Are you assuming 'relocation = bad'? ~The contradiction and lost opportunities of big-company-oriented students who 'only know Tokyo'~

Introduction | The chorus of 'I hate relocation.' But can you explain why?

Over the past few years, I have felt the 'relocation allergy' among students accelerating at a tremendous pace.

The number of students who come to the career center consultation booth and ask this as their very first question has really increased.
'Does this company have relocation?'
'I am looking for a company without relocation.'

Their preference is always 'guaranteed work in Tokyo.' There is even a sense of tragedy, as if they are saying, 'If I take even one step out of Tokyo, my life will be over.'

I always ask them this: 'Have you ever lived anywhere other than Tokyo?'

The answer I get is 'NO' more than 90% of the time. In other words, many students are not actually against 'living in the provinces' itself, but are simply narrowing their own career options because they are 'afraid of going to a place they have never seen or lived in (status quo bias)'.

I may sound high and mighty, but I was actually a typical person who was 'born and raised in Kanto.' And the first assignment I was given at the company I joined as a new graduate was 'a regional city in Western Japan'.

I had heard the name, but I had never been there, nor did I have any relatives there. It was completely foreign territory. I remember the moment I saw the notice, my world went dark, and I thought, 'It's over...'

However, to conclude, that place became a 'second home' for me. There is a saying, 'Wherever you live becomes the capital,' and life in an unfamiliar land was a series of stimuli, discoveries, and growth that I could never have obtained living at my parents' house in Tokyo.

Today, I will talk about the reality of 'relocation,' which many job seekers avoid due to 'prejudice,' and about my own experience regarding how much jumping into an away environment can enrich your life.

Chapter 1 | The huge contradiction of 'I want to go to a big company' but 'I don't want to relocate'

When I listen to students in job hunting consultations, many people say this:
'I want a company that is stable, pays well, and has good benefits.'
'I want to go to a famous company that everyone knows.'

This is the so-called 'big company' orientation. Of course, that in itself is not a bad thing. However, in the same breath, they continue: 'But I absolutely hate relocation. I want to be within commuting distance of Tokyo (my parents' house).'

Let me be clear.
That request is structurally contradictory.

Why a big company is a 'big company'

Let's think about it from a business perspective. Why was that company able to become a 'big company'? Why is that company 'famous'?

It is because they have customers all over Japan, or even the world, and are developing their business. If the business were completed only in one city like Tokyo, it would not usually reach that scale.

There are branches, factories, and sales networks all over the country. That is why the company makes stable profits and you can receive a high salary. To operate that huge organization, it is natural for employees to be assigned to various parts of the country to run the sites.

'I want to play in the Major Leagues, but I only want the games to be held at the local city stadium near my house.' If there were a player who said that, what would you think? You would laugh and say, 'That's impossible.'

However, what many job seekers are doing is the same thing. It is like saying, 'I want to do global work,' while saying, 'I don't want to carry a passport (I don't want to leave my hometown).'

A Treasure Trove Discarded by the 'Work Location' Filter

The moment you see the condition 'relocation required,' you remove the company from your options without even looking at the details. In job hunting, this is the greatest 'opportunity cost'.

The job you want, the corporate culture that matches your values, the field where you can thrive. I have seen many times how wonderful companies that satisfy all these criteria are discarded for the sole reason that they involve 'a few years of working in a regional area.'

Relocation does not last forever until retirement (in many companies, young employees are sent to regional areas to learn the ropes and often return to headquarters within a few years). Because of that few years of 'prejudice,' you are throwing away your ticket to an excellent company with your own hands.

Are you trading the chance to expand your capacity for the comfort of 'maintaining the status quo'? Please put your hand on your heart and think about it once more.

Chapter 2 | What I Learned After Being Sent to 'Western Japan' as Someone Raised in Kanto

I may sound high and mighty, but in reality, I was a typical person 'born and raised in Kanto.' I lived at my parents' house until university. Even when I traveled, it was at most to Hakone or Atami, or maybe Kyoto if I went far. My world map revolved around the Tokyo metropolitan area.

The first assignment I was given after joining the company as a new graduate was in a 'regional city in Western Japan'.

I knew the name of the prefectural capital, of course, but I had never been there, nor did I have any relatives there. It was completely 'away' territory. The moment I saw the notice, my world went dark. 'I have no friends, no local knowledge. How am I supposed to spend my weekends...' I genuinely felt like I had been 'exiled to an island.'

However, to conclude, that place became my 'second home'. There is a saying that 'wherever you live becomes the capital,' and life in an unfamiliar land was a series of stimuli and discoveries that I could never have obtained living at my parents' house in Tokyo.

The Resolution of 'Food' and 'Travel' Skyrockets

First of all, the food is simply delicious. It is completely different from what you eat at chain stores in Tokyo. The freshness of the fish lined up at local supermarkets, the high level of the individual izakayas I wandered into. The thrill of thinking, 'Can I really eat something this delicious at this price?' is a privilege unique to regional living.

