Day 9 of The Founder Letters — a 9-part series by Terumi Kai (甲斐輝美), founder of Japan Language Factory and creator of the Terumi Method. A bowl of curry at 3 AM in Tokyo. A stranger speaking Kyoto dialect. The meeting that built my whole life — and the Japanese phrase, ichi-go ichi-e, that explains
A 3 AM Curry Restaurant in Sasazuka, and the Meeting That Built My Life — Ichi-Go Ichi-E Read More »
Day 8 of The Founder Letters — a 9-part series by Terumi Kai (甲斐輝美), founder of Japan Language Factory and creator of the Terumi Method. Too busy. Too old. Bad at languages. After hundreds of conversations with students exactly like you, I want to look these three lies in the eye — and tell you the
The Three Lies You Tell Yourself About Why You Cannot Learn Japanese Read More »
Day 7 of The Founder Letters — a 9-part series by Terumi Kai (甲斐輝美), founder of Japan Language Factory and creator of the Terumi Method. AI now translates better than any human. So what is language learning for in this new era? After ten years and 5,000 graduates, my answer — and why the people who
In the Age of AI, What Is Language Actually For? Read More »
Day 6 of The Founder Letters — a 9-part series by Terumi Kai (甲斐輝美), founder of Japan Language Factory and creator of the Terumi Method. You can learn perfect Japanese and still fail in Japan. Three cultural truths — about enryo, Yes/No questions, and why you love Japan — that no textbook, app, or J
Day 5 of The Founder Letters — a 9-part series by Terumi Kai (甲斐輝美), founder of Japan Language Factory and creator of the Terumi Method. You learned to speak before you ever opened a book. So did every Japanese child. So why is the language industry teaching adults the exact opposite way? The origin
You Have Already Learned a Language Without a Textbook (And Why That Matters Now) Read More »
Day 4 of The Founder Letters — a 9-part series by Terumi Kai (甲斐輝美), founder of Japan Language Factory and creator of the Terumi Method. A CEO. A U.S. Air Force officer. A New York photographer. Three real people, three different lives, one shared choice — they stopped studying for tests and started
Three People Who Built a Real Life in Japanese — and How They Did It Read More »
Day 3 of The Founder Letters — a 9-part series by Terumi Kai (甲斐輝美), founder of Japan Language Factory and creator of the Terumi Method. 99 percent of the language learning industry is not actually trying to make you speak. After ten years inside this industry, I am telling you the truth — and the u
The Real Reason You Cannot Speak Japanese (And It Is Not Your Fault) Read More »
Day 2 of The Founder Letters — a 9-part series by Terumi Kai (甲斐輝美), founder of Japan Language Factory and creator of the Terumi Method. In 2014 I walked away from a successful cooking school in Tokyo, a published book, and a network most people only dream of. This is why — and it is the same reason
Why I Closed My Tokyo Business at 28 and Moved to Europe With Zero English Read More »
Day 1 of The Founder Letters — a 9-part series by Terumi Kai (甲斐輝美), founder of Japan Language Factory and creator of the Terumi Method. A letter from the founder of Japan Language Factory — and the question every smart person needs to answer in the age of AI: should you still bother learning to spe
In an Age of AI Translation, Should You Still Bother to Speak? Read More »
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