Jan 29 2007
Saga, Part 2 : Applying to 115 companies to try to get a job.
Well to paint the picture again, I was sitting in my small, stuffy room in Tokyo. It was 9am. My brain was jarred after I had just been fired from my part-time job after my 2nd lesson. The crickets chirped continuously, intensifying the dull thud in my head. I stood up, bare foot on my futon. I walked over to the small dirty sink in my room and splashed some water on my face.
After about 15 minutes of sitting down on the hard wood floor, finally, I said out loud, “Fuck this. FUCK THIS.” I wasn’t going to save up money for 3 months, study Martial Arts continuously to a level where I would benefit from the training in Japan, put my entire life on hold in Australia, leave all of my friends and family to finally make it to Japan, and LEAVE. Because I couldn’t find a JOB. A sneering laugh escaped my pursed lips, as my motivation began building up. After experiencing the incredible training in Japan, after making some great friends, after meeting loads of wonderful Japanese people, after experiencing life in a different country, after learning some of the Japanese language and being fascinated by it, what kind of LOSER gives up now? After coming this far? To go back after just a MONTH!?!? “FUCK THIS!” I said louder, empowered. My whole body felt electrified. I threw some clothes on, and ran out the door. I raced off through the crowded Tokyo streets. I knew exactly what I had to do.
40 minutes later, I arrived in Shibuya. I walked out of the ticket gates, and began on a straight line to my final destination. People jumped out of my way as I stormed through the crowds. Anyone who got close enough would have seen the electricity in my eyes. I finally arrived to the building. I walked into the lift, and pressed 7. Some shitty music played on the tinny speakers. The worn elevator doors slid open to reveal a counter. I walked over.
“*#@*!*!@$(#($($#.” Said the guy behind the counter.
“INTERNET.” I said.
“@#!@($**(%..?” He asked.
“Uh… time? 2 hours.” I made a guess at his question.
He handed me a small card, and I walked over to a computer. I had arrived at an Internet cafe, and I had the determination of a thousandBuddhist monks under a thousand waterfalls. I sat down on the cheap plastic seat. I slid my sleeves down to my elbows like the maestro of an orchestra. And I began.
Open Hotmail, enter password. Download Firefly_Resume.doc. Open. Edit. Change. Improve. Download sample professional resumes. Compare. Improve. Update. Research available Japan jobs. Research companies in Japan. Find company. Research company, change resume to cater to company. Research professional cover letter. Write Cover Letter to suit company and position, attach to Resume. Prepare first Cover Letter and Resume. Scan for errors. Fix typos. Scan again - perfect. Click send.
I spent hours sending my resume to about 115 companies in and around Tokyo. I would settle for any job. Many companies I contacted had no positions available, but I emailed anyway. Anything to stay in Japan. I had to borrow money for food from friends living at my guest house, and I was driven to pay them back. My face flushed brilliant red with shame when I had to ask friends for some money so I could buy food. I renewed my vow to never to be in that situation again.
I sent my resume to many different industries. Investment Banks (any intern positions? I’m dedicated, available and capable), to English schools (I speak excellent English, and I have experience in teaching business English to… large groups and small groups.), to IT companies (I worked in IT in Australia. I am currently studying Japanese, but I am certain my skills, experience and dedication would make me a valuable asset to your company. Please consider me for an interview.), even to Restaurants (I am very capable and practised with food, having consumed food almost every day of my life. I have no experience, but I am dedicated and available to start immediately).
After 7 hours I woke up from my trance covered in sweat with an intense headache, and a rumbling, empty stomach. I splayed back in my chair, completely exhausted. I put together a list of the companies I emailed, and compiled a list of phone numbers to call. My stomach momentarily over-rode my brain, and I purchased some cup noodles for 120 yen, which were conveniently available within the internet cafe.
As I stared up at the smoke stained ceiling of the internet cafe, I had an odd feeling. I felt like I had placed my entire life savings on red at the roulette table, and I could feel the ball spinning around, and around inside my head. The ball was slowly but surely slowing down. I exhaled deeply. I leaned forward, and clicked refresh on Hotmail.
1 new message.
My stomach tightened as I clicked it.
“Thank you very much for your interest in our company. Unfortunately at this period in time, we are not searching for someone of your skills and qualifications. We will certainly keep your resume on file, and as soon as such a position becomes available, we will contact you.”
A polite rejection letter. I found this companies name on my list of phone numbers and circled it. I would call them first.
I refreshed again.
1 new message.
“hello thank you for the applying. we are making the class of enlgish so we wish to have interview for you. palease repling with your avlaible time to orgnize the interview. - Okada”
Well, sounds like this guy could do with an English teacher. I was happy to provide my services.
“Hello, thank you very much for your interest. I am available immediately for an interview. I will be in Tsukiji shortly, but I am available to travel anywhere in Tokyo.”
