I am majoring in Japanese and International Business as well as a minor in Asian Studies in America. Of course, when we go to college, we are going in order to find a job making good money, but also trying to find something we will enjoy doing for the rest of our lives. I chose Japanese as a major, but once I truly thought about having just a major in Japanese, I couldn’t come up with many job opportunities.  So that is why I decided to study International Business as well. Needless to say, Business isn’t my cup of tea, but it is educational and opens a whole new world of opportunities once I graduate.

Now, having experience in big business, I can’t say that I like it, but the pay is good, work is not as physically demanding, and it keeps the kids fed (I don’t truly have any kids…). Working at this Appraisal Management Company for a few years, I have truly felt the life of a college graduate, minus the loan payments. The stress involved in business is beyond explanation at times, especially when a client calls in with nothing but complaints and you don’t know exactly how to make them happy anymore. You can also be the best worker there, working the most hours, and having the highest production, but the old lady sitting next to you is making twice your salary. You stress yourself to no end to make sure you don’t lose your position when layoffs come through.  To this day I will never forget the fear of receiving the call to come to the presentation room (means you’re about to lose your job). Everyone was on edge and worked as hard as they could, making the environment at work not very bright and sunny.

The point I’m trying to make is, job security/insecurity can play a massive role in the way you perform or the way a business runs. Being on the job knowing that in two weeks a new group of people are going to be let go leads you to work like a mule. In Japan they even have a word for this kind of work, KAROUSHI 過労死, means “Death from Overwork”. It’s sad that this is a vocabulary word well known in Japan, but I guess it’s possible! Japan is a prime example of people being overworked without extra pay, without full job security (especially in the beginning of their career), and without time off in years to spend time with family. The stress from work reflects back onto families more than people realize. I believe that Japanese families tend to fall in that category more often than not.

In conclusion, I’m not 100% sure that I will have the job of my dreams when I get out of college, but I know that I want to relate my work with the Japanese language. My biggest worry is that I would not be able to support a family in the future. I want my family to have things, not to JUST get by. I think we all share this same hope. I wish you all the best!

by Aaron (AJ) Glass