accepted into Japanese society. At the same time, I feel the Japanese culture suits my personality more, as I am naturally more patient and don’t like as much aggression during conflict. So, I answer mostly with “For the meantime, I want to stay in Japan”, which ultimately leads to the question “Will you live in Japan forever, then?”.

To that I say “I don’t know”. Right now, I feel at home in Japan and after I get my visa renewed this year, I want to lay down my roots more, like with long term financial investments, etc. With that being said though, I am open to moving to another country if the opportunity arises and I think that it would be the change that I need in life, but I think I will always be connected to Japan somehow.

That, however, probably does not mean moving back to the US though. In my heart of hearts, I feel that the US would be the last place that I would want to return to settle down for many reasons, but ultimately I feel that it wouldn’t suit me in the long term. I have seen my home country in a very different light for all of these years and I’m not comfortable with going back into that fully again. I would rather accumulate into another culture, than re-accumulate into American culture again. Now, will I say I will NEVER move back to the US? No. Life happens and there is a plethora of situations that would call for me to go back to the US for whatever reason, but my preference would be to not go back if at all possible.

What do you think? Have you felt this way about living overseas? Let me know in the comments below!

7 Tips on How to Prepare For Natural Disasters in Japan

February 4, 2019February 4, 2019Leave a comment

Moving to another country can be scary in many ways, but nothing as scary as natural disasters. On March 11th, 2011 a huge earthquake shook the Tohoku region of Japan, leading to a tsunami and leaving widespread destruction in its wake. In 2018, there were 2 big earthquakes, 2 typhoons, and flooding that rampaged through the Western part of Japan (one earthquake in Hokkaido), which lead to the 2018 kanji of the year to be “Disaster”. This was a wakeup call to many, including me, to be prepared for the worst. For the most part, Japan is a safe country to live in in terms of crime rate, but Earthquakes are a part of daily life. But when a big one hits, it’s best to be prepared for the worst. Not just for earthquakes, but for any type of Natural Disaster that can happen in Japan. Here are my 7 tips on how to prepare and cope with Natural Disasters in Japan.

*DISCLAIMER* These tips are only to be a compilation of information for people in Japan to be prepared for disaster, not a direct source of help. Please contact the respective agencies and resources that I list here for emergencies and direct help.

Know what types of Natural Disasters happen in your area

Landslides, Floods, Typhoons, Earthquakes, Volcanic eruptions and Tsunamis are all types of natural disasters that can happen in Japan, depending on the area. Depending on where you live in Japan, there are different types of disasters that occur more often than others. As an example, Okinawa is in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, so it is one of the places in Japan that is the most prone to Typhoons during Typhoon season. If you are near the mountains, landslides/ mudslides could be a problem. Living near the sea you are more prone to Tsunami’s if an earthquake hits. Are you near an active volcano? The answers to these questions can be as simple as asking a local, or asking your local ward office what types of natural disasters occur in the area. From there you can see how to prepare in case one of them does happen in your area.
Check the Japan Metrological Agency website frequently – especially during typhoon season

The Japan Metrological Agency website is the most direct source of up to date information out there on Typhoons and Earthquakes and other weather-related information. The website is in English and has a lot of good information on when a typhoon is coming, as well as information on all of the different earthquakes that have occurred. You will be surprised how many earthquakes Japan has in a day. You just don’t feel them!

3. Turn on the Television for the most recent updates during a natural disaster

The first thing I do when there has been an earthquake in my area is turn on the TV if I am near one and check where the earthquake had happened and what the damage is so far. For typhoons, most news channels will have constant updates on where the typhoon is and any urgent evacuations or new developments, so its best to keep this on in the background just in case. They even provide train line updates, as the train lines shut down automatically after an earthquake to inspect for any damages. Back in June of 2018 when the earthquake hit the Kansai region, I kept the TV on in my apartment all day to get the most recent information on damage and train lines.

4. Have an earthquake emergency kit Ready in your home

After the earthquake in Osaka in June 2018, my roommate and I decided to get serious and to finally gather an earthquake kit. You can buy a pre-made one at a store or you can look up what should be needed and make one yourself! We decided to make one ourselves and it contains basics like bottled water, canned food, first aid kit, etc. Ideally, it contains 3 days of essentials in for the worse case scenario.

To build your own kit, check the advice HERE from the US Embassy in Japan. There are also a lot of other helpful disaster tips contained there too! Japan Info Swap also has a helpful article too.

