JPN-Journal.com - News and Legal Source for Foreigners Working in Japan

	JPN-Journal.com News/Laws for Foreigners Working in Japan.

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** Japan News **

Foreign teachers to be full-timers | Asahi Shimbun - AKITA--Foreign nationals will be hired as full-time instructors at Akita Prefecture elementary schools starting next April, when English lessons become part of the official curriculum, its education board said. Full coverage

Peace at last for Korean community | Asahi Shimbun - UJI, Kyoto Prefecture--Spring has arrived in Kyoto, and with it is a renewed sense of optimism among the roughly 200 residents of the Utoro Korean community here. Full coverage

Mainichi poll finds most Japanese want tougher stance on China | Mainichi Daily News - The majority of the general public in Japan wants the government to take a tougher stance toward China, a Mainichi Shimbun poll suggests. Full coverage

Number of children continues to decline | Kyodo - The number of children aged 14 or younger in Japan was estimated at 17.25 million as of April 1, marking a record low for the 27th straight year, the government said Sunday. Full coverage

Japan lags European peers on female empowerment | The Japan Times - The latest EU-Japan summit wrapped up on April 23, with Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda holding talks with European Council President Janez Jansa (the Slovenian prime minister) and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso. Full coverage

Visa rules may be eased for foreigners who speak Japanese | Yomiuri Shimbun - The Foreign Ministry and Justice Ministry plan to give preferential treatment in visa applications and extensions to applicants with a good command of the Japanese language, Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura said Thursday. Full coverage

Bill ties visa to language skills | Japan Times - Looking to encourage Japanese language learning among foreigners, the government is set to submit a bill to the Diet next year designed to make it easier for those who demonstrate a certain level of language proficiency to get visas of up to five years, a government study group said Thursday in an interim report. Full coverage

Japanese-speaking foreigners to receive favorable treatment for visas | Asahi Shimbun - The Foreign Ministry plans to give favorable treatment in visa applications and extensions to foreign nationals with a good command of the Japanese language. Full coverage

Japan May Issue Longer Visa for Foreigners With Language Skill | Bloomberg - Japan plans to increase the length of stay for long-term visa holders who have Japanese-language ability, Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura said today. Full coverage

Wage talks stall at small firms / Worsening economy hits union demands for profit-linked pay rises | Yomiuri Shimbun - Many labor unions that represent workers at small and midsize companies are still conducting wage negotiations with management, even though major firms have finalized such negotiations and agreed to pay raises similar to those granted in last year's shunto spring labor offensive. Full coverage

Part-timers to see automatic deductions for pensions | Asahi Shimbun - In an attempt to slash the ratio of nonpayers in the national pension program, the health ministry plans to require companies to automatically deduct premiums from the wages of part-time workers, sources said. Full coverage

Question marks over future of U.S.-Japan alliance | Yomiuri Shimbun - Japan is sending warning signals about the state of the U.S.-Japan alliance, but it is questionable whether the Americans get the message. Japanese nervousness about the next U.S. presidency, the direction of the six-party talks on North Korea, and Washington's long-term strategy toward China are easily dismissed as the obsessive sensitivities of the United States' junior ally across the Pacific. Full coverage

Swiss woman acquitted again after 8 months in detention | Asahi Shimbun - A Swiss woman on Wednesday was again found not guilty of drug smuggling, but she had to remain in detention for nearly eight months after being acquitted the first time. Full coverage

Overtime complaint hits 'gyudon' chain | Asahi Shimbun - Three part-time workers of leading gyudon beef bowl chain Sukiya filed a criminal complaint with the Sendai Labor Standards Inspection Office here against the operator of the chain Tuesday, claiming the company unlawfully refused to pay proper overtime. Full coverage

Seven & I to close 130 Denny's restaurants in Japan | Reuters - Seven & I Holdings Co , Japan's largest retailing group, plans to close about 130 of the roughly 570 family restaurants run by unit Denny's Japan, the Nikkei business daily reported on Thursday. Full coverage

New program to boost women in workplace | Kyodo - The government adopted a program Tuesday intended to accelerate women's social advancement, including urging business leaders to fill more managerial posts with females. Full coverage

Despite doubts, starting day set for lay judge law | Asahi Shimbun - The Justice Ministry has decided to introduce the citizen judge system on May 21 next year, despite lingering confusion among lawyers and apathy among the public toward the judicial reform. Full coverage

