Man hires himself out to lonely people and gets paid to ‘do nothing’

A man has made a living by offering a service where he pretty much does 'nothing'.

Now I will admit, he doesn’t *literally* do nothing but as a way to make money, his day is likely a whole lot easier than yours or mine.

Since 2018, 40-year-old Shoji Morimoto has been offering a particularly bizarre service in Japan.

And before your brain even tries to go there. No, he isn’t offering *that* kind of service.

But similarly, you can imagine you would get a whole host of reactions if you told people at a dinner table this is what you do for a living.

Morimoto essentially funds his life by offering himself as someone who can simply be there for people who want him to be.

Shoji Morimoto makes a living being hired out by the public to 'do nothing' (BBC)

Morimoto has been hired by members of the public to accompany them to dinner, greet them at the end of a marathon, sit with them while they do work or listen to them vent.

He charges 10,000 yen (roughly $70) per session, and takes on all sorts of jobs that people want company for.

While on these outings Morimoto has said he doesn’t actually talk all that much and will never strike up a conversation unless the client does, stating he doesn’t actually want to get to know them intimately.

As you can imagine, many of his clients are lonely individuals who don’t exactly feel comfortable doing these activities with friends or family.

However, a BBC documentary on Morimoto highlighted that while it is true of some clients, for others there are deeper insecurities and feelings at play.

Morimoto has been offering his service since 2018 (BBC)

He explained that one woman had lost her partner after they took their own life, she then hired Morimoto to wear his hat and sit with her while she reminisced about him.

Morimoto also noted that some people used his services when they wanted to tell a friend or family member something difficult and felt more comfortable having a third party simply hearing them make their confession.

The social media reaction to his work has been partially mixed with some insisting he has found a way to help and offer a type of therapy to individuals dealing with grief and loneliness.

While others have argued that the need for his service illustrates the prevalence and growing issue of loneliness and people’s inability or unwillingness to form genuine relationships with others.

What do you think?

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