For an already prepared earthquake kit, check HERE at Rakuten.

5. Know where your evacuation centers/ safety points are

Go to your ward office website and check where the evacuation points are, as each ward handles the evacuation points. Most of this information is in English. For example, type in “Chou Ward Osaka” and the website in English should pop up with a link for evacuation points.

6. Coordinate with Friends and talk about disaster BEFORE it happens

Its a very good idea to talk about disaster scenarios with your friends before I happens, no matter how “morbid” it sounds. When you’re living by yourself in a foreign country, it can be hard to be together with someone at the time of disaster, but make sure to talk with your friends and have a general plan on how to contact them or where to meet up in the case of a disaster. Safety is better in numbers! Someone will know if something happened to you and its another safety net to make sure you are accounted for during a disaster.

7. Register with your country’s embassy/ consulate

Most countries run a program for people living or traveling overseas to register with them in the event something happens to the traveler or a disaster strikes. If you register with them, they know that you are in the country and will come looking for you if there is a disaster in your area. This also gives a point of contact to family members if they cannot get in contact with you for whatever reason. They can contact the embassy and ask them to give updates on your location etc, and its more helpful for the embassy if they already have your information on file. The USA embassy program is called STEP and it can be found HERE.

Any tips that I missed? Any other tips or information that you would like to see? Let me know in the comments below!

[REVIEW] NEWS Arena Tour 2018 EPCOTIA – DVD/ Blu-Ray

January 28, 2019January 28, 2019Leave a comment

From the world of “NEVERLAND” in 2017, in 2018 NEWS takes you on a journey into outer space onboard the EPCOTIA Liner – flight 009; NEWS hosting as the 4 flight attendants. A tour based around their album released in March 2018, NEWS once again immerses you into the theme of the album, which has been a “thing” for them since their 2015 album “WHITE”.

In this review, I will be discussing 2 categories – Theme and DVD contents – to give an overall rundown of the DVD itself and if its worth it to buy.

Theme – Outer Space??

Let’s begin with Theme! To be honest, I was skeptical of this space theme from the minute I saw the names of the songs on the album that were basically all a bunch of space themed words thrown together like “BLACKHOLE” and “UFO”. Nothing could top NEVERLAND (tour and album) for me… it was the perfect theming for a group like NEWS who is bright and has bouncy songs with some rock thrown in from time to time, so EPCOTIA had a lot to live up to… and I think NEWS was feeling the pressure too. Before going into the tour itself in April, I liked about only 50% of the songs but after seeing the tour in Hiroshima I was hooked on about 90% of them for the performance.

You can tell NEWS made an extensive effort to separate NEVERLAND from EPCOTIA as themes, and to not make it a continuation (despite NEWS doing theming for N-E-W-S for the next few years) . NEVERLAND had a more steam punk feel to it with the costumes and had a more typical stage setup for NEWS, while EPCOTIA was a center stage and more “futuristic” with monochrome theming and costumes, lots of strobe light affects and a center stage where they really pushed the limits with what they could do with it. (Bungee jumping around the stage in the middle of the concert, hanging from the celling during the opening and having a huge model space shuttle on the stage? Now THAT’S entertainment!) I felt they had a higher budget this year as compared to previous years, as it was their 15th anniversary and probably after the success of the NEVERLAND theming the year previously.

Also, on a side note, the tickets were adorable with “Boarding Pass” written on the back of them with the EPCOTIA logo on it … the theming was on point the entire time from beginning to end. I think with NEVERLAND they pushed the limits for theming where they had fallen short with QUARTETTO the year previous and then with EPCOTIA, they really took what they learned with NEVERLAND and ran with it full speed ahead.

CONTENTS – less than previous DVD’s?

Credit to Johnnys Entertainment Inc.

The contents of the DVD are very straight forward this time around, containing only the final day of the tour in Saitama Arena in May 2018 plus “EPCOTIA MULTI ANGLES LIVE”, which special to just the limited edition of the DVD. The only difference between the Regular Edition and the Limited Edition is this “Multi Angles live” for both the Blu-ray and DVD versions. Click HERE for all the information on what the DVD contains (Japanese Only).

