Get Work Japan

I thought it would be interesting to write an article about Japanese business words that they would not teach you in school. If you throw one of these around in a Japanese business setting you will without a doubt impress your peers. These words and phrases also express Japanese business culture in many ways which makes them even more interesting. Here we go! 1. Hanakin（花金） Hanakin is written with the character for flower, 花, and Friday, 金. It has a similar meaning to TGIF (Thank god it’s Friday!) and is the favorite time of the week when salarymen can go out and get drunk to relieve stress and try to forget about work for the weekend. Sometimes this refers to[…]

How to make yourself stand out in Japan Japan is a very homogeneous society and the business language at most corporations is solely Japanese. While foreigners working in Japan is increasing, there are still not that many that are truly fluent in Japanese. Actually, you can promote yourself much easier and make yourself stand out as a potential candidate for a position by being a foreigner that has a good command of Japanese. How I got my first job in Japan This is how I landed my first job in Japan. I am not a native English speaker but I was rather fluent in English and my Japanese was even better which really impressed my Japanese employer. According to my[…]

When I was an employee at a Japanese company, I was always stressed and nervous about talking to my boss about taking a vacation. I always waited for the right timing before consulting my boss to make sure that he was in a good mood. At one company I worked at I did not have any paid vacation and at another, I had 10 days per year which got one day longer per year you worked at the company. While I often took out most of my vacation I often heard stories from my friends who couldn’t take out more than a couple of days per year which is way less than 50% of their actual paid vacation days per[…]

Finding the main topic If you have experienced working in Japan or working with a Japanese client, you have definitely noticed that Japanese business mails are very wordy. Japanese do not get into the main topic of discussion directly, instead they start with a greeting then a little small talk before writing about what they really want to discuss. Japanese always follow this format because a short mail in Japan is considered rude. Japanese show their respect and thoughtfulness to their clients by adding these extra parts to their emails. If you do not write emails in this format then people would think that you do not know Japanese business etiquettes and that you are not familiar with the business[…]

What do you like most about Japan? There’s lots of sushi to enjoy, people are very polite and it’s a very safe country. There are many merits to live in Japan. We love Japan because Japan has a unique culture. We will introduce you to what we think are the best merits of living and working in Japan, one by one. The first topic for this series is hot springs Hot springs are extremely popular in Japan and a huge part of the Japanese culture. Japan is a volcanic island with lots of hot springs and there are so many hot spring resorts all over Japan. Hot springs, or Onsen in Japanese, are said to be good for your skin,[…]

Finding a job in Japan Many people are thinking about working in Japan, but most people give up even without trying because they think that it’s too difficult or don’t know where to start. In this article, I will give some tips on how to find a job in Japan and also some advice from experiences I’ve got at 4 different Japanese companies on how to be better perceived by Japanese employers. Finding your strengths The general rule in Japan is that you should be able to do something better than a Japanese person in order to get the credentials to work in Japan. There are of course exceptions to this rule and the most important first thing is to[…]

Reading between the lines Maybe one of the most difficult cultural differences in Japan to other western countries is that people do not necessarily always say what they mean. I had a German friend in Japan that got an invitation from a Japanese friend after hanging out for a day that they should go out for a drink sometime. My German friend thought that was a great idea and asked when his Japanese friend was available. The Japanese friend got startled because he did not really mean to invite his German friend for a drink although he said so. Japanese people have two sides This cultural phenomenon is called Honne (honest feeling) and Tatemae (public stance or face.) The same[…]

First steps when becoming a company employee Most people doing business in Japan have their own business card. In fact, it is so common that if you cannot present a business card when you meet your clients you are not considered to be a professional and are not taken seriously. When you meet new clients in Japan you always start with exchanging business cards. Exchanging business cards is a very important first step and gives a really important first impression. Since it is so important there are a lot of rules and etiquette considering how to give, receive and handle business cards. Are you above or below in the hierarchy? If you are the one receiving a service then you[…]

Bowing in Japan is very ubiquitous but difficult to master Many people usually think of Japan as a very polite country since you often see people bow in many situations in their daily lives. Bowing is very common and important in the business and the service industry both for the person who receives the service and the one who gives the service. It might seem at first that bowing is something rather simple however it is actually very intricate and has lots of rules and etiquette to it. There are some basic ground rules that are essential to bowing to not offend the other party. Bow from your hips In many countries around the world, bowing is not really a[…]

Going from a student to a company employee was a completely new world When I first came to Japan as a teenager I experienced a lot of cultural differences which for me, being the first time in Asia, was very exciting at first. But, when I started working in Japan I was really put to the test by this new culture as I had to adapt and adopt it wholeheartedly and learn the ways of Japan in order to not disrespect my coworkers and the company’s clients. What do you do for a living? In Japan, your company and your position is a big part of both your life and your identity. It is not uncommon for people to start[…]