Doing real-life adult stuff for once

"TheJWT" (thejwt) 06/15/2020 at 23:05 • Filed to: None

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I make no secrets that I don’t like my job, or the field I’m in, or any of the cities I’ve lived in, so today I started on getting my certification to teach English as a second language, with the ultimate goal of moving to Japan and teaching   full time.

I’ve been learning Japanese for the past few years and I have 1 year to complete these courses, so hopefully by the time the world gets a little more normal I’ll be able to save up some decent money and take the plunge.

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > TheJWT 06/15/2020 at 23:09

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TheJWT > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent 06/15/2020 at 23:10

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I really think so

wafflesnfalafel > TheJWT 06/15/2020 at 23:17

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A young woman I went out with a few times in college did that and absolutely loved it spending a number of years over there. The only issue she had was with some of the private tutoring where the man of the house would sometimes be inappropriate with her, (she was very social and beautiful .) But in the more traditional school settings it was fine.

WilliamsSW > TheJWT 06/15/2020 at 23:20

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You’ll be big in Japan!

Good luck with it!

Jb boin > TheJWT 06/15/2020 at 23:24

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There is another solution if you don’t want to wait...

TheJWT > Jb boin 06/15/2020 at 23:31

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The ol’ reverse Ghosn...

66P1800inpieces > TheJWT 06/15/2020 at 23:43

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Is step two starting a YouTube channel?  Abroad in Japan (follows travels of an ESL teacher in Japan)  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHL9bfHTxCMi-7vfxQ-AYtg

66P1800inpieces > TheJWT 06/15/2020 at 23:45

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They need to get the cargo containers back into the country. Bonus, yo won’t need to forfeit an alleged $14m in bail money.

Variance > TheJWT 06/15/2020 at 23:47

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How much time have you spent in Japan, out of curiosity?

As someone who used to take extended business trips to Japan, I’m of the strong opinion that it would be a great place to live... for a couple years. After the novelty wears off, being an “outsider” can start to eat away at you long-term. Everyone I know that has moved to Japan eventually left after 2-3 years.

Even if you manage to integrate, you generally have to do so at the cost of your self-identity, and even then, you will still not be “Japanese”, and will be discriminated against.

Just some food for thought. As long as you know what you’re getting in to, go for it! If I had stayed at my previous company, I definitely would have pursued doing a extended work assignment in Japan.

TheJWT > Variance 06/16/2020 at 00:15

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Good question; none whatsoever... N ever been anywhere in Asia...

I appreciate your advice and I’ve heard similar things a few times. So far I’ve lived in Cleveland, Brooklyn, and Portland, and as different as those cities are, I’ve felt like an outsider in all of them. So the way I see it is that even in the worst case scenario where I’m miserable in J apan, at least I’ll be miserable in a place that I find fascinating and wildly different than any other place I’ve been before, which is really what I’m looking for. I really have zero ties to where I’m living right now, or North America in general right now, and it’s time for a change.

What kind of business did you do in Japan if you don’t mind me asking?

TheJWT > 66P1800inpieces 06/16/2020 at 00:16

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Unfortunately I don’t think I have the mental fortitude to make it as an influencer...

Nom De Plume > TheJWT 06/16/2020 at 00:43

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I hear the money is in curating ado gao even if you live stateside. LOL

jminer > TheJWT 06/16/2020 at 00:50

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Very fun - I have a friend that did this in Taiwan for a year. There it was less strict than what you’re doing sounds like as she needed only be fluent in English and have a college degree. She was an English major and did it for a year after she graduated.

You might also reach out to Kat - a former Jalopnik writer and former frequent resident here on Oppo as she taught in Japan for several years.

https://kinja.com/kyosuke

I think it’s amazing you’re setting a big goal and going for it. The biggest regret in my life is that my wife and I have played it safe. We’ve only lived in one state and never taken any real risks. We’re trying to make a large move now but when you’re in your mid-30's and have a mortgage it’s more difficult than when you’re young. We’re still very happily married for 15 years but bored with our lives and where we are so planning to move a couple time-zones in the next few months.

