Over the past few years, the publishing industry has been swept up in a self-improvement craze. Pushing yourself, working out hard, sticking to a healthy diet, exercising, making friends, and becoming happy—that sort of thing.
But no matter how many books are published and read, Koreans are still not happy, not healthy, and don't put into practice anything they read in those books. I, too, once read a lot of books in this self-help genre, but I recently realized what a waste of time it was to dance around the edges trying to improve my life without addressing the heart of the problem.
In fact, most of the problems Koreans face are difficult to resolve at an individual level. In an environment rife with long working hours and overtime, it isn't easy to find the leeway to invest in hobbies or personal development. Structural issues like high real estate prices, education costs, and precarious employment can hardly be solved through individual effort alone.
They say Nordic countries are happy...?
A happy and healthy life isn't achieved solely through individual effort; it is determined by the social system people belong to. In this context, Denmark's case offers a lot of food for thought. Denmark is ranked among the happiest countries in the world, and the secret lies in broad social support for its citizens.
The Danish government implements a variety of welfare policies that guarantee citizens' basic livelihood, such as healthcare, education, childcare, parental leave, and unemployment benefits. They also put a great deal of effort into building public infrastructure to enhance citizens' happiness. By maintaining a short 34-hour workweek, work-life balance is prioritized, and excessive work is actually viewed negatively.
An interesting point is that 57% of Danish citizens answered they wouldn't quit their current jobs even if they won the lottery. For them, working for self-actualization and happiness means a career is just a part of life, not the whole thing. In addition, citizens' voluntary activities and sense of community are highly developed.
Of course, all of this comes at the cost of high taxes. That's always the case with Nordic countries. But if it's for improving the quality of life, it seems well worth paying the taxes. In Korean society, which has long emphasized diligence and self-made success, it would be difficult to adopt the Danish system right away. However, isn't it time to face the problems caused by excessive individualism and shift our mindset toward caring for one another as a community living together?
In the end, each individual's happy life becomes possible within the support and consideration of the society they belong to. What we need isn't glamorous success stories or self-help books preaching individual effort, but a tight social safety net that guarantees everyone's well-being. With the election season approaching and all sorts of discussions in the air, I felt we needed to talk a bit more about society, so I'm writing this down.
I was also a bit confused about this, so I asked an AI about individualism and liberalism.
Individualism and liberalism share similarities, but they are distinct concepts.
Individualism is a philosophy that values individual freedom, rights, and choices. In individualism, individual goals, desires, and achievements take precedence over the interests of the group or society. It emphasizes individual autonomy and independence, holding that interference from the collective should be minimized.
On the other hand, liberalism is an ideology that seeks to guarantee individual freedom across political, economic, and social realms. Liberalism places importance on basic human rights, the rule of law, a market economy, and freedom of speech, religion, and thought. It advocates minimizing state intervention and respecting the autonomy of individuals and civil society.
While individualism focuses on an individual's way of living, liberalism focuses on institutionally safeguarding individual liberty. Liberalism is rooted in individualism, yet emphasizes that one's freedom must be protected only to the extent that it does not infringe upon the freedom of others.
Therefore, individualism and liberalism are interrelated, but they are not the same concept. If individualism is a philosophy regarding an individual's way of life, liberalism can be described as an ideology regarding political and economic systems.
Could heartfelt encouragement and support be what an individual can offer?
Personally, I think raising taxes to create a welfare safety net is something we can ponder from a different perspective, rather than framing it around populism or political stances. Lately in Korea—maybe it's just me who feels this way—individualistic tendencies are becoming extremely pronounced. More so than traditional liberalism, people have grown indifferent to others' business and look at society with a detached gaze. In a way, "Why should I care?" seems to have become the default stance.
Like it or not, we must live within the fold of society. Whether I am rich with tens of billions of won or someone who has nothing but their body and passion, we have to live in an organically connected society. In the past, I started a "Praising the Small Stuff Group" with friends. It was called a group, but it was just a KakaoTalk group chat; after running it reasonably well for a while, I ran out of personal bandwidth and stopped running it several years ago. Recently, though, I caught up with a friend after a long time, and they told me that group chat had truly been a huge source of strength.
Closing Thoughts
It makes me reconsider whether what we need isn't "more, more, more," but applause and encouragement. Sometimes, rather than a huge reward, isn't a gentle pat on the back what we really need? Setting aside policy and politics, just as we truly become human when we can lean on one another, would it be too romantic to envision a world where we open our hearts and genuinely cheer each other on to build a better society? The thought just crossed my mind, so I jotted down a few words.