"The colleague I met after a long time was like a different person"—the secret isn't a "difference in ability," but a "difference in environment." How I went from an annual income of 3.2 million to 6 million yen in one year
"Honestly, an annual income of 10 million yen feels like a different world to me..." "Everyone around me is a colleague making around 3 million yen a year, and I thought that was 'normal'." "The other day, I met a former colleague for the first time in two years, and both what they were talking about and how much they were earning seemed like a different person, and honestly, I felt a bit panicked."
In a recent free career consultation, a person in their mid-20s told me this, bit by bit.
To be honest... I don't think these are the words of someone who is "being left behind," but rather the words of "someone who will grow next if they change their environment."
Actually, that phenomenon where you feel "that person has completely changed since I last saw them" isn't a difference in willpower, but simply that the "standard value" of the environment they are in has changed.
Having provided career counseling to over 2,000 people and interviewed hundreds as a hiring manager, I have realized that people are creatures who are surprisingly pulled by "what is normal in that environment" rather than by the power of their own will.
Please let me introduce myself briefly.
My name is Kosuke Tahara. I am the Director and COO, as well as the person in charge of recruitment, at Nitoel Inc.
While I have provided career counseling to over 2,000 people as a recruitment agent, I have also interviewed hundreds of people on the "hiring side" as a recruitment manager. My job offer acceptance rate is over 40%. In an industry where the figures for a typical agent are said to be in the single digits, I believe I have achieved decent results.
Writing it like this might make me look like someone who has "had a smooth path"... but the reality is completely different. As a child, I was told by the adults around me that "you have to work three times as hard as others to finally be average." I am an ordinary person who, after joining a pharmaceutical company as a new graduate and experiencing failure as a freelancer, jumped back into the human resources industry at the age of 26.
In short, I am someone who has rebuilt their career from the side of an ordinary person.
Having sat in both chairs—the one being consulted and the one doing the hiring—I realized that the trigger for people to change is often the environment, not willpower.
There is a story that I, having gone through over 2,000 consultations, really wanted to share.
The story of someone whose annual income increased just because their "normal" standard changed.
Case Study [Annual income 3.2 million → 6 million yen in one year]
25-year-old woman / Izakaya service staff → Inbound sales position at a rapidly growing venture company
At the time she came for a consultation, she was working as service staff at an izakaya. Her annual income was 3.2 million yen. The colleagues she worked with were in the same income bracket, and a 1-2% annual raise was "normal." While she felt a sense of discomfort wondering "is it okay to stay like this?", she didn't really know what she should be aiming for.
What became clear during the interview was that it wasn't that her own ability or achievements were low, but rather that"the standards of those around her" had become her own target level.The very idea of aiming for an annual income of 5 to 6 million yen didn't exist in her environment up until then.
I introduced her to an inbound sales position at a rapidly growing venture company. The offered annual salary was 4 million yen, which was by no means a massive increase. However, it was an environment where "aiming for an annual income of 6 to 8 million yen or more" was talked about as a matter of course. She herself said, "Honestly, I was more attracted to that environment than the amount of money."
After joining the company, what changed within her, even before her ability itself, was"the level she felt it was okay to set as a goal."Within six months, she volunteered to handle additional business negotiations, and one year after joining, her annual income rose to 6 million yen. She says she is now aiming for an annual income of 8 million yen. According to her, "If I had stayed at my previous workplace, I don't think I would have even thought about aiming for an annual income of 6 million yen or more in the first place."
This is where the main point begins.
“People are creatures of their environment” is a well-said phrase, and as this case shows, people are pulled by the “standards of their environment” before their “willpower”.
Actually, this is not just a subjective story; it is backed by research. When Nicholas Christakis of Harvard University and James Fowler of the University of California analyzed data from the Framingham Heart Study, which tracked 12,067 people over 32 years, they found that if a friend becomes obese, the probability of you becoming obese yourself increases by 57%. For siblings, it is 40%, and for spouses, it is 37% (New England Journal of Medicine, 2007).
I don't believe this study proves everything. However, it matches surprisingly well with the sense I have gained through career consultations with over 2,000 people.
Even physical characteristics like body type are pulled and spread by what is “normal” in one's surroundings. If that is the case, it is actually natural for your annual income and behavioral standards regarding work to be pulled by the “normal” of your surroundings.
People are influenced by the “norms of the people around them” more than they think.
This is exactly what I feel when providing career change support. People are not changed by willpower so much as they are pulled by “what is normal in that environment.” In an environment where there is no one around aiming for an annual income of 8 million, versus an environment where that is the norm, the behavioral standards themselves change. Honestly, it is more common than you think for the difference in environment to be greater than the difference in ability.
Once you understand this essence, you can see that just visualizing the person you want to become is not enough.What is important is to place yourself in an environment where that goal is considered “normal”.
An environment changes only three elements.