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > TheJWT 06/16/2020 at 06:18

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You might want to see if you could talk to Flavien a bit as well, he’s from France, of course, but he’s lived there for years and could offer some insight?

itsjustaduststorm > Variance 06/16/2020 at 06:41

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This is my third year in Japan.

I can’t argue with anything said here. I love Japan, but Japan will never love me back past the superficial “whoaaaaa sugoiiiii it’s a big gaijin!” and no matter how good my Japanese gets, I’m still hit with the backhanded shit like “Oh, Japanese is so difficult, isn’t it?” My students generally love me but I’m so tired of little kids talking shit and calling me an animal just because I’m foreign, because they’re taught from a young age that anyone who isn’t Japanese isn’t really human. And we’re just talking about the surface.

Would I have kids here? Hell no. I’m a tall white dude and the prejudice gets to me...but people usually keep their mouths shut because they’re afraid of me. If I had kids, they’d be getting hit with racism every day, even if they were partially Japanese. No thanks.

Japan is a lovely country and living here has, honestly, made me become an actual adult and given me some direction. But it’s also made me realize how “American” I’ll always be. I’m glad I came here, no doubt, but I’m excited to take what I’m learning back home.

TheRealBicycleBuck > TheJWT 06/16/2020 at 07:06

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One of my cousins is currently an ESL teacher in South Korea. As a pale redhead, he really stands out and gets a lot of attention everywhere he goes. The ESL instructors have a strong community, so you may find a group of native English speakers who can help you with the transition and help you keep your sanity.

What was supposed to be a two-year contract has been extended. He found and married a young lady over there and now they are trying to navigate the immigration process. It may be another year or two before he returns to the states. I’m not sure what he plans to do when he gets back. I think he left because he didn’t have any good job prospects or a degree.

TheJWT > jminer 06/16/2020 at 08:41

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There’s definitely something to be said for stability though; the only reason why I can start planning this is because I’m single, don’t own a house, and don’t have many family/ friends nearby. Where are you moving to?

TheJWT > itsjustaduststorm 06/16/2020 at 08:43

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What k ind of school do you teach in? And how did you get started teaching there if you don’t mind me asking?

Jay, the practical enthusiast > TheJWT 06/16/2020 at 09:16

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I spent 10 years teaching English in Japan. I loved it. I started in the JET program and used my language skills and experience to moved on from there. I ended my career as a lecturer at a small private college teaching 2 classes a day.

I t’s been 10 years since I left, but back in the day it was so easy to keep finding better jobs. They were all 1 year renewable contracts and often done through an intermediary company. I worked at (but not for) Honda, Toyota, Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, and lots of other big companies. Teaching kids wasn’t for me.

As itsjustaduststorm mentioned, racism is out in the normal and accepted by Japanese. I left Japan when my wife said let’s have kids. Non Japanese and half Japanese kids have a much tougher time, especially with bullying.

On a side note, you won't be able to drive with an international drivers license if you have a work visa. You're going to have to get a Japanese license. 

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > TheJWT 06/16/2020 at 09:26

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Very cool - best of luck!

TheJWT > Jay, the practical enthusiast 06/16/2020 at 09:30

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How proficient in Japanese were you when you first came there? It seems like a lot of the Eikaiwa make a big point of being English only so I’m hoping if I have some better Japanese skills that’ll be a selling point for me. 

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > Variance 06/16/2020 at 09:31

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I have a cousin who’s lived there for many years. Married a Japanese woman, has a couple kids. What is discrimination like there? “At the cost of your self-identity”?

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > itsjustaduststorm 06/16/2020 at 09:35

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Man, that’s sad... Makes me wonder what my cousin’s kids will go through in life. He’s been in Japan for a long time, married a Japanese woman, and has a couple kids.

Jay, the practical enthusiast > TheJWT 06/16/2020 at 10:10

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I took 1 semester of Japanese. I could basically just say my name. It took me about 3 years just to become conversational (I never reached fluency). The big chain schools don’t care about Japanese skills but the smaller (and better paying) contract companies are going to want you to have a basic understanding of both Japanese language and Japanese culture.

