Saturday, June 27, 2009

how much is our age important?

First, I'm not going to complain the work.
I really like to work for my company, and I am really glad that I can work there.

A topic this time is "the importance of our age in Japan."

Still in Japan, people are very strict to our age; how old we are or how much older we are than others.
It's good to respect seniors, but it's good not every time.
In Japan, we have a strict hierarchy regarding our age.
Usually, older people have more power than younger people.
In extreem case, olders people think young people should only serve them. They do what they want to. No freedom to younger people when they are with older people.
Therefore, many younger people don't show themselves to older people. And, they flatter older people.
We see this in all situations, and we live in such a environment.

This situation applies even when they are a year older than them.
To tell the truth, it's very starange to me. I even think it's ridiculous.

As I said, it's good to respect seniors.
However, it's good not everytime. It's very inefficient.
I don't think we can make friends with others in this system.
In this, we can't make friends with seniors.
Even when we knew each other a lot and are in a good good relationship, we are not friends because our age are not same.

I have been very skeptical to this system in Japanese society.

I need to adopt a good Japanese custom, but I'm sure that I don't need to know this custom regarding our age.
I want to make friends with many people. I don't want to make myself weak when I'm with seniors. I'm trying to see seniors as one of my friends.
So, some people think I am inappropirate because I don't flatter seniors.

We had a big party in my company.
I drunk with many of workers at my company.
Even before that, almost all of them knew me because I introduced myself in front of them in the first day of work. I raised a hand and started it in a morning gathering.
After that, a president told me that I didn't need to do that. Usually, fresh workers do that a week later and a president tells them to do that.
However, many workers told me that I am not a usual college student.
They said we can't do that usually because we hesitate to raise our hands in front of others.
So, they liked me.

Also, I talked with some workers and they found me that I'm interesting.
All of them say I don't look like a freshman at the company.
I think it's my good point that I can enjoy talking with people from the first.


Back to the story of the party, I talked with seniors just as my friends.
But, some of them were very strict to me because of that.
Some of them hoped me to just listen to talk of seniors, nod my head and pour beer in their glass.
You know, I'm not such a kind of person.
I don't think this is good that juniors cannot do what they want to do only because they are a little younger than them.
In my company, many of workers are very young. The average is 26 or 27 years old.
And, this is an IT company. You know the atmosphere.
They said this company is not strict to the age as much as other companies, and I guess so.
However, it's very strange for me to follow this custom.

I will learn parts of the custom, but I am not going to acquire all of it.
I don't want to do what I don't think it's efficient and wrong.

What do you think about this?

working too much?

To begin with, I worked a lot this week.
I worked until at 1:30 at night on Monday, and slept on a mat at the company.
Other days, I worked until 10:00 or more..
I went back home only to take a sleep.. I went to bed at 1 at night or later everyday this week.

I enjoy the work now.
Other workers trust me and give me a lot of work and I can also work for a new project.
It's so much fun to work, though I work so hard everyday.
I'm doing well so far.
I went to a consulting firm to sell our product, and I talked to a president of the company.
It was my first time to do that all by myself. I think I did it pretty well.
So far, I'm doing pretty good in the work. I develop my skill every day, and my performance is good so far, I think.

But, I don't think it's a good thing to work so hard.
Not only me, but also other workers work as much as I do. Many of them work until late at night and come to work early in the morning.
However, how can they find thier happiness? What do they work for?
They might find their happiness in thier work, but what else do they have other than the job?
Are they really happy?
This idea is very extreem, and I know that.
Personally, I don't want to work so hard in the future as much as they do.
I want to work for my happiness. I want to work to be happy.
If we don't have a job, it's very hard to find the purpose of our life or exsitence.
At the same time, however, it's also so hard to find the same things if we work too much. We might consider why we are working so hard; is is for ourselves? or for the company?

Now, I can work a lot because I'm not a regular worker.
Although my work is same with other regular workers, I am just an internship student.
I can't work for 14 hours or more everyday for a long time. I will lose my character and sense if I work so hard.
Eventually, it's so hard to find my happiness in my daily life.