This time the DVD didn’t have as many extras as in the past… more than likely because NEWS had 3 “tours” in 2018 (EPCOTIA Arena Tour, 15th Anniversary Live STRAWBERRY, and EPCOTIA – encore- Dome Tour) and I predict that because of this, they are wanting to release the arena tour but for a lower price point so that they can release the other concerts later on in 2019. (A double sided DVD between Strawberry and EPCOTIA – encore-? You heard it being called here first, folks!)

I thought the Multi Angles live was a smart move on Johnny’s part to keep the budget low: Take footage of a handful of songs that they already had recorded at the concert and release it at different angles. Essentially, they have cameras pointed at each of the members during the concert at all times and they compiled that footage of 4 of the popular songs, LIVE, BLACKHOLE, Erotica, and U R not alone for each member’s angle. Not just that, but you don’t have to choose just 1 member for the entire time, you can choose different members for different parts of the song, letting you control the editing of the song and how you want to see it. I thought you could only choose 1 member for the entire song, but I was happily surprised you can choose the angle at each point in the song. Very interactive, as there are so many combinations you can make between the 4 members’ parts.

“Happy Ending”

Overall, Outer Space wasn’t a theme that I was extremely excited about but the execution and how they kept to theming the entire time was extremely impressive. NEVERLAND is close to my heart and for me, unfortunately, EPCOTIA did not surpass that. The content of the DVD was less than previous years, but hopefully there will be some releases of the other 2018 concerts later in 2019 to make up for it. (My wallet is READY!)

If you can get your hands on the Limited Edition of this DVD, I think it is worth it for the multi-angles lives, but the Regular Edition doesn’t have much to offer besides the actual concert.

With that being said though, I can’t wait to see what they have in store for the VR themed “WORLDISTA” for 2019!

[Translation] Nishino Kana – Have a nice day

January 21, 2019Leave a comment

5分おきに鳴る目覚まし
お願い寝かせてもう少し
まだ眠いしテレビも見たいしお腹すいた　(Good morning!)
スマホを片手にコーヒー
気づけばヤバいもう8時
よっしゃ！駅まではダッシュするしかない

My alarm goes off every 5 minutes
Please just let me sleep a bit more
I’m still sleepy, I want to watch TV, and I am hungry (Good Morning!)
Smartphone in one hand while drink my coffee
When I realize the time it’s already 8am
Alrighty! Looks like I’m gonna have to make a dash to the station.

愛とか恋とかラララララ
気になる彼は彼女がいた
ドンマイ　ドンマイ
これも運命

Love and Romance, Lalalala
The guy I am interested in has a girlfriend.
Don’t mind, Don’t mind
This is also fate!

I say,　がんばれ私！　がんばれ今日も
「行ってきます」「行ってらっしゃい」
Happy Lucky Sunny Day
行け！行け！私！　その調子、いい感じ！
がんばれ私！　がんばれ今日も
「行ってきます」「行ってらっしゃい」
Happy Lucky Sunny Day
偉いぞ私　負けるな　焦るな　くじけるな
そうやって今日だって
一生懸命生きてるから
I say, Have a nice day

I say, do your best, me! Do your best today
“I’m heading out!” “Have a good day!”
Happy Lucky Sunny Day
Go! Go! Me! Just like that, good vibes!
Do your best, me! Do your best today
“I’m heading out!” “Have a good day!”
You’re doing great, me. Don’t loose, don’t get flustered, don’t get disheartened!
That’s right, today I’m living to the fullest.
I say, Have a nice day

たまにはパーっとしたいのに
まだまだやること山積み
もう眠いしまだ終わんないしお腹すいた　(I’m hungry!)
みんな帰っちゃうお先に
気づけば夜も10時過ぎ
よっしゃ！こうなれば本気出すしかない

Sometimes I just want to take a break,
but the work just keeps piling up.
I’m tired, nothings finished, and I’m getting hungry (I’m hungry!)
Everyone’s already left before me,
and before I realized its already after 10pm
Alrighty! I’ve just gotta work harder on this.

夜中のスイーツラララララ
ダイエットはまた明日から
ドンマイ　ドンマイ
これはご褒美

Midnight Sweets Lalalala
I’ll start my diet again tomorrow.
Don’t mind! Don’t mind!
This is my reward.

