So, I was talking with a friend. He lives in a city near where I live. He’s an ALT, middle aged, has kids a wife, a house, etc. He likes his job, but also wants to try something new and different (not teaching). Maybe part time on the side (other than weddings), maybe full time. He doesn’t want to move, so local or remote work only maybe. His experience and background, (employment, certifications, degrees, etc) are all in teaching and Japanese. Mostly he has been a teacher at private schools, universities, and an ALT (currently). He’d like to continue to earn what he is making now or more and is exploring options.
Does anyone have any experience changing careers later in life that would be willing share their story?
Has anyone, later in life, retrained for a new job? What training resources did you use?
What kinds of jobs are possible in his context?
What are some resources online I can pass to him for finding jobs he would qualify to do?
Asking for a friend, so I’ll pass all any of your ideas on.
Much appreciated.
21 comments
Unless he has some IT skills, blue collar is going to be his main option. That’s where I’m at. I’m trying to get my Japanese up but nothing pays more than ¥4m a year unless it’s blue collar work unless you have some very sought after skills
Freelancer as a translator or proofreader may be available, but don’t expect to get rich from it. His Japanese level will be key here
Maybe part time taxi driver or tour guide?
I mean an alt at 50 with a wife and 2 kids, much respect to them for living within their means but that’s rough.
A tour guide of the local area, perhaps a role within the local city hall (CIR role if we’re thinking the JET days), or even through one of the larger inbound tour group companies might be a fun change of pace.
Start a business
Buddy has no skills (outside of teaching, which you said he doesn’t want to do) and should be holding on to that easy decently paying job for dear life lol.
I changed careers mid-40s to work in coding. I took a US-based bootcamp for a year and got a job pretty quickly. If your friend doesn’t want to move, he’ll probably have a harder time finding work, especially in this job market, but I’d still say it’s possible to make the transition.
You can register at your local town ward hall for a tour guide license. Sometimes you need qualifications / licenses previously but others you don’t.
You could easily attract foreigners with local tours!
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Geography is his biggest limit. If he has a MEd he could land a university job if he were willing to relocate. Depends on if his wife also works, what ages the kids are, etc.
I do uni classes (18 a week), a bit of language testing (Eiken etc) and a bitt of editing work for a textbook publisher. It adds up to good life. 14 weeks off a year to explore Asia too!
They sometimes need foreigners in commercials why not find a talent agency.
Teach private lessons on the side, especially if he’s able to get students to pass necessary tests like Eiken, IELTS, etc. Keep the day job. Remote work, maybe creating educational content for US clients? I would recommend building a few side hustles and just banking the cash. Only a decade and a half to go to retirement
Sounds like what your friend needs is a new hobby rather than a new job. They should find something that they love doing, do it long enough to be really good at it and then try to make money from it and then try to do it full-time as a career. Switching careers just for the hell of it with no idea of what they want to do isn’t a good idea imo.
If he is good with computers than take a course or two on Udemy when the sale is on. Finish the course, make your own projects and after a year you should be able to get hired if you have some talent.
I just went through a spell of job hunting that took longer than it should have. If you’re over 50 in Japan(I’m 51), expect to hear back on maybe one in a hundred applications you sent out.
I tried working for a Japanese construction company. Turned out to be a bit of a black company and rumors of heavy Yakuza involvement in construction exist for a reason. I say steer clear.
My friend is older here in Kyushu. He’s a white guy, as ambiguous as the image you may visualize, but with a white beard, blue eyes, and speaks zero to minimal Japanese. He had worked as a pastor for a company doing marriage ceremonies. He’s the one pronouncing them as married. He made pretty good money, the work environment is upbeat, hopeful, cheerful. The company simply wanted a ‘Christian’ looking, evangelical styled western gentleman to play a role. Maybe your friend doesn’t look like this, but the point is, perhaps he can look into roles where a foreigner appearance is needed. I’ve shown up to casting calls here and there myself. I wish I could’ve been in a Pirates of the Caribbean movie as an extra, but a lot of homeless people got casted because the ones that showed up already looked like pirates. So if he has a unique appearance, which in Japan shouldn’t be too difficult for a foreigner, there should be something interesting he could do.
depending on where on shikoku
if it’s too rural, his career changing options may be rather limited
if his experience and qualifications are all in teaching, i can’t see any field other than sales without significant reduction in income level
Import-export motorbikes/tractors, although it’ll take a few years and experience to get back up to what you were teaching. The potential financial rewards are there to be had.
‘try something new’ is the no-go here – if he doesn’t like it/fails he’s fucked. I’d say add something on the side that as others have mentioned, he’s interested in….outdoors, tourism, writing…could even leverage his english/teaching/japan skill into a youtube channel and funnel people into his private lessons or J-friendly outdoor activities in English with that. Finding where your skills and interests intersect gives you a saleable differentiation plus something that’s likely to keep you engaged, happy and earning.
I’ve launched a podcast that talks about career transitions. Have had a few guests based in Japan already, do check it out hopefully some of the interviews will resonate with you: [link](https://linktr.ee/techshiftf9)