Hidden attractions visited by Koreans

When Paychecks Start Coming Late, Companies Collapse in Stages When a paycheck is delayed by a day or two, you don’t feel anxious right away. “It’s probably just this month.” “Everyone’s struggling these days.” That’s what you tell yourself. But at some point, you stop counting pay dates and start watching people’s faces. This is a story about the order in which a company collapses once paychecks start coming late. I. Stage One — Senior Employees First In companies of a certain size, restructuring usually begins before pay is delayed. Small businesses are different. Late paychecks happen more often than you might expect. Every company handles it differently, but pay delays often begin with people who hold titles, or those the owner feels are easier to pressure. People still ne...

In any organization, when someone new joins, people tend to watch a little more closely. How nervous they look. How hard they try. How carefully they read the room. Even if we don’t work directly with them, seeing someone tense and cautious can make us think: “They’ll probably do well.” And if we happen to meet someone from the new hire’s team, we often ask, “How are they?” Whether they realize it or not, new employees can’t really avoid being evaluated. This is a story a friend told me—about handing over work to a newly hired employee. I. “Wait… where did she go?” After an acquisition, my friend had to hand over a set of responsibilities that one person had been doing alone— accounting, cash management, HR, and general administration— to different owners in the merged company. What was supposed to be “one mo...

This isn’t a “viral” story. But it’s the kind of thing that can