Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Homer]

chilsung,

I did ask this guy why he stays....what I got in response was a bunch of confused BS....


I just think if he hates it here so much and has the qualifications to go somewhere else where he can make the same money and live just as well then why does he stay?

The responses in here were quite informative.

[HardyandTiny]

[coolsage]

[Ody]

[wylde]

[Butterfly]

[just because]

I'd be here.
Been to Thailand...good to visit but to live for a few years??????

If you ask me Thailand is glorified and this perpetual myth takes place until it becomes this holy grail for travellers....give me a break.

[Rhoddri]

There seems to be an inherent contradiction in most people's psyche. It's not an abnormal thing or anything. I'm very rusty on my student days, I just remember reading a journal article about the addictiveness of gambling machines. In the study some gambling machines were set to always loose, some to always win (there were some control groups aswell of course) and then some were set to random. Now I know this may seem unlikely, but the most addictive group was the group who gambled with the randomly set gambling machines. They were more addicted to keep piling money into the machines than the people in the group who were 100% sure of winning. As I emphasise again I am rusty on this, I could do a web search etc...but jesus nahhh t'is late and I'm gonna bed soon.

Anyway my view of this is that, although we all think we want to live in a place, a time, or a position in life that is always preferential to us, when we wake up knowing we're going to have a great time, a great day and everythings going to go our way.......deep down we can't cope with this predictibility. We all want a great job, a great place to live etc, but if we don't have a randomness...some unpredictibility we end up unsatisfied.

I think the people who over emphasise their loathing of KOrea and the people who over emphasise their loving of Korea are all products of the same phenomenon. It's just a personality trait that produces which side of the coin they express their opinion. The people who say "Oh Korea's great, if you don't like it go home and flip burgers! we don't want to listen to your whinging" have bad days in Korea sometimes, it's just that they feel inclined to smear them with good memories. The precise opposite can be said of those that constantly complain about Korea. At the end of the day it's the unpredictibility that makes us thrive and the reason, as some people in this thread suggest, causes people "to stay, even though they hate it".

[jajdude]

Rhoddri,

First time I ever saw one of your posts, but then you don't post much. I'd say that what you said makes sense in a strange enough way. The unpredictability? Well perhaps we want stability too, but also novelty? We seem to need both to curtail boredom. And for so many people boredom is a big thing. Hell a lot of us go out of our way to avoid boredom. It is a central factor in the lives of many of us who are otherwise well-fed and secure. Hence the largeness of entertainment. Perhaps Korea, though it can seem boring after a while, still provides enough stimulation to keep us going. However, if one does say "I hate Korea" or "I hate my job in Korea" then it is time for change. And a new country may help in the escape of boredom and pursuit of experience and entertainment. A lot of us are just seekers of experience. That may be why we came here. If there is a new country to try, well wow, sounds like a lot new to experience. And that may help curtail the boredom that so easily seems to weigh upon many people. If not a new country, well a new job, new people keep the thing going.

[Yaya]

[Mankind]

[Gwangjuboy]

Strange. I know of many right wing politicians who use this arguement to immigrants in the UK. "If you don't like it then go home." All those Indians in the UK who complain about signs that aren't written in Punjabi should jump on the next plane back to India. Should we make it a pre-requisite that all Westerners working in Korea shouldn't complain. In my opinion most of those advocating such a position here, would be outraged at a similar position towards immigrants in the West. I see some double standards.

[Homer]

G-boy,

In my case its not outrage at all. Its puzzlement.

An English teacher with his qualifications can teach pretty much where he wants (including back home). Yet he chooses to stay in a place he hates when clearly there is a world of opportunities open to him.

I just don't get that. Its not a "if you don't like it get out" thing...its more like "If you hate it and could easily go somewhere else where you would get the same financial benefits and be happier then why stay"....

[Gwangjuboy]

[Paji eh Wong]

First: