Message from Adam
Finding a better job is the best way to improve your life in Japan. There are many jobs available if you can speak Japanese well. This post will tell you why learning Japanese is a good idea and the best ways to learn Japanese. Learn Japanese and start a new job that actually pays you what you are worth. There is a good paying job just waiting for you!
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Get A Better Job! (Learn Japanese)
Getting a job in Japan is actually pretty easy. However, getting a job that is not as an English teacher is a bit more difficult.
Being an English teacher is great, but career advancement options are very limited and the average teacher doesn’t make very good money. Living in Japan on a teacher’s salary can be difficult because, let’s face it, Japan is an expensive country to live in. Japan is a great country, but just think how much more fun it could be if you could afford to go out more or buy all those wonderful gizmos in Japan.
TheYenPincher.com is full of ways to make money and save money in Japan, but this article might be the most important in terms of how to make REAL money. The answer is actually really simple; get a better job! Right now is a great time to look for a better job….IF you can speak Japanese.
Why Learn Japanese?
Without knowing any Japanese, you are most likely only going to find teaching jobs in Japan. Which of course, isn’t a bad thing! I was a teacher for nearly ten years in Japan and I loved it! But there are some major drawbacks of being a teacher.
Teachers simply do not make a lot of money.
Living on a teacher’s salary is doable but it is well worth the effort to try to move into a different industry. As a teacher, you have almost no possibility for promotion or pay raise. English teachers in Japan are basically stuck in an entry level job for their whole life here. Some teachers don’t even have benefits like health insurance or yearly bonuses.
There are definitely better options available in Japan! Working outside of the education industry could not only provide a better salary, but also more options for career advancement. Larger companies provide health care, bonuses, paid vacations, pay raises and the possibility for promotion. Gain valuable experience that can make your resume sparkle.
In order to qualify for most corporate jobs, JLPT N2 level is required. JLPT N1 might open more doors, but N2 is good enough for most jobs. But just passing the test isn’t going to be good enough if you can’t hold a natural conversation in Japanese.
I`m a firm believer that it is impossible to become good at a language just by memorizing textbooks. There is more to language than just remembering vocab and grammar. Language is alive and can’t be spoken well without “feeling” the meaning of the words. Living in Japan and using Japanese everyday is a great way to build that fluency. Or finding a good (and native) Japanese teacher can also really benefit you.
The better your Japanese is, the more doors that will open. This leads to a better chance of finding a job where you can make good money and build a career.
Why Learn Japanese NOW?
Japan has many jobs available right now in Japan and across the globe. For those who can speak business level Japanese, right now is a great time to be job hunting in Japan.
Japan has a rapidly shrinking workforce so demand for workers is really high right now. Not only that, but Japan is home to some of the largest international companies in the world. These companies have offices all over the world and are always looking for bilingual professionals. Companies in Japan are offering very competitive salaries in order to hire foreign nationals that can speak Japanese.
Industries such as sales, engineering, IT, commerce, marketing, hospitality, human resources and translation are all looking for qualified people to join their workforce.
These industries offer salaries and benefits that far outshine working as an English teacher and the biggest requirement for most of these jobs is Japanese ability. If that is all that is needed to get a great job, then why not start learning Japanese?
Once you learn Japanese, opportunities all over the world will open up!
Better job opportunities are not only in Japan but all over the world as well.
As previously stated, Japan has many international companies. These companies have offices all over the world and since they often are looking to expand their business, they are look for locals in a foreign market to help with that expansion. If you can speak Japanese you could land a job at an overseas office of one of these big companies.
There is a possibility for you to work for a Japanese company and speak Japanese every day, but still be living in your home country.
I’m from America and in America there are very few people who can speak business Japanese. In America, a professional who is a native English speaker and can speak Japanese, is in very high demand and can demand a very attractive salary.
There is demand for Japanese speakers all over the world! So polish your Japanese skills and start looking for a high paying job in a country of your choice.
I also want to mention that even if you want to be an English teacher, learning Japanese will help you earn more money. The best paying teaching jobs in Japan require a high level of Japanese ability. The higher your Japanese ability is, the higher earning potential you will have as an English teacher.
Feel like studying Japanese yet?
Ok! Now I know how important learning Japanese is. What is the best way to learn Japanese?
Talking with native speakers is a great way to learn Japanese, but finding time to meet with a teacher every week is difficult. And private tutors are expensive!!
Thankfully we live in an era with internet.
