I don’t consider myself a nomadic professional, but I have lived, worked and/or studied in Cairo, Berlin, Bangkok, and Seoul – where I am now. In a matter of weeks I will move to Singapore, where I am exploring my next career opportunity.
Professionally, my background is in high technology having been mentored in Silicon Valley by some amazingly talented individuals. One mentor asked me at a major trade show, what made me passionate professionally when I wake up in the morning? Without hesitation, I replied, “Handling the market entry responsibilities for Asia-Pacific for a Valley-based tech firm.” It was the right answer – he essentially hired me on-the-spot.
I realize that living and working in Asia isn’t for everyone. From my experiences, perspective and vantage point here are some comparisons and contrasts between living and working in S. Korea and the US.
Positives:
- S. Koreans are very hard working people who take great pride in their work.
- They’re also very dedicated to both their position as well as their respective employers (this is especially true when someone works for any of S. Korea’s best known firms such as Samsung, LG, etc.)
- They have a great sense of unity and focus on what is best for the team, group, company, etc. This was clearly evident recently when S. Korea sent the nation’s first astronaut into space via a partnership with the Russian Space Agency; the center of Seoul was filled with S. Koreans dressed in the countries’ colors – watching the launch live on national TV. Moreover, the tragic oil-spill that struck the coast (late last year) saw volunteers from all parts of the country come out in droves (literally overnight) to begin the process of cleaning up the disaster area.
- South Koreans are very proud of their nation and the developments they’ve accomplished as one of “Asia’s Economic Miracles.” Across S. Korea, there’s a myriad of public works projects, new high-rises, and renovations, just about everywhere you venture.
- There’s a tremendous focus in S. Korea on being educated in the West (which includes studying English as a second language). In light of S. Korea’s insatiable thirst for English – there is no shortage of demand for English teachers.
The ‘not so positives’:
- The S. Korean style of management is by edict whereas meetings are essentially a medium of one-way communication from the predominately male boss to his subordinates.
- Despite their ‘dedication’ S. Koreans are overwhelmingly dissatisfied with what they see as the limitations of the aforementioned management style/career opportunities (it is no surprise that Korean women are dissatisfied in this respect).
- Paradoxically, despite the focus on unity many S. Koreans also complain that the sacrifices that they make within their personal lives are due to ‘unreasonable expectations’ regarding fulfilling their jobs (such as working late, taking work home, coming in on weekends, etc.)
- Perhaps the best example of this ‘sacrifice’ is (the) ‘binge-drinking’ in S. Korea (which is #1 in the world). South Koreans believe that ‘office unity is created/solidified, business problems are resolved, and that staff worker harder through getting inebriated on their national drink ’soju.’ As a Westerner, I have witnessed this happen 7 days a week!
- Furthermore, despite being ‘proud’ roughly 75% of S. Koreans would also leave the country given the opportunity. Moreover, unfortunately, for the past several years, S. Korea has led the OECD in the highest rates of suicide. Some of these societal conditions are attributed to the immense competition within S. Korea – that begins when young children start attending various ‘cram’ schools to study English, Math, Science, etc. Moreover, attending a cram school (at a minimum) is from about age 4 until (at least) 18 years old!
- Yet, another striking paradox is despite the highest per capita spending on ESL (in Asia) – the nation is ranked last in English language proficiency in the region. To illustrate, recently, a respected Korean professor wrote a scathing report called the ‘Hi-Bye’ man indicting the nation’s obsession with cram schools and how little value is created when someone whose studied English for over a decade (on average) is only capable of saying, “Hi and/or good-bye” with any level of confidence and proficiency.
Adjustments:
Although there’s no shortage of demand for ESL professionals, unless you speak Korean fluently, your career opportunities are limited (as the nation is still roughly 99% Korean).
Though living and working in S. Korea is challenging for outsiders, the country offers state of the art network speeds and cell-phone services.
On balance, for a city of roughly 10 million, Seoul is very safe – even as it becomes more cosmopolitan. As for the Seoul expat community, it tends to be weighted more towards the ‘ESL’ crowd vs. working professionals. However, that trend is changing as S. Korean Pop Music (K-Pop) and (TV) dramas continue gaining popularity globally, and, in turn, drawing major international cultural attractions ranging from Andre Boccelli, Eric Clapton, Cirque Du Soleil to exhibits of Van Gogh and Picasso, selling out venues (in Seoul) regularly.
America has a long history in South Korea and fortunately it’s a place where we still receive respect. Literally, just last week, an elderly Korean woman insisted that I take her subway seat, because she loves and appreciates America (it turned out she fled N. Korea during the Korean War).
Much like any place you visit, live, or work, your experience comes down to ‘what you make of it.’ In sum, being a ‘foreigner’ or a ‘stranger in a strange land’ is never easy. Nonetheless, as Gandhi once said, “you must become the change you wish to see occur in the world” and living abroad allows for ample opportunities to challenge or embrace that orientation.
John S. Rajeski is a High Tech professional with in-depth experience living and working in Asia. Fulfilling a long-standing objective of living and working permanently in SE Asia, he will be relocating to Singapore in June and is exploring his next career role.