Osaka English teachers may be cut by Hashimoto | Japan Times - Nearly three dozen native English teachers called Monday on Osaka Gov. Toru Hashimoto not to cancel an education program that places native speakers of English in the prefecture's schools and expressed concern that the teachers have only been offered four-month contracts. Full coverage

Cover Story: Melting pots | Asahi Shimbun - Foreigners in masks carrying sharp poles and long sticks may not be a welcome sight at Japan's airports. But they are increasingly receiving cordial greetings at ski hills around the nation. Full coverage

Japan to step up support for Asian countries to improve legal systems | Kyodo - Japan plans to step up efforts to help other Asian countries improve their legal systems in intellectual property protection and other economic areas, setting up a panel of senior officials of Japanese ministries to deal with the issue, government officials said Wednesday. Full coverage

Japan tourism at record high | Reuters - A record number of foreigners visited Japan last year as the weak yen lured more Chinese shoppers, French gourmets, and fans of Japanese pop culture, though the country still ranks low among holiday destinations. Full coverage

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What some have to say about Japan

>Insurance may cover Lehman losses to fraud
Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. is unlikely to incur losses in an alleged investment fraud it had been solicited in via the bogus use of the name Marubeni Corp., because the U.S. bank was insured for investment risks, sources said Saturday.

>Subprime losses lower Mizuho profit forecast
Mizuho Financial Group Inc. on Friday revised downward its forecast for business 2007 to ¥310 billion in group net profit from its initial ¥480 billion due to losses stemming from the U.S. subprime loan crisis. It was the third downward revision for the business year.

>Japan without the sugar
"There ain't no samurai, there are few geisha, Japanese are not the most polite people in the world. In practice, there is no special love nor care for nature, nor are they uniquely unique. Sorry, but the sugar-coated Japan of Edwin O. Reischauer does not now, and never has existed."

>Observing Japan
Observations of Japanese and international politics by a (newly) former aide to a member of the Japanese Diet.

>One Life Japan
Partners-in-life Kevin and Tomoe have been bike-touring Japan together since 2001, with a passion for finding ways to live a healthy, fulfilling, fun, learningful, and sustainable lifestyle with a close connection to community, and the environment. Their story, about real-life experiences of the natural, cultural, and historical beauty - not to mention incredible hospitality - that Japan has to offer, is told from a seat of a 18 km/hr bycicle.

>thE qUirKY jaPan HomEPage
Are you tired of shrines and temples, reconstructed ferro-concrete castles and tea ceremonies? Do you like to get off the beaten track? Would you like to meet Japanese people who do not meet the conformist stereotype? Japan, behind the conservative grey suits and formal bows, is a country quirkier than you can ever imagine.

>What Japan Thinks
From kimono to keitai; research Japanese facts and figures through translated opinion polls and surveys.

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Non-Japanese Nationals in Japan

Non-Japanese nationals in Japan are frequently referred to as "gai-jin," short for "gaikoku-jin" composed of "gaikoku" (foreign country) and "jin" (person). The word has often been the subject of debate as to its appropriateness, particularly in its shortened form.

In 2005, a United Nations report expressed concerns about the racism in Japan due to the government's lack of recognition and attention to the depth of the problem. The report, based on a nine-day investigation of several Japanese cities and meeting with minorities groups and tourism slums, concluded that racial discrimination and xenophobia in Japan primarily affects three groups: national minorities, descendants of former Japanese colonies and foreigners from other Asian countries.

In recent years as the term gai-jin has become somewhat politically incorrect, it has become common to refer to non-East Asians non-Japanese nationals as gaikoku-jin while more culturally similar Chinese are referred to as "Chugoku-jin" (Chinese person), Koreans as "Kankoku-jin" (South Korean person), Taiwanese as "Taiwan-jin" (Taiwan person), and North Koreans as "Chosen-jin" (North Korean person).

Major cities of Japan and their approx populations
City	Population	Foreign Nationals
Tokyo	12,059,000	212,975
Yokohama	3,426,000	99,251
Osaka	2,598,000	170,877
Nagoya	2,171,000	110,298
Sapporo	1,822,000	12,446
Kobe	1,493,000	82,861
Fukuoka	1,290,000	30,702
Sendai	1,008,000	10,401

Of the island nation's approximately 126 million population, only about 1.5% are foreign nationals. According to 2007 data from the Japanese government, the 4 largest foreign minority groups residing in Japan are the Koreans, Chinese, Brazilians and Filipinos. There are also a number of smaller ethnic communities in Japan with a much shorter history.

