The Power of Fasting
I haven’t eaten in three days and just went for a two-hour hike in the mountains followed by a swim in a waterfall. No, I haven’t been kidnapped and I’m…
Is Japan a Depressed Nation?
Imagine that you are a 25-year old Japanese person that spends 9 am - 10 pm at work every day. That’s not uncommon in Japan — actually that’s pretty good since at…
My Two-Year Experiment with Morning Routines
For most of my life I would roll out of bed, jump in the shower, scroll through emails, chug a coffee (or furiously sip, depending on how hot it was)…
7 Lessons I Learned as a Recruiter
I spent four wonderful years at a recruitment agency in Tokyo, mostly working with tech startups and foreign firms entering the Japanese market. My goal was to help companies find…
How to Think in Counterfactuals
Niall Ferguson is a well-established author and historian that helped popularize the use of “counterfactual thinking” in history. Counterfactual simply refers to re-imaging the outcome of an event — like you’re living…
Mindless Measurement: How Metrics Can Waste Our Time and Literally Kill Us
What happens when you pay a surgeon's salary based on the number of successful operations they perform? (successful = patients who survive) Hint: they don’t become better surgeons. They simply…
How to Save on Rent in Japan
First, a little bit of background into the current real estate market in Japan. Japan has an over-supply of apartments because of the rapid construction of new apartments, the declining…
How to Get Started as a Host With “Airbnb Experiences” Japan
Airbnb Experiences recently launched in Japan which allows hosts to create experiences, or activities that they can share as a tour guide for travelers visiting their city or town. It provides…
5 Quick Tips to Learn and Maintain your Japanese
I’ve passed the JLPT2 language proficiency test a few years ago. I've done sales, closed deals, negotiated contracts, and picked up girls in bars with lame but effective pick up…
Why is Crypto a Big Deal in Japan?
There are several cultural and economic factors that are driving adoption of cryptocurrencies in Japan, seemingly far ahead of countries like the U.S. It’s important to make the distinction between…