Advice for my successor #7 OR a rant about moving

Don't get attached to "stuff." When you move home (chances are you will, though it isn't certain), it's going to be a big pain and quite expensive to move all your stuff.

My keyboard has been giving me headaches and I still haven't successfully sent it to the States. We'll see if I do, and I bet you it won't be cheap.

I just sent a package home with five scarfs and a hat. It weighed about 1 kilogram. I asked for the cheapest shipping, and it cost me about 2,000 yen. I'm going to have to be really picky about what I send home.

There's a service offered by JP Post to send printed materials like books overseas in a large sack for a relatively cheap rate. I did this once before in Tokyo and it was no problem. Apparently, however, this service is not offered at all post offices. In fact, it turns out only two post offices in this whole prefecture do. So now I have to find time (and help) to lug all my books to this post office in another city. Hope it's near a train station.

Don't get attached to stuff.

(This was meant for yesterday before Blogger crapped out).

Advice for my successor #6

Should know who you are soon. Any day now...

• Yes, the kancho is real. You probably run a higher risk of being victimized if you're a guy. Be wary around small children and...your Japanese girlfriend, apparently.

• Jeans are somewhat effective shielding against kancho.

• Giving omiyage (souvenirs) to people at work after you go on a trip can be a pain in the butt, but try to do it anyway. It helps build good work relationships.

• If you absolutely can't be bothered, at least try to give omiyage strategically to people you work closely and often with.

• Don't buy a big item like, oh, say a Korg 250sp keyboard and expect to be able to easily and cheaply send it back home in a year or two. That's not how things work.

Advice for my successor #5

It's almost June; I reckon I'll be finding out who you are within the next month or so. Kind of excited and a little bummed. After all, there can only be one!

• Don't be afraid to admit your mistakes and make the necessary corrections. Who do you respect more - someone who thinks they're always right, or someone who is humble enough to admit when they're wrong?

• I made a mistake. Soba doesn't really sucks.

• If you do use the handicapped bathroom, try to avoid hitting that big green button. Let's just say that if you do, an alarm will sound and people will come running to see if you're ok. Can be quite embarrassing. Not that I'd know...

• Study Japanese. Not only does being able to read and communicate make life easier, but it's also a confidence boost. And it will help you with your job. 

• Start a blog! Chances are you'll do so anyway, but send me the link and I'll keep an eye on it.

Advice for my successor #4

As the days pass I'm becoming increasingly aware of the fact that I don't have much time left here. As of this post, about 3 months. Wasn't it just recently I was telling myself I had half a year left? I guess I'll be finding out about my successor one of these days.

• This probably isn't the first or last time you'll hear this, but value the time you have here. I don't know you yet, so I don't know if living in Japan will be comparable to anything you've experienced in the past, but chances are it'll be a very memorable part of your life and may very well affect how your life turns out after JET. Whether you're here for one, two, three, more years - it passes very quickly in retrospect.

• Always go out to lunch with your coworkers when invited. It may cost a bit more than going to the cafeteria, but it helps build a rapport and makes you "part of the team."

• Even if your Japanese isn't that great, don't be afraid to go into interesting-looking restaurants. If you hesitate, you may finally go in months or years later and realize you've been missing out all that time.

• Explore. Even small little nothing streets sometimes hide cool shops or restaurants.

• In class, only use English with your students. Outside of class talk to them in Japanese now and then.

• Try new foods. Except shirako (白子). Don't try that one.

Mmmmmm....*

*Source: Rakuten

Conference for Returning JETs, 2011: Information you can use!

There really was a wealth of information disseminated at the Conference. Although it was geared towards soon-to-be JET alumns, there was a lot of information that is just generally useful to anyone seeking a job or applying for graduate school, especially for those who have lived or worked abroad. I may follow up this post in the future with more tips, but for now I'm just going to share some notes and takeaways.

Networking


It may be a dirty word in some circles, but it's the reality of things. If you're a former JET, you may already have used some connections to strengthen your application. I know I did. While JET has a great network of alumni, there are also many other sources to be tapped. If you went to a prominent high school, there's one source. If you're interest in a job at X Corp, call up your school's office of Alumni Affairs and inquire if there are any grads working at X Corp. You can also try asking your university for alumni-related connections if you're a college grad.

If you're interested in Japan, there are usually Japan-related societies and organizations in metropolitan areas. Live near D.C.? Check out the Japan-America Society of Washing D.C. If you're interested in a specific industry, consider joining a chamber of commerce. There are a lot of organizations out there that hold periodic professional or social events that can be used to meet people and network.

Cast a wide net

Don't just apply for one thing at a time. For one thing, having more than one offer puts you in a good position when it comes time to discuss salary and benefits. There are tons of Japanese firms out there that may be willing to hire you if you've got ambition and interest. Some places to look for opportunities: JETRO, government agencies like the State Department, and Japanese trading companies like Marubeni, Mitsubishi, Sojitz, and Mitsui. I learned that trading companies aren't what they sound like. They engage in a broad range of business and research, from importing and exporting to investment to technological development. I'm framing this in the context of Japan-related employment/study, but it can apply to just about any field of interest. And if you're unsure if you want to work or study some more, apply to companies and to grad schools. It's a lot off work, but you're unemployed, so you have the time. Plus you can honestly tell potential employers about your job search, which will show you're active and ambitious.

