[A Sip of Books] News Announcers Dancing: "I Just Do It Anyway"

Editor's NoteSome sentences encapsulate the entire content of a book, while others instantly resonate with the reader, creating a connection with the book. We excerpt and introduce such meaningful sentences from books.

This is an essay by Jung Younghan, an MBC announcer who earned the nickname "the announcer who dances on the news" through his active and unique activities in various fields. The author calls himself “the luckiest among the unfortunate.” He lived with his mother alone in a small 6-pyeong (approximately 21 square meters) single room and was financially struggling enough to receive meal support throughout elementary, middle, and high school. However, he overcame his circumstances and limitations to achieve his dream of becoming an announcer, and he shares the process and insights in this book. He introduces how to discover and nurture oneself hidden behind others’ gazes, how to find mentors who help achieve goals, and more.

Even after passing the entrance exam, I never imagined myself dancing on the news or appearing on entertainment programs. I simply tried whatever I thought was the best thing to do in the position I was in. Since it’s impossible to satisfy everyone at once, I started with what I could do. Whether others find it strange or welcome it is their business. People often consider jumping in blindly reckless, but perhaps postponing the start until you are certain of others’ reactions is a more foolish and arrogant judgment. - p.108~109, from “Dancing on the News”

Humility is often interpreted as the virtue of subtraction. To quantify it, humility looks admirable when a person who has achieved 100 subtracts 10 from it. Then what about us? Novices who have just taken their first step and remain at 10 are already quick to belittle themselves, leaving nothing to show others. At the beginning stage, it is necessary to focus on oneself rather than expending energy on others. Even if you don’t boast to others, you must know how to think of yourself as admirable. Upon reflection, the virtue of humility does not come from belittling oneself but flows from confidence that remains even after refinement. - p.158, from “The Illusion of Humility”

We need to break free from the fixed notion that one must be grand to give something. Many people grow their businesses with things anyone could do. On the other hand, it’s frustrating to see people who are well-prepared but hesitate to act. They say they lack study or are waiting for the right time to hone their skills, but being overly intoxicated by the pretext of ‘preparation and patience’ often results in losing opportunities to others. In today’s era, quick execution is more valuable than great ideas or plans. Complaints like “I would do it too if it were that easy” or “They got lucky without any skills” are utterly useless. They are just noise making excuses to avoid accepting the past failure to act. You must act immediately. - p.152~153, from “The Fastest Way to Grow: The Producer Mindset”

Rather than being dragged by the pendulum swing of life between desire and boredom, I decided to respond by appropriately repeating these three stages: ‘execution phase,’ ‘buffer phase,’ and ‘reflection phase.’ Saying my life is simply “I worked hard without knowing when I was young, then suddenly lost motivation and now am idling in skepticism” feels less proactive than saying “Thanks to faithfully going through execution and buffer phases and laying the foundation, I achieved my goals and am now growing further through reflection.” Now, my remaining task is to prove the strategies of my life. Even the development of a novel can be divided into various parts such as introduction-development-climax-conclusion or exposition-rising action-crisis-climax-resolution, but does an ideal pattern for our lives really matter? With only the belief that “the end will be glorious,” let’s create a sustainable growth cycle that fits our situation. - p.228~229, from “A Sustainable Growth Cycle”

If I were to pick the part of my life I am most grateful for, it would be that I had mentors?benefactors who cheered me on?whenever I faced difficulties. Even when overwhelmed by the noise around me, thanks to the encouragement and expectations from mentors I admired, I could take steps on the path I wanted to follow. Spending all the money saved during military service on travel expenses, deciding to stop studying and learn at a startup, leaving my first job to start a business, deciding to prepare again to become an announcer after giving up everything, dancing on the news, and even trying to pick up small opportunities by exploring digital channels outside broadcasting?all were met with objections asking why I was doing those things. Looking back at these stories in this book, none started solely from encouragement from many people. Although I made bold choices myself, behind them were always mentors who fully supported my intentions. More precisely, before taking on challenges to gain courage, I sought mentors who would support my thoughts. - p.286~287, from “Behind the Birth of a Hero, There Is Always a Benefactor”

Underdog Mind | Written by Jung Younghan | Whale Book | 328 pages | 18,000 KRW

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