Japanese for your job interview

Japanese for your job interview
http://injapan.gaijinpot.com/2010/08/03/japanese-for-your-job-interview/

Job interviews anywhere can certainly be stressful endeavors. Even when you know that you’re qualified for the job, the pressure to make the best first impression possible can always throw you off guard. As if all of that weren’t enough stress, tensions fly off the charts once you add in a move from your home country to a foreign land.

If you have been living in Japan for some time or studied Japanese before arriving then you are well armed for impressing potential employers. The majority of job interviews on GaijinPot will be carried out in English, but a number of positions do require some Japanese ability and even where it is not stated, the employer can sometimes appreciate it if you can handle basic communication.

Steve Nagata / Flikr

With special thanks to the Murasaki Institute we have put together a introduction to some (very) basic Japanese which might come in handy for your job interview.

● Useful Expression 「失礼いたします」 / 「Shitsurei itashimasu:しつれいいたします」

- Not only used for ‘Good-bye’ but also;

① When you knock on the door to enter the interviewing room…

② Before sitting down in the chair…

③ When leaving the room…

Another handy phrase worth remembering:

Making your appreciation to the interviewer known…

「本日はお時間をお取りいただきありがとうございます。」 / [Honjitsu wa ojikan wo otoriitadaki arigatougozaimasu]

Essentially, thank you very much for taking your time for me today.

●　If you can not understand a question made out first time, it’s better to say…

「恐れ入りますが、もう一度お願いできますか?」 / [Osoreirimasuga mouichido onegai dekimasuka?]

Would you repeat one more time, please?
Example Dialog



Mr. Smith : 　[Knock the door] Shitsurei itashimasu. (Interviewee)

Mr. Yoshida : 　Douzo. Okakekudasai.

Mr. Smith :　 Shitsurei itashimasu.

Mr. Yoshida : 　Honjitsuwa okoshiitadaki arigatougozaimasu.

Mr. Smith : Kochirakoso, honjitsuwa ojikanwo otoriitadaki arigatougozaimasu.

Mr. Yoshida : [Question] %&(0#43\‘!”$”=^ ?

Mr. Smith :　Osoreirimasuga mouichido onegaidekimasuka?

…After you finish the interview…

Mr. Smith : Honjitsuwa arigatougozaimashita Shiturei itashimasu …

Bow and leave the room…
English Version



Mr. Smith : [Knock the door] Hello,

Mr. Yoshida : Please, have a seat.

Mr. Smith : Thank you.

Mr. Yoshida : Thank you for coming today.

Mr. Smith : Same here, Thank you for taking a time for me today.

Mr. Yoshida : [Question] %&(0#43\‘!”・・・?

Mr. Smith :　Would you repeat one more time, please?

…After you finish the interview…

Mr. Smith : Thank you very much for see me today. Good-bye.

This post is intended to give some quick and handy tips to job seekers out there. Special thanks to the Murasaki Institute for putting it together. Find out about the institute and its Japanese language classes.

iPad and the change in Japanese Business

iPad and the change in Japanese Business

http://injapan.gaijinpot.com/2010/08/09/ipad-and-the-change-in-japanese-business/

‘‘The impact of the iPad on the information and communication industry has been extremely big (in Japan)…the iPad (business) will likely spread fast to other sectors,’’ said a senior researcher of the information and communication industry and finance research department at the Yano Research Institute recently.

Where other firms in the tablet computer business failed to take off over the past decade, the iPad, the launch of which we covered here, has already gone on to become a viable marketing tool welcomed by Japanese retailers, medical and academic circles.

Yano Research went on to point out that though other products with higher-spec will likely come out, Apple’s wonder toy has caught the eyes of brand-conscious Japanese consumers and will likely remain number one.

One of the iPad’s eager Japnese customers is Novarese Inc, a firm that offers wedding services and wedding dress rentals, with spokeswoman Kazuka Nohara saying the iPad is a more effective communication gadget between the firm and its customers, especially the grooms.

‘‘Whereas grooms before used to be less participative, we were surprised at how grooms became more active in speaking with our coordinators and choosing wedding dresses since our coordinators have been giving the iPads to customers to look at them freely,’’ Nohara said.

