
Making It Big in Japan
Stories, Lessons and Advice from Expats Living the Dream
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $24.95
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Spencer Dillehay
-
By:
-
Misha Yurchenko
About this listen
Making It Big in Japan is your ultimate guide to living, working, and playing in Japan. The information you get about Japan from reading articles online in English only scratches the surface. Like an outdated textbook, the advice seems to be stuck in the 1980s without reflecting the real pace of change in Japan. There is a need for more clarity and explanations of information that is often only available in Japanese.
To fill this gap, I have interviewed the people who influenced me, served as role models, or offered valuable perspectives along my seven-year journey in Japan to share their knowledge to all those interested in living and working in Japan. I hope this audiobook will answer all the questions I had before landing in the country.
We’ll cover finding work beyond English teaching, setting up a business, learning the language, navigating complicated and frustrating visa processes, understanding the hierarchical culture of Japanese workplaces, mastering the do’s and don'ts of dating in Japan, scaling career progression, and much more.
In the audiobook, you’ll get answers to questions like:
- How do I get a visa?
- How do I get a job in Japan?
- What is the best way to learn Japanese?
- What non-English teaching jobs can I get?
- How do I transition out of English teaching to something else?
- What kind of career can I have as a foreigner in Japan?
- What are the best, foreigner-friendly companies to work for in Japan?
- How do I start my own business and is Japan entrepreneur-friendly?
- How can I be a freelancer or consultant?
- As a foreign woman, what do I have to watch out for?
- What is it like being the only Black employee in a Japanese company?
- What are the best networking techniques in Japan?
- Can I actually have a decent work-life balance?
- Do I seriously need to get a hanko?
- What’s the secret to making Japanese friends?
- How do I still have fun in Tokyo on a shoestring budget?
- Where are the best bars and clubs?
- What are the best tips for dating in Japan, especially when you don’t speak Japanese?
- What’s the best way to travel and discover Japan?
- What are the biggest secrets about doing business in Japan?
- What should I do if I get fired in Japan?
- Is full-time employment my best bet? What other contract types can I consider?
- What about raising kids in Japan?
- What happens if I get stopped by the police?
- How do I invest in Japanese real estate?
- How can I position myself to obtain a long-term visa and settle down?
And much more!
These burning questions, which are answered through over 30 in-depth interviews, shed a new light on what it's like to live and work in Japan. Many of the interviewees came here to teach English, while others took completely different routes—setting up their own companies, sales, marketing, translating, programming, manufacturing, service jobs, YouTubing, freelancing, or studying. Included are details about the series of events that led them here and the practical steps they took on their paths to success.
©2020 Misha Yurchenko (P)2022 Misha YurchenkoListeners also enjoyed...
-
Abroad in Japan
- By: Chris Broad
- Narrated by: Chris Broad
- Length: 8 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Englishman Chris Broad landed in a rural village in northern Japan he wondered if he'd made a huge mistake. With no knowledge of the language and zero teaching experience, was he was about to be the most quickly fired English teacher in Japan's history? Abroad in Japan charts a decade of living in a foreign land and the chaos and culture clash that comes with it. Packed with hilarious and fascinating stories, this book seeks out to unravel one the world's most mysterious and impenetrable cultures.
-
-
Met Expectations
- By N. S. W. on 10-30-23
By: Chris Broad
-
The STAR Interview
- How to Tell a Great Story, Nail the Interview and Land Your Dream Job
- By: Misha Yurchenko
- Narrated by: Steve Krumlauf
- Length: 3 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The STAR interview method is used by millions of people all around the world to answer interview questions and tell stories. Fortune 500 companies (Amazon included) recommend using the STAR method to answer behavioral questions. Whether you’re just starting your job search, already interviewing with a company, or looking for a different way to stand out - there are a dozen different ways you can incorporate the technique into your life. Any time you present yourself verbally or in written format, doing it in a narrative/story format will open people's ears.
-
-
Questions
- By Lisa on 11-29-23
By: Misha Yurchenko
-
Delivering Happiness
- A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose
- By: Tony Hsieh
- Narrated by: Tony Hsieh
- Length: 8 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this, his first audiobook, Tony Hsieh - the widely admired CEO of Zappos, the online shoe retailer -explains how he created a unique culture and commitment to service that aims to improve the lives of its employees, customers, vendors, and backers. Using anecdotes and stories from his own life experiences, and from other companies, Hsieh provides concrete ways that companies can achieve unprecedented success.