Major Foreign Ethnic Groups in Japan
Nationality	Number	Percentage
North and South Korea	598,219	28.7%
China and Taiwan	560,741	26.9%
Brazil	312,979	15.0%
Phillippines	193,488	9.3%

The above statistic does not include about 50,000 U.S. soldiers stationed in Japan and illegal immigrants.

Koreans

Many Koreans residing in Japan are permanent residents of Japan, but with North or South Korean citizenship. Many were victim of the Japanese occupation of Korea from 1910 to 1945, when Korean landowners and workers lost their land and livelihood to Japanese land and production confiscation initiatives.

Those who continued to work the land suffered harsh conditions and saw their harvest shipped to Japan. This created large scale of internal displacement and many Koreans migrated to Japan for work.

A total of 5.4 million Koreans were also forced into labor, and shipped throughout the Japanese Empire. Large numbers of Korean immigrants also came to the country during the Jeju massacre in the First Republic of South Korea. Though most migrants returned to Korea, roughly 650,000 Koreans are estimates to have remained in Japan.

Japanese law does not allow dual citizenship, and until the 1980s required adoption of Japanese name for citizenship. Partially for this reason, many Koreans did not obtain Japanese citizenship as they viewed the process to be humiliating. Although more Koreans are becoming Japanese citizens, issues of identity remain complicated.

Even those who do not choose to become Japanese citizens often use Japanese names to avoid discrimination and live their lives as if they were Japanese.

Chinese

Taiwanese and Mainland Chinese are the 2nd largest minority in Japan after Koreans. Mainland Chinese, in particular, have been targets of anti-immigrant sentiment in Japan, mainly due to the perception of Chinese involvement and tendency to commit crimes, strained relations between the two nations, fear of a large and unfriendly nation on the doorstep and differences in cultural and social practices and attitudes.

According to a recent survey, Japanese showed a very "unfriendly attitude" toward Chinese people (followed by Koreans), and the image of Chinese people was of mistrust and general lack of credibility.

To many peoples' regret, the Chinese community, together with the Korean, is amongst the most prominent targets of racism in Japan.

Brazilians

A Japanese Brazilian is a Brazilian citizen of Japanese ethnic origin, or a Japanese immigrant living in Brazil. Brazil is the Latin American country that has received the most ethnic Japanese immigrants, as well having the largest Japanese population outside of Japan, numbering an estimate of more than 1.5 million (including those of mixed-race or mixed-ethnicity), considerably bigger than that of the 1.2 million in the United States.

In 1908, a group of 791 people, mostly farmers, set out as the first Japanese immigrants to Brazil. They boarded on the Kasato Maru from the Japanese port of Kobe to Brazil in search of better living conditions.

Many of them became laborers on coffee farms. At the time, Brazil was experiencing a shortage of farm workers and turned to European immigrants and then to an influx of Japanese workers to satisfy this demand. Some Japanese in the country married Brazilians, a pattern that still continues.

During World War II, Brazil severed relations with Japan. Japanese newspapers and teaching in schools were banned, leaving Portuguese as the only option for Japanese descendants. When the conflict was over, many Japanese refugees decided to settle in Brazil, thus creating a large Japanese community. Second or higher generation Brazilians are often monolingual in Portuguese, usually taking English classes in school. Some Japanese schools provide education in Japanese and Portuguese.

During the 1980s, the Japanese economic situation improved and achieved stability. Many Japanese Brazilians (including some of mixed descent) went to Japan as contract workers due to economic and political problems in Brazil. In 1990, special working visas began to be offered to Brazilians of Japanese descendants, encouraging more Japanese immigration from Brazil.

The influx of Japanese descendants from Brazil to Japan was and continues to be large: There are over 275,000 Japanese Brazilians living in Japan today. They also constitute the largest number of Portuguese speakers in Asia, greater than those of formerly Portuguese East Timor, Macau, and Goa combined.

Filipinos

Filipinos in Japan formed a population of 193,488 individuals as of 2007. According to figures published by the Central Bank of the Philippines, overseas Filipino workers in Japan remitted more than US$1 billion between 1990 and 1999; one newspaper described the contributions of overseas workers as a "major source of life support for the Philippines' ailing economy."

Though most Filipinos in Japan are short-term residents, the history of their community extends back further; During the Japanese occupation of the Philippines, some Filipino students studied in Japanese universities.

Other Groups

Foreigners in Japan, particularly those from Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand, are often called gaikoku-jin or gai-jin. The first noticeable influx of foreigners occurred in the 1980s, when the Japanese government adopted a policy to give scholarships to large numbers of foreign students to study at Japanese universities.

