Get Your 2021 Japan Visas Here! (w/Ann Kilzer)

Japan By River Cruise

Getting a work visa in Japan can seem like a daunting task, especially because it's currently IMPOSSIBLE. But just in case that changes, we talk to Ann Kilzer about the ways to go about it and hear how she started from the bottom, now she's here.

Ollie recommends a cruise that lets you be a part of Asahi Beer's brewing process, including some of its closest trade secrets.
Bobby talks about how one river cruise company and their passengers are getting into New Year's fukubukuro lucky bags, literally.

Note: we talk about stuff in this episode in general terms, based on our own experiences, which may not necessarily apply to you. Before you make any decision relating to a job hunt in Japan, please check with somebody who knows what they're talking about. We can't quite believe we're writing this sentence, but a podcast ostensibly about river cruises is not your lawyer.

Topics discussed on this episode range from:

• How everything is now great because 2020 is over and we should note that this show was recorded before Japan's State of Emergency soft reboot and the attempted coup in America
• New Year's goals
• Bobby's very lazy approach to book publishing
• Ollie's continued trials and tribulations and what keeps him going. (SPOILER: IT'S YOU)
• The current form of entry restrictions and new Visa suspensions in JAPAN
• Our respective paths to Japanese visas and Jobs in Japans, and why none of that is really applicable to you if you haven't gotten over here already
• How Corona has made it harder to deal with Japanese people asking "Are you gonna go home for the holidays?"
• What happens if someone dies?
• Advice for people, who despite the current domestic and GLOBAL nightmares going on, STILL would like to work in Japan
• Researcher Visas for College Grads
• Why Ollie didn't consider an entertainer's Visa
• Who would an entertainer's visa be good for
• The dark side/drawbacks of having a Researcher's visa that depends entirely on how much your University feels like they like you
• Work limitations on the researchers visa
• How there's no shame in coming over on an English track and then transitioning into something else
• The getting married option, and why Bobby thinks he's better than people who chose it, even though he wouldn't be here now without it
• Ann's story of coming over without a visa and having a successful job hunt, which she tells in a way that is both very aware of her privilege and still very relatable/helpful
• Why reality doesn't lend itself to a sweeping dramatic narrative
• What goes into making the move to a new country, and why, even though we get the need to suspend Japanese visas, people whose lives have been upended could still do with some empathy
• How Ann got some help with initial living arrangements and networking from Sakura House
• Shibuya Rats
• Ann's reasons for being in Japan and how she chose to balance those reasons with realistic possibilities during her job search
• How there's no shame in having English teaching as a fall-back, as long as you're good at English teaching
• Ann's recommendation for a tech-job board, here: https://www.tokyodev.com/
• A word of advice about recruiting and headhunters
• How essential Japanese language skills are
• Yasashii communication
• What to do to get extra points as a guest

Get access to the extras by supporting the podcast for less than $1 an episode. This week there's lots of great stuff with Ann about SpeakHer, coding, Japanese Art, job hunting, work culture in Japan and more! Become a member at http://buymeacoffee.com.

Topics discussed on the Extras Include:

• SpeakHer updates, including an online Japanese event that put together a panel of SpeakHer speakers
• The SpeakHer behind the scenes job that Ann wishes they could go ahead and automate, and why they haven't done it yet
• Messages that get filtered out on the SpeakHer platform and why
• How SpeakHer is coded
• Coding practice opportunities at SpeakHer?
• Diversity in the workplace and how diversity implementation needs to be deep and considered and not just as a corporate marketing move
• Ann coming dangerously close to breaking our ONLY rule
• How marketing for companies can succeed without having the companies GOALs succeed
• Ann's reasons for wanting to be in Japan
• What Ann has learned about Japanese Art and the contrast between Western and Eastern art
• The comparison of 17th century art between nations that was super insulting to Japan and based on the idea that "realism" is the goal of art
• Learning to appreciate art without all the eurocentric glorification of realism
• Misconceptions about ukiyoe and mokuhanga woodblock prints in the West, and glaring errors in how they were critically reviewed
• A comparison of "The 36 Views of Mt. Fuji" with the French response work "The 36 Views of the Eiffel Tower"
• Ollie's attempts to make vegetables naughty
• How mental health and sobriety is often seen as enemies of art, across mediums
• How those same myths can be applied to start-up culture
• the continuation of the POINTS system discussion at the end of the episode, including GETTING POINTS based on your identity, age, and education that make it easier to get a visa
• What qualifications or attitudes you should have to succeed in a Japanese working environment
• The difference between having a life in Japan and having a Japanese experience

Have something you'd like to say? Send us a fax at japanbyrivercruise.com

or Tweet to us at @jbrcpod

Social Media Links:

Ann Kilzer: Twitter | Women Who Code Tokyo | SpeakHer | Homepage

Ollie Horn: Twitter | Instagram

Bobby Judo: Twitter | Instagram | YouTube

Other things to click on

Some are affiliate links because we're sell-outs

• We record remotely using Squadcast and the podcast is hosted on Transistor.
• Bobby uses the Samson Go Mic and Ollie uses the AT2005USB mic

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