How to Use Qualifications to Make Your Career Shine 1/6 - The Vague Anxiety: "Is It Okay to Stay Like This?"

For the first time in a while, I read through a series I wrote for a corporate public relations magazine between 2021 and 2022. It was a great opportunity to look back on my own career, so I decided to rewrite it slightly to fit my current situation and share it here as well.

Currently, I run a branding and fragrance company called Treble Inc. However, my career path to get here was: graduated from university, started as a full-time systems engineer, quit after one year, worked as a temporary employee at multiple companies (while studying for certifications), passed the Judicial Scrivener exam, worked as a judicial scrivener at three firms, worked in corporate legal affairs at a general company in between, joined a branding company, and then started my own business. I have changed jobs over ten times, across various company sizes, industries, and employment types.

The experience of obtaining qualifications is an indispensable element as a turning point in my life. That said, I went through many ups and downs both before and after getting them, and I am where I am today after much trial, error, and worry.

I perceive "getting a qualification" and "building a career" from it as completely different things. I believe that in order to properly connect getting a qualification to making your career shine, you need to think things through and take the time to properly re-examine yourself.

I am introducing this here in the hope that it might provide some hints to those who are worried about their careers or those who want to take stock of their own careers. Since I am a rather unconventional type when it comes to life and how to build a career, it might not be helpful for everyone.

I think how you feel when reading this will vary from person to person. However, I am not trying to force my opinions on anyone; I am publishing this series in the hope that it will serve as an opportunity for you to reflect on your own career by thinking, "Oh, there is this way of thinking, too."

I also want to continue doing my best to make my own career shine even more. While thinking about "what is important and what kind of person I want to be," I would be happy if we could think about building a more fun and freer career together!

Scheduled to be updated every Friday.
A total of 6 installments plus 3 bonus installments are planned!
Please enjoy!

VOL.1 The Vague Anxiety: "Is It Okay to Stay Like This?"

A 6-part series column on thinking about your career through qualifications. In the first installment, I will share the background of how I came to quit my full-time job to aim for a difficult qualification, and how I decided on which qualification to pursue.

Obtaining a Qualification Changed My Life

I think a certain number of people reading this series are considering obtaining a qualification. After I started working, I made a firm resolution and obtained the Judicial Scrivener qualification, which is said to be a difficult one. My life changed from there. I believe that the effort put into obtaining a qualification becomes an asset in life, regardless of whether you pass or fail. I hope that my experience will be a hint for you to think about your career, not just about aiming for a qualification. After entering the workforce, I think many people often think: "Is my current job right for me?" "If I keep going like this, will I become the person I want to be?" "How should I build my career from here on?" I was exactly the same. One year and three months after joining my first company as a new graduate, I quit my full-time job after my health deteriorated due to stress, and I set my sights on obtaining a qualification.

The Joy of Stepping Off the General, Correct Path

After that, I changed jobs to become a temporary employee who could leave on time, and my days of aiming to become a judicial scrivener while working began. However, in the era when I quit my job, it was taken for granted that you would find a full-time job after graduating from university. It was an era where the mainstream value was that if you didn't work at one company for three years, it would have a negative impact on changing jobs. What I thought after quitting my job was, "I have stepped off the conventional path." But it was a positive feeling of, "Since I'm off the path anyway, I'm going to live freely!" Four years of always having no money and spending all my time studying. But I was able to like myself again for working hard toward something I was aiming for. "Days spent aiming for something" are actually fun in a way that nothing else can replace. I was lucky enough to pass, but I think there is a lot to gain whether you pass or not.

"Why did you aim to become a judicial scrivener?"

This is the question I am asked most often. I didn't aim to get the qualification because I wanted to be a "judicial scrivener," so I wasn't particularly attached to the qualification itself. These are the three things I considered when choosing a qualification: (1) A qualification that allows me to make it my job if I obtain it, (2) A qualification in a field I have never studied before, and (3) A qualification I can obtain while working. As long as these three were met, it could actually have been any other qualification. I thought of the qualification as a tool or weapon to change my life, so I chose it by thinking about which qualification was most suitable for becoming the person I wanted to be. This is just my way of choosing a qualification, but I think the important thing is to clarify "why am I getting a qualification" before considering obtaining one.

First, Clarify the Person You Want to Be

For those who, like me in the past, feel vague anxiety about the future or want to change their lives, obtaining a qualification might be the trigger to open up your future. If you haven't decided on a specific qualification, please use my method of choosing one as a reference. By the way, the direction I had set was [The person I want to be = A person who is working hard] and [The job I want = A highly specialized job that only I can do]. The key to choosing a qualification is to first think about the person you want to be and the job you want to have. Then, work backward from there to think about the optimal qualification. If you clarify this axis of "where am I aiming and why am I getting a qualification," it should be very useful not only for choosing a qualification but also for maintaining motivation during your study period.