In addition, as the Japanese economy grew quickly in the 1980s, a sizeable number of Westerners began coming to Japan. Many found jobs as English conversation teachers, but others were employed in various professional fields such as finance and business.

Although some have become permanent residents or even naturalized citizens, they are generally perceived as short-term visitors and treated as outsiders to Japanese society.

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Japan Business News

Japan Wholesale Prices Rise on Higher Commodity Costs | Bloomberg - Japan's wholesale prices rose at close to the fastest pace in almost three decades in April, prompting companies to pass higher costs onto clients or absorb them by sacrificing profits.

Japan Inc. profit to fall for first time in 7 years: poll | AFP - Japanese companies' profits are expected to fall for the first time in seven years in the current year through March, hit by a US slowdown, a stronger yen and a spike in raw material costs, a survey said on Tuesday.

Asian Ministers to Seek Ways to Fight Inflation, Cooling Growth | Bloomberg- Rising food and commodity prices that are stoking inflation will probably dominate a meeting of the Asian Development Bank as the region's finance ministers seek ways to shield their economies from higher costs.

Japan's GDP grows annualized 2.8% in Jan.-March: think tanks | AP - Japan's economy is estimated to have grown an annualized real 2.8 percent in the three months through March, compared with 3.5 percent growth in the previous quarter, according to an average of estimates by eight major private-sector economic research institutes released through Thursday.

Four firms from Japan make list of top 25 innovators | Kyodo - Toyota Motor Corp., Sony Corp., Honda Motor Co. and Nintendo Co. are among the world's 25 most innovative companies, according to the annual special report issued by BusinessWeek magazine.

Risk factors swayed BOJ to freeze rate | Japan Times - The Bank of Japan maintained its key rate in March due to a shared view that economies at home and abroad were facing increasing risk factors, according to the minutes of its March 6-7 monetary policy meeting released Monday.

Japan Inc. is on a stock buyback spree | Japan Times - The good news about Japanese stocks is that corporations are buying back more of their shares than ever before. The bad news is everyone outside of Japan is selling the same equity, spurring concern that the market's world-beating rally may fizzle.

The Short View: Japanese inflation | FT.com - Japanese inflation is back, with consumer inflation now more than 1 per cent for the first time this decade. That should be a cause for rejoicing. Since 1990, the Japanese economy has, after all, been bedevilled by deflation, a symptom of the lack of economic activity.

Shirakawa humbled at taking BOJ helm | Japan Times - Voted in as expected Wednesday by the Diet as the 30th Bank of Japan governor, Masaaki Shirakawa was quick to take a middle-of-the-road stance and note that instead of being a professor of monetary policy he is now in the position of setting it.

IMF urges Japan to loosen its credit grip | Kyodo - The International Monetary Fund urged Japan Wednesday to maintain its growth-oriented monetary stance and consider easing its credit grip further because the global economy is at risk of a recession.

Japan expected to keep key interest rate at 0.5% | Market Watch - The Bank of Japan's policy board is expected to hold interest rates unchanged at a meeting this week that may coincide with resolution of a months-long political impasse over a new leader for the central bank.

Dollar rises versus Japanese yen on stabilized global stocks markets | International Business Times - The greenback rose against the Japanese yen from 101.30 to 102.85 on Monday due to stabilizing financial markets together with reports of Japanese pension funds buying overseas assets as they start their new financial year, Investors raised optimism that the worst of the financial crisis might be over.

Japan Stocks Fall, Led by Chipmakers on Lower Demand Outlook | Bloomberg - Japan's stocks declined, led by chip- related companies, after an industry report indicated demand for computer memory is slowing.

Japan nominates new central bank leader | AP - The Japanese government nominated a former Bank of Japan executive director on Monday as its third candidate to fill a leadership vacuum at the head of the nation's central bank.

Japan lagging behind EU in setting de facto global business standards | Japan Times - Japanese firms should recognize and respond to the European Union's growing power as a de facto setter of global business standards, because failure to do so would seriously affect the future of their overseas business, experts told a recent seminar in Tokyo.

Economic dependency makes Japan a silent ally of China | Japan Times - On March 5, Cui Tiankai, China's ambassador to Japan, was invited to speak to members of the Japan Association of Corporate Executives (Keizai Doyukai) for the first time in the organization's history.

