recruiting, in Japanese!!!

Today I went to the University of Tsukuba (see logo to the left) to recruit some testees for a sleep and habitat study. Armed with around 40 handouts, I zoomed in on the central campus area.

I approached people without hesitation, asking whether they could speak English or not...at first, I tried speaking in Japanese but asking them if they could speak English at times lowered their guard and made them kind of curious. (Not to mention, they could understand though I may look Japanese, I am in fact not!) The study offers participants 3000yen for only 1 1/2 hours of their time. It is a painless survey kind of research, no poking or prodding involved!

At first I worried it might be hard, but then I really got into it. Within about an hour, my handouts were gone and I was off on my way. Can you approach strangers without hesitation? Do you feel self-conscious among strangers? Hard for some to believe, but in fact I used to be as shy as a mouse back in junior high...over time, I changed. Next thing I knew, I was in high school being auctioned off as a 'slave for a day' to raise money for cancer charity! Then in my university days, I was 'sold' to the highest bidder in the "Date Auction" held to raise money for the Terry Fox Foundation.

Now thinking back...I think the breakthrough was a small part in my junior high school play. That was where I learnt how fun it was to entertain people and not worry about what others thought of me. Life is too short to be overly self-conscious. Recently I wore a 'Santa hat' to the supermarket and some cafes. It is fun! As they say, "dare to be different!"

Back to the topic...some student were so happy I approached them, telling me it was like they had won the lottery today. That made me glad. On the other hand, some students kind of smirked at the renumeration, thinking they were above it. Okay, you might not be interested, but you do not have to act all high and mighty about it! In Japan it is not uncommon for students to have rich mommies and daddies forking out 200% educational expenses.