“The Five Things I Learned from the Japanese”
Our AVP of Seller, Garri Juanda, shared his experience living in Japan.
Working in Japan is the dream of many people. This was also the dream for Tokopedia’s AVP of Seller Experience, Garri Juanda. In search of finding new experiences, Garri took the chance to enroll to Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University with a scholarship offer and took Business Administration as his major.
After successfully completing his education, Garri started his career at the largest e-commerce company in Japan, Rakuten. He started as a Product Manager and, after 2 years, got promoted to a higher position as a Lead Corporate Planning Officer. Working in Rakuten was a golden opportunity for Garri since he can use it to learn more about how the marketplace works.
Having to study and work in Japan for 8 years left quite a big impression on Garri. As Japan is well-known for its people who are truly discipline, the country gave him many life lessons that he still applies to this date. Garri mentioned how living in Japan has turned him into a more disciplined and respectful person. He shared these learnings a week ago with the Nakamas in Tokopedia in our internal “Lunch and Learn” session. These 5 learnings are:
1. Obsession
Successful people, also referred to as high achievers, are people with an obsession. When Garri was in Japan, he noticed that the Japanese truly understand that everything needs process, nothing good can be achieved in an instant. Thus, many people are so into their work that they become obsessed.
“The Japanese do things in details. They take minuscule things seriously, and everything is done with careful calculations. I realized that this is the very key to their success,” said Garri.
He believes that being obsessed with your work is a positive thing. Obsession is the key that drives us to focus, to not stop and settle until we achieve the desired outcome. This process helps you to make your dreams come true and becoming successful at what you choose to do.
2. Speak Locally
When he first started his career as a Product Manager in Rakuten, the word ‘gaijin’ or ‘outsider’ was a nickname given to him. Being a foreigner and getting a job in a big company is not easy. Garri worked hard and got recognized by his colleagues that the nickname ‘gaijin’ didn’t stick for long.
Some of the things that he did were he was really trying to speak fluent Japanese, following the work rhythm at the office, and understanding the various traditions that existed in Japan. He makes sure that he can behave and be accepted well in a culture that is foreign to him. This is what he meant by ‘Speak Locally’.
‘’To be able to understand what the others want, we must be able to understand their mindset and the language they are speaking in,” Garri explained.
By talking and thinking like a local, we can help to bridge any barriers in communications and help both the others and yourself to achieve the desired goals.
3. Pre-Pas-Post
Be it when you are working or doing daily activities, you must cooperate with other people so you can achieve the maximum results. In work, a collaboration can be carried out if each team member is connected to each other.
While working in Japan, Garri realized the importance of building a good communication channel with everyone on the team. When working on a project, Garri used to informed his work progress to all team member to ease the coordination.
“Keep updating your boss on things you do. Don’t let your boss asks you first about the progress of the work given to you,” explained Garri.
4. Predict
Another thing that Garri observed from the Japanese is that they analyze everything in details. This is already considered as the culture for the locals. Everything is analyzed; from trivial to the big matters. He discovered this habit when his colleague asked him a very interesting question.
“My colleague asked me ‘What’s your D-to-D time?’. I had no idea what does that mean but then I realized that they asked me how much time do I need to get from my apartment to the office, from the moment I exited the door to my apartment to the time I enter the door to the office. I was just really shocked with how much details that they actually think about!”
At first, he didn’t understand why would you need such details but then Garri realized that calculating time, even to that point, could help you predict a lot of things that could happen. For example, if the weather forecast changed or if there’s an announcement that your train will be late this morning, knowing this details helps you to immediately decide what time you have to leave so that you won’t be coming late to the office.
You can rely on the Japanese to predict everything in details. They apply this to their daily life and also work. Before they start working on a project or an assignment, they would list out all the pros and cons that are associated with it and what are the things that they can do to prevent anything bad from happening
5. Clean Your Mess
Making mistakes is very human. Garri has also made some mistakes and he still remember a particular one along with the lesson that came from it which he carries out forever. He made a bad decision to participate in a 42 km marathon and not doing any preparation for it. On the D-day, he hurt himself and got a fracture on his leg. The next day, he literally can’t stand right and had difficulties to even get up from his bed. He tried to call in sick, but then force himself to go to work because of the thing that his boss has said.
“That day, I called and asked my boss for a permission to not come to the office. He was really surprised and cannot understand my reasoning. I told him that I injured my leg when doing a marathon and he said something like this in return: ‘You made that decision yourself and you are responsible for whatever result that it will have. Because of your own poor decision, you want to miss one day of work and make someone else’s day harder..’ As soon as we ended the call, I went straight to the office, dragging my fractured foot with me”.
Being responsible for every decision that you make is a culture that is rooted strong within the Japanese people. They hold high responsibility for whatever they do and won’t hesitate to take account for the mistakes that they made.
