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Why don't Japanese people say "I love you"? (4)

Today I would like to write an article on the topic of how Japanese people communicate their dissatisfaction to others.
今日は日本人は不満を相手にどう伝えるのか、というテーマで記事を書きたいと思います。

Today's article is a continuation of the previous article, "Why don't Japanese people say I love you?
This is the third article in the series.
If you haven't read it yet, please read it from the beginning.
今日の記事は先日の「日本人はなぜ愛してると言わないのか」というテーマの続きです。今回はシリーズ4回目の記事です。
まだ読んでいない方は、初めから読んでみてください。


I think Japanese people are very empathetic due to their cultural background and education. However, on the other hand, I think many of us are not good at communicating small complaints.
日本人は文化的背景や教育により、共感力がとても高いと思います。しかし、逆に小さな不満を伝える事は苦手な人が多いのではないでしょうか。

Do I complain to the restaurant?
お店に苦情を言うか
Let's say I have just eaten at my first restaurant and the atmosphere is bad, the staff is not very nice, the food is bad and the bill is very expensive.
I would not complain to the restaurant,  and I don't show any sign of dissatisfaction. I pay the bill as usual and leave the restaurant.
But I will never go back to that restaurant again.
例えば、私が初めてのレストランで食事をした時に、店の雰囲気が悪く、スタッフも感じが悪い、おまけに料理は不味く、会計はとても高かったとしましょう。
私はこのお店に苦情は言いません。不満な顔も素振りも見せません。普通にお金を払いお店を出ます。
でも、2度とその店には行きません。

The reason why I don't complain to stores is because the act of communicating my dissatisfaction to them requires energy. I feel that it is a waste of time and effort.
However, I might go to a nice café afterwards to freshen up, or talk to a friend about my unpleasant experience.
なぜ、お店に苦情を言わないかというと、相手に不満を伝える行為にはエネルギーが必要だからです。そこに使う時間と労力が無駄だと思ってしまいます。
ただ、気分直しにその後、美味しいカフェに行ったり、友達に不快だった思いを話すかもしれません。

Assertions are not taught in Japanese education.
日本の教育ではアサーションは教えられていない
In the case of stores and products, the problem can be solved by simply leaving yourself. However, that is not the case when a problem arises with someone with whom you have a close relationship.
お店や商品の場合は、自分が離れるだけで、問題は解決します。しかし、近い関係の人との間で問題が起こった時は、そういう訳にはいきません。

In Japanese education, emphasis is placed on cooperation, not bothering others, and being kind to others. However, assertions are not incorporated into education, and I think their recognition is low.
日本の教育では、協調性、人に迷惑をかけない事、人に親切にする事を重視されています。しかし、アサーションは教育に取り入れられておらず、認知度も低いように思います。

I didn't know how to tell her.
伝え方が分からなかった
In fact, I had something like that happen to me once. The person I was dealing with was in a very close relationship and she was aware that she was doing good things for me, but not for me. The more times it happened, the more it stressed me out, but I didn't know how to tell her that.
実際、私もそういう事が起こった事がありました。相手の人はとても近い関係で、彼女は私に対して良い事をしているという認識だったのですが、私にはそうではありませんでした。回数を重ねる毎に、それがストレスになったのですが、それをどう伝えれば良いか分かりませんでした。

I had read about assertions in books and had some knowledge of them, but I found it difficult to actually communicate my thoughts to her.
So I looked for an assertion course and signed up for it, which took about five sessions of two hours each.
アサーションは本で読んだ事があり、知識はありました。しかし、実際に彼女に私の思いを伝えるのは難しいと感じました。
そこで、アサーションの講座を探し、申し込みをしました。1回2時間、5回ぐらいの講座だったと思います。

Assertions are a way of valuing relationships
アサーションは人間関係を大切にする方法
The first thing I learned in the assertion course at that time was that taking care of yourself is the basic principle. Next, we are taught that communicating to the other person in an appropriate way about what you feel uncomfortable about is a way of valuing your relationship with them.
その時のアサーション講座では、最初に自分を大切ににする事が基本だという事を学びました。その次に、自分が嫌な思いをした事を適切な方法で相手に伝える事は、相手との関係を大切にする事だと教わります。

This has given me a lot of insight.
この事は私に気づきを与えてくれました。

For example, I think there are many Japanese who think that if they put up with something they don't like, they can get along with other people without damaging their relationships. I also used to think that way myself.
例えば何か嫌だと感じた事があっても、自分さえ我慢すれば、人間関係を壊すことなく付き合っていけると考える日本人は多いと思います。私自身もそう思っていました。

However, if this patience continues for a long time, the frustration will grow and one day you will suddenly explode with anger at the other person, or you may end up disliking the other person.
As a result, you will not be able to value your relationship with each other.
しかし、その我慢がずっと続いてしまう事で、不満がつのり、ある日突然爆発したように相手に怒りをぶつける事になってしまったり、相手の事を嫌いになってしまう事があります。
それは結果的にお互いの人間関係を大切にする事にはなりません。

Role play
ロールプレイ
After the classroom lecture was over, all the participants, one by one, presented what they were having trouble with regarding their cases.
The course was very specific. They think about when to tell the other person about each problem, what timing to choose, and where to go, with advice from the instructor.
Next, they think of their own ways of communicating and then role-play.
座学が終わったら、参加者全員一人一人、自分のケースについて困っている事を発表します。
その講座はとても具体的でした。それぞれの問題を相手に伝える時に、どういうタイミングを選ぶか、場所はどうするか、アドバイスをもらいながら考えます。
次に伝え方を自分で考え、ロールプレイをします。

The instructor played the role of the other person. I prepared a manuscript and role-played with the instructor. The instructor was a very good actor, and I was able to imagine the real situation as I spoke.
I told her about the situation I was having trouble with. Up to this point, I followed the script. After I finished speaking, the instructor said, ""Why? I'm trying to do what's best for you."
Unfortunately, I couldn't continue to speak after that.
Even though I knew the importance of it, it took a lot of courage to talk about it properly to the other person.
相手役は講師です。私は原稿を準備し、講師とロールプレイをしました。講師はとても演技力のある人で、私は実際の場面を想像しながら話をする事ができました。
私が彼女に私が困っている状況を話しました。ここまでは台本通りです。話し終えた後、相手役の講師は言いました。「なんで?私はあなたにとって良かれと思ってしているのに」と。
残念ながら、その後私は言葉を続ける事ができませんでした。
重要性が分かっていても、相手にそれを適切に話すのは勇気のいる事でした。

After repeating the role-playing several times and learning the appropriate words and ways of speaking, I was able to talk to a real person, which gave me a lot of confidence.
何度かロールプレイを繰り返し、適切な言葉や話し方を身につけた上で、実際の相手と話ができた事は私にとって、大きな自信になりました。

Maybe I was overly concerned that she wouldn't be able to accept my ideas and that by telling her that, she would feel bad about it.
私の考えを彼女に受け入れてもらうことはできない、もしくはそれを伝える事で、相手が嫌な思いをするのではないかと、私が過剰に思い過ぎていたのかもしれません。

Next time I will write a summary through the story so far. Thank you for reading this long story.
次回は今までの話を通して、まとめを書こうと思います。長い話を読んでくれてありがとう。

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