I've always thought it was strange that even with a shrinking population, Japan keeps building more and more new housing developments. Well, Japan is in a bit of a catch-22 when it comes to housing. Like the Japanese tradition of KFC at Christmas, I assume it is something to do with the might of the …

The Japanese Housing Catch-22 Read More »

What is the purpose of asking where we’re from? Why don’t we switch it to where we are going? Why the focus on the past? So we can see if someone matches our expectations of where they’re from? What if we don’t know anything about where they’re from? If we ask where they’re going, wouldn’t …

Hi, it’s Tim from planet earth Read More »

This morning I was reading through an article I wrote earlier in the year. I don't remember exactly the hard work that went into it, I just remember that it was hard. But now when I think back to it, I am thankful for my previous self for doing the hard work. Work seems hard …

They only add to you Read More »

What you're evaluated on determines what you do. Change what you're evaluated on and you change what you do. This is where your priorities for life come into play. If you prioritize what other people think of you, ie you set yourself up to be evaluated by other people, your actions will be determined by …

What you’re evaluated on Read More »

Humans default to trusting strangers, which can lead to trouble when they're not to be trusted, but is much better than not trusting them.

Rural Japan is arguably one of the worst places in the world to invest in the housing market. Buildings are said to lose their value completely after 20 years, and then you're only left with the land it's on for anything worth anything. In many cases I've seen this is true at least to some …

Why build a house in rural Japan? Read More »

Talking to Strangers by Malcolm Gladwell introduced me to the concept of the holy fool. It's a Russian concept whereby someone without a care of their social status, such as an outcast, calls out a societal wrong. One example given was the famous Hans Christian Andersen story where the little boy calls out the emperor's …

The Holy Fool Read More »