Korean Job Discussion Forums

[twg]

The whole E2 thing has gotten me thinking a lot about the current lifestyle I'm living.

I love the expat lifestyle, I love living in Asia. I love being able to choose my level of involvement in the culture. I love not having to put up with the same Confucian crap as the locals. And I love having money in my pocket at all times, which is something not possible in Taxanada.

Freedom, baby! Freedom!

But, and this is a big but....

I've come to accept that I really hate teaching ESL. It may be just a phase I'm currently going through due to working at the most joyless hagwon I've ever been at. But while the idea of starting over again elsewhere like Taiwan is appealing, having to do it as an ESL chimp isn't.

I'm not really asking for advice, but I am curious about what you all would do if you found yourselves in a similar situation of liking the life here, but hating what it is you need to do to stay here.

[tomato]

I like ESL, but I'd like to do something else here too.
So I'm learning the language as well as I can.
I won't be able to get there overnight.
For me, there is no problem, because I'm enjoying what I'm doing in the meantime.

Could we discuss why you don't enjoy teaching English?
Maybe it's something we can help alleviate.

[Ya-ta Boy]

If you do really hate teaching and it's not a passing phase, then you could look at the non-teaching jobs. There are a few jobs for editing and test-writing.

About the only other alternative is to hire yourself out in the sex industry on an Entertainment visa. Market yourself as an exotic.

[the_beaver]

I used to hate teaching when I taught kids. I moved to a hagwon that just had adults and I thought it was okay. University, however, brought me into the loving teaching range.

Try teaching a different demographic, or at the very least a different school, and see how you feel then.

[Craven Moorehead]

Go back to Canada, get a teaching job at a uni doing ESL, and sell drugs on the side. Works for me.

[crusher_of_heads]

A friend of mine is on a 49 day sojourn on the beach in Thailand.


I recommend that before any long term diecisions.

[adeline]

i'd suck it up. i'm the daughter of the cheapest man on earth, his moneygrubbing has infected me. plus i know if i go for another kind of job i will probably hate it just as much.

[Natalia]

Why not go home for a little while and then try something else overseas?

I've been on the move constantly since finishing school. Every time I get sick of something I head home for something familiar and comfortable. Then as soon as I start to feel myself going crazy I head off again.

I don't get this attitude of 'I will never go back'. Sometimes it's good to go home, even if only to bore yourself into leaving again - to remember why you wanted to leave in the first place.

[StAxX SOuL]

Ehhh... nothing�s perfect

Similarly, I loved living in Korea and the lifestyle that came with it for that stage of my life... not a big fan of teaching ESL, however

The options as I saw them:
1. Endure something you don�t really like so that you get to a level which at first glance looks more appealing � Uni;
2. Endure something you don�t really like while you learn the language and develop a proficiency that means you can move outside of teaching English � Visa restrictions aside for the time being;
3. Return home, get a job as a professional with an international company... endure a not too amazing situation for the first few years while you progress and graduate to doing something that�s pretty cool, sufficiently well-paid and means you�re skilled enough to satisfy Visa requirements and ply your trade in the Hong Kong or Singapore office


I went for #3... it�s a drop in disposable income and quality of life initially so the hardest thing is resisting the temptation to hop back to somewhere like Korea or China for a short-term gain, and / or to go for #1 or #2... my plan is to stick out the first couple of years so that I get to the point where I�m an English speaking professional working in the country I want to work in and earning a salary that secures a better quality of life than ESL would have provided... but yea, I do miss Korea!

[xingyiman]

Work is the necessary evil I must endure to make the money I need to manage the rest of my life. The caveat of life is this: Jobs that are "fun" or enjoyable don't pay anything so after a while you'll hate that job as much as any other. And jobs that pay lots are a pain in ther arse in every way. Word of advice - never expect more out of your job than a paycheck.