The Japanese are famous as savers, and as of 2018, the amount of cash the average Japanese household has in the bank is a mind-blowing US$170,000…usually sitting in a bank account earning 0.02% interest, since they’re generally risk-averse and not big on investing. Since the Japanese are obviously doing something right to get so much money in the bank, let’s look at five ways to get more money, according to fun Japanese superstitions!
The Japanese word for money is お金 o-kane, the first syllable being the honorific prefix that’s added to all words deemed worthy of showing special respect. The Japanese take money seriously, and have many concrete tools to help build good money habits in their children. For example, there’s the system of New Year’s gift money all children receive from relatives on January 1st, which their parents put into a savings account in their names, allowing most kids to accumulate several thousands of dollars in the bank by the time they become adults. This is a big improvement over the way we do things in the U.S., where new adults start out with zero awareness of money, and learn mostly by making costly mistakes.
Of course, Japan can be a very superstitious place, and naturally there are a lot of beliefs that are designed 金運 kin’un or one’s good luck as related to money and wealth. Let’s look at some, and try to understand if they can really help you get more Fukuzawa Yukichis Benjamins in your bank account!
Carry a Yellow Wallet
Being Asian, Mrs. J-List is very fond of gold, and always carries a yellow wallet so she can call as much money into her wallet as possible. This is part of feng-shui, the complex belief system that you can affect your personal good luck based on the color and placement of objects in your home.
Another tip: make sure to put your bills in your wallet bottom-down, so that the heads are facing upwards. If you store your bills the reverse way, with the bottoms facing up, money will “fall out” of your wallet too easily (i.e., you’ll find yourself spending too much money).
Turn 10,000 Yen into $1 Million just by Folding It!
Inside my cell phone case I carry a ¥10,000 bill, which is useful if I find myself without enough money while drinking in Tokyo. Seeing this, my wife folded my money as shown above, so that ¥10,000 instantly becomes ¥100,000,000, worth $1 million. This becomes a talisman that might help my future self get more money!
Get More Money With the Power of Akihiro Miwa!
A popular urban legend in Japan is that if you use a picture of flamboyant singer, actor and writer Akihiro Miwa as your cellphone wallpaper, your personal wealth will increase. Miwa provided the voices for the wolf Moro in Princess Mononoke and the Witch of the Waste in Howl’s Moving Castle. One of Japan’s most interesting early LGBT voices, he’s also a survivor of the Nagasaki atomic bombing.
Visit a “Power Spot”
The Japanese love to propagate urban legends about “power spots” where strange natural forces converge. One such place to Hijiri Shrine, located in Chichibu, Saitama Prefecture (the setting for Anohana). Founded in 708, the shrine is one of the oldest in the Kanto area, and has become associated with increasing people’s good luck relating to money over the centuries.
Use the Power of…Poop?
One of the most famous buildings in Tokyo is Asahi Beer Hall, the headquarters of the Asahi Beer company, which has a giant golden poop on its roof, although the company insists the objet d’art represents the head on top of a cold beer. Why do the Japanese love to associate poop with good luck? I believe it’s because the word for poop (unchi) is similar to the word for good luck (unki).
J-List stocks many related good luck charms (poop and non-poop related) on the site. See them here!
Do Any Of These Methods Actually Help You Get More Money?
While we might smirk at some of the money-related superstitions the Japanese seem to believe, I actually believe many of them could really work. Not because of “power spots” or the magic of feng-shui directing the chi energy through your body, but because taking any positive step in your life is bound to cause you to change your awareness about anything, weather it’s related to money, health, personal success, or whatever.
As an entrepreneur, I’m naturally an optimist about the future, and I think the right mindset can really make magic happen in your life. Being positive, and more importantly being near positive people so you’re influenced in good ways, is a great way to approach your life. And maybe doing something like folding your money a certain way or buying a certain kind of wallet can start that positive energy flowing for you.
Thanks for reading this post about how you can get more money through Japanese superstitions. Got any other topics you’d like us to write about? Tell us below, or on Twitter!
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