I will now register the guest's information. Please press the button to begin.

我現在要登記客人的資訊。請按下按鈕開始。

It's little wonder the country is seen by many as being at the frontiers of modern technology.

難怪許多人都認為該國處於現代科技的前沿。

Your check-in is now completed.

您的登記手續現已完成。

But underneath the surface lies a Japan that is also fiercely traditional.

但在表象之下，日本也是一個非常傳統的國家。

And in some places, that's holding back the economy.

在一些地方，這阻礙了經濟的發展。

Here's why Japan is falling behind.

日本落後的原因是什麼？

Japan used to be the third largest economy in the world, but last year, it lost that title to Germany.

日本曾是世界第三大經濟體，但去年被德國超越。

For decades, the country has grappled with slow economic growth and productivity.

幾十年來，該國一直在努力解決經濟增長和生產率緩慢的問題。

Part of that reason is their dependence on older technology.

部分原因是他們對舊技術的依賴。

Hideki Arami started working for his father at this hanko, or stamp shop, in 1992, and took over the business 14 years later.

Hideki Arami 於 1992 年開始在這家印章店為父親工作，14 年後接管了這家店。

This is a hanko, and it's often used in Japan in place of a signature.

這就是印章，在日本經常用來代替簽名。

For example, on contracts or invoices or other official documents.

例如，在合約、發票或其他正式文件上。

For centuries, the stamps have been required to prove one's identity.

幾個世紀以來，印章一直是證明身份的必需品。

Even today, they're often used in everyday situations like receiving a parcel or opening a bank account.

即使在今天，它們也經常在日常情況下使用，如接收包裹或開設銀行帳戶。

[Speaking in Japanese] For important things, I think it is better to use hanko even if the process takes longer and can be troublesome.

[說日文] 對於重要的事情，我認為最好使用印章，即使這個過程需要更長的時間並且可能會很麻煩。

The scary thing about a digital world is that the world will get more cyber criminals.

數位世界的可怕之處在於，世界將會出現更多的網路犯罪者。

However, these types of practices can make businesses less productive.

然而，這類做法會降低企業的生產力。

Japan's productivity is only about two-thirds of the U.S. level, about three-quarters of the level in Germany.

日本的生產率只有美國的三分之二，德國的四分之三。

So it's quite low and has stayed that way for many years.

效率相當低，而且多年來一直如此。

There's always a difficulty striking that balance between the most efficient, the most productive way of doing things, and the traditional and widely loved way of doing things.

要在最有效、最有成效的做事方式與傳統的、廣受喜愛的做事方式之間取得平衡，總是有困難的。

The result? A country rich in culture, but resistant to change.

結果如何？一個文化豐富卻抗拒變革的國家。

There's this old joke, how do you know that somebody is working for a Japanese company?

有一個老笑話，你怎麼知道有人在為日本公司工作？

Well, when you look at the name card, it still has the fax number.

他的名片上還標示傳真號碼。

Jesper Kohl, an economist who has lived in Japan since 1986, says it's more than just the technology that's weighing Japan down.

自 1986 年起就在日本生活的經濟學家 Jesper Kohl 說，拖累日本的不僅僅是科技。

The Japanese have become so pedantic, have become so stickless for precision, that you know, if the hanko, if the seal touches the line where it's on, then it's invalid and you have to redo the entire form all over again.

日本人已經變得如此迂腐，變得如此不求精確，以至於如果印章觸碰到了印章上的線，那麼它就無效了，你必須重新填寫整個表格。

And that's ultimately what's so beautiful and so infuriating about the way Japan works, because it is so process-oriented.

而這正是日本工作方式的魅力所在，因為它是如此以過程為導向。

In the years since the pandemic, the government has made it easier in some cases to go without hanko, perhaps a written signature or no signature at all.

在疫情發生後的幾年裡，政府在某些情況下簡化了不用印章的手續，也許是書面簽名或根本不簽名。

But still, on official documents that we sign, for example, here at the Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones Japan's office, we still use hanko quite frequently.