I say,　がんばれ私！　がんばれ今日も
「お疲れさん」「おやすみなさい」
Happy Lucky Sunny Day
週末まではあと2日　あと2日
がんばれ私！　がんばれ今日も
「お疲れさん」「おやすみなさい」
Happy Lucky Sunny Day
凄いぞ私　優しく　可愛く　イラつかず
そうやって今日だって
一生懸命生きてるから
I say, Have a nice day

I say, do your best, me! Do your best today
“Good Work Today” “Goodnight!”
Happy Lucky Sunny Day
There are only 2 more days until the weekend, 2 more days!
Do your best, me! Do your best today
“Good Work Today” “Goodnight!”
That’s amazing!, me. You’re nice, sweet, and patient!
That’s right, today I’m living to the fullest.
I say, Have a nice day

Monday　ブルーな溜め息の　Tuesday
Wednesday　乗り切ったらやっと　Thursday
華の　Friday　夜更かしの　Saturday
あっという間　眠りたくない　Sunday
起きたら　Monday

Monday with a blue sigh leads to Tuesday
Wednsday humpday, then its finally Thursday
Beautiful Friday, Late-night Saturday
Just like that I don’t want to go to sleep Sunday
When I wake up it’s Monday

Translators Notes:

This was my translation of “Have a nice day” from her “Just LOVE” Album. Please note that Japanese is my second language and this translation is just my interpretation of the lyrics based on my knowledge of the Japanese and English language. If you have any suggestions to better it, please comment below! Also, I do not own the rights to these song lyrics.

I had such a fun time translating this really light and fun song! I love Nishino Kana’s lyrics and this song may seem childish, but if you look a bit deeper I see a song that is motivating and positive, telling you to work hard but don’t be too hard on yourself sometimes. Self-love I guess?

6 Things to Organize and Store Your Johnny’s Goods

October 13, 2018October 12, 20184 Comments

Becoming a fan or collector of anything raised the question of how exactly to your organize all of the goods accumulated from said activity. Johnny’s (and other idol groups) have many types of goods to collect with many different high and low end options to help you organize them. Over the years I have collected and used my fair share of these organization items, so here are 6 products to help organize and store your Johnny’s goods.

1. Ticket Holder

Johnnys has now started to go away from the paper ticketing system for some of their artists in favor of digital tickets, but there are still many shows that have paper tickets to collect. A regular photo album to store all of your tickets in is ideal, rather than spending money on an expensive “ticket holder”, and it works just as well. I have another post I wrote a while back where I talk about this particular item, so check it out HERE if you are interested!

2. Uchiwa Storage Box

3. Streamer Holder

This is the newest addition to my goods storage and another game changer for me. Over the years I had collected so many streamers from concerts that they also ended up in my “Johnnys goods drawer of doom and chaos”. One day while browsing in Tower Records with a friend, I spotted this and I was mind blown. I bought it right away and now my streamers are organized and the holder itself looks really pretty on my shelf… and also looks like I put effort into storing my Johnnys goods, instead of leaving a pile of them sitting at the back of aforementioned drawer.

You can also find this at the 300 yen store, but the one that I decided to buy was a bit pricer and from Tower Records for just over 1000 yen or $10 USD. It is sturdier than the 3 Coin store one and is magnetic to hold the opening shut.

4. Photo Album for Shop Photos

Shop photos are one of those staple items that all Johnnys fans eventually purchase. Over the years I have accumulated hundreds of photos and have organized them in these photo albums from the 100 yen store. I believe these particular ones are from CanDo, but any photo album of your choice will due! I personally don’t like inviting a ton of money into storage for shop photos, because I have a lot of them, so I just hop on over to the 100 yen store and get mine. LOFT and Tokyu Hands will also have them, but for a higher price point.

I personally organize mine by member and group, so I have individual albums for each member (for NEWS I buy all the photosets at the concert) and then I have a separate album for group photos. Feel free to organize yours however you please!

5. Glass Cup for Showcasing Penlights

Once again, going back that “Johnnys goods drawer of doom”, all of my penlights also used to be in there. After a while, I wanted to proudly display my favorite ones in my room to always look at, but I didn’t have a way to keep them standing up. So, I be-bopped my way over to the 100 yen store (more specifically Daiso) and saw they had so many options for mini cups that are the perfect size to place your penlights inside of them to stand them up. For my larger penlights, I have a bit larger glasses but for the most part they are the smallest glasses I could find there.

