Changing Careers Three Times

With about two months left until my maternity leave, I've started to become conscious of the procedures required for the company.

While I think, "There's still two months left," the hospital where I'll be giving birth back in my hometown requested that I return two weeks before my first check-up, and since I'm returning to my parents' home a month before maternity leave, I'll effectively only be working for one more month.

It's a hassle to handle various procedures from my parents' home due to the environment, so I'm planning things out and moving forward with various tasks, but in fleeting moments, I think, "Oh, is my career about to change again?"

I have changed companies twice before.

The attendance record crossed out in red

The company I joined as a new graduate was a 100% pure sweatshop.
There were around 50 full-time employees and about 90 including part-timers. Because people quit every month, after two and a half years, I was among the longest-serving employees.

Although I had interviewed for a "sales" position, my assignment was changed to "clerical" at the entrance ceremony (this was lucky for me, so it wasn't a problem).
Within six months of joining (as a result of people constantly quitting), I was transferred between three different departments, and since department managers kept quitting one after another, the president became my direct supervisor and handed me his official seal, saying, "Use it as you like"—and that's still on the milder side of the stories.

At the Monday morning assembly, we would stand for an hour listening to the president's precious words (shouting), and afterwards, I would do the work of the junior staff who were crying in the restroom. Because there weren't enough people, working until the last train during busy seasons was a matter of course. Months with triple-digit overtime hours were common.


One day, I was called over by the General Affairs Department.
In my hand was the attendance record I had closed the previous month. It included the triple-digit overtime hours I had worked with permission. Every single one of those overtime hours had a red line drawn through it. General Affairs said:

"Decide right now whether you want to count this as 20 hours of overtime or zero."

Seeing the senior staff with dead fish eyes on the very day I joined, I immediately consulted my parents, saying, "It's definitely a sweatshop, I want to quit." They kept telling me, "If you don't stay for at least three years, you won't even be considered for job changes." That's why I worked until the very brink of depression. I thought, if I'm getting paid, I'll do it. After all, I'm working to live.

In an environment where people around me were constantly quitting due to depression caused by the president's shouting, I thought there might come a day when I would be targeted too.

But my heart snapped because of that one remark from the General Affairs staff who left on time.
More than the shouting, the fact that my salary was being held by the people in the company with the most free time was what really struck a chord with me.

Fortunately, having become a jack-of-all-trades from sales to production, I was able to find my next job easily.

The second company where my senses were sharpened

The job category I chose after gaining experience at my first company was "general clerical." Since the startup was hiring for both "comprehensive" and "general" positions, I chose the general position, thinking, "I want to prioritize my own time over money."

It was a company that was incomparably better in terms of industry and the people who worked there. If there were any concerns, everyone would share and solve them, and there were almost no scenes where shouting occurred.
There were also opportunities to learn through work, and at this second company, I was able to think seriously about my career, life plan, and the environment I was in.

Why did I quit such a company?

Yes, the thing that got involved again was "money."

I had noticed.
While my peers in the same general position were doing routine work, I was doing the work of a comprehensive position.
You could call it the right person in the right place, but while the peers doing routine work got raises, I couldn't easily get a raise, perhaps because I was doing the work of a comprehensive position. Even though I was in a general position. (I was the only one being evaluated against the same criteria as the comprehensive staff.)

Although I had never received a raise at my previous job, as I was about to reach five years in the workforce, my annual income was under 3 million yen (before taxes). I repeat.It was under 3 million yen (before taxes).

A woman from the countryside living alone in the Tokyo jungle. Moreover, in an environment where there are constant opportunities to think about life plans, one ends up reflecting on it whether they like it or not.

While I was agonizing over the situation because the conditions were good except for the salary, I went to lunch with a colleague one day, and she muttered something.

"Actually, my salary is going up by 40,000 yen starting this month."

I asked if that was per year. She said it was per month. When I listened closely, it seemed she had been given one additional task to her current routine. I thought it might be a specialized field, but it wasn't; it seemed more like being a gofer for the executives. However, those tasks didn't go beyond regular working hours. By the way, she had an incredibly cute face.

"I want enough living expenses to survive even if I'm single."

I had no hesitation in my second job search. If I hadn't gained that much knowledge, I probably wouldn't have thought of that option. With a sense of gratitude, I obtained my ticket to my current job.

To ensure I don't lose sight of my own perspective

As for my current job, the third one, I will refrain from writing details because I am currently working there, but I am convinced that "I really have no luck with jobs!"

Fortunately, my annual income has increased and the benefits are excellent, so I am continuing to work, but in terms of the degree of environmental change, I am experiencing the same level of shock every day as I did at my first company.

Perhaps I am a woman with the blood of a 'good grief' type. Good grief, I'm being pushed around by my workplace again today.
And I will be saying goodbye to such a workplace for a while, starting with my maternity leave.


In order to survive in the Tokyo jungle, I had been advancing my career in a somewhat smooth manner, but it will come to a temporary halt due to childbirth.
I feel a tiny bit of anxiety about stopping my career for a different reason, having changed careers [to survive]. That's because I have no precedent for it within myself.


While harboring unknown anxieties, I want to send applause to the mothers and pregnant women who spend their days deciding "I will do this." You are amazing, seriously. No, really.

Of course, behind that, there are many people who are doing the work instead of me while I build my career. I want to send my gratitude and applause to those people as well.
It could be said that thanks to these people, I have time to think about my future career. Thank you so much for giving me this precious time.

What kind of choices will I make after giving birth? The me before giving birth has no idea.
But I just want to make sure that I don't think of the results I choose as "enduring."
I'm counting on you, future me.