[Voices of the MZ Generation Column] I Have Decided to Become a Trustworthy Person

Recently, our society has been bustling with many issues. However, if we closely examine the essence of these problems, it seems that a significant portion stems from a ‘loss of trust’ in one another. Anxiety about not getting security deposits back, inability to entrust important matters to others, worries about whether one’s child might be harmed?these many forms of distrust are amplifying conflicts in our society.

Yet, to form a society and live among others, we must inevitably place varying degrees of trust in them. But as betrayals of trust occur too frequently, it seems that a state of distrust toward everyone is accumulating. Another name for distrust is anxiety.

There are understandable reasons why we have come to ‘not trust’ others. From stores that deceive about product origins, to jeonse (long-term lease) fraud, voice phishing, cryptocurrency scams, leading-room scams, and secondhand frauds, such deceptions are rampant. Almost everyone has likely been scammed at least once in their life. In a society where one can be easily taken advantage of, trusting salespeople or dealers too readily often leads to being unfairly burdened. Without recording transaction details, it is common for people to deny ever having said certain things.

In such a society, sometimes by raising one’s voice and insisting loudly, one might experience having prices lowered or their will carried out, leading to a basic attitude of ‘suspicion’ toward others. We have unwittingly created a world where if you do not suspect others or do not raise your voice, you end up ‘losing out.’ According to one survey, Korea’s social capital index ranks 107th in the world, supporting claims that it is a low-trust society.

It is difficult to say there is an easy solution to such a social condition. While establishing legal and administrative systems to minimize harm and guide society toward mutual respect is necessary, that alone is insufficient. Ultimately, to become a society where people trust, rely on, and can entrust important matters to each other, individuals must change their hearts and culture. Immediate improvements to systems are needed, but in the long term, we also need to change ourselves and each other.

Personally, I try to be a ‘trustworthy’ person in such a society. When someone trusts me and entrusts me with something, I strive to live up to that trust to the best of my ability. I consider betraying trust the most frightening thing and try to be someone who meets others’ trust. In fact, even if this seems somewhat old-fashioned, I believe it is a practice for the sake of society. It means shouldering the trust given to me well. Especially when working as a lawyer, I believe that others’ lives are at stake and try to devote myself fully.

Furthermore, through this life, I hope to gather trustworthy people one by one like collecting pebbles. If the concentric circles of these ‘trustworthy people’ gradually expand, it will eventually lead to changes in society and culture. As part of this effort, I also created the newsletter ‘All Cultures of the World,’ a ‘solidarity of writers.’

Becoming a ‘trustworthy’ person myself and continuously connecting each other through trust may be the core of what I want to do. I want to create a trustworthy fence in this small life, protect its radius, and carry out that work.

Jung Ji-woo, Cultural Critic

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.