The standard value for results and annual income considered “normal”
The amount of effort and action considered standard
How challenges and risks are perceived
① The standard value for results and annual income considered “normal”
Actually, many people tend to view goal setting as a problem of “strength of will.” Rather, the “ceiling” of a goal is determined by whether there is someone around you who is “actually doing it.” In an environment where there is even one person aiming for an annual income of 8 million, versus an environment where there is no one, the number of options that come to mind is completely different.
② The amount of effort and action considered standard
Actually, the standard for “thinking you are working hard” also changes significantly depending on the environment. In fact, because the amount of action of those around you becomes your own line for “this much is enough,” if you are in an environment with little action, your own level of action will be suppressed without you even realizing it.
③ How challenges and risks are perceived
However, this is not a matter of ability. Rather, depending on whether those around you consider taking on challenges “normal” or consider stability “normal,” the way you perceive the risk of the same proposal changes. If you are in an environment oriented toward stability, taking on a challenge itself looks like a “high-risk, special thing.”
Up to this point, it has been a story about “what the environment changes.”
However, just one more thing. I think there are many people who say, “I can't just change my environment by changing jobs right now.”
Even in that case, there are things you can do. Even without changing the organization you belong to, just consciously changing the people you interact with and your sources of information will gradually shift your “normal” standards. Engage with content from people who are generating income and results, or show your face at external study groups or communities. Even with small overlaps in environment, your standard values will shift.
Whether you are changing your environment significantly or just changing the information you are exposed to in small ways, the common thread is the idea of "not relying on willpower." It is faster and more sustainable to borrow the power of your environment than to try your best through willpower alone.
However... I honestly think it is quite difficult for someone in their 20s to accurately determine what kind of environment they should place themselves in on their own.
The environment you are in is so "normal" that it is difficult to have a perspective that questions it while you are still on the inside. Moreover, changing jobs to change your environment is a major decision that changes not just your annual income, but also your personal relationships and your daily life.
Furthermore, this is an area that isn't even taught in school. That is precisely why I believe there should be more accessible, free consultation spaces available for people in their 20s right now.
Why am I doing this for free?
I will be honest. This free career consultation is not a sales pitch.
In fact, if support at Nitoel is not the best fit, I often recommend other agencies or the option of "not making a move right now."
I do it for free because it is also for my own benefit. As the proportion of time I spend as a business manager increases, I feel like I am becoming more distant from the reality on the ground.
If I don't continue to touch upon the raw struggles of people in their 20s every month, my own resolution will quickly drop. This directly impacts the quality of my support, so it is a problem I cannot ignore.
Another reason is my awareness of the issues within the industry. Opportunities for people in their 20s to objectively view the environment they are in are not yet sufficiently established. I have a desire to change that, even if just a little.
Instead of money, I ask you to share the "raw reality of your 20s." I believe that is the substance of the exchange.
[Limited to 10 people per month] What we do in the 45-minute free career consultation
We generally cover these three things in the 45-minute free career consultation.
❶ Taking stock of the "baseline" of your current environment
We will work together to organize how your current workplace and the people around you are affecting your goal setting. This is the process of identifying, from an outside perspective, the standards you have unconsciously assumed to be "normal."
❷ Choosing an environment by working backward from your ideal self
Working backward from your goals for annual income and work style, we will organize what kind of environment (industry, company, team) you should place yourself in. We will also flatly consider whether "this can be done within your current company" or "if you need to change your environment entirely."
❸ Prioritizing your next move
Whether to change jobs or to change the people and information you interact with in your current environment. We will decide together the order of priority that will yield the greatest return for you right now.
Regarding participation
No prior preparation is needed. In fact, being in a state of "feeling a bit uneasy" allows for a deeper consultation.
"I feel anxious when comparing myself to others," "I've lost track of whether my current environment is 'normal'," "I have a goal, but I can't see the environment to get there"—that level of detail is perfectly fine.
Format: Online (Zoom) / 45 minutes
How to participate
[Target Audience]
If you are in your 20s and fit the following, please feel free to consult with us.
Those who can no longer tell if their current environment is "normal"
Those who have a goal but cannot see the environment to achieve it
Those who want to objectively organize their standards for annual income and work style
Limited to 10 people per month (first-come, first-served)
[Application] To ensure smooth scheduling, please use the link below for consultations.
In closing
"That guy was like a different person when I saw him after a long time." I think everyone has had that experience at least once. It's not because they had a stronger will, but often because the baseline of the environment they are in has changed.
It is important to envision the person you want to become. But it is just as important to place yourself in an environment where that version of you is considered "normal."
These few years in your 20s are a crucial period that will determine the next 20 years. The sooner you make the decision to change your environment, the more effective it will be.
Time spent hesitating is truly a waste. If you are even slightly interested, please reach out for a consultation right now.
Also, if you have read this far and found it even slightly useful, I would be very happy and encouraged if you could "like" this article or share it!
Thank you for reading until the end!
I have also included past articles, so please take a look at those as well.
▼ Please see this article for an interview with a client I actually worked with who received a job offer.
▼ Please see this article for my thoughts on career change support and what I value.
▼For those who have an interview coming up, please take a look at this article to understand the "investment perspective that hiring companies look for during interviews."