Do something

Whether it be volunteering, working part time, taking classes, or running a small business on Ebay, do something productive that you can talk about in a positive way. Improve yourself and build your personal brand equity, to borrow a  phrase.

Positivity and selling yourself


Don't confuse "selling yourself" with "selling your body." That doesn't play so well on resumes. One simple fact is that people with confidence can inspire others to have confidence in them. Now I'm not talking about arrogance or empty, meaningless cockiness. But know your own value and the value of your experiences. Many people don't realize that potential employers are often looking for traits that many people can demonstrate if they have the wit to realize what they possess. For example, some JETs may wonder "How do I justify to employers that I want to work as an engineer, but I spent the last 3 years in Japan teaching English?"

Well, you adapted to a foreign culture (adaptability). Perhaps you learned some Japanese (ability to learn). Probably being the only foreigner at your school, you worked in a challenging and potentially stressful work environment (perseverance). You taught (communication, ability to speak in front of groups)!

Working as an ALT is just one example. Really think about what you've done and try to pick out how you've developed your skills and what you've learned.

Patience


Beyond that, do your best to be positive and patient. If you're just returning from living in another country, you'll probably have to readapt to life at home and may deal with reverse culture shock (an actual thing). While you may want to take some time to process, also keep in mind that keeping busy can relieve stress to some degree and make you feel more productive.

Advice for my successor #3

No, I didn't intent to keep writing these, but they just come to me like an epiphany:

• There's a whole bunch of bulky stuff in the closets that I've never used before, and most likely neither will you. But since it's such a pain to dispose of, it's become a game of hot potato, and the loser will be the ALT who's living here when the school decides to find a new place for its ALTs to live (or stops hiring or housing ALTs).

• If you're like me and have a hard time remembering students names, if any students ask you if you remember their names, jokingly say something like "Oh yeah, it's Mary, isn't it?" They'll laugh.

• The "Oh yeah, it's Mary, isn't it?" trick only works so many times. And if there's a big group and you start giving them all Western names, they will catch on that you're not joking and really don't know if their name is Yuka, Yuki, Yukino, Yukinu, or Yukina.

• None of the teachers take the time to banter much with the lunch ladies, but they're really pretty nice (that one doesn't only apply to Japan).

• There are three main types of noodles in Japan: ramen, udon, and soba. Of course there are others, but these are the big three. You must decide for yourself how you will rank them in terms of goodness.

• Soba sucks.

Correction: You must rank udon and ramen for yourself. Soba has officially been pegged last.

Advice for my successor #2

I thought of some more pearls I'd like to share. I don't know who you are yet, and neither do you, but listen up:

• Don't be one of those ALTs who complains that you have too much free time. During breaks you can read a book, study, do some blogging (wink), chat with teachers and/or students, wander around the school, watch a club activity, or if you're at the visit school you can grab a nap on one of the couches. You'll be missing that time when you have four classes in a day, plus ESS after school, plus a meeting with a teacher during your only free period (Can you guess why I'm thinking about this right now? =P).

• There are some pretty cool JETs, but don't get caught in a clique. You're in Japan, so hang out with some Japanese, too!

• The brakes on the bicycle I'm leaving you suck, but don't bother buying a new one. The brakes on all the bikes suck.

• If you go to the Indian place in town or the one near the station often enough, they will give you free stuff on occasion. No matter how often you go to the ramen shop down the street, they'll never give you anything on the house.

• Clean the apartment as often as you feel necessary, but don't kill yourself dusting and vacuuming. Literally like 20 seconds after you clean an area you will spot some more dust there. It's an uphill battle.

Advice for my successor

Of course I'll impart similar nuggets in a letter or email when I find out who he or she will be, but I'm starting to think about the next person to serve at this post, and what they'll need to know. Here are a few things I've come up with:

• If you have to go number two, don't be afraid to use the handicapped bathroom. All the teachers do it.
• Both schools you'll work at have libraries. If you're already literate or want to study Japanese, there are some good resources there to be used.
• Don't try to keep track of which teachers give you candy/chocolate/snacks. Just be nice and share little (edible) souvenirs or ethnic foods from time to time. 
• Mr. S (the English teacher) will always act like he understands what you say to him, so never take it for granted.
• I don't know if one of your goals is saving money, but however much you save during your time here, know that you could have saved more if you hadn't gone out or drank so much.
• I don't know who these ALTs are that actively join clubs at their school, but good on you if you do. My first year here the judo teacher kept trying to get my to join, but I couldn't imagine throwing or rolling around on the mat with my students.
• I don't have it quite as good as my predecessor, but you will have it better than me.
• That food isn't what you think it is.