I start a job hunting soon in this year.
I will work hard but I'm going to chrish my own time. So that, I can find the meaning of work.

Friday, June 19, 2009

life this week

I haven't posted articles for a while.. for almost two weeks?
I even don't know...

My situation changed a lot this week because finally I got an internship!!
Briefly explain it; I had an interview on Monday, and started working on Wedensday.

Actually, I didn't expect to get the internship at first.
I just applied for the company and I could make it (maybe) in the interview.
It's a venture IT company, and about 120 employees are working.
President is only 34 years old. He built a company when he was 24 or 25. The company was listed when he was just 30.
Now, the company is getting famous in both business and public.
I heard 2,000 or 3,000 students applied for the company in job hunting the last year, but the company hired only 6 regular workers. It's so competitive.. haha

President is famous for young who want to make a company in the future.
However, I didn't know even his name.. haha
Honestly, I had never heard the name of the company.


As I wrote first, I had an interview on this Monday, and got an acceptance on that day.
They asked me if I can start working from the next day Tuesday at night. I hung out with my friend soon after the interview was over, and we were very far from Tokyo. So I started to work on Wednesday.
I cannot write exactly what I did and about the business because of the secret code of the company.
But, I can say that I'm very satisfied that I can work for this company.'
Although I'm in an internship, my situation is completely same with other regular workers. So, they expect me to work as others are doing from the first day.
That's why I can work as a sales staff.
At around 8pm in the second day while I was working, president told me to come to sales with president, and to make a source and explain the system we are selling to the customer the next day. I worked until 11pm, came back home at 12pm, worked a little bit more, went to bed at 2pm, woke up at 6am, came to the office at 7, and worked.
I have worked for only three days, but every day is like this. I work for almost 14 or 15 hours a day.
It's so hard, but I'm enjoying the work so far.
It's really exciting!! I cannot experience this in any other companies.
Also, president assigned me a new project and he said I can do what I want to.
I can make a plan by myself, and act by myself. This is a new bussiness for even the company.
I have a lot of responsibility, but instead it's so exciting!
I like to do and have wanted to do new things.
I'm going to make it.

Anyway, I spend busy days, but I'm enjyoing the work!

Sunday, June 7, 2009

can't sleep....

It's already at 4:30 am, but I'm not sleepy at all. I can't sleep, and will not sleep tonight...
Although I must be tired, I cannot sleep... why??

I walked a lot today.
I left my room at 11 pm, and went to Yokohama Station. I hung out there, and then went to Kawasaki and took a rest. After that, I went to Tokyo (Shiodome, Ginza, Marunouchi, and Shinjuku)
Honestly, I didn't want to walk any more when I got to Shinjuku.
However, I had things that I had to do at those places today.

Although I could have a seat in a train on my way back home finally, I gave the seat to an old woman. She really appreciated me. And then, we had a lot of conversations in the train maybe for 25 minutes.
It was a really good conversation. We both enjoyed that.
Although I was tired then, I didn't feel tired while we were talking. Also, I didn't notice that we kept talking for 25 minutes.
After we talked, she said to me that I should become a politician... I don't know how much she was serious, but she said she wants me to change the politics of Japan.
Exactly, the politics is so bad in Japan now.
Many people cannot trust politics because of a lot of scandals and opaqueness. Also, politics have a lot of dark aspects which we cannot see.

Two of my friends want to become a politician in the future. But, the case is very interesting.
One goes to Keio University, the best private college in Japan, and majors in law. He has really a good personality and can get along with everyone with his great character. He really wants to become a politician, but he doesn't know how he can be. He has no connections.
The other goes to College of William and Mary. On the contrary, his grandfather was an executive at a big and famous company. His grandfather has a lot of connections, and he found an opportunity for an internship for his grandchild over summer break. Usually,there are no such opportunities for students, but he could get it.

