Once upon a time in this country, there was a greatest booming economy period exploded by the investment mood for the estate and land. This era, called as "bubble economy" was gone and ten years after, already.
The man appears on the stage this time, Makoto Masuda is the one who used to be engaged in the area of real-estate in this period. "I am not interested in money at all, I take this as a gimmick for joking"He state flatly and just came back to the real-estate field after the one-year absence.I actually got surprised with his story about money and at the same time,
i had a breezy fresh feeling, too. Please do not take that he is speaking for all other people working for the real-estate sales people of Japan but, nowadays in this country, even kids or housewife do play around as a day trader, his sense towards the money seemed much healthier and cleaner than those people. I do have the same way of feeling regard to money, that is, there are only two ways that we can be healthy about money, completely ignore it or take it just a piece of paper.
The attitude snappishly speak the words "people in surroundings often says they cannot understand what I am thinking about" may seems making other people foolish. however, once we find this is even a piece of his unique style of joking, he is not hateful. Moreover, this could be a part of his appeal, not so many people find it so...
Story of the alien sales person landed on the earth is such a glorious fun!
*I do not think your attitude was beloved by teachers in your school-hood. "
"Well, not really true. But I do remember when I was a Junior-high student, I filled as a candidate for the class officer and elected. 6 month later, my home room teacher said to me that why I have raised hands for the class officer with very sad face... Maybe because I was a student never respect the teachers. haha. "
After that, just like many other people do, I went on to the university without any objectives, experienced several occupations, then became a real-estate sales person.
By the way, he used to work during the period after the "bubble economy" gone away and Japanese market was in the downturn at its bottom.
*Why you thought to be the real-estate sales person?
"For the real-estate sales person in Japan, academic background means nothing. There are only two job requirements, on is you can speak Japanese, the other is you need to have a drivers license. That's all. Accordingly, everyone one can do this bob as long as you are Japanese. In fact, my boss hardly read/write Japanese characters. This kinda world, I thought there was no other choice as I become a big man."
Though he said so, I also know he can do well whichever fields he is in. I suppose there are sort of efforts or know-how behind the story which I like to know. "I have no interest in real-estate, actually I really do not know what is good and what is bad (this is a bombshell statement of him!!), so I figured all i have to do is copying other sales people say".
I mean, the thing is hot what I speak but how I speak to the customer, expressions, tone of the voice, gesture and I could get trusted by the customer. My aim at that time was put as little effort as possible but be sure to close the deal." "However, I never tell a lie to the customer. I did explain something negative to the customer, of course based on the calculations. Some poor sales people closeup too much of the negative fact to the customer
The area he was in charge at that time was one of the most popular area in the "Where you wanna live in Tokyo" type of survey result, hence the land cost at that time, even in a economic downturn, was around 2 million yen(nearly equal to 17K US$) for 3.3 sqr meter. Sales people is always commission based. As real-estate price goes high and amount of money become bigger, his salary goes up accordingly. Sales people working at the high land-price area earns more, in short.
"Made money?"
"I did make lots of money but i spend more than that. I mean, my boss at that time taught me "As you earn money, you have to spend them all. Otherwise, they may not come back to you" and I adhere to his words. For kidding. I set a goal like how to spend all of my salary within a month. Now I recall that, this is nothing but NONSENSE, though.
"How much did you spend, actually?"
"I sold at least one house at that time, I've got paid like a manager. Also, I was living in my parents house at that time (by the way, the fact that his family own the house in this metropolitan Tokyo has something to do with building his unique character, I suppose), I did not have to pay for any rent, living expense at all. I could literally use up all of my salary. I had as much as 1 million yen (approx. 8.5K US$) monthly allowance. Petty cash. 1 million yen. " ter deeply."
And now, he do not drink, then how did he manage to clear such a nonsense monthly target??
"I enjoyed the nightclub-crawling every night. Sometimes I was busy and cannot have time to play around, my money piled up. Then I went to the car dealer to buy a car. I did manage to use up before my pay day. Actually, sometimes, I only had 1000 yen(equals to 8 bucks) before the payday."
This is the incredible reason why he actually owned 3 cars for nothing.
"Moreover, I only worked 2 or 3 days through the month. I went to the office, punch in a clock card, had a coffee and leave the office saying "I will go to see the real-estate property". 5 minutes after, I was at the nearest park. 10 minutes after, I was asleep, every day. I thought to be in this occupation requires not to think about the matter deeply."
His story is truth but I have to say this can be only true when we see the fact from his perspective. In real, if 10 people join the company for real-estate one day and 3 years later, there is only 1 or no-one left in the company. He says the "smashing mouth" to poor sales people was hell awful.
"I can say my motivation came from competing with other people rather than earning more money"
Quite naturally but in his company, the gap between the good sales people and poor sales people was very big. Not quite sure why he, the sleeping most of business hours sales person, could keep winning the races but probably he is just an alien.
5 years, he spent such an incredible days.
"In the end, I was transfered to the mgmt positions owing to my achievement. In that company, mgmt people have less chance to earn money than sales persons. I have kept saying to my juniors that if you could not earn 5 million yen per year(42K US$), you have no meaning to be a sales person, but I myself could earn that range of salary at that position. I found it was a time to quite."
For a year after he quite, sometimes he acted as an antique dealer or manage to live by selling his car. Now He's back again to that field.
"I think I know the value of my reason, challenge of the life. Or I know the there is something more valuable than money". For your information in Japan, there was an accident that CEO of one rapidly growing IT company has arrested and put into the jail. He used to say there is nothing that money can't buy.
His prior residence is called "Roppongi Hills" and considered as a sacred field of the winning peoples where society of disparity arose. Now this is such a silly question but I asked him about "Roppongi Hills." "I really have no interests but sounds fancy for girls." That's important!!
"For me, i have nothing clear about my goal, things I like to do. I also think it will not be changed in my future. In that very sense, my whole life, not a part of, can be thought as a moratorium and its tiny relief is the image of my occupation."
His relaxing shoulders, as if it's got bone dislocations, but as I listen to his nonsense wasting money episode, I am Laughing out loud rather than become scowling face.
Lastly, I tell you the secret why he cannot leave the park everyday. He has a neurotic chronic disease that he suddenly feel like to go to the rest room and he could not spend long time where he cannot find the washroom nearby. And by this sense of anxiety, he could never take a train before. However, as he began to work again, his chronic disease got completely cured.
He has this disease since he was university student, but what made an treatment to that?? medicine, therapy?? He answered in delight.
"I am too busy to take care of that!"
Now, for good or evil, he has no room to spend a day by sleeping through.