He replied and we made an appointment for Tsukiji at 8pm. I was cautiously optimistic. I borrowed a suit, and wore it to the meeting place. I was the only foreigner waiting, so Mr Okada had an easy time to find me. As it turns out, he could barely speak English. This made things difficult, since my ceiling of Japanese was “Hello” and “Goodbye”. Useful Japanese to know, but it makes for a short interview.
He took me to a coffee shop, and we sat down. After sitting down, I dimly realised I had no idea who this guy was, or where he was from. I applied to 115 companies, he could be from any one of them! My eyebrows furrowed slightly as I realised I was at a major disadvantage.
“I have friend. Good friend,” Mr Okada started.
“Oh,” I said, unsure how best to react.
“He is work atto Intel. Big company. He top position there. Beri important.”
“Thats… yeah, great. I like Intel.” I said, uncomfortably. What the hell is going on.
“I also have friend Toyota.” He haltingly continued.
I blankly stared at him.
“In Japan,” he continued illustrating his points with his index finger. “Toyota izu………..” Okada-san paused for a long time.
I leaned forward in my seat to somehow try to encourage the next statement.
“Number 1,” Okada-san finally continued. I sat back in my seat.
“Butto… there is Nissan. Nissan izu…..” Okada-san paused. I involuntarily frowned.
“Number two.” he finished.
I sat there, my feeling of optimism draining away. This was turning out to be a waste of time, and I’m losing another day. Shit.
“Honda is maybe…….. number 3,” Okada-san kept talking, and I was doing my best to follow and nod appropriately.
A thought struck me. Was this an English lesson?!? Ahhh man.
I sat as patientily as I could, doing my best to not squirm while I felt the spinning roulette ball in my skull continue to slow down. Finally, after 30 minutes, some kind of interview seemed to start.
“Do you have English?” He asked me with a serious expression.
“Yes,” I replied confidently. “I have English.”
“Do you have teaching?” He asked.
“Yes,” I replied, as I stifled down the memory of the stern short fat woman screaming in my ear. “But only 2 classes.”
“Only 2?” He rolled the statement around in his mouth as though he ate something distasteful.
“Yes. But I’m very,” My mind raced. Dedicated? Committed? Motivated? SHIT, I need something with less syllables. Devoted?
“….. good.” I offered.
He looked at me. I looked at him. There was a sudden, odd silence.
“We think on you.” He said.
Rejected.
My world didn’t crash down, because it pretty much already had, but I somehow felt just a bit more depressed. “Thanks.” I said, as I reluctantly put down 500 yen on the table, my half of the bill. 4 cup noodles for a cup of crap coffee. I internally cursed.
I walked back to my guest house, feeling sick to the stomach. The dull thud in my head returned. Dejected, I walked inside.
I saw an American guy sitting inside the common room typing on a laptop.
“Wassup!” He said. “How was your day?”
“Yeah, wonderful. Magical day. Uh, hey, is it ok if I use your laptop for a second? I applied for some jobs and I want to see if anything came back.”
“Sure dude, no problem, man.” He handed the PC to me, and I logged into Hotmail.
4 new messages.
“Thank you very much for your interest in our company. Unfortunately at this period in time, we are not searching……..”
“Thank you very much for your interest in our company. Unfortunately at this period in time, we are not searching……..”
“Thank you very much for your interest in our company. Unfortunately at this period in time, we are not searching……..”
“Hello, we are a Tokyo IT company. We saw your resume, and we may have a position for someone of your skill and experience. Can you come into our office tomorrow at 5pm for an interview?”
I stared at the message. It suddenly registered. My eyes popped open. A smile bubbled to my face, as I excitedly hit reply.
“Dear sir, I am available tomorrow at 5pm. I found the map to your company on the website. I will see you tomorrow at 5pm. Warm Regards, Firefly.”
My heart skipped a beat as I clicked send. I leapt out of my seat, and high-fived the surprised American. I ran down the hall laughing like a mad-man. Japan was really giving me an emotional rollercoaster ride. Sure, I complained a bit at times, but the truth was, I loved every minute of it. I grabbed a notebook, and went back to the PC to study everything about the company that was interested in me.
However, absolutely nothing would prepare me for the completely crazy interview I would be put through at this company. It was like something out of a movie.
I’ll try to write about it soon.
I really wish you well.
I loved your first column and this one, and look forward to the next!
Do you have a blog or a website where you could post this series? I would like to read the whole thing. Why don’t you visit http://www.stickmanbangkok.com and start posting there? The site is designed for submissions like yours and Stickman will welcome yours. It’s interesting, well written and fun. Keep going!
Cheers!
Marc
Don’t stop now. I’m really enjoying the stories.
“[...] having consumed food almost every day of my life [...]” … that was a really good one.
Great read, this second article (as well as the pilot :P). I look forward to the follow-up.