-
-
Delivering Spin
- By Marc L. Mintz on 08-06-10
By: Tony Hsieh
-
The $100 Startup
- Reinvent the Way You Make a Living, Do What You Love, and Create a New Future
- By: Chris Guillebeau
- Narrated by: Chris Guillebeau, Thomas Vincent Kelly
- Length: 8 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Still in his early 30s, Chris is on the verge of completing a tour of every country on earth – he’s already visited more than 175 nations - and yet he’s never held a “real job” or earned a regular paycheck. Rather, he has a special genius for turning ideas into income, and he uses what he earns both to support his life of adventure and to give back. In The $100 Startup, he tells you how to lead of life of adventure, meaning and purpose - and earn a good living.
-
-
This book is poison for new entrepreneurs
- By Nate Woodbury on 07-14-14
By: Chris Guillebeau
-
Never Eat Alone, Expanded and Updated
- And the Other Secrets to Success, One Relationship at a Time
- By: Keith Ferrazzi, Tahl Raz
- Narrated by: Richard Harries
- Length: 13 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Never Eat Alone, Ferrazzi lays out the specific steps - and inner mindset - he uses to reach out to connect with the thousands of colleagues, friends, and associates on his contacts list, people he has helped and who have helped him. And in the time since Never Eat Alone was published in 2005, the rise of social media and new, collaborative management styles have only made Ferrazzi’s advice more essential for anyone hoping to get ahead in business.
-
-
Couldn't finish
- By book smart on 05-01-16
By: Keith Ferrazzi, and others
-
The Introvert's Edge
- How the Quiet and Shy Can Outsell Anyone
- By: Matthew Pollard
- Narrated by: Jamie Jackson
- Length: 4 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Sales is a skill anyone can learn and master - and introverts are especially good at it once they learn how to leverage their natural strengths. Introverts aren't comfortable with traditional tactics like aggressively pushing a product or talking over a customer's objections. That's the beauty of The Introvert's Edge: it doesn't focus on the sale itself but on a sales system that helps introverts feel sincere instead of sales-y.
-
-
I Am Sold..!
- By @K_Speckmann on 01-05-18
By: Matthew Pollard
-
Abroad in Japan
- By: Chris Broad
- Narrated by: Chris Broad
- Length: 8 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Englishman Chris Broad landed in a rural village in northern Japan he wondered if he'd made a huge mistake. With no knowledge of the language and zero teaching experience, was he was about to be the most quickly fired English teacher in Japan's history? Abroad in Japan charts a decade of living in a foreign land and the chaos and culture clash that comes with it. Packed with hilarious and fascinating stories, this book seeks out to unravel one the world's most mysterious and impenetrable cultures.
-
-
Met Expectations
- By N. S. W. on 10-30-23
By: Chris Broad
-
The STAR Interview
- How to Tell a Great Story, Nail the Interview and Land Your Dream Job
- By: Misha Yurchenko
- Narrated by: Steve Krumlauf
- Length: 3 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The STAR interview method is used by millions of people all around the world to answer interview questions and tell stories. Fortune 500 companies (Amazon included) recommend using the STAR method to answer behavioral questions. Whether you’re just starting your job search, already interviewing with a company, or looking for a different way to stand out - there are a dozen different ways you can incorporate the technique into your life. Any time you present yourself verbally or in written format, doing it in a narrative/story format will open people's ears.
-
-
Questions
- By Lisa on 11-29-23
By: Misha Yurchenko
-
Delivering Happiness
- A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose
- By: Tony Hsieh
- Narrated by: Tony Hsieh
- Length: 8 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this, his first audiobook, Tony Hsieh - the widely admired CEO of Zappos, the online shoe retailer -explains how he created a unique culture and commitment to service that aims to improve the lives of its employees, customers, vendors, and backers. Using anecdotes and stories from his own life experiences, and from other companies, Hsieh provides concrete ways that companies can achieve unprecedented success.
-
-
Delivering Spin
- By Marc L. Mintz on 08-06-10
By: Tony Hsieh
-
The $100 Startup
- Reinvent the Way You Make a Living, Do What You Love, and Create a New Future
- By: Chris Guillebeau
- Narrated by: Chris Guillebeau, Thomas Vincent Kelly
- Length: 8 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Still in his early 30s, Chris is on the verge of completing a tour of every country on earth – he’s already visited more than 175 nations - and yet he’s never held a “real job” or earned a regular paycheck. Rather, he has a special genius for turning ideas into income, and he uses what he earns both to support his life of adventure and to give back. In The $100 Startup, he tells you how to lead of life of adventure, meaning and purpose - and earn a good living.
