[Finding the Shape of My Place] #2. Learning How to Work Together
Spring 2017: Meeting Asan Frontier Youth.
I started a small project with friends I met at the Next Journalism School. We burned the midnight oil for months, but it ended without producing any significant results. I returned to school and went through the motions of each day. The pressure of being a senior pushed me to apply for internships everywhere, but I kept getting rejected. The coding tests at portal companies were too difficult, and my fear that I could never become a developer just kept growing.
Then, quite by chance, I learned about the Asan Frontier Youth program. The moment I saw the recruitment post on a blog, I felt my heart stir. Yet, simultaneously, another part of me was desperately trying to deny that feeling. It stemmed from not wanting to voluntarily repeat the despair I'd experienced two years prior in a village community project.
What if I get hurt again? What if I end up quitting halfway through?
Despite that, I attended the information session, submitted my application, and was accepted. Looking back now, it was truly fortunate. If I had remained trapped by my past experiences and refused to embrace new hope back then, what kind of life would I be living now? I don't even want to imagine it. I would have been forced to drag myself through things I didn't want to do, gradually losing my vitality. I might have withered away, just like back then when I lost everything and my light faded.
Me, Good at This? : My Strengths, Nurtured by My Fellow Members' Praise
The Asan Frontier Youth program was broadly divided into three parts: social sector education through hands-on team projects, social sector internships for practical field experience, and global studies to explore overseas social sectors and gain insights.
The social sector education, which kicked things off, was full of fascinating and novel things. I thought I'd know quite a bit since I had experience with village community activities, but terms like CSR and international development cooperation were all completely unfamiliar to me. What was even better than learning new things was the praise my fellow participants gave me. Until then, I had lived thinking of myself as a lazy person. That was because someone had said that and criticized me, and those words had stuck in my mind for a long time. My confidence and self-esteem were at rock bottom. But my fellow volunteers were different. They praised even my smallest habits. They acknowledged my habit of recording and organizing everything because of my poor memory, calling me the 'Record-Keeping Apple.' They even framed my impatient, fast-talking flaw as "strong drive and quick idea development, which greatly helps the team's idea development." At first, hearing such things made me wonder, 'Why are these people doing this to me?' It felt genuinely awkward. But gradually, those compliments seeped into my heart, and before I knew it, I could acknowledge myself. Fueled by my peers' praise, I leveraged my strengths more, and that directly translated into results. We won first place in the team project!
Learning Responsibility in a Warm Organization: My Beautiful Store Internship
My internship at Beautiful Store was a truly special experience. My main task was working on the 'B's Diary' project, which educates people about the importance of resource circulation through a gamified big game. This experience played a huge role in me starting my first career at a game company now. It was crucial experience, allowing me to understand game mechanics while actually creating a game myself. Through the experience of preparing and completing a project that passed through my hands—stitch by stitch creating quests, purchasing props—I learned what real responsibility truly means. I realized I couldn't just do things half-heartedly. I had to do well for this project to succeed. What enabled me to work with this sense of responsibility was the shop accepting me not as a temporary intern for five months, but as a genuine member of the team. The team leader who listened to what a 24-year-old intern full of youthful energy had to say and encouraged me with "Just give it a try." The staff members who thoughtfully looked out for me, concerned I might be overwhelmed or struggling. Because of them, I could work without burning out, feeling protected within the organization. I felt the wounds I'd received in the village community being healed at the Beautiful Store. Ah, so an organization could be this warm.
Breaking Through Limits: The Infinite Loop of Social Innovation Projects and Global Studies
The ultimate highlight of Asan Frontier Youth was undoubtedly the Society Innovation Project (SIP). Selecting a social issue to tackle together, defining the target audience, and building the project—experiencing this entire process with five peers was a chance to truly learn how to work. If an internship taught me how to work within an organization, SIP was the opportunity to learn how to work as a team.
Working on a single project while each of us came from different backgrounds was never easy. There were disagreements, times when progress stalled, and moments when we got frustrated with each other. But by openly discussing things and constantly reaffirming our shared direction, we managed to complete the project. I learned firsthand what kind of environment I prefer for discussions, what situations I find most difficult to endure, and what to do when the team loses its direction. The experience of figuring things out for myself within the team, without anyone teaching me, was invaluable in itself.
Learning How to Work, Dreaming New Dreams
It's no exaggeration to say that the way I work now was entirely shaped at Asan Frontier Youth. Reading the atmosphere between people, trying different approaches for better communication, organizing and planning my own tasks, proposing them, and executing them. I'm grateful it solidified my fundamental work ethic.
Moreover, I can dream new dreams now. Instead of cutting myself down and despairing about the future, I gained the conviction that I am someone who can do anything, and that I will undoubtedly do it well. It was a precious time that gave me the confidence that whatever dream I dream, someday, I will achieve it.
However, upon returning to school to finish my final semester, I found myself once again plagued by an inexplicable sense of helplessness and depression…