LogFAQs > #975501518

Ive lived in Japan for over 6 years. Done the ALT thing. Words of advice:

Tokyo is extremely more expensive than other areas.

Learn to cook, if you cant. Eating out sill burn through that low gaijin pay really fast.

If your job gives you insurance and pension, it will cut that pay down even lower. Expect to bring 200000 a month home.

If you cant speak Japanese, it will be difficult to do more than the typical gaijin jobs. If you want to be a lawyer there, you will most likely need to be fluent.

Speaking Japanese isnt a skill. Many foreigners come to Japan thinking they can get jobs here using Japanese, but realize that they know nothing of the culture, the nuance, etc. Anime and games are not representative of Japan, just like Simpsons and Madden arent representative of the US. You actually need to be able to do the work AND get around cultural barriers.

Dating sucks out here. Dating standards and love out here do not match that of western countries. Of course everyone is different, but. Youll see.

Daiso and Seria are your friends when it comes to kitchen stuff, bathroom stuff, utensils, decorations, etc. you can do a lot with the cheap stuff here.

Summers are brutal. Always wear sunscreen and always have a towel and water on you.

Ride a bike to save money. It is normalized here.

Never open the door to the NHK man, and if he comes, know that you are NOT legally obligated to pay them. Even if they tell you so. Do NOT ever give them money, unless you just really feel charitable.

Dont complain at work. Not even just to joke or let off steam. They take that stuff really personally. Also, never just say you have an idea. Come to them with a plan, they really dont do hypotheticals well. Very show dont tell culture.

Vending machine coffee is good, but buy from a shop and make it at home to save money. Get a good water thermos.

If your job doesnt give you pension or insurance, dont take it. Seriously. Some companies will scam naive foreigners.

Biggest bit of advice. If your boss is Japanese, the best way to make them happy is to be loyal. Come to work on time, do your job exactly the way they like, dont complain about things that dont matter in the long run, and be positive. It goes a long way here. Im not saying overwork yourself. Always stand up for yourself there. But just show them you are interested in being there, they will trust you.