Foreigners finding creative ways to make a living in Tokyo | Hacker News Reader

Foreigners finding creative ways to make a living in Tokyo

japantoday.com

9 pointsmakimaki13 comments

It may not be creative, but there is nigh-infinite demand in IT here for bilingual people. (And by bilingual, I don't necessarily mean drop-dead-fluent but I also do not mean "I was in the anime club in high school, does that count?")

Technically, what you do depends on what your company does. Its all the usual suspects: finance, manufacturing, logistics, LOTS of integrated software/hardware for appliances/cars in this neck of the woods, etc. If you've seen in done anywhere, we do it here, too.

Downside: The hours are long and, at least in my part of the country, the pay is low. (I'm paid Kansas wages to work in Chicago, essentially -- of course, excellent rail transportation means I can afford to live in the local equivalent of Normal Illinois and commute every day.)

It was a great incentive for me to start doing my own thing in the nights and weekends. That is one of the benefits of my day job: the bosses know about my company-on-the-side and they encourage it -- "It is cheaper than paying for your continuing education AND keeps you happy. Go for it! Oh, if you learn any tricks we can use, please present them." And I do.

How did you get your job in Japan?

I got my current job by overdelivering on a project for a customer of a previous job. When my previous contract ended, I called up the customer and asked if he knew of anybody who needed work. He offered to hire me on the spot and immediately started contacting his customers to see who could use another body (he runs a consulting shop). One of the customers wanted me on a permanent basis rather than as a contractor -- promises were exchanged, bows happened, and the matter was resolved.

Some time after that I wrote up a resume and had a job interview, but these were formalities which only existed to ratify the decision made previously.

That's pretty much how you get your job anywhere, right? Be good at what you do. Network.

My one Japan-specific tip: you can be successful in America without a set of business cards. You can probably be successful in Japan without them, too, but I'd really fork over $20 for a nice set of bilingual ones. Whenever you meet a Japanese businessman, make sure you get his and he gets yours. This is not hard. (I'd get REALLY good at self-introductions too. Also not hard.)

Then, when that businessman hears one of his salaryman buddies complaining that the project is failing because nobody speaks English, he's going to remember the one American engineer he has ever met who speaks Japanese. And presto, you just got a job offer.

Bonus points if you're one of the folks who worries incessantly about outsourcing: India graduated in excess of 200,000 engineers last year. It also had approximately 500 people pass either level 1 or level 2 of the JLPT, which is pretty much the minimum for successfully working here in a professional capacity. Draw a Venn diagram of those two groups -- the number in the middle is in the dozens, if that. (If you are one of the people in the middle, please, send me an email. I want your business card.)

(Actual quote from my future boss at my job "interview": "I hadn't realized you'd be white. Not that there is anything wrong with that. Its just, when $ADVOCATE was describing you, he said your Japanese was great for an American and I assumed you were probably half-Japanese or something.")

patio11: I like so many things Japanese (work ethics, striving for everyday improvement, food, Ruby - to name just a few) but I often hear and read that the Japanese society can sometimes be very unfriendly towards gaijin. What are your experiences?

I also work in Japan, and I've always been treated politely. Of course, there's the occasional politician who announces that all crime in Tokyo is committed by foreigners, but real people tend to be a lot more level-headed.

It's nice that most of them are polite (okay, except some politicians) but how many are friendly, how do they see foreigners staying for very long (or maybe forever?) in Japan or even marrying a girl (daughter?)? During my years in Germany, I have observed the politeness and sometimes friendlyness but, after meeting new people, most of them would ask me "And, when do you go back home?". (BTW: Almost every foreigner who lives there - even those born there but with african, asian or other non-white roots - reported the same experience)

> During my years in Germany, I have observed the politeness and sometimes friendlyness but, after meeting new people, most of them would ask me "And, when do you go back home?".

I wouldn't read too much into it. I'm white (living in Austria) and I also get a lot of questions like that from people I just met (although it's normally "do you want to go back home?" rather than "when are you going home?").

I think that in countries for which immigration is a relatively new phenomenon (unlike the US/Canada/Australia/etc) people are in some unconscious way more reluctant to believe that it's actually possible for people to move to another country.

EDIT: how do I quote?

Last big immigration wave is happening in Germany for almost 50 years (Austria is probably similar) and, considering negative birthrate, it's clear that in a few decades there will be less Germans (or Japanese, as both countries - ironically - lead the statistic). Under these circumstances, it doesn't seem logical to (still) ask foreigners dumb questions.

Not a few of those who asked me that question (or the version you quoted) have lived in other countries and are otherwise open minded. Still, probably subconsciously, they see someone (even if s/he's white) as some kind of different person. Yes, US/CAN/AUS are different and that's why their birthrate is sinking but it will not get negative in the coming decades.

I'm from Germany and can tell you: It means that person is interested in you, your life and your background. It does NOT mean "go home!". Also, Germans probably don't expect that other people like it there.

> It means that person is interested in you, your life and your background. It does NOT mean "go home!".

It doesn't mean "go home!", it's much subtler. But it surely does NOT show "interested in you, your life and your background".

> Germans probably don't expect that other people like it there.

(Danke für die Vorlage) If you live abroad a quick test for you: Imagine, in the country where you live, you get asked the same question(s)? How would you feel? And then (on the top of that) one of the natives even says we "don't expect that you like it here". Quite subtle...

you are paranoid, dude :)

Whatever...

They'd fill a small book. Some chapters are exasperating, most are happy, and I've only felt like I was in imminent danger of being killed once. Beats the heck out of growing up in Chicago.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com