Finding my way

Hi people! Im from England and i'm planning to start a new life in Tokyo.
I currently work for one of the worlds biggest finance companies and i wouldnt mind carrying on with this line of work in japan.

I also tattoo and i would love to do that for a living.

I dont know ow to go about it all though!

Has anyone got any advice?

How did you find your job in the UK? Pretty much the same thing works for Japan as well- look at websites for Japan jobs, contact the big recruiters in that field etc.

A lot of my friends who work in finance here in Tokyo came over as English teachers for a few months first as it is difficult to find positions in finance from overseas. This meant they were in Japan for interviews, with a visa already and making an income while they looked for jobs.

Obviously this is not the best time to be looking for a job in your field as the bottom has dropped out of the finance job market here as well. You may find something if you are lucky, but there isn't a lot around right now- you might want to wait a bit until we start to see a recovery.

Do you have tattoos that can be seen if you are wearing a suit and tie? That would very much reduce your chances of finding a job here as people with tattoos are stigmatised more here than just about any country in the world- I have to cover up the small tattoo on my foot just to be able to go to the gym.

I know a Kiwi guy who does tattoos here- that kind of thing takes a bit of time to build up contacts and see what the scene is like here though.

Thanks for replying, None of my tattoos are visible at all as they're mostly on my thighs and legs.

Yea it is a tough time for finance at the moment so i would be up for teaching in the mean time.

The only trouble is i have very basic japanese speaking skills! Do you know of any good websites to help me learn?

Also, what shop does your friend work in?

I've tried contacting a shop called Inkrat but i've heard no reply yet.

Thanks for your help :)

Methods to learn Japanese are a personal thing I believe.
Some might learn from lessons on websites while others really struggle. Some might learn in language schools while others also struggle etc..

I do believe this website however is VERY informative: www.alljapaneseallthetime.com/blog/about

Good luck with your adventures :)
Note that the finance industry in Japan isn't expected to recover any time soon. It hardly recovered last time :(

Most people arrive here with little to no Japanese, and I know people who have lived here for years and still speak hardly any Japanese- it's not that hard to live in a big city like Tokyo without language skills, but obviously the more you know the easier life here gets. Also having a good level of Japanese helps open up more jobs to you, but that means a fairly high level- Level 2 at least of the Japanese Language Proficiency Test, if not Level 1, which takes a lot of study to pass, as in years.

I study from textbooks myself, but there should be plenty of resources out there if you look. www.alljapaneseallthetime.com seems to get a lot of mentions these days.

Some ppl like it here, some don't/can't make it. I wouldn't just jump at it if I were u. Get a good plan, and don't burn your bridges.