The Monday Read: Meeting in Person

Zoom is great, but nothing beats a live audience

I just finished a presentation at Nara JALT’s conference, in the middle of the beautiful city of Nara. The JALTCALL SIG kindly sponsored my presentation, and we had a great audience -lots of questions and engagement.

Had some good conversations before and after too.

The pandemic pushed us online, and that has been great. The ability to have quick online meetings has been wonderful. I’ve been able to talk to people I would never have been able to in the past, coaching has been really easy, and online courses and seminars suddenly become possible.

But there is something special about a live audience. It’s more fun to present, the audience is more present (heh), and it just feels better.

Coincidentally, we also finished the current cohort of Your First Ten Million Yen. I really enjoyed it. We had a smaller group than usual, so it was easier to get to know everyone. We’ll be running the course again in February next year (sign up here for updates), but we’re also thinking of trying a new format: the same content but in a weekend. And in person.

More info next summer.

YouTube

Thank you for your support of the RetireJapan YouTube channel. No new videos from us this week, but I did have a conversation with Steve from Real Rural Japan.

The Forum

Speaking of which, the Forum is doing well (38,684 posts so far). The forum rules are here. In essence, they are:

1. Be nice
2. Ask any question you like
3. Only answer questions when you have relevant knowledge or experience

Here are the latest active threads:

This week’s books

After reading Perdido Street Station, by China Mieville last week I started the second book in the series The Scar.

It’s even better. Can’t believe I didn’t read Mieville’s stuff before.

Want to run a minpaku/AirBnB in Japan?

Tracey Northcott (who is a regular at the Japan Real Estate Summits) has put together some resources to get you started (affiliate link).

Product of the week

I got NordVPN a couple of months ago because I wanted to finish watching the genius Australian comedy/drama show Mr. Inbetween.

It worked, allowing me to stream the show from the US version of Disney+, and I was really pleased at how easy it was to use on my phone, my computer, and even my TV.

They are doing a Black Friday deal at the moment so you can get a big discount here (affiliate link).

This week’s links

1. I had no idea furusato nozei gifts were taxable: 𝗝𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗻 𝗧𝗮𝘅 𝗼𝗻 𝗙𝘂𝗿𝘂𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗼-𝗡𝗼𝘇𝗲𝗶 𝗗𝗼𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗚𝗶𝗳𝘁𝘀
2. Largely agree with the conclusion. Japan is going to be more geographically concentrated in the future: Tomorrow never knows
3. When will the bull market end? The Wall of Worry is Dead
4. This is a great story: David Tran and Sriracha’s $1B+ Journey
5. An optimistic take on AI: Humans Are About to Learn Like Never Before
6. The first rule of personal finance is… You Only Have to Get Rich Once
7. Ben Carlson on crypto: Why I’m Selling Some Bitcoin
8. I don’t understand why Chris seems to have so many issues in Japan: Various things from a last week of travel
9. What happens to your NISA account if you move abroad temporarily for work? 𝗡𝗜𝗦𝗔 𝗚𝘂𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗝𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗻 𝗢𝘂𝘁𝗯𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗲𝗲𝘀
10. Great question, great answer: Managing a Million: What Would I Do Differently?
11. Broadly agree with this proposal: LDP Concedes to DPFP On Raising Tax-Free Income Bracket
12. Ray Dalio’s take on the next US government: The Changing Domestic and World Orders Under the Trump Administration
13. I support this even though it would likely make me worse off: Japan’s Politicians Stick to BHAG of 1,500 Yen Minimum Wage
14. Say what you like about Japanese healthcare, treatment is not rationed like this yet: Bone-on-bone agony: the cruel reality of facing a three-year waiting list for a new knee
15. Unbelievable. People should lose their jobs over this: Redevelop this
16. Really hope this helps the economy: Japan’s $250bn stimulus plan seeks to encourage more work and spending
17. Largely agree: Japan’s well-intended ‘hometown tax’ system is deeply flawed
18. Wonder if they will reduce the fees? MUFG to launch takeover bid for robo-adviser WealthNavi
19. This is a really powerful article (homelessness in the US): The Invisible Man
20. Love these kinds of stories: The path from home to here

What do you think? Anything interesting in there?

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