Two things for today's post:
1. Long Thermometer
Do you know this expression in English? We use it to describe the situation where the high temperature during the day is significantly higher than the low temperature in the very early morning. My hometown of San Diego is famous for this phenomenon, especially in the winter season. Sometimes it can be as high as 30 degrees during the day
, but fall to 3 or 4 degrees just before sunrise. 
According to what I heard on television two days ago, April is the month with the longest thermometer in Japan. It's easy to catch a cold during this Spring season, so please be careful to stay warm at night. 
2. Asking about Salary
In our training, we often talk about what motivates Chinese managers working for Japanese companies in China to change jobs. Usually, most people automatically think that the reason is salary, i.e., they want more money. And for operator-level factory personnel, money is indeed a big motivator. If the neighboring factory pays a few hundred RMB more, people will often change jobs. And in any case, there are few secrets, because Chinese as a tendency feel comfortable talking openly about how much money they make.
There are few secrets! 
So, about two weeks ago I saw a very interesting program on Japanese TV where the interviewers were asking random people on the street precisely how much their salaries were. For most places in Japan, especially Tokyo, the question itself was very uncomfortable and people did their best to escape answering. But there was one particular city where Japanese behavior parallels the typical Chinese behavior. Can you guess? . . .
It's Osaka. People in Osaka did not hesitate to tell the interviewer in very concrete terms how much money they made. I guess, though, that this should not be shocking to me. I often say that I feel as if I need a passport when I go to Osaka. I love the city, the people, and the food. But, やっぱり it is different from other places in Japan! Being willing to talk openly about salary was just one more reason that I felt Osaka is special!
Robert {/hiyob_en/
1. Long Thermometer
Do you know this expression in English? We use it to describe the situation where the high temperature during the day is significantly higher than the low temperature in the very early morning. My hometown of San Diego is famous for this phenomenon, especially in the winter season. Sometimes it can be as high as 30 degrees during the day
, but fall to 3 or 4 degrees just before sunrise. According to what I heard on television two days ago, April is the month with the longest thermometer in Japan. It's easy to catch a cold during this Spring season, so please be careful to stay warm at night. 2. Asking about Salary
In our training, we often talk about what motivates Chinese managers working for Japanese companies in China to change jobs. Usually, most people automatically think that the reason is salary, i.e., they want more money. And for operator-level factory personnel, money is indeed a big motivator. If the neighboring factory pays a few hundred RMB more, people will often change jobs. And in any case, there are few secrets, because Chinese as a tendency feel comfortable talking openly about how much money they make.
There are few secrets! So, about two weeks ago I saw a very interesting program on Japanese TV where the interviewers were asking random people on the street precisely how much their salaries were. For most places in Japan, especially Tokyo, the question itself was very uncomfortable and people did their best to escape answering. But there was one particular city where Japanese behavior parallels the typical Chinese behavior. Can you guess? . . .
It's Osaka. People in Osaka did not hesitate to tell the interviewer in very concrete terms how much money they made. I guess, though, that this should not be shocking to me. I often say that I feel as if I need a passport when I go to Osaka. I love the city, the people, and the food. But, やっぱり it is different from other places in Japan! Being willing to talk openly about salary was just one more reason that I felt Osaka is special!
Robert {/hiyob_en/