[Post-COVID] World is changing. Start "side jobs" and prepare for the future.

How will things change “post-COVID”? Guess this is what is in everyone's mind.

No one will give you an exact answer to your anxieties, but I can clearly say that we cannot get back to the point before the COVID situation. Nobody can stop once it has started its movement, especially if it is a social movement in the direction of where it should be...

The unstoppable social movement in a better direction

The list goes on...

Many would agree that we are moving in the right direction, as mentioned above, which is in the preferred style to our lives we have today.

We had several significant social movements in Japan when we look back the history.

In the 1950s, the social movement named “the Three Sacred Treasures” arose. The critical three were TV (B&W), electric washing machine, and refrigerator. People worked very hard to get these products in their households.

The movement in the 1960s was called “3C”, color TV, the cooler (air cooler or air conditioner), and car.

People could no longer play their games without these items. Although our new generation may not buy TV anymore, they watch YouTube instead. It is not even a backward movement but rather a progression, I may say.

Countless things around us would get updated without being extincted. For example...

These points are enough evidence for you to believe that the social movement is unstoppable. It will continue to make progress in the right direction even after this pandemic will have come to an end.

Those good old days... the crowded train, checking into the office regularly, sit down in "your seat" and check emails while sipping the morning coffee, sign and chop stamps to documents for approval, attend to meetings and visit branch offices once in a while, and get the monthly salary while hoping your boss stays in the great mood…...

We will never have such days again. Instead, we shouldn't. (If they ever come back, Japan will literary go through Galapagosization!!)

It is just another evolutionary process. Since the global standard is shifting towards this direction, we ought to activate the Japanese social norms as the same.

To survive this new era, we must change ourselves.

Time to start "side jobs"

Getting straight to the point, now is the time to start side jobs for all employees. You all need to be prepared. Prepare to leave the company and get self-employed.

But why?

How do business owners view this situation?

Mr. Shigenori Nagamori, CEO of Nidec Corporation,  said on Nikkei on April 20 as follows.

It is hard to believe that these points came Mr. Shigenori Nagamori, who had previously been famous for being profit-oriented.

After all, the teleworking style is most likely to get common among large companies like his. Being described as "dramatic changes" in his own words, as a signal of counterattack, he is eager to make a remarkable change!

When it comes to money, the expression is made in a slightly moderate tone, as we can see in the word "Cash is king." Cash is the best choice right now. Under these words, the psychology lies down, the need to store as many supplies as possible, preparing for a long-running siege battle. To put it in the other way, it means  "nobody can afford idle life."

"... live together with nature in harmony, instead of only pursuing profits". I should take a hint of a slight change in his mindset that he is probably already planning to change the employing system itself; even the expressions are subtle in the article.

The phrase "even profit may decline temporarily" shows how challenging it will be when the leaders are preparing to voice out "hard to starboard!".

Even a large corporation like Nidec is buckled up for this situation with a sense of crisis. Things will be more challenging for small-and-medium-sized enterprises. There is no guarantee that you will have "your seat" there tomorrow.

Employees' real voice

Let's focus on average employees and what do they think about this situation. It seems that people are already getting aware of this new movement. Searching online for keyword "post-COVID", and I found the following feedback among the blogs.

A "company slave" is a sarcastic term for workers who get a monthly salary from the company, as if the cattle are being fed every day.

If you can no longer be a "company slave", you have to run away from the barn, jump over the fence, and live in the wild... In other words, choose to get self-employed.

I have no clue, but to guess how determined this person from the blog is... Perhaps he is seeking a way to retire from "company slave" while he is in the barn. How can one manage such a hybrid method, after all? The bottom line to this question might lead to sideline business...

Another feedback from an employee.

What a suitable remark indeed.

Will this person, who wrote this blog article, stay with the company as a full-time employee? Or leave the company and resign to start working as a freelancer?

If he were to resign, he would probably focus on the new movement of becoming a freelancer. So I guess he intends to stay.

Is it really possible to contribute to the company performance with "achievements" and get the "reward" to satisfy yourself needs, while your mind (ideal) and body (reality) is in the incoherent state like OBE?

When one is seriously aiming to gain a reward for the achievements, it is necessary to bring the body (reality) towards your mind (ideal). The body, left in the side of hourly wages, must find its way and bring mind and body into alignment.

In the spirit of kendo (Japanese art of fencing), this process is called to bring three elements (spirit, sword handling, and posture) into harmony. Once the balance is lost, your hit is not considered as an effective strike. In other words, you never get the points no matter how hard you swing the sword if these three are not in alignment.

Try "side jobs" before going on your own

To introduce myself, I am a 52 years old male, who was in charge of the German subsidiary of a Japanese company six years ago. I got into an argument with the CEO and decided to break apart, left the company, and started up my own company in Germany. Today, I have office branches in Japan and the U.S.

Though it has not been an ideal smooth sailing yet, I have come this far with the support of the staff and the people around me.

Having said that, I do not recommend you to wake up one day and leave the company to start your own business. In my case, I had an immediate reason to quit due to the conflict, but the wise man should make steady preparations and get ready for the time to come.

And the key to this preparation is "side jobs".

I will introduce the recommended "side jobs" from the next update. Things you should pay attention to, something you should choose, and something you should take into consideration...

 Summary