-
-
This book is poison for new entrepreneurs
- By Nate Woodbury on 07-14-14
By: Chris Guillebeau
-
Never Eat Alone, Expanded and Updated
- And the Other Secrets to Success, One Relationship at a Time
- By: Keith Ferrazzi, Tahl Raz
- Narrated by: Richard Harries
- Length: 13 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Never Eat Alone, Ferrazzi lays out the specific steps - and inner mindset - he uses to reach out to connect with the thousands of colleagues, friends, and associates on his contacts list, people he has helped and who have helped him. And in the time since Never Eat Alone was published in 2005, the rise of social media and new, collaborative management styles have only made Ferrazzi’s advice more essential for anyone hoping to get ahead in business.
-
-
Couldn't finish
- By book smart on 05-01-16
By: Keith Ferrazzi, and others
-
The Introvert's Edge
- How the Quiet and Shy Can Outsell Anyone
- By: Matthew Pollard
- Narrated by: Jamie Jackson
- Length: 4 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Sales is a skill anyone can learn and master - and introverts are especially good at it once they learn how to leverage their natural strengths. Introverts aren't comfortable with traditional tactics like aggressively pushing a product or talking over a customer's objections. That's the beauty of The Introvert's Edge: it doesn't focus on the sale itself but on a sales system that helps introverts feel sincere instead of sales-y.
-
-
I Am Sold..!
- By @K_Speckmann on 01-05-18
By: Matthew Pollard
-
Small Giants
- Companies That Choose to Be Great Instead of Big, 10th Anniversary Edition
- By: Bo Burlingham
- Narrated by: Bo Burlingham, Sean Pratt
- Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It's an axiom of business that great companies grow their revenues and profits year after year. Yet quietly, under the radar, a small number of companies have rejected the pressure of endless growth to focus on more satisfying business goals. Goals like being great at what they do, creating a great place to work, providing great customer service, making great contributions to their communities, and finding great ways to lead their lives. In Small Giants, veteran journalist Bo Burlingham takes us deep inside 14 such remarkable companies.
-
-
fantastic book for small company builders
- By Amazon Customer on 08-01-17
By: Bo Burlingham
-
The Intelligent Entrepreneur
- By: Bill Murphy Jr.
- Narrated by: Fred Berman, L. J. Ganser
- Length: 12 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 1998, three Harvard Business School graduates - two men and one woman - turned down six-figure salaries at big corporations, bet on themselves, and launched their own new companies. By their 10-year reunion, their audacity had paid huge dividends. They'd made many millions of dollars, created hundreds of jobs and left their mark on the world. The Intelligent Entrepreneur tells the compelling and instructive story of how these three young founders did it.
-
-
Terrible waste $ and a lot of time
- By David on 01-23-11
By: Bill Murphy Jr.
-
Don't Bullsh*t Yourself!
- Crush the Excuses that Are Holding You Back
- By: Jon Taffer
- Narrated by: R.C. Bray, Jon Taffer
- Length: 5 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As host of SpikeTV's hugely popular Bar Rescue, Jon Taffer gives struggling bars one last chance to succeed with a mixture of business acumen and tough love. Now, he offers his no-nonsense strategy for kicking excuses to the curb, with a dose of raw and refreshing honesty. He'll help you identify your excuses and take practical steps to fix them.
-
-
Love the content, the reading, not so much.
- By Janna Beaufait on 04-03-18
By: Jon Taffer
-
Boss Bitch
- A Simple 12-Step Plan to Take Charge of Your Career
- By: Nicole Lapin
- Narrated by: Nicole Lapin
- Length: 13 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
You don't need dozens or hundreds of employees to be a boss, says financial expert and serial entrepreneur Nicole Lapin. Hell, you don't need even one. You just need to be confident, savvy, and ready to get out there and make your success happen. You need to find your inner boss bitch - your most confident, savvy, ambitious self - and own it.
-
-
Listen to a sample first
- By Jenn C on 08-01-17
By: Nicole Lapin
-
Start Something That Matters
- By: Blake Mycoskie
- Narrated by: Blake Mycoskie
- Length: 4 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
What matters most to you? Should you focus on earning a living, pursuing your passions, or devoting yourself to the causes that inspire you? The surprising truth is that you don’t have to choose—and that you’ll find more success if you don’t. That’s the breakthrough message of the TOMS One for One movement. You don’t have to be rich to give back and you don’t have to retire to spend every day doing what you love. You can find profit, passion, and meaning all at once—right now.
-
-
My eyes welled up several times!
