There is an old saying that goes better to be a big fish in a small pond than a small fish in a big pond. This proverb does not apply to job hunting in Japan. If you can get into a large company, you should join a large company. There is no need to go all the way to small and medium-sized companies.

There are many jobs in the world and countless companies. And although there is freedom of choice, not everyone is doing the job they want to do. Even if you get the job you want, there are times when you have to do work you don't want to do or that you are not interested in. At such times, it is good to complain and work as you have no choice, but one way is to change your mindset and try to do work that you are not interested in.

Many Japanese salarymen still think that work is the most important thing in life. I don't think this way of thinking is wrong. It is natural that ideas and values differ from person to person. However, in Japan, there are many serious and hard-working workers and there is strong peer pressure within organisations, so there are very few cases where diverse values are recognised. In such Japanese organisations, if an individual tries to live a way of life that emphasises work-life balance, he or she is likely to encounter various difficulties.