Will Promoting Women's Advancement Succeed!? Unraveling Modern Women's Work Ethic Through Women's Magazine Readers (Part 1)

The "My Work Project " confronts the diversifying ways women work and explores solutions to all challenges surrounding "working women."
While Japan has championed "promoting women's advancement" in recent years, the reality is that returning to work after childbirth remains challenging. What does a society where women can truly thrive even look like? How do modern women feel about work, marriage, and childbirth?

To unravel these questions, we invited guests Yasue Ohno and Miwa Igarashi from Shogakukan's Women's Insight Research Institute, which analyzes the "hearts" of female consumers. They were interviewed by Naofumi Kanda and Aya Ujihara from Dentsu Inc.

We asked these two experts, who interact daily with women in their 20s just starting their careers, about the changing mindset of working women and the nature of communication.

 

"Remodeling Women" who change jobs to fit their "life layout"

Kanda: Were both of you originally editors for women's magazines?

Ohno: I originally edited manga and books for homemakers at another company. After joining Shogakukan, I handled general fiction and young adult novels. Then I moved to editing entertainment websites before arriving at my current role.

Igarashi: I joined as a new graduate in 2005 and worked on 'CanCam' during the "Ebi-moe" (models Ebihara Yuri and Oshikiri Moe) boom. After that, I handled 'AneCan' from its launch until last year when I moved to the Women's Insight Research Institute.

Ujihara: CanCam's readers are mainly women in their 20s who are just starting their careers, right?

Igarashi: That's right. The people we interviewed most often were in their 20s.

Ujihara: Having worked closely with these "young working women" for so long, do you sense any changes in their attitudes toward work compared to ten years ago?

Igarashi: My impression is that in the past, many women started thinking about career advancement and marriage around their third year in the workforce, and one major challenge for them was figuring out how to build their work-life balance going forward.

But listening to our readers lately, I get the sense they tend not to choose work styles that disrupt their work-life balance right from the start. In a good way, they don't seem overly attached to their companies. I often hear them say that if a job no longer fits the lifestyle they envision, they're open to changing jobs quickly.

Ohno: Everyone is establishing their own lifestyle, right? Within that, they're skillfully choosing work that fits within their capabilities.

Kanda: What struck me while researching "working women starting out" was how surprisingly many had predetermined life plans, like "marry at XX, have kids at XX." Whether realistic or not, it made me wonder if they might be approaching their careers based on that life blueprint too.

Ohno: Exactly. So their "life floor plan" is set even before they start working. If the previous generation worked too hard just to afford a bigger house, this generation is arranging work and marriage within a floor plan they find comfortable. If a job no longer fits that plan, they factor in changing jobs as a way to "renovate." Of course, it's not universal, but I think that's a trend.

 

"Maybe it's our fault that lifestyle became the top priority."

Ujihara: When we conducted group interviews with women working alongside Ms. Ohno and Ms. Igarashi, one participant mentioned switching jobs because her work became so busy she was staying late every night. She wanted to enrich her personal time. After changing jobs, she could go out and enjoy herself after work every day and felt happy. It was impressive how she could say "happy" without a single cloud of doubt.

Igarashi: They seem so happy and vibrant, don't they?

Ohno: In a way, it's rational, or rather, it makes perfect sense. If you always prioritize work, you end up spending like 23 hours out of a 24-hour day on it, right? (laughs)

Igarashi: No matter how hard you try, one hour just isn't enough for your personal life... (laughs).

Ujihara: Why do you think more women are prioritizing their own lifestyles and working in ways that prevent that from collapsing?

Igarashi: Hmm... I think it's probably partly our fault.

Ujihara: Huh?

Igarashi: Since moving departments and working more with people in their 20s, I've really noticed it. They seem to genuinely enjoy their work within reasonable limits. When I was a new employee, work was fun, but pulling all-nighters and having no personal time was just expected. We didn't even try to hide it—it was like, "This is what work is!" Watching colleagues burn out or struggle with decisions around marriage and childbirth because of that... well, it's no wonder they'd get fed up.

Ohno: That's true. They're definitely watching the backs of their seniors who sacrificed so much for their careers (laughs).

Ujihara: I believe that beyond hard work and effort lies a world of self-realization and doing what you love. But is that kind of message just not resonating in today's era?

Ohno: Both our generation and the one above us believed success came from effort and self-sacrifice, and that was considered a virtue. I don't think it was necessarily wrong, but just as sports-obsessed stories aren't popular anymore, maybe this is an era where the value of self-sacrifice doesn't look appealing.

Igarashi: Work and career aren't everything, and people have loosened up in a good way, right?

Ohno: Of course, everyone still faces hardships and worries. But it's true that people prefer seeing others being themselves without forcing it over seeing them desperately striving. That's why in fashion, the keyword "effortless chic" has been trending for years now.

Kanda: I see, that makes sense. Next time, we'll delve deeper into "working women" by discussing how women's magazines are adapting their communication methods to align with these shifts in female consciousness.