Keep going. This stuff is gold.
And just how do you get a valid working visa without a 4-year diploma in Japan? Sounds like your first job was illegal, and if any of the company’s hire you they have to apply for a working visa. Which the Japanese gov’t will reject since you said earlier you don’t have a diploma.
Please stop working illegally in japan, making other foreigners look bad.
Anon… your something else
Please stop working illegally in japan, making other foreigners look bad.
will ya stop it… for fupp’s sake.
Hey man i wish you lots of luck, enjoyed reading the first installment let us know what goes on next………..
Dude, you’re awesome! Keep on writing and I’ll keep reading; having known the feeling of being totally screwed a long ways from home, yet having the balls to do something about it, this strikes pretty close to the heart.
Fantastic and hilarious. Keep writing, and I look forward to Part 3.
Dude this is awesome. Your writing is so cool! If you could place some ads on this page i’m sure you would make a nice winning. By the way, your website reached Digg’s front page, so consider placing some adds for a nice revenue. Waiting for the next episode !
love the posts.
Thanks for putting in the time to share this. It’s a fascinating story to read.
Keep Trying. Never give up. However, I fear the competition and perfectionism of the Japanese might get the better of you. I hate cliches but always get back on the horse… j
You have writing talent and lots of it. Write books and people will buy them.
I would.
Good luck.
Hey, good stuff!
Admire your determination.. I want to move to another country this summer (fortunately one a lot cheaper than Japan..) and must remember to try just as hard..
Looking forward to your next article.
your story is very interesting to read.
consider adding moving out of sakura house to save money. the apartments are expensive for such poor management and crowding.
Very interesting stories.
Please don’t stop.
You have at least a fan in france !!
Hilarious and stirring. I’m really enjoying your blog posts, and I’m constantly left wanting more. Bravo.
I love your writing. Very engrossing. Please start your own blog, as I think it would be a huge hit!!
love your story, keep up the good work. though i came to the states with adequate preparation, but a lot of things, such as immigration, work, etc, are out of my control, and your story is something to which i can definitely relate. best of luck!
this is such a good idea.
I completely enjoyed both of your article so far…don’t give up!!!
Man, I dunno if all this is true, but the story is amazing, anyway good luck! Ppl in Japan are so different.
wow…………..
intersting story
added to my RSS feed
hmm… use this for your resume ?
Perhaps you should add a counter?
I think you got more than 10,000 hits today.
Your English writing skills did acquire a lot of fame over the internet.
If your teaching skills are as half as good, things should develop just the way you want them.
Great second half of the story. Please continue with your story, its very intriguing. Your writing style is distinct, you’re an amazing writer.
Really enjoying your posts! keep it up!
Good luck with it all.
I look forward to the next installment.
You should have picked a cheaper country to live in. Head south if you run out of money. China has cheap living and decent pay. Try putting an advertisement for english lessons online and in print magazines/papers available locally for private lessons. When you get a job, keep looking for another, that way when you get fired again you can just transfer over and start again…
Thanks very much for all the comments! And please remember if you have had a Japan experience, please sign up and join me in sharing Japan with the world. Register for an account at http://www.yourjapan.jp.
Chris, thanks for the continued support. It’s really motivating me to write up more stories.
Marc, actually I really support yourjapan.jp and it’s mission to educate the world about Japan. Lots of people have this rosy idea of Japan that has been coloured by movies/anime/pop culture, etc, but the truth is very different to the common perception. YourJapan is trying to get people with Japan experience to sign up and write about their life and experiences to try to communicate this. If you enjoyed my articles, I highly recommend checking out Pachipro as well - he’s accessible at http://pachipro.yourjapan.jp. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time.
Sean, Unfortunately I’m pretty busy, so I don’t have as much time to write as I’d like. I’ll do my best to keep going!
Bogdan, Yes indeed. Uniquely qualified.
Thanks very much.
Devin, Cheers !
Anon, Thanks for reading
geebee, thanks very much. Don’t worry - it only gets more crazy.
Edward, You haven’t truly lived until you’ve had the feeling of being totally screwed a long way from home. Thanks for the kind words.
Grant, Thanks very much.
Dan, Thanks very much. I’m glad people are enjoying my stories. Actually, I think there are some google ads already. But as long as YourJapan has enough for bandwidth charges/servers/etc and can continue hosting peoples experiences in Japan, then I’m happy with that.
g - thanks very much.
James - My pleasure, I’m glad you find it interesting.
Jack - The stuff that happens from here is where it gets challenging and starts to test my limits.
Greg - Thats very nice of you to say. Write a book! That could be interesting. I would need more time than I have right now though. Over the next few months though, who knows?
MSpreij - Thanks man. I hope you have a blast. Never give up!! RAAAA
yukawa - I’m glad you found it interesting. Yeah, I hate Sakura House. Had some bad experiences with those guys. Might write about them later.
herve - thank you. Nice to have one french fan.
