japan :: tokyo :: general

[s.a.j.s]

Any hotels like Claska? (But not an arm + leg + organ to stay in)

Coming from Melbourne, How's the weather in jland currently?

[herpsky]

http://www.another-tokyo.com/

dope site. interesting read.

[djrajio]

Whoa. Crazy site. Thanks for that Herpsky!

[ri2]

http://www.another-tokyo.com/archives/50488451.html

this is so fucked up

anyway got a quick q for you dudes that live in tokyo. been taking japanese courses on the side since the start of college and just recently passed jlpt 2 this past december (working on jlpt 1 atm, looks very hard). i'd like to go to tokyo after i graduate next year for maybe several years, not permanently probably. just wondering what, if any jobs besides being an english teacher or working at a conbini there are that i could make a living off of for a bit.

ty

[Kasper]

what did you study?

without other qualifications, you're pretty much confined to teaching english, will otherwise be a very tough, but not impossible battle to find a job and you'll most likely have to sacrifice on professional development (ie. take a "worst" job than you would have otherwise been able to find at home).

[ri2]

studied/studying a pre-law degree atm, but tbqh my desire to be a lawyer has sort of faded.

i realize that most foreigners get relegated to teaching english and i kinda wanna avoid that (one because i couldn't teach for my life, and two because it's more or less a dead end job that leads to misery from what i've heard). i was hoping that having a working knowledge of japanese would give me a chance to work on something else, so i'm wondering if there are any other options besides that.

at this point i am willing to take a "lesser" job than what i'd get in the states but if it means teaching english...

[herpsky]

djirajio and i are both eigo senseis

it's an awesome job

[djrajio]

There are some dudes on sufu who teach English in Japan.

Won't name names though but do a search.

You could always become a famous DJ like DJ Bento.

Dude seems to be doing well for himself and has hot models around him all the time.

[DaBestSpoona]

or marry into rich jbeezy family like me. The eyeglass stores, gas station, lingerie shop and sake shop empire will be mine one day

[djrajio]

Does your wife have sisters in Tokyo?

I'm 婚活中 you know...

[Enaml]

Get the impression teaching English here would suck based on what I've heard from a few friends who have done it in the past. I met this dude a few weeks back that has an actual teaching degree and teaches English to little kids at a school and he seems to love his job and make a decent living, but don't think that's the norm. I have no intention of ever being an English teacher here though.

In a similar boat, ri2. Still trying to figure out if it'll be possible to come back to Tokyo after I graduate in the US. The impression I've gotten from both Japanese friends at Waseda and foreigners is that working at a Japanese company would be horrible, especially if you are not used to hierarchies imposed by Japanese culture / keigo. My Japanese is passable I guess, but certainly not for working here. I was thinking about trying my hand at JLPT 2 before I leave but the deadline for the July date passed.

Edited May 17, 2012 by Enaml

[Enaml]

On a different note does anyone have any recs for places to pick up used watches in Tokyo? Not sure if it's a good idea to look here or just wait until I get back to the states in a few months.

[skubz]

check out nakano broadway for used watches.

[DaBestSpoona]

Does your wife have sisters in Tokyo?

I'm 婚活中 you know...

only a brother. You wouldnt want to be down with a family full of infighting though.

[xArtlessartx]

What's there to do in Ikebukuro?.. any good night life there?

[Kasper]

i was hoping that having a working knowledge of japanese would give me a chance to work on something else, so i'm wondering if there are any other options besides that.

unfortunately, speaking the language doesn't really qualify you for anything. of course you with effort and luck, you can find something decent, a friend of mine found a really sweat and well-paying gig at an internet firm while he was writing his phd thesis, but i could point you to 10x more failures. for example a friend of mine who went to a good law school and worked at a white shoe law firm has been "trying his luck" without any success for the last 3 years, he currently works at a bar (i also think he isn't really 100% ready for corporate life, but that's beside the point).

as far as teaching english goes, it isn't as bad as many make it out to be, as long as you plan to do it for a short time and stick to the plan. the work and the hours are easy. the problem is that a lot of folks come thinking they'll do this for a year or 2 and get stuck and realize 5-10 years down the road that they are losing their time trying to teach to folks who think they'll magically become fluent by spending an hour a week at an eikaiwa, have no skills, mobility or way to leverage the first 5-10 years of their working life. the mid / late thirties eikaiwa teacher is the saddest thing you'll ever see.

Edited May 17, 2012 by Kasper

[xArtlessartx]

I've heard some horror stories about eikaiwa teachers, not the best position to be in sometimes. Always good to diversify over time, otherwise you just become a zombie. Honestly teaching english is fun, depending on what school/location you teach in

[djrajio]

only a brother. You wouldnt want to be down with a family full of infighting though.