- By Thundersinspring on 12-20-11
By: Blake Mycoskie
-
Born for This
- How to Find the Work You Were Meant to Do
- By: Chris Guillebeau
- Narrated by: Mike Chamberlain
- Length: 7 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Chris Guillebeau, the best-selling author of The $100 Start Up, has created a practical, actionable guide that can help you turn your passion into paychecks - whether within a traditional company or business, or by striking out on your own.
-
-
Nice Concepts That Might Be Difficult To Do
- By Gillian on 02-06-17
By: Chris Guillebeau
-
The Entrepreneur Mind
- 100 Essential Beliefs, Characteristics, and Habits of Elite Entrepreneurs
- By: Kevin D. Johnson
- Narrated by: David DeBoy
- Length: 8 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
To achieve unimaginable business success and financial wealth-to reach the upper echelons of entrepreneurs, where you'll find Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook, Sara Blakely of Spanx, Mark Pincus of Zynga, Kevin Plank of Under Armour, and many others-you have to change the way you think. In other words, you must develop the Entrepreneur Mind, a way of thinking that comes from learning the vital lessons of the best entrepreneurs.
-
-
Simply riveting
- By DESHAUN on 08-08-15
By: Kevin D. Johnson
-
The Launch Pad
- Inside Y Combinator, Silicon Valley's Most Exclusive School for Startups
- By: Randall Stross
- Narrated by: René Ruiz
- Length: 8 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Twice a year in the heart of Silicon Valley, a small investment firm called Y Combinator selects an elite group of young entrepreneurs from around the world for three months of intense work and instruction. Their brand-new two- or three-person start-ups are given a seemingly impossible challenge: to turn a raw idea into a viable business, fast.
-
-
Soothing
- By Andrew on 12-30-15
By: Randall Stross
-
Women in Tech
- Take Your Career to the Next Level with Practical Advice and Inspiring Stories
- By: Tarah Wheeler
- Narrated by: Tarah Wheeler
- Length: 7 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Geared toward women who are considering getting into tech, or those already in a tech job who want to take their career to the next level, this book combines practical career advice and inspiring personal stories from successful female tech professionals Brianna Wu, Angie Chang, Keren Elazari, Katie Cunningham, Miah Johnson, Kristin Toth Smith, and Kamilah Taylor. Written by a female startup CEO and featuring a host of other successful contributors.
-
-
Fantastic, motivating and superb advice!
- By EuropeanCaliGRL on 12-29-17
By: Tarah Wheeler
-
The Education of Millionaires
- It's Not What You Think and It's Not Too Late
- By: Michael Ellsberg
- Narrated by: Erik Synnestvedt
- Length: 9 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Myth: If you get into a good college, study hard, and graduate with excellent grades, you will be pretty much set for a successful career. The Reality: The biggest thing you won't learn in college is how to succeed professionally. Some of the smartest, most successful people in the country didn't finish college. None of them learned their most critical skills in an institution of higher education. And like them, most of what you'll need to learn to be successful you'll have to learn on your own, outside of school.
-
-
I can't get past the introduction
- By DaveO on 01-30-13
By: Michael Ellsberg
-
Million Dollar Women
- The Essential Guide for Female Entrepreneurs Who Want to Go Big
- By: Julia Pimsleur
- Narrated by: Julia Pimsleur
- Length: 6 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Million Dollar Women, Pimsleur introduces you to seven women who, instead of leaning in, simply left corporate America and marched into the world of entrepreneurship. They have raised capital, developed powerful networks, and generated multimillion-dollar companies from scratch. When Pimsleur herself started Little Pim, a company that produces a program for young children to learn foreign languages, she wanted to create an exceptional experience.
-
-
brag book
- By ordeyf on 02-01-18
By: Julia Pimsleur
-
Take the Leap
- Change Your Career, Change Your Life
- By: Sara Bliss
- Narrated by: Will Blagrove, Ramón De Ocampo, Janina Edwards, and others
- Length: 6 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Sara Bliss (yes, that’s her real name) tracked down more than 65 people who transformed their lives to learn how they did it so you can, too. Take the Leap is packed with inspiring profiles, quotes, and other pieces of creative advice from game changers, rule breakers, and side hustlers, including successful entrepreneurs like Barbara Corcoran, Bobbi Brown, writer turned actress (at 40) Jill Kargman, Black Crowes drummer turned sports radio host Steve Gorman, writer Simon Doonan, and NFL player turned artist/activist Aaron Maybin, and many more.
-
-
Getting Unstuck
- By Sandra Mizumoto Posey on 05-09-19
By: Sara Bliss