Before my wife came to the US she took some classes to strengthen her English skills. One of the students in the class was a young man named Koichi. He, too, was headed to the US. He was going on behalf of his company to learn how to work on Toyota cars. One day after Koichi and my wife had moved to the US they got together and I had the opportunity to meet Koichi. He told me a wonderful story about his experience at the Toyota dealership.
Koichi really liked America and Americans. You see, he was prematurely balding and that made it difficult because having a bald head at a young age was unusual in Japan. He was a little self conscious about his appearance. However, he said Americans are fun loving and liked to joke around. One day his co-workers were talking and joking around when one of the workers called him NHK, like the government TV channel in Japan. When Koichi asked the co-worker why he called him NHK the co-worker replied, “NHK, Nice Head Koichi!” They all laughed and that became his permanent nickname while he lived and worked in the States.
After a few years working in the States Koichi gained a lot of confidence in his appearance and his ability. He went from being a mechanic to being a salesman. He learned from his experience to treat everyone with respect and to rely more on what is inside and not appearances. He is a successful salesman with many clients looking to him for purchasing advice and support.
