Morimoto, 38, said he charges clients about 10k  for just being there, with about 4,000 bookings over the past four years — making enough money to support his wife and child.

“Basically, I rent myself out,” he said. “My job is to be wherever my clients want me to be and to do nothing in particular.”

His gigs have included a job simply riding a see-saw with one client at a local park, and sitting at a restaurant with a woman who feared her Indian sari would embarrass her friends if she wore it in public — so he stepped in.

“Basically, I rent myself out.

My job is to be wherever my clients want me to be and to do nothing in particular,”

Mr Morimoto told Reuters.com , adding that he had handled some 4,000 sessions in the past four years.

With a lanky build and average looks, Mr Morimoto now boasts nearly a quarter of a million followers on Twitter, where he finds most of his clients.

Over time, biographical details do emerge. Morimoto’s older brother failed his university exams, became depressed, and, although over 40, had never been able to work.

His older sister was unable to find the kind of job she craved and ended up killing herself.

He studied earthquakes at graduate school, but wound up as a freelance writer producing copy for business pamphlets.

His boss told him that he lacked a strong personality and chided him when, at after-hours drinks, he sat alone in silence.

At work, his company wanted to outsource simple tasks and have staff focus on creative, high-level projects – “I’m afraid I couldn’t come up with any useful ideas at all.”

 Before Mr Morimoto found his true calling, he worked at a publishing company and was often chided for “doing nothing”.

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While such rental services are not unheard of in Japan  there are agencies where one can rent actors to be your friend or even an entire family.

Mr Morimoto’s differentiating factor lies in his “effort-  approach, while not playing any specific role.