And the range of leisure activities expanded dramatically. When I lived in Kanto, 'going a bit far' meant Izu or Karuizawa, but after moving my base to Western Japan, 'Kyushu, Shikoku, and the Chugoku region' became 'within driving distance for the weekend'.

'This weekend, let's go to Kagawa for udon,' 'Next week, oysters in Hiroshima.' Such luxurious weekends became the norm, and my map of Japan suddenly turned colorful.

People Become Stronger Precisely Because They Are 'Away'

Above all, the change in human relationships was significant. Wanting to interact with people outside the company, I tried joining local social clubs and made regular haunts. As a result of desperately trying to create 'my own place,' I built deeper relationships than I had when I was in Tokyo.

Also, while talking with colleagues hired locally, I was able to encounter diverse values, such as 'getting ahead in Tokyo is not the only way to live' and 'a lifestyle that prioritizes time with family is also cool.'

If I had stayed at my parents' house in Tokyo, I probably would have finished my 20s just 'commuting between the office and home.' Because my environment was forcibly changed, I was able to acquire 'the confidence that I can survive anywhere' and 'diverse yardsticks for happiness'.

An unfamiliar city might be scary at first. But once you live there, it becomes your new 'home.' That experience will undoubtedly enrich your life. I can say this with certainty.

Chapter 3 | 'Relocation While Young' is the Ultimate Self-Investment

This might sound a bit preachy, but please listen. Humans are instinctively creatures that dislike 'change'. If left alone, we tend to stay in our current comfortable environment (status quo bias).

However, the experience of being forced to change 'where you live' regardless of your own will while in your 20s, in the long run, becomes the 'ultimate self-investment'.

A forced 'reset' makes you stronger

Building human relationships from scratch in an unfamiliar land and setting up a foundation for life. Deciding to live alone with the resolve to survive in a place where you have no parents to rely on and no local friends. This experience will definitely expand your 'capacity as a human being'.

If you had been working at a company you could commute to from your parents' home the whole time, whenever a problem arose, you would likely consult your parents or vent to local friends to solve it. That is easy, but it can also be said that you are losing the opportunity to overcome things through your own strength.

'No matter where I am sent, I will manage.' A person who possesses this confidence is also strong in their work. This is because they acquire the toughness to produce results in any environment.

A change in perspective accelerates business

Also, there is a major benefit from a business perspective. Looking at the whole country from the Tokyo headquarters versus looking at Tokyo from a regional branch office—the view is completely different.

'What is happening on the front lines?' 'What are customers looking for?' When a person who knows these things through firsthand experience returns to headquarters in the future to create plans, those plans will have 'soul (reality)'.

This becomes a strength that you will absolutely have over your peers who have stayed in Tokyo conference rooms and only looked at numbers. Your regional experience while young will become a 'weapon (material)' for you to do big work in the future.

If there are circumstances, it can't be helped. But...

Of course, if there are circumstances where you absolutely cannot relocate, such as nursing care or illness, that is a different story. However, if you are avoiding it just because of 'prejudice' or 'vague anxiety,' it is truly a waste.

In your life, relocation will not last forever. It is only a few years out of a long working life. Whether you view that period as 'training' or an 'adventure' will change what you gain by 180 degrees.

There, you might find exciting and dramatic days waiting for you that you could never get in a studio apartment in Tokyo.

Chapter 4 | Choosing by 'what you want to do' rather than 'location'

Finally, there is one thing I want to tell you. In your job search, prioritize 'who you want to work with and what kind of work you want to do' over 'where you live'.

Of course, I understand the anxiety about relocation painfully well. However, it is too much of a waste to narrow your own possibilities because of that anxiety.

Are you giving up on your dreams or companies where you could do what you really want to do just because 'there is relocation'? If so, that is a huge loss.

When you are in your 30s or 40s, which version of you will be able to laugh?

Imagine it. Yourself, who continued to commute from your parents' home in Tokyo and spent unchanging days, versus yourself, who moved around the country, met people in various lands, ate delicious food, and overcame troubles.

When you reach your 30s or 40s, which one will have become an adult with interesting stories to tell? Which one will have become a 'person of depth' ?

I am convinced that it is undoubtedly the latter. And, as a result, people who have had such experiences are often more highly valued in business and enjoy their lives more.

Do not let your life be confined to a small space

When you are young, you can start over even if you fail. You also have the physical stamina. Please do not voluntarily let go of the challenges you can only take on now, and the sights you can only see now.

Instead of half-heartedly job hunting while holding onto the contradiction of wanting to join a large or famous company but not wanting to relocate, make up your mind and leap into the wider world.

Your life should not be so small that it fits within the city of Tokyo. Be freer, be greedier. Fearlessly choose a future where you play an active role across Japan, or even the world.

I hope that your job search will be the catalyst for expanding not just the map on paper, but the map of the world within your heart.