Pureboy

This is great advice. I had a building obsession with Japan in high school and after through food, anime, manga and James Clavell novels.- I majored in Japanese studies in college and planned to spend a semester abroad. It didn't work out that way, but I worked at an anime publisher in the US and managed to get out to Japan a few times. Like most people that learn more about the country than what they see in anime, I learned that Japan is more complicated (especially as a foreigner) than you might see in popular culture. Also, most anime is crap. Just because it is different doesn't mean it is good. I'm still fascinated with Japan and it is one of my favorite places to visit, but the rose colored glasses are off.

I would say have near, medium, and long-term goals with Japan but be willing to re-evaluate along the way. For instance, near-term could be to begin learning Japanese. Medium-term could be to spend a summer/semester/year there. Long-term may be to live there, with the medium-term being a test run.

I found that, even as someone who is somewhat bilingual, Japanese was an extremely hard language to gain proficiency in, and it wasn't helpful in learning any other language, save for a few words in Korean and a tiny bit of Chinese script. I came very close to spending a year in Japan mid-career, but instead ended up in job that has a large focus on India. That looks to be fortuitous for my long-term career prospects because India's economy is booming and likely will for the next 10-20 years, and Japan is still trying to pull out of economic stagnation from the 90's with a shrinking/aging population.

TL;DR- don't put Japan on a pedestal, make short-term goals and re-evaluate as you move on.