6. Binder for storing magazine scans

If you are an idol fan, you are probably buying magazines to read interviews with your favorite entertainers. Some people want to keep their magazines in restive condition, but after you buy them year after year, they start to pile up. After the first time I moved inside of Japan, I realized I had accumulated WAY too magazines over those 2 years and decided to cut them up and take out only the pages that I wanted to keep. It would reduce space in my apartment and make it easier to sift through all of the scans that I wanted. I am still not done, but I have accumulated a large amount of binders filled with magazine scans that I have cut out over the years. The magazines come in all different sizes, so I normally pick a normal size A4 binder with extra pocket refill, as well as an XL wide size binder meant for fashion magazines to make sure all of my bases are covered. Below is the Rakuten link to the ones that I have bought, but you can also go to any stationary store, like LOFT or Tokyu Hands to buy it. I tend to buy in bulk when I buy them, so its cheaper to buy them on Rakuten. If you are not looking to buy over 1-2 of them, LOFT and Tokyu Hands is probably the best to buy them at. Make sure you don’t forget the re-fills for them! They only come with maybe 10 pockets inside.

A4-S Size Binder

Magazine Binder

This is an amazing way to organize all of your magazines without the extra room and weight attached!

What would you be interested in buying? Are there any other goods that you don’t know how organize or store? Let me know in the comments below!

Questions About Living in Japan – Is It Hard to Get a Job?

October 6, 2018May 17, 2019Leave a comment

Living in Japan can be a challenge for foreigners and for people looking for information before making the leap to move over here. I reached out on Instagram and asked followers there if they had any questions about life in Japan, and I got some great responses! I want to answer each question in an individual post, so this is the first of a series of posts that I plan to make on questions about living in Japan. The first question is about getting a job in Japan and about the working attitude.

Question 1: Is it hard getting a job there [in Japan]? How is the working attitude there?

Finding a job for a foreigner can be easy for a native English speaker wanting to teach English, but outside of that it can be kind of difficult. A lot of people use teaching English as a springboard to getting a non-English teaching job after. You have to have a high level of Japanese for non-English speaking jobs, for the most part, maybe not an engineer or programmer, and you have to prove you want to live here for the long term…. as per my experience. You should also have experience in that field that you want to work in (masters degrees counting in my opinion) as with any job back in your own home country. You also have to be aware that it is competitive out there. Just because you can speak English and Japanese fluently doesn’t mean you get an easy foot in the door. There are tons of Japanese-English bilinguals out there and the competition is tough… you have to have some sort of other skill that you can contribute, not just language.

As for the working attitude, I can only speak for non-English teaching jobs, but for the most part, Japanese people are very hard working and expect the same from you. At the beginning, they might be sympathetic to you, but they will teach you Japanese business practices bit by bit, if you don’t know them already, and expect you to follow them. Some of these include coming in before work begins to prepare for the day even though the workday hasn’t started yet, radio exercises (Yes… my first company made us do it EVERY single day), answering the phones even though you are a foreigner, etc.

Some of these things are company-specific though. The company culture differs from company to company and the size of the company as well, so keep that in mind. I suggest when going for an interview, have a list of what you are looking for in a company and during the interview ask smart questions to see if that company is a right fit for you. For example, if you want to travel overseas a lot, a job just sitting at a desk won’t be right for you. If you want to work on new projects all the time, a job where you are taking over from someone else and the job is pretty much decided is probably not the right fit for you. If you want direct communication with your boss, ask for details about what type of working environment you’re walking into.

There are many ways to ask questions in interviews to see if you will be a good fit for that company, and don’t be afraid to…. an interview is just as much them interviewing you as you are getting a feel if you want to work for them. I made that mistake so many times because I was desperate to get out and move on to “something better” when in reality it wasn’t the best fit for me. I’m on my 4th company here in Japan and I finally found a right fit for me but it took me about 3.5 years to do so… so with that know sometimes you might not find that perfect job fit right away and you can quit if you want.

On the other hand, I highly recommend you try to stick it out in a company for more than a year though so it doesn’t seem that you are job hopping constantly. There are cycles of liking and disliking your job, just like in your home country, and there is a difference between being harassed/ not agreeing with the company values and wanting to leave after the honeymoon period has died down. You might also be going through some tough projects or work at that moment, so I highly recommend thinking very thoroughly about why you want to quit before you do and also have something lined up before you leave so you can pay your bills.

Let me know if you want information on how to quit your job in Japan properly! I’ll consider making a blog post or video about it in the future. Also, if you have a question about living in Japan please answer in the comments below! If you have experience with jobs here as well, feel free to comment on your experience.

nihonchique

Lauren's World – Life in Japan