但是，在我們簽署的官方文件上，例如在《華爾街日報》道瓊斯日本公司的辦公室裡，我們仍然經常使用印章。

And hanko is not the only old technology still used in Japan.

在日本，印章並不是唯一仍在使用的古老技術。

In some offices, people still use the fax machine instead of emails to send important documents.

在一些辦公室，人們仍然使用傳真機而不是電子郵件發送重要文件。

Japan, you know, was very, very good at being an early adopter.

要知道，日本非常非常善於先行一步。

Because, you know, if you look at the 1970s, if you look at the early 1980s, you know, obviously you came up with the Walkman, which completely revolutionized, right? The way mankind, you know, experiences music, right?

因為，你知道，如果你看看 1970 年代，如果你看看 1980 年代初，你知道，很明顯，日本發明了隨身聽，它徹底改變了人類，你知道，體驗音樂的方式，對嗎？

But, you know, sort of from the analog to the digital, that transition never really happened.

但是，從模擬到數位，這種轉變從未真正發生過。

In some ways, Japan has not changed much since the 1990s.

在某些方面，日本自 1990 年代以來並沒有太大變化。

Many employees still work for one company for most of their careers.

許多員工在其職業生涯的大部分時間裡仍然為一家公司工作。

Wages across Japan have stayed more or less the same for 30 years, although they are beginning to rise this year.

30 年來，日本全國的工資水平基本保持不變，不過今年開始有所上升。

Many Japanese work long hours, especially in certain workplaces, such as elite government ministries.

許多日本人工作時間很長，尤其是在某些工作場所，如精英政府部門。

Yet productivity is low.

然而，生產率卻很低。

Japan is incredibly labor intensive.

日本的勞動密集程度令人難以置信。

Do yourself a favor and go into a Japanese Starbucks and where in the United States, there is two people, you know, taking the order and doing the cafe latte with the extra shot, right?

幫你自己一個忙，去日本的星巴克，如果是在美國會有兩個人，負責點單和做加料的咖啡拿鐵，對嗎？

Here in Japan, there's at least five people.

在日本，至少有五個人。

It's one of the simplest concepts in the world, right?

這是世界上最簡單的概念之一，不是嗎？

Because you just take output divided by the number of input, right?

因為你只是用輸出除以輸入的數量，對嗎？

And so obviously, you know, fewer people is better.

很顯然，人越少越好。

Japan's rigid work culture still often prioritizes conformity over efficiency.

日本僵化的工作文化仍然常常把服從放在首位，而不是效率。

But that may be about to change spearheaded by Japan's digital minister.

不過，在日本數位大臣的帶領下，這種情況可能會有所改變。

He wants the country to move on from obsolete technologies.

他希望國家擺脫過時的技術。

For some government procedures today, you're still required to submit application in floppy disk.

如今，有些政府程序仍要求民眾用磁片提交申請。

Floppy disk, yeah.

磁片，是的。

So I had to declare war on floppy disk in Japan.

所以我不得不向日本的磁片宣戰。

Younger Japanese are more willing to rewrite the rules, work reasonable hours and take risks.

年輕的日本人更願意改寫規則、合理安排工作時間和承擔風險。

They are also more willing to adopt new technologies.

他們也更願意採用新科技。

So there is a big generational element.

這其中有很大的代際因素。

But even with the digital alternative, it's the pedantism of the form over content.

但即使是數位替代品，也是形式大於內容的迂腐。

That's why Japan has great difficulty in being an early adopter or in adopting, you know, modern technology, digital technology, in a fast and speedy way.

這就是為什麼日本很難成為早期採用者，或者說很難快速採用現代技術、數位科技。

Japan has always marched to the beat of its own drum, embracing modern technology but retaining its own culture and charms.

日本一直按照自己的鼓點前進，既擁抱現代技術，又保留了自己的文化和魅力。

But for Japan to lift its economy, it may need to chisel away some parts of its history to keep growing in the future.

但是，日本要想提升經濟，可能需要剔除歷史上的某些部分，以保持未來的增長。