In recent years, the publishing world has been a craze for self-development. Push yourself, exercise hard, follow a healthy diet, exercise, make friends, and be happy.
But no matter how many books are published and read, Koreans are still not happy, unhealthy, and do not practice anything they read in the books. I, too, once read a lot of books in this self-improvement genre, but I recently realized how much time I had wasted trying to improve my life by just circling around the periphery without touching on the core of the problem.
In fact, most problems that Koreans experience are difficult to solve at an individual level. In an environment where long working hours and overtime are prevalent, it is not easy to find time to invest in hobbies or self-development. It is true that structural problems such as high real estate and education costs and unstable employment situations are difficult to solve through individual efforts.
I heard the Nordic countries are happy...?
A happy and healthy life is not achieved through individual efforts alone, but is determined by the social system to which they belong. In this context, the Danish case has significant implications. Denmark is considered one of the happiest countries in the world, and its secret lies in its wide social support for its people.
The Danish government is implementing a variety of welfare policies that guarantee people's basic lives, including medical care, education, childcare, maternity leave, and unemployment benefits. We also put a lot of effort into creating public infrastructure to improve people's happiness. Work-life balance is emphasized through short working hours of 34 hours a week, and excessive working is viewed negatively.
What's interesting is that 57% of Danish people said they would not quit their current job even if they won the lottery. For those who work for self-realization and happiness, work is only a part of life, not everything. Additionally, citizens' voluntary activities and sense of community are highly developed.
Of course, all of this comes at a price: high taxes. Nordic countries are always like this. But it seems worth paying taxes to improve the quality of life. It will be difficult to immediately introduce the Danish system in Korean society, which has long emphasized diligence and self-made success. However, isn't it time for a change in perception to face the problems caused by excessive individualism and take care of each other as a community living together?
Ultimately, an individual's happy life becomes possible with the support and consideration of the society they belong to. What we need is not flashy success stories or self-improvement books that emphasize individual efforts, but a tight social safety net that guarantees everyone's well-being. As the election period approaches, various stories are coming and going, and I feel like we need to talk about society, so I'm writing this.
I was a bit confused, so I asked the artificial intelligence about individualism and liberalism.
Isn’t what an individual can do is heartfelt support and encouragement?
Personally, I think creating a welfare fence by raising taxes is not a populist or political stance, but can be considered from a different perspective. I don't know if I'm the only one who feels this way in Korea recently, but individualism has become increasingly strong. This is more indifferent to other people's affairs than existing liberalism and has a contemplative view of society. In some ways, it seems that ‘Alpano’ has become the default stance.
Like it or not, we have to live within the boundaries of society. Whether I am a rich person with tens of billions of won or a human being who has nothing but my body and passion, we must live in an organically connected society. A while ago, I created a 'nothing special but praise group' with my friends. It was a group chat room on KakaoTalk, but it was running quite well, but I stopped running it a few years ago due to a lack of personal resources. However, a friend I recently met after a long time told me that talking about that group chat room really helped me a lot.
In conclusion
I myself think again that what we need is not “more more more” but applause and support. Sometimes, I think there are times when we need a pat on the back rather than a big reward. Regardless of policy or politics, would it be too romantic to picture a world where we open up our hearts and support each other sincerely to create a better society, just as we become human beings when we can lean on each other? Suddenly, I write down a few thoughts.
