(3) Early Career: On the Manufacturing Floor

After graduating from technical college, I joined a major company known for the Walkman.
My workplace was in Kisarazu, Chiba Prefecture. I was assigned to the Design Engineering Department.
My job was to stand between the designers and the manufacturing floor, performing product analysis, evaluation, and proposing improvements.

When I first joined the company, I didn't know my left from my right.
I would arrive at work in the morning to find dozens of emails waiting for me,
with meetings in the morning, document preparation in the afternoon, and more meetings.
My own work wouldn't start until the evening.
Every day passed in a blur.

At that time, meetings with the Malaysia factory were still connected via satellite.
Just listening to the meetings in English was all I could manage.
I could barely speak at all.
Even so, I tried desperately to understand, despite not knowing much.

One day, I was entrusted with troubleshooting.
For a month, I collected data from the production line and repeated analysis and evaluation.
It was always pitch black by the time I went home.
My boss told me, 'You did well for a first-year employee.'

Words of appreciation from my boss.
That single comment was a 'reward' for me at the time.

The tenacity I had cultivated through soccer was still there, but
as I got used to the work, a sense of discomfort began to grow.

The only person who was ever happy with the work I did was the boss right in front of me.
As a first-year employee, I
could not yet imagine the 'voices' or 'smiles' of the customers using the products.

Without seeing the faces of the end users,
I began to repeat the same cycle every day.

'Is this really okay?'
That thought began to spread little by little in my heart.

I managed to hang on with the 'tenacity' I had acquired through soccer, but
I could no longer feel any 'passion' for my work.

When a year had passed,
I found an answer within myself.

──'I want to do work that involves people and their bodies.'

Given my own physical experiences since my student days,
I decided to change my direction from 'manufacturing' to 'caring for people—body and mind.'

I decided to resign and pursue the path of body care.

Next time (4): The Path to Body Care—Days Spent Learning to 'Heal'.

Seeking work that cares not just for the body, but for the heart as well.