Placid - Thank you very much. I’d like to write more, but I’m pretty limted on time right now.
blAsto - Thanks dude!
Steve - I’m glad someone can relate. I hope your trip to the states went a bit smoother than my trip to Japan.
Ricky - thanks?
Nero - Thanks man. If you need something to do, you can find some more posts of mine back in the archives.
Ajan - Man, I WISH I could make this stuff up. I’d be a blockbuster writer.
dhanu - Thanks, I hope you continue to enjoy the articles.
Damir - actually, you can see the hit counter on the main page at http://www.yourjapan.jp. You’re right… around 10,000 or so!!
Evan - I’m glad you’re finding it interesting. I’ll try to continue the story soon. Thats a really nice comment about my writing style. Much appreciated!
Loki - Thanks man. I hope you keep reading.
Dave - Thanks for your advice, I’ll take it under consideration.
Your story made my day! Such a vivid recounting of the best and the worst
Japan has to offer. Good luck to you, and I’m looking forward to your
next post!
… and I’ll wait like hell for your next post
you made my favorites list…. waiting for the next post!
NOW…
Please publish your name, email address, and contact location in Japan.
Job for you in Tokyo, Japan will follow shortly….
Please publish for the benefits of those reading who also want to contact you.
Regards,
Buzz Miller
yukes - very glad to hear that, it’s exactly what I was hoping to achieve. Someone commented to me once that they have had the best experiences of their life in Japan, and also the worst experiences in Japan. That has been my exact experience.
Sandeep - thanks very much! I hope you continue to read.
Victor - cheers. Hope you enjoy the next part.
Buzz - thats extremely generous of you, but I must re-iterate that I am Australian, so I don’t speak English very well.
These are older stories from when I first came to Japan (I’ve been here 5 years now), but I very much appreciate your offer. In any case, my email address is firefly.jp at gmail dot com.
As a general comment, if anyone lives in Japan and signs up for a blog on YourJapan and writes about their Japan experiences, I will get a group together and take you out for a beer (or beverage of your choice).
What a cliffhanger!
Your blog has officially made it into my Bookmarks Folder & Must Read Daily.
Anyway, the part where Okada started talking about Toyota, Nissan and Honda was hilarious!
I’ll definitely be looking forward to your next post!
You are building up quite a crowd I see…
Then again, even if your posts are real/fake, you are brilliant when it comes to expression and syntax. Great loads of kudos for you. You can become an inspiration for me someday
PS: I like the way you decided to keep the readers in suspense in both of your articles. I just hope you don’t turn out to be yet another lonelygirl15
I’m interested, as a student studying in Germany right now, I was once in a similiar situation. I give you major balls for just flying there and making it happen. I hope to do this too, in a few years, teaching English and stuff. SUBSCRIB’ED
This was a great second part!
I am in awe of your bravery!
-Pat
please what happened
Keon - thanks very much for dropping by so much and leaving so many comments. It’s really nice to see people are coming back for the next part. Yeah, I’m sure you can imagine me sitting with a confused look on my face. It was a pretty weird interview.
Naser - It’s nice to have some people to interact with. I’ve said this before, but I WISH I could make this stuff up. I’d have a career as a blockbuster writer. The suspense is more a time limitation than anything else. I get to a point and I have to stop writing to work to do other things - it just so happens that point is at a cliffhanger.
Lonelygirl 15? Haha.
AskedRelic - Awesome, I’ve always wanted to go to Germany. There is no yourgermany.jp, but if you want to sign up here and write, i’m sure it would be ok! I hope you have a good trip to Japan.
pata - I’m glad you enjoyed it. Thanks man!
leo - I’m working on it, geez.
Oh you have me in hysterics. I worked out why I loved story one so much! It shocked me about your naiveity but story two was hilarious!! You are so silly!!
But the best thing is that I have found someone who has as much bad luck as myself! Hey, but at least I can teach well! lol I feel ecstatic that I am not the only person who goes through the rollercoaster of life continually! hahaha
The moral to your story seems to be…if you go to any country which does not share the same native language, you need to be brave as well as a bit stupid. You are well qualified!!
Let me tell you a strength of your that I have noticed though… you amaze me on your ability to get around a Japanese city. I am so sure I would get LOST!! lol Maybe you should try a job as tour guide or similar. lol
I really look forward to reading part 3! Please let me know when you have written it.
Hi,
Does anyone have any advise on how to get a working holiday visa? I have a degree etc and fit all the requirements that it has on the mofa website but when I tried to apply they said no visas are issued to people wanting to work in bars etc. What else are you supposed to do if your youong and travelling round a country? Part time neurosurgeon!!? I’m confused! Any help appreciated.
Thanks
Nel