Apparently, I'm back on LinkedIn.
After months of relative silence, what finally brought me out of hibernation? A career milestone? A thoughtful reflection on leadership? Some exciting personal announcement?
Nope. United Airlines annoyed me enough to start writing again.
Which feels pretty on brand.
So I am sure many are thinking… “Danny has been unusually quiet on here lately, what exactly has he been doing?”…
Actually, no one was thinking that, but I am going to share anyway.
Learning Japanese.
Yes, Japanese. A perfectly normal hobby to pick up out of nowhere.
So, why Japanese?
I started at the end of July knowing essentially nothing. It's the first language outside of English that I've made a serious effort to learn.
Those closest to me know that when I decide to pick up a hobby, moderation isn't really part of the plan.
I've somehow spent more than 200 hours studying in a little over three months.
The surprising part? I'm having a genuinely great time.
Work has been stressful lately, and I've found that studying Japanese is a really nice way to find balance. After a day of meetings, emails, and trying to solve problems that seem to multiply every time you solve one, there's something refreshing about focusing on something completely different.
Granted, that something different involves three writing systems, a rather intimidating number of kanji, and particles that seem personally committed to confusing me.
But somehow, it's relaxing.
I'm used to spending my days in a role where people expect me to have answers. Now I get genuinely excited when I successfully explain what I ate for breakfast or remember how to say Wednesday.
The bar for personal achievement has never been lower, and I couldn't be happier about it.
There's something really satisfying about being a beginner again. Every week, I can understand a little more. Sentences that looked like complete nonsense a month ago suddenly make sense.
And sometimes I stare at a word I've reviewed 40 times and wonder if I've ever seen it before in my life.
It's a healthy balance.
So, how's my Japanese?
I thought it would be fun to write a little of this in Japanese. It's still pretty basic, but three months ago I couldn't have written any of it.
わたしは毎日、日本語を勉強します。
朝、仕事の前に少し勉強します。仕事のあとで、また勉強します。ジムでも日本語を聞きます。
日本語はむずかしいですが、とてもおもしろいです。
時々、よくわかりません。でも、毎日少しずつわかります。
二月に日本に行きます。東京と大阪と京都に行きます。
とても楽しみです！
For those of you who don't speak Japanese (which included me approximately 100 days ago):
I study Japanese every day.
In the morning, I study a little before work. After work, I study some more. I even listen to Japanese at the gym.
Japanese is difficult, but really interesting. Sometimes I don't understand very well, but every day I understand a little more.
I'm going to Japan in February, visiting Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto. I'm really looking forward to it!
February should be entertaining.
I'm heading to Japan for three weeks (with flights), including two weeks of language school and homestays with Japanese families.
Which means I'll finally get to test whether the hundreds of hours I've spent studying translate into being able to have a conversation with someone who isn't patiently waiting for me to remember the word for refrigerator.
I'm cautiously optimistic.
I also suspect my confidence will last approximately four minutes after landing.
But that's half the fun.
I'm excited to explore Japan, meet people, experience everyday life, and find out just how much I've learned. And probably discover a thousand things I haven't.
The best part of all this is that there's no real obligation behind it. I'm not learning Japanese for a promotion, a client, or some professional certification. I'm learning because I want to. And it's been a surprisingly wonderful reminder of how much fun it is to do something simply because it makes you happy.
So that's my little life update.
More than 200 hours of Japanese, a trip coming up in February, and a newfound appreciation for having absolutely no idea what I'm doing.
And since this entire post started because of an airline, I should probably mention that I'm flying Alaska Airlines to Japan.
Thanks, Alaska. I appreciate you getting me there without giving me a reason to write another angry blog post before I've even boarded.