Major banks facing Y1.5 trillion profit drop due to subprime losses | Japan Today - Combined net profit at Japan’s six major banks is estimated to have dropped more than 40% for the year to March 2008, weighed down by losses related to U.S. subprime mortgages, a daily said Saturday.

Japan's major banks to suffer sharp profit fall: report | AFP - Combined net profit at Japan's six major banks is estimated to have dropped more than 40 percent for the year to March 2008, weighed down by losses related to US subprime mortgages, a daily said Saturday.

Asian currencies lower against dollar | The Economic Times - Asian currencies ended the week mostly lower against the dollar but dealers said worse-than-expected US jobs data could cap the greenback's upswing.

Shirakawa, Interim BOJ Chief, May Cut Interest Rates | Bloomberg - Masaaki Shirakawa will be able to lead the Bank of Japan during the global financial crisis even though he's an acting chief named only because two earlier nominations collapsed, economists said.

Yen May Extend Gain as Commodities Drop Fuels Carry-Trade Exit | Bloomberg - The yen and Swiss franc may extend gains against major currencies as declines in gold and oil feed speculation investors are exiting purchases of commodities that were financed with cheap loans from Japan and Switzerland.

Nippon Oil to grab 7th-ranked firm | Asahi Shimbun - Nippon Oil Corp., the nation's largest oil refiner, will acquire seventh-ranked Kyushu Oil Co. on Oct. 1, heralding a likely shakeup in the industry, the two companies said Tuesday.
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Happening in Office

Secret Wishes of Working Women | Twenty years ago, Japanese girls were told that marriage should be at the very bottom on their to-do-list after college. Many mothers of little girls believed, perhaps from a feeling of missing out on life by marrying too soon, that the first and foremost concern should be work and a career, as girls were placed in highly competitive college entrance preparation programs ("juku" or "yobiko") to attend well-famed colleges which increased their chances of being recruited into prestigious companies.

In love with a Coworker | Do you have a secret crush on your co-worker? According to a recent survey by SnagAJob, the majority of office workers have some kind of crush on a co-worker.

Office Love | At some point in time, most employers have to deal with employees who date, fall in love, and probably break up, if not marry.
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Work Life Balance

Are you too tired to talk after work? | If you answered yes, you're not alone. According to a December 2006 Harvard Business Review study, about 45% of high-earning managers are too tired to say anything at all to their spouse or partner after a long workday.
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Opinions

Can Japanese Workers Finally Expect Fatter Paychecks? | TOKYO -- Japan's companies were on a massive cost-cutting campaign during the past decade to cope with the country's long economic downturn. Even as the economy grew these past five years, the companies held down wage bills by skimping on bonus payments and hiring temporary workers for lower pay and fewer benefits.

Welcome, Workers from Abroad | As low birth rate, high suicide rate, and aging society continue to reduce Japan's working population, potential of future labor shortages is becoming more and more realistic.

Weather Forecast | Weather Maps | Weather Radar
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Cultural Changes

Majority of Tokyo taxis ban smoking | Mainichi Daily News - Over 90 percent of Tokyo taxis banned smoking as of Monday, with taxis in Saitama and Fukui prefectures also launching a similar drive.
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Work in Japan

Foreign nationals wishing to engage in paid activities in Japan must first obtain a visa allowing them to work in Japan. It is illegal to engage in any paid activities on a tourist visa.

Having a job offer in Japan is often a prerequisite for successfully applying for most types of working visas. Visit our Visas page for more information on visa.

Public Employment Security Offices provide services such as job counseling, placement services, and offer information about available job openings in Japan to foreign nationals having residential statuses allowing them to work in Japan.

600 Public Employment Security Offices are located throughout major municipalities in Japan, all connected by an on-line system allowing job hunters to access information about job openings in any Public Employment Security Offices around Japan.

Language assistance, though limited, are provided at some offices such as Tokyo and Osaka where interpreters are stationed by the Employment Service Corner for Foreigners within the office.

When looking for a job in Japan, it is important to use full caution not to fall prey to illegal employment brokers. Dispatching workers to enterprises or providing placement service without authorization is illegal in Japan.

To prevent from being an unfortunate target of illegal employment brokers, take advantage of the Public Employment Security Offices (Hello Work Offices).

Also available are a few dozen private employment agencies dedicated to serving foreigners in Japan:

Job site for Bilingual professionals and International-minded individuals.

Information on bilingual employment in Japan for bilingual Japanese and English speakers, plus an invaluable resource for foreigners Living and Working in Japan.

