Lessons from western professional women who visited Japan — From “Moshi moshi, Japan?”, 23 October 2015

Naturally, neat & tidy. Ningyo-cho, Tokyo
Naturally, neat & tidy. Ningyo-cho, Tokyo

We had a very lively discussion at “Moshi moshi, Japan?” on 23 October, participated by professional women who have first-hand yet various work-relationships with Japan.

Highlights of the discussion are —

  • Too may people

“Japan is stressful. There are so many people.”

“No, that’s not true. There are so many people on streets in Tokyo, but they don’t touch each other. People know how to behave in the crowd. I was surprised to know it. In Europe, people don’t care.”

  • Communication

“Eye-contact is taken as too strong in Japan.”

“A good idea is to look at the area between the eyes of your counterpart.”

“One should take time in communication in English. It is also a sign of respect.”

  • Fashion

“Japanese professional women used to be dressed conservatively. Now I met many women who want to be unique, and look for personalization.”

  • Cultural training was needed

“One can’t leave the office at 6 PM in a Japanese company. If you do it, you are selfish. Being European, I took a training course to learn the Japanese way of thinking in a Japanese company I worked.”

  • Wisdom of a frequent visitor

“The most important thing I leaned by working with Japan is patience. It has taken me four years to create a good work-relationship.”

I try different things every time I go to Japan.”

The European professional women are doing well! Intellectual curiosity, respect and patience are three keys that lead to the work relationship built on trust.

Next meeting Friday, 20 November, 2015  ****************

Theme “Helping Switzerland and Japan for 28 years”

Presenter — Mr. Kiyoshi IMAI, Trade and Investment Adviser, Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), Geneva

Registration: By e-mail or phone to Yoshiko Kurisaki, Europe-Japan Dynamics
Yoshiko.kurisaki@gmail.com, Tel. 076 411 6076

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For speeches, workshops, consulting, article writing, etc. please contact

–> yoshiko.kurisaki@gmail.com

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