This is very unequal. In this field, they don't give an equal opportunities for all people. Those who have connections can get the job related to politics and become politicians.
Considered those two of my friends' personalities, I definitely want the Keio student who has no connections to become a politician. He has a common sense. Without saying, he has a great personality and can attract people.
But the politics is very unfair. The latter person has much more opportunity to become a politician in the future unfortunately...
That's the part of reason that people can't trust politicians and politics itself.


Wow,,, I complained a lot...

I change the topic now.
I started Flickr!!! I'll post photos that I have taken and will take in Japan!!
I'll make good pages!! definitely! and I want my friends and other people to enjoy them.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/shotakikuoka/
This is the URL, please visit!!
It's not good now, but I'll make it better!

Saturday, June 6, 2009

need a part time job

As you can know from the title, I need a part-time job.

I applied for an internship, and I've waited for a notification from the company.
Also, I started to look for a part time job on the internet from an hour ago. So, I'm trying to get two jobs in this summer.
Actually, the internship is for my experience and a part time-job is for getting money...

I began looking for a part-time job which attracts me on the internet, but I decided to go to departments and find there tomorrow.
I think that is the best way to find a good one.
Actually, the place where I live now is a good location. Although I have to walk for 10 minutes to get to a nearest station, train runs every 3 minutes there. Also, I can go to Yokohama Station in 5 minutes from there and also 5 minutes to Tokyo.
So, I don't have to be worried about where I can work because I can choose from major areas and can go there.


By the way, I'm planing to have a trip by the end od this summer break. I'd love to go abroad.
That's why I'm also going to get a part time-job.
Maybe, I'll go to one of Asian countries.
I want to go to Taiwan now, but I don't know if I choose it.
I almost made a promise that we come to Taiwan around Christmas with my friends that I made in US. Actually, I should avoid going to Taiwan in this summer, otherwise I might go there twice....
But at the same time, I want to see Taiwan now because I'm going to apply for Taiwanese electronics companies for my job soon. I feel I need to visit before that...
Also, I have visited most of major Asian countries, such as China, Korea, Hong Kong (only for an hour though..), Malaysia (also only for an hour...).
I have never been to Taiwan.
How should I do?..... Should I go? or Shouldn't I go?
Mmm... I need to think more about that.
Anyway, it's obvious that I will visit Asian country this time when I take into consideration the budget...
I'll talk with my friend and decide after that...

But first, I have to get an internship and a part time job! Everything starts from them...

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

my recent conditions

I moved to my brother's apartment on May 31st, and I had an interview for an internship on June 1st.
I'm looking for other things that I did since then.... but I cannot find them. Maybe, I haven't done anything special since the day before yesterday.

First is about the interview.
Start from the conclusion; I could make it and I'm 90% sure that I can work there for 4 months.
The interviewers there proceeded with the assumption that I will work there after they asked me questions.
They said they would tell me formally by this Friday.
So, I have to wait until Friday... Therefore, I have been free since on Monday.
I'm bored, but it's a good time for me.
Now, I'm learning programming and looking for a future job. Today, I looked through information on the internet.
The job hunting season will start in Japan soon.
All students will get nervous at that. It is because most of them will work for the same company which they found in their junior or senior year in college until their retirement age.

I have no such idea about job.
I won't work in the same company for a long time.
Now, I want to work in a foreign company, especially Taiwanese company.
Why Taiwanese company?
I don't know much about Taiwanese companies and what they are doing now. However, I roughly know that there are many good electronics or computer companies in Taiwan.
That field is the most attractive for me now because the technology in that field is improving every day.
I want to be in such enviornment in the future. It must be exciting!
Also, I prospect that Japanese companies cannot maintain their status that they have now in the future. Japanese companies have to be top in that field everytime now.
Once they fail the top, their value will drop so fast.
Now, foreign companies have good skills.
In 10 years from now, some companies in the world will catch up with Japanese electronics companies. And, I think Taiwanese companies have more possibilities than companies of all countries.

If the time comes, it should be exciting!
That's why I want to work at Taiwanese company now.
But, my idea has a lot of supposition and expectation to Taiwanese companies, and it might be too much.
I know I need to know the real industry much more and analyze many companies.
I have to get more information....