6 unique skills that foreign professionals acquired while working in Japan

My intense 8 years working life in Japan came to an end in July 2021. For several reasons, it was high time to embark into something new, somewhere else.

“We” (foreigners in Japan) have had legitimate reasons to consider leaving over the past few years. And, while weighing the pros and cons, many of us may have wondered : How about all the efforts we put into learning the language? Overcoming the struggles? Would that all have been for nothing? As I was determined not to look back to the past and embrace a new adventure in Singapore, the “what a waste” feeling kept knocking at my professional mind.

Until … I realized that what we have experienced there (and what foreigners still living in Japan are bravely experiencing) have resulted in a set of unique, very valuable, long-lasting skills. I will share some context throughout this article, which I think the majority of us (foreign workers in Japan) have been through. 

Japan is not any country. With its set of strict social rules, almost palpable peer pressure, unbendable work ethics, reluctance to any type of change and perpetual need for consensus and processes (including the use of outdated practices), if “working abroad” was a game, Japan would probably be the final boss. 

Don’t get me wrong, I love(d) Japan. Despite the past challenges & struggles, with enough steps back, I am today thankful for the valuable life & work skills I have acquired, five of which I am listing down below. (Feel free as well to comment and share which ones you would add :) )

1 - We know that nurturing social interactions with colleagues can be as valuable as the quality of our work. 

“A single arrow is easily broken, but not ten in a bundle.” (Japanese proverb)

Context : Not getting along with even one of our colleagues can potentially put us at risk of being targeted for an internal “canceling” operation, whether it is being operated discreetly behind the scene, or to the extreme cases I have witnessed — public humiliation in the open space, or by email cc your department, boss & boss’s boss.  As a matter of fact, we have learnt to “read the atmosphere” and pay attention to workplace politics as part of our survival instinct. 

2 - We never take words and verbal intentions for granted. 

“The smallest, good deed is better than the grandest good intention.” (Japanese proverb)

Context : The Japanese language is quite convenient to subtly convey the intention of not doing a task into a “I’ll try” response (The famous “Muzukashiikedo…Ganbarimasu”). We have learnt that obtaining the answer we want to hear is not enough. Instead, it requires environment preparation, doing tasks together, sometimes to the hand-holding extent, preparing to reinsure against any potential risks, getting all stakeholders on your side before asking for a task to be done.  Getting to a clear "Yes" to embark our team on a project is a long journey, starting from getting a clear "Yes" for the smallest task. 

3 - We learnt that it is key to collaborate first, before any attempt for action

“Vision without action is a daydream. Action without vision is a nightmare.” (Japanese proverb)

Context : Some of us may have been finding a great idea, and in a passionate momentum preparing a material to pitch it, to finally meet a monumental backlash at the moment of its presentation. Why? Some of the stakeholders impacted by the idea (even indirectly) who have not been in the loop, may have felt bypassed.They may have found inconsiderate to have brought up an idea that had not been previously mentioned on the predetermined agenda.  With this one-out-of-many exemple, we learnt that collaboration must be started at the very early stage of an idea. And it is even better if our own idea is not presented as ours — but the stakeholders idea — meaning that we must have been calling for opinions, meetings at the germination stage, and obtaining the consensus that this idea is needed, even before it starts existing. 

4 - We have been achieving the highest degree of adaptability and patience 

“The bamboo that bends is stronger than the oak that resists.” (Japanese proverb)

Context : Patience starts with communication. As non-native English speakers, Japanese people possess a different communication culture (high context for Japanese vs low context for English), so direct feedback on the spot cannot be expected.  Instead, individual follow-up is most of the time required, and before that, it is necessary to “build the trust” with each interlocutor.  And even before that, showing that we understand the social rules, work etiquette, that we “blended” enough into Japanese culture to not be seen as an embarrassment — which would ruin any attempt to create relationships (ex: avoid speaking loudly, wearing appropriate clothes, trying to use proper polite Japanese etc.) is of extreme importance. 

5 - We are strong-minded and resilient individuals 

“Fall down seven times, get up eight times.”(Japanese proverb)

Context : Even taking aside language learning, living in Japan requires a lot of resilience, tenacity, negativity-proof, and overall a very strong mentality. Take for example the complicated process of setting up a bank account and a phone line — you know what I mean.  We have learnt how to learn, we have realized that the best thing we can take away from a conflict situation is actually learning “I lost this battle, what can I do next time to better navigate the situation”. 

And last but not least: 

6 - We fail a lot and continuously learn from it.

“Take a bad or desperate situation and turn it into a successful one.” (Japanese proverb)

We took the risk to fail in the most easy-to-fail-in country. We sometimes may have failed to communicate our intention in the best way, at other times we may have failed to resolve conflicts, we may have failed to connect and build trust or true friendship. But isn’t the more failures, the more learning? 

 “We learn little from victory, much from defeat.” (Japanese proverb)

So, dear readers, I propose we raise our glass and have a virtual toast to all successes, and even more important failures, of the incredible community of foreign professionals in Japan. 

Wanna share your own experience ? Complete or rectify this article ? Then feel free to drop a line in the comment section.