12 years ago when I got a letter in the mail notifying me that I had passed the N1 certification for the JLPT, I had no idea that Nintendo was watching.

In the following month I would be approached by them through what was then Twitter by the marketing director to ask if I wanted to begin their interview process.

What I had learned in the months after being hired was that my journey with learning Japanese had only just begun — there was no way that N1 would be enough to handle Japanese in the real world.

What I’ve set out to do with Koshobai — the reason why you won’t regret subscribing to my weekly Substack newsletter — is to reveal how I went about taking my Japanese from N1 to N0 — and the long journey that I took during those 12 years beyond passing that (somewhat sub-par) exam.

You’ll read my rationale behind why the “extra credit” study was essential for my success, how going toe to toe with Japanese coworkers in their language lended itself to higher clout within Nintendo and beyond.

Plus, you’ll get my playbook on approaching communication in Japanese with the cultural context at the helm. In other words: how to play defense and still score on your relationship goals.