How about hot friends?

[djrajio]

the mid / late thirties eikaiwa teacher is the saddest thing you'll ever see.

There are a bunch of IT "entrepreneur" dudes also around Tokyo that are really weird too.

But I suppose the lot is pretty prevalent around the SF/Silicon Valley area as well.

[herpsky]

one of my high school friends went to an ivy league school and he's been teaching english in japanese since he's graduated.

he makes a decent living and loves it. i don't really know the details except he teaches in the nishi-tokyo area.

maybe he got a ballin job because he's an ivy league alum.

[djrajio]

Met a dude that graduated Columbia and is teaching English. Can't say he's balling but he lives in Omotesando which isn't cheap so I suppose dude makes decent money...

[herpsky]

he also did JET. i'm not really familar with the program but i vaguely recall that it is a very competitive program to get into.

i guess the lesson here is that possibility is endless if you graduate from a good school. he went to UPenn, FYI.

[djrajio]

Ah yeah. UPENN, Columbia, all decent schools.

[bentobox]

There are some dudes on sufu who teach English in Japan.

Won't name names though but do a search.

You could always become a famous DJ like DJ Bento.

Dude seems to be doing well for himself and has hot models around him all the time.

Can't really co-sign teaching English unless you can find a means to use it to get to JPN and get your visa and then drop it for something else that you find once you are in TKO.

Came to JPN on a work visa for my day job. DJing was just a hobby that sort of took off. Def not complaining

Next week djing Tokyo on Thursday, back to work in Osaka on Friday AM and then playing Shanghai on Saturday night.

二æŸã®è‰éž‹ã€‚

[bentobox]

The impression I've gotten from both Japanese friends at Waseda and foreigners is that working at a Japanese company would be horrible, especially if you are not used to hierarchies imposed by Japanese culture / keigo.

This. I briefly worked for a semiconductor testing company in Nishi-Shinjuku during school and the initial culture shock/amusement wore off VERY quickly. While I have a Japanese boss, I feel very fortunate that I am with a smaller office. No nomunication, minimum of weird Japanese office rules and not a part of the salaryman Borg.

JLPT1 is the key IMHO. Wish it weren't true, but it seems to be.

[trem]

i work for an australian company in japan as a contractor

it is pretty good but because it is an australian company they cannot sponsor me so thus I am on a WHV for 18 months. will possibly look to study or teach once this expires. in terms of teaching everyone who i have met seems to enjoy it. the jet is only competitive in america most commonwealth countries there are more spots so if you are not a idiot you should be ok. the biggest downside with jet is you get no choice in where you end up. if you wanted to security of a job before you leave i have heard good things about ecc and i do business with them and seem the most legit of the chain schools they also recruit heavily from from outside japan

in terms of working for a japanese company i could not think of anything worse especially in tokyo. generally 6-7 day working weeks 12 hours a day. think of 60 desks and employees in one big dated room

[home]

^ that was largely my experience in japan, too. if i went back i wouldn't step near a jp company. not that i didn't enjoy it - it simply not a healthy balance.

[DaBestSpoona]

When my wife interviewed at Sumitomo, their pitch "yes you will make 1/3 what you made at your european company in base because your position would be grade 4 which has a payscale limit, nowhere near as much in bonus but you will never get laid off here"

fuck working for Japanese companies

Edited May 18, 2012 by DaBestSpoona

[xArtlessartx]

Personally, I think teaching jobs have their pros and cons all depending on which company you work with. Much similar to DjBento, I've had friends who branched off into their hobby after a few months of teaching English.

I find the much smaller companies tend to be more flexible in terms of work schedule and location choice, which allows you more time to do some exploration and to at least enjoy your experience while down there. The bigger the company, the more rules are imposed upon you, and therefore not allowing you the freedom you would like.

I find that private 1-on-1 instructing positions are a lot better than full classroom settings because with 1-on-1 you can develop your own schedule, while still making a more than decent pay check monthly. ALT teachers are limited and rigid, can't do shit without getting scolded by the main teacher.

[herpsky]

have you guys been to WISM on cat street?

it's a new shop directed by the guy who ran Tokishiraz. it's a high end streetwear select shop for men in their late 20s and 30s.

http://wism-tyo.jp/

have you guys heard of cyderhouse? they make steezy leather riders. pretty similar to UC but the quality seems to be far above that of UC. Saw this one in Eyescream. this picture doesn't really do justice.

green riders