50-year career map

The healthy life expectancy, which indicates the period of time that Japanese people can live independently and healthily, was announced to be 73.62 years for women and 70.42 years for men (2010), and if we consider that the time when one's career path as a working adult becomes clear is generally around the age of 20, then we are given a professional lifespan of about 50 years. The true essence of the ideal career path that we as architectural engineers and designers aim for is to complete the professional lifespan we are given, and at each stage, we should utilize the characteristics that each individual possesses, develop and accumulate ideas and techniques one by one through projects, and continue to provide society and people with a safe, comfortable and rich living environment.

So what is the path to getting to that core? How can we complete the profession's 50-year lifespan at a high level, while making various changes, additions and amendments to meet the demands and changes of the times, society and the environment?

Nowadays, young people tend to avoid architecture-related jobs for the following reasons. Although Abenomics is expected to provide many employment opportunities in the architecture-related industry, the reality that the employment opportunities themselves or the options are limited stands in the way of young people who want to work in architecture. Even if they overcome these obstacles, get a job opportunity, and start working for a certain organization, the percentage of their career path progressing as they intended is low. The highly specialized knowledge and skills acquired at university or graduate school are not applicable as they are, and they are required to study and gain experience every day in order to acquire a wide range of knowledge and advanced skills through practical work. They have no time to immerse themselves in the essential design due to neighborhood correspondence, complicated government procedures, and adjustments to construction costs, and they face the reality that they will be in the line of fire as the person in charge if a complaint occurs. In the real world, organizations and human relationships, you may find yourself struggling with various frictions, and you may feel a vague sense of despair about the future as you are torn between what you personally want to value and requests for transfers or changes in job type due to the organization's wishes.

However, what is important to remember at any stage is that a 50-year professional lifespan is by no means short. It is perfectly acceptable to take detours, boldly challenge yourself with different challenges in different fields, and master them to the fullest, and it is important to recognize the fact that there is a possibility that you can make the height of your profession even more valuable. Steve Jobs, who took the world by storm, once said, "When you master things in multiple fields that at first glance seem to have no context or connection, and you are able to connect the dots of those things to bring new ideas to fruition, you have the potential to produce great value and identity."

For this very reason, by not forgetting the true essence of the ideal we are striving for, boldly challenging ourselves in related and different fields, and by welcoming challengers from related and different fields, we can further enrich the world of architecture, because architecture is the creation of a vessel that encompasses all human activity.

Cultivate the ability to face reality, issues, problems, and your own mistakes head on, continue to hone your curiosity to boldly take on new challenges, and continue to train your body to be healthy and your mind to be strong and flexible so you can continue to pursue your dreams. I believe this is the key to a fulfilling 50-year professional life.
We sincerely look forward to many young people joining and taking on new challenges in the architectural world!