4 AM. That is the time that I usually wake up every day. Except for the weekends. People always ask me “why do you wake up so early? “. To be honest, its enjoyable waking up at that time as it gives me the time necessary to go to the gym, read the news, and then make the commute to the office. My normal workday started at about 7 AM and finished around 7 P.M. this style of working was fine for me. It was effective, most if not all of my tasks were able to be completed for the day, and the weekends was the time to enjoy personal life. However, that all changed once this little one entered into the picture.

On September 10, 2021 my daughter Lily was born. I was about to start at Randstad and was eager to keep the same style of working that I had done in the past and bring the same work ethic with me. However, I began reexamine things, as fatherhood was a new reality. Wanting to be there for Lily was a top priority. Working long hours was not really an option when there is a little human in the picture. did find. In addition to wanting to be an active father, being supportive of my wife with her running her own bussiness and taking care of Lily was going to be a challenge
Going into a new role with a new born is a challenge. Exhausting is a good word for it. Getting very little sleep in the first few months. Maybe about 4 hours if not even less and then the next day getting up, if you have slept mind you and going to the office. Will take its toll. Thankfully, at Randstad I was able to learn a new and still effective style of working. I looked at my colleagues and seniors around the room and saw plenty of Mothers, Fathers, new parents, and some with 3+ kids being successful and still finding time for family.
I was relived and thankful that it was really easy to grab lunch or have a quick chat with people and asked them how they are able to balance both home life and their professional careers. Some of my colleagues even gave me life advice about which insurance compaines to take a look at, advice on taxes, and ways to help my family save money. The people at Randstad have always been willing to help more times than not. People will gladly take time out of the day to help you with family or your career. After taking some advice I was able to change my working style and still be effective while still being an active dad and supportive husband.

The flexibility of everyone at Randstad has been amazing. Recently my daughter was ill and I had to take a day off to go the hospital with her. When I called my manager to explain before I could even finish my sentence he told “Take as much time as you need, we got you covered”. This was shocking to my wife as she was working part time and could not get the day off. So, I had to step up and stay in hospital over the weekend. Considering my Japanese is not the best, and you have a screaming 10 month old crying while a doctor is speaking to you. It was a challenge to say the least.

In the end my daughter made a full recovery. Thanks to flexibility of people at Randstad and the supportive culture. I have been able to support my wife with her bussiness taking time out of my day to watch my daughter. I still wake up at 4 AM and I start my day at 7 usually. But now I will come home a little earlier or if I feel like I am not getting enough time with my daughter I will work from home.
I have been there for doctor’s appointments, diaper changes, first words, first crawls (hopefully walking soon) and a plethora of other moments that I would not trade for the world. While I still work hard and am still successful. The supportive culture and people at Randstad have been the biggest contributing factor to my success and to me being active with my family. Now on the weekends we get to have “daddy daughter days” which are great and a lot of fun.

KJ with Lily