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Need a rental person who does nothing? Shoji Morimoto provides a fascinating service to the lonely and socially anxious. After an old boss told him that he contributed nothing and that it made no difference whether he showed up to work or not, he wondered if a person who 'does nothing' could still have a place in the world. With a tweet, his Rental Person service was born. - Have a deep secret you desperately need to reveal, so deep that you can't tell a friend or family member? - Have you spent a long time home alone, and want to know what it's like to have somebody with you at your apartment? - Or for someone to simply think of you on a stressful day? Or wave to you as you leave the train station on a long journey? Morimoto is dependable, non-judgmental and committed to remaining a stranger throughout each request, and his encounters are revelatory about both Japanese society and human psychology. In Rental Person Who Does Nothing, Morimoto chronicles his extraordinary experiences in his unique line of work and reflects on how we consider relationships, jobs and family in our search for meaningful connection and purpose in life.
Need a rental person who does nothing? Shoji Morimoto provides a fascinating service to the lonely and socially anxious. After an old boss told him that he contributed nothing and that it made no difference whether he showed up to work or not, he wondered if a person who 'does nothing' could still have a place in the world. With a tweet, his Rental Person service was born. - Have a deep secret you desperately need to reveal, so deep that you can't tell a friend or family member? - Have you spent a long time home alone, and want to know what it's like to have somebody with you at your apartment? - Or for someone to simply think of you on a stressful day? Or wave to you as you leave the train station on a long journey? Morimoto is dependable, non-judgmental and committed to remaining a stranger throughout each request, and his encounters are revelatory about both Japanese society and human psychology. In Rental Person Who Does Nothing, Morimoto chronicles his extraordinary experiences in his unique line of work and reflects on how we consider relationships, jobs and family in our search for meaningful connection and purpose in life.
Due to publisher restrictions the library cannot purchase additional copies of this title, and we apologize if there is a long waiting list. Be sure to check for other copies, because there may be other editions available.
Due to publisher restrictions the library cannot purchase additional copies of this title, and we apologize if there is a long waiting list. Be sure to check for other copies, because there may be other editions available.
About the Author-
Shoji Morimoto was born in 1983. He began working as a rental person who does nothing in 2018 and has since been hired more than 4,000 times. He's been profiled by many media outlets worldwide and has written several books including Rental Person Who Does Nothing, which inspired a Japanese TV series. Morimoto lives in Japan with his wife and son.
Reviews-
November 13, 2023 This meditative debut from Morimoto reflects on what he’s learned about work and life from his “rental person” service. In 2018, he tweeted that he was starting a project in which he would show up for clients at designated times and places but would do virtually nothing once there “except give very simple responses,” charging only for travel and the “cost of food/drink (if applicable).” Requests began pouring in; Morimoto describes accompanying to dinner a woman who was tired of having men pay for her meals, listening to another woman who hadn’t come out to her friends talk about her girlfriend, and greeting at the airport a student hoping that a friendly face would mitigate the grief she anticipated upon returning to Japan for the first time since her grandmother died. Lamenting work’s outsize role in people’s lives, Morimoto reveals that his sister killed herself after “she didn’t get the job she wanted.” In serving as a rental person, Morimoto intended to push back against the notion that an individual’s value is tied to their productivity: “people have a value even if they do nothing.” The client anecdotes amuse and provide unexpectedly perceptive insights into the nature of work and individuals’ self-worth under capitalism. This is worth seeking out. Photos.
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