There are some great online options that are not only easy on the wallet but also are available anytime which allow them to fit into anyone’s busy schedule. In this day and age, online classes are just as good as going to a real classroom. Video lessons are great because they provide an excellent service that you can use in your own home AND on your own time.
There are many options out there, but I have two favorites when it comes to learning Japanese online.
Adam`s Recommended Online Classes
If you are looking for a great way to learn Japanese that works around your schedule, then I suggest Italki.
I think this website is a great way to learn Japanese and I have even recommend people to work here as a means to make some extra money in Japan. For more information about working for them, please see my article about Teaching Online.
This website has over 10,000 teachers and offers classes in a very large number of different languages. The classes are via web cam and are 1 on 1 with a native speaker. It’s great because you can customize your own classes and class times. Set your own goals and use the teacher to achieve those goals. The classes are relaxed and almost always fun. I always found it fun talking with a native speaker from the comfort of my own house. The teachers are great on this website!
It is also great that it is pay-per-class. I like this because paying a monthly fee often leads to wasted money. If you pay a monthly fee but miss a couple of classes, that is money that you can’t get returned. Paying per class means that there will be no wasted money and it means that you can have as many or as few classes as you want. Whenever you have time in your schedule you can have a class and I love that flexibility. A monthly fee creates pressure and stress for me.
The way it works, is that you go on the Italki website, sign up and start looking for teachers. Each teacher has a different level of experience and they charge a different amount of money per class. It is amazing that you can control how much you pay per class. Just choose a teacher that is in your price range and start learning. Another good thing to do is to remember to read the teachers profiles and reviews before sending them a message! After finding a teacher that meets your needs, schedule a class and that’s all there is too it. Classes are offered 24 hours a day and seven days a week! This website is great for any level of learners from beginner to advanced.
This one is my favorite because it really is the most efficient way to learn and the most convenient way. Even if you are at the airport or sitting on the beach, you can use this service and learn native Japanese. I love it!
Italki is not the only online option that I like.
I also like Japanesepod101. This website is quickly becoming more and more popular. They offer a system of learning that is a bit different than Italki.
Japanesepod101 also offers 1 on 1 classes but they also offer an extensive library of audio and video lessons that you can study from on your own. These audio and video lessons are great for building basic understanding before you talk with a teacher. Using these lessons in tandem with the 1 on 1 lessons is a very fast way to learn Japanese. Their database of vocab and grammar is very extensive and organized in a way that made it easy for me to learn.
Schedule class times that fit into your busy life with ease and have fun learning from a native speaker from the comfort of your own house. The teachers on this site are pretty good and they usually have a great method for teaching. They are really flexible and can customize your learning experience to your needs.
The website also offers other tools like pronunciation perfecting tips and ways to remember kanji! This website is easy to use and utilizes a well thought out teaching system. This is a great option for those who want to study on their own as well as using a teacher to learn Japanese. There are even apps for Android and ios so you can study anytime and anywhere.
They created a great website that can become a great tool for users to learn native level Japanese. It is definitely worth checking out!
Learn Japanese: The Bottom Line
Learning with a native speaker has so many more benefits than just learning from a textbook. When I first started learning Japanese, I only studied from textbooks by myself. Later I found out that I studied a lot of useless words that no one in Japan ever uses in conversation. There is a huge difference between textbook Japanese and spoken Japanese.
So if you plan on learning Japanese, it would be best just to learn native Japanese from the start. This way you won’t have to waste time learning words that you will never need or have to unlearn some antiquated grammar. Learning from a native speaker (like the teachers on Italki or Japanesepod101) is the best way to learn!
There are MANY options for learning Japanese online. There are self learning sites like Duolingo and there are online schools like Zipan, but I still believe Italki and Japanesepod101 are the best online options. I just really like the format and the flexibility of these websites. Online schools are WAY too expensive and the self learning sites don’t teach how to speak natively.
I have tried several of the online options and I was debating whether or not to write reviews of all the ones I tried. None of them were terrible, but in the end I would still only recommend the two I have already mentioned. If you know of a great website or have any recommendations please leave a comment below and I will look into it! Maybe someday I will write a review post of all the options available online for learning Japanese.
Just remember that learning Japanese won’t just help out in daily life in Japan, but it will become a stepping stone to a better life. At the very least, it will help you find a job that will provide a good salary, benefits and a more comfortable standard of living. The benefits are huge so it is well worth a few hours a week studying. Good luck!
Bonus: Here are some websites I use for searching for jobs in Japan