Before I left Japan I helped to hire my replacement and learned a lot about what made me a successful candidate. What I lacked in language skills I made up for by understanding Japanese business culture. I had just read a book about it, that’s all.

St arting out I would try to find a company that helps with your visa and accommodation. Aslo,  cities are better than towns as you'll be able to meet some expats to help you deal with any issues that come up. I had pretty bad culture shock for the first 3 months u was there. 

jminer > TheJWT 06/16/2020 at 10:17

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Definitely - we have been very lucky but at the same time we wished we had made some changes instead of playing it safe.

We’re moving to the SF Bay Area, working on lining up a job now.

Variance > TheJWT 06/16/2020 at 18:22

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I was a manufacturing engineer for Toyota. My role involved new model implementation for engine machining lines, so I spent a lot of time doing machine qualification trials at various vendors throughout central Japan, though most of my time was spent in Aichi prefecture, predominantly the Nagoya/Toyota area.

Aichi is pretty much the manufacturing and industrial capital of Japan, so there’s actually a decent number of foreigners around at any given point in time (especially around the beginning/end of the Japanese fiscal year in March), but you still tend to get stared at like you have a second head at times. Though I’m also 6'2", which... doesn’t help with trying not to stand out.

Somebody else mentioned Flavien; last I remember, he actually lives in Okazaki, which borders Toyota to the south. I actually tried to meet up with him once or twice for Cars & Coffee, but it never worked out.

Variance > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com 06/16/2020 at 18:52

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To be honest, it varies greatly, and as a Caucasian male, I haven’t been the target of any particularly nasty racism, but the discrimination shows up almost constantly in little ways.

I am far from fluent in Japanese, but I picked up enough over time to be able to order food, give directions to a taxi driver, etc., but so many times I would speak in Japanese, only to get met with a blank stare, and a stammered response of “I don’t speak English” in very broken English. There’s this prevailing subconscious bias of “Oh, he’s a foreigner, he couldn’t possibly know Japanese.” Admittedly, sometimes this makes for some comical relief, when you catch somebody shit-talking, thinking you can’t understand them, only to see the look on their face when you call them out on it.

While not the majority, I’ve also been denied entry to restaurants and bars in the past that are apparently “Japanese-only”. Some places only allow you in if you’re with a Japanese person, but some won’t let you in at all. While not COMPLETELY unfounded (see the out-of-control Halloween parties in Shibuya from a few years ago), foreigners are often seen as “troublemakers”.

In regards to longer-term stays, I’ve heard that renting can be difficult without a Japanese guarantor, as well. It’s a combination of the “troublemaker” stigma, as well as a fear that foreigners can skip town and not pay rent. If you’re a naturalized citizen and/or have a Japanese spouse, however, this may be less of an issue.

To wrap this up before I write too much more of an essay, “at the cost of your self-identity”. Japan has a very strict social code, which even Japanese people struggle to fully comprehend at times. Standing out in any way is generally frowned down upon. A female Japanese coworker on one of my projects actually dyed her hair black because of this; her natural hair color was more of a light reddish-brown. There’s actually a term, “yamato nadeshiko” which basically means “the ideal Japanese woman”, which is commonly depicted as a demure, black-haired young woman. Long story short, the more you try to integrate into Japanese society, the more you are forced into this mold of what a Japanese person is expected to be like. I’m sure some people can figure out how to make it work, but I’ve had more than one friend say something along the lines of “I realized I was forgetting who I am” after leaving.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > Variance 06/16/2020 at 21:57

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Wow - thanks for sharing all this. 

itsjustaduststorm > TheJWT 06/17/2020 at 03:37

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I teach in a public elementary school, and its sister junior high. I’m currently employed by an ALT dispatch company, but I’m in the sticks...so in practice I’m the English teacher, not the assistant. Nobody outside of one teacher speaks enough English to even have a two sentence conversation, and even the one who literally specializes in English barely speaks it well enough to teach it at a rudimentary level.

If I wind up sticking around, I’m going to try to get into a private school.