Exclusively for people who want to work in Japan. Job seekers can also register from outside Japan.

Going Global includes world-wide job openings, internship listing, industry profiles and country-specific career and employment information.

Whether you're searching for your dream job or looking to recruit the ideal person for your business, then we can help. At Michael Page we've been bringing job seekers and employers together for more than 30 years.

Recruitment agency with 19 years of trust in Japan. A network linking seven domestic branch offices and six countries worldwide.

The programme offers university graduates the opportunity to serve in local government organizations as well as public and private primary, junior high and senior high schools.

Many foreign students choose to do part-time work to help pay their tuition or living expenses. In fact, seven out of ten foreign students are engaged in some type of part-time work in Japan.

New overseas jobs listings arriving daily - Our listings are updated 24/7/365 - Overseas jobs available in nations around the world.

Short to medium term language and cultural exchange programs for tertiary and secondary educational institutions throughout Asia, predominantly Japan and Hong Kong.

Job Seek Japan's full-featured job site is the Web's most-visited free source of Japan-based employment information.

HOTJOBSJAPAN is a staffing agency in Japan, placing foreign workers in Japanese companies. Currently we are seeking candidates for the positions of language teachers, translators, and IT engineers.

KOPRA strives for improving mutual understanding between Europe and the region of East Asia through international internship exchange.
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Special Review

Japan to accept 1,000 nurses, care workers from Indonesia: report | Japan will accept 1,000 nurses and health care workers from Indonesia from as early as next year under a free trade pact to help ease the country's shortage of such staff, a report said Saturday.

Nova: Road to Destruction | In the autumn of 2004, executives of Nova Corp., Japan's largest English-language school chain, gathered at the company's general headquarters in a high-rise building near JR Namba Station, to hear Nova's cofounder and president, Nozomu Sahashi's strategy for overcoming the problems the company faced.

Insular Japan Needs, but Resists, Immigration | With their tidy suburban home here, a late-model Toyota in the driveway and two school-age children whose Japanese is indistinguishable from any native's, Akio Nakashima and his wife, Yoshie, are the perfect immigrants.
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Education

The New Battle for M.B.A. Grads | The heat is on for corporate recruiters. With demand growing for M.B.A. graduates, it is a seller's market out there, making it tough for many companies to meet hiring quotas using old tried-and-true recruiting methods.

Recruiters' Top Schools | It's an eclectic mix atop this year's Wall Street Journal/Harris Interactive rankings of M.B.A. programs: an Ivy League college in New England that created America's first graduate business school, a Mormon university in Utah whose mission is to develop "men and women of faith" into outstanding leaders, and a Spanish school that was established by a group of Jesuits and local businessmen.

Asian M.B.A. Programs Still Lag With Recruiters | Business schools in Asia continue to have a hard time competing against their international counterparts in The Wall Street Journal/Harris Interactive survey of recruiters. Again this year, no Asian M.B.A. program made it onto the international winners' list.
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Japan News in English

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Work Tips

Office Culture and You | It may be easy to rip off a list on what you don't want in an office culture, but in evaluating your next step, "you have to be specific and realistic about what aspects of your personality lend themselves to a work environment," said Christine Hassler, author of "Twenty-Something, Twenty-Everything: A Quarter-Life Women's Guide to Balance and Direction."

Hook ups: Not for the office | If you are serious about your career, dating in the office can be a form of high-stake gambling in which more than your heart is at risk.

Don't Over-Network | When it comes to advancing one's career, it seems that there's constant cultural pressure to amass more people as friends, colleagues and potential job leads. However, this defeats the purpose of networking to begin with.

"Um..., what was the question...?" | "Being confident in who you are and what you're capable of is the first step to a successful job interview. People who become too concerned with performing often don't." says Annemarie Segaric, career consultant and author of the e-book, "107 Tips For Changing Your Career While Still Paying The Bills."

Look Before You Jump Leap | If you wake up every morning dreading work, it's understandable if you're thinking it's time for a career change. But before you make that leap, there are a number of things you'll want to consider to ensure you're ready.

Beating Depression | Being social is never a bad thing. It can bolster your career as well and makes for a pleasant lifestyle. However, when you're feeling depressed, or have fallen on hard times, being around people is far from first nature.

Fit to Work | NEW YORK -- According to a recent survey by The Principal Financial Group, spending more on employee fitness programs may lower turnover and increase productivity for small businesses.

Manage your Time and Seize your Success | Good time management is a characteristic shared among all successful people. And this skill can be acquired with a little discipline.