Behind the scenes of a 45-year-old securities man's decision to quit his job and "turn to the CG world"

Farewell to 23 years of salaryman life

There is probably no person in this world who has worked as a salaryman and never thought about quitting the company.

Human relationships with bosses and colleagues aren't going well, work isn't fun, you're too busy to spend time with your family and lovers, your salary is too low, and you can't advance your career.

I wonder if this is the reason why office workers want to quit their company.

At the beginning of 2008, I was 45 years old after 23 years as an office worker, and I was wondering whether I should quit the company. At that time, my title was Nikko Cordial Securities (currently SMBC Nikko Securities) New York Representative Office Manager. The office was located in Times Square, a symbol of global prosperity.

This may sound like the extravagant complaints of a man in a privileged environment. However, my heart for working at a company was as cold as the outside air in New York, which was -10 degrees Celsius.

Commuting to work in New York, especially in the dead of winter, is not exciting. I'm already exhausted by the time I get to the office, but that's where the real fatigue starts.

The office was just opened three years ago, and I am the first director. It's still a young office, so we have to explore new businesses through trial and error. Although the job itself was rewarding, there was no way that I, who had been working at an IT subsidiary on the West Coast before becoming the head of the company, and my subordinates, who came to the United States triumphantly following the elite course at the head office, would be at odds with each other. From the first day I was appointed as the director, human relations at the workplace were strained.

Unlike the open West Coast, the working style at the New York office was "the Japanese company." Even after the regular hours, I stayed in the office until late because I had to contact Japan.