Leaving Corporate Life: Redefining How I Live in Tokyo | Invityz

I left my job and started a new chapter

After over a decade working in Japanese corporate world, I made a decision to walk away and start over.

My career began in consulting industry — intense, challenging, and eye-opening. I sometimes remember the words spoken at my high school graduation in the west side of Japan:

“Once you enter society, life will be full of suffering.”

Delivered by an elderly teacher with alarming seriousness, the line made us laugh uncontrollably at the time. But as the years passed, it slowly began to echo in my life.

Balancing work, family, and personal goals became like a game of Tetris. My “Wish List” — the things I truly wanted to do — kept being postponed. Eventually, they vanished from view altogether.

I was fortunate to work with brilliant and kind colleagues, and gained strength and skills I wouldn’t trade for anything.

But deep inside, something felt wrong. I realized I wasn’t facing the things that truly mattered to me. And the cost of that — emotionally, physically, and in my relationship with my child — became impossible to ignore.

One ordinary morning, without any dramatic event, the words just slipped out:

“I’m quitting.”

It wasn’t a grand declaration. It was a quiet commitment to redefine my way of living.

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What truly matters to me

Getting to that decision was messy. I wrestled with guilt, uncertainty, and fear — about my career, my family, and my future.

So I did something I hadn’t done in years:

I grabbed a notebook and started writing and writing.

“What kind of life do I want to live?”

“What makes me feel happy, alive?”

It took time, but it’s worth it. In those handwritten pages, I rediscovered a truth that had always been part of me:

“I want to be the one steering my own life.”

And the word that kept coming back to me was:

“space.”

Space to breathe. Space to think. Space to cherish.

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Night train out of Tokyo

Right after my final day at work, I boarded a night train from Tokyo Station. I was exhausted—mentally, physically—and desperate to get away as soon as possible. My child had been begging me to take this ticket for months, his daily “Did you book it yet?” echoing like a countdown.

The glaring white lights of the Tokyo skyline followed me to the platform, a sharp contrast to the tiny private cabin I squeezed myself into.

As the train began to move, its rhythm soothed something frayed inside me. I don’t remember much after that—I was asleep before I knew it.

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Finding my own way and beyond

We often say there are many ways to live. But in reality, the choices often feel like preset menus—standard job descriptions, standard resumes, and a narrow set of “acceptable” paths to self-fulfillment. we’re told we can choose, but the options are strangely uniform.

And yet, each person’s life is shaped by unique experiences, unseen influences, and quiet turning points that can’t be captured in a template.

There may not be a ready-made roadmap. But looking back, the path I’ve taken becomes my own kind of guide. Looking forward, I hope that by sharing this story, I can help others create and walk their own.

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I’m starting a new creative journey — combining photography, storytelling, and cross-border perspectives from Japan. Check out my about page here.

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Thank you so much for reading!

If this post sparked something in you or made you pause and think, I’d love to hear from you.

Feel free to leave a like or share your thoughts in the comments — it really means a lot.

Until next time,

Ahiru