Dresses which were not that popular before have also caught their customers’ attention thanks to the iPad’s appealing visual presentation, which has a different effect from the conventional way of simply looking at catalogues, she said.

Currently, Novarese has two iPads at its Ginza shop, and it plans to expand this tactic to its core operation in operating wedding hotels and guest weddings.

‘‘What’s important is to allow customers to be proactive in selecting dresses, and the iPad just fits in with that kind of strategy,’’ said Nohara.

Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co said it will also begin the use of iPads for its medical representatives to bring when paying a visit to doctors to market the company’s medicines.

Spokeswoman Yuko Kikuchi said the firm looks at the iPad as an excellent tool for their medical representatives to ‘‘speedily provide the necessary information to busy doctors.’‘

The iPad is also making its presence felt elsewhere such as at Tomihiro Art Museum in Gunma Prefecture, where visitors can use the iPad at the museum’s cafe to see information about the museum, and at Chubu Gakuin College in Gifu Prefecture, where piano classes are held using the iPad.

GP sister site, Japan Today, contributed to this story.

Home to the World’s Fifth Best Taxi Drivers

Tokyo – Home to the World’s Fifth Best Taxi Drivers

http://injapan.gaijinpot.com/2010/08/10/tokyo-%E2%80%93-home-to-the-worlds-fifth-best-taxis-driver/

Travel portal hotels.com has completed a survey to find the world’s best taxi drivers. The best in the world are apparently to be found in London. London cabs, still officially known as hackney carriages, are rated the highest because their drivers are friendly and know how to get to their destination, according to the survey. Tokyo taxi drivers ranked 5th.

The survey found that London taxis, despite being the most expensive, beat rivals across the globe to head the list for the third consecutive years, scoring 59% in votes on several categories by travelers. Drivers in London must pass an examination called The Knowledge to get a taxi license.

New York’s taxis came second in the list, scoring 27%, but their drivers tied with Parisian taxi drivers as the rudest, the report said, adding that New York was the easiest place to hail a cab.

Rome’s taxi drivers were voted the worst in the world when it came to the quality of driving.

‘‘Traveling by taxi is one of the first experiences that many travelers have upon arrival in a new city. In fact, the research found that cabs are by far the most popular method of traveling from the airport to their hotel,’’ hotels.com said in a statement.

The global poll scored city based taxis for their levels of cleanliness, value, quality of driving, knowledge of the area, friendliness, safety and availability.

Tokyo taxis scored 26%, and Bangkok famed for its tuk-tuks got 14%. Madrid’s taxis were ranked sixth in the poll, followed by Copenhagen and Dublin with 11% and Frankfurt and Paris with 10%, according to Reuters.

Taxis in Sydney scored badly in the areas of value for money, availability and knowledge of the area. What do you think? Are Tokyo taxi’s deserving of fifth place or should they be a little higher?

Old-school Tokyo Metro Manner Posters

Old-school Tokyo Metro Manner Posters

http://injapan.gaijinpot.com/2010/08/10/old-school-tokyo-metro-manner-posters/

The series of Metro Manner posters that have been displayed around Tokyo underground stations for the past year of so and were designed by Bunpei Yorifuji have proven bery popular – if a little unsuccessful. The current crop switch the negative messages for something more positive, rewarding people for good behavior rather than admonishing them for bad.

Courtesy of the Pink Tentacle blog, here are some of the manner posters that have appeared in Tokyo in the past.

Cinderella rushing from the ball at the stroke of midnight, is used here to warn you against the danger of trying to rush into the train at the last possible moment. See the original here.

This one is obvious and not too different from the more modern iterations. That is, except for the appearance of Superman on the train. Original is available here.

The paintings of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec are the inspiration here, this one urging people not to smoke on the train platforms. More details at Pink Tentacle.

And here are a couple of the latest from the current set. Looking at the imagery used here it is safe to say that everyone can get the message. Which style works for you? Old or new? – Be sure to check out Pink Tentacle for the full set of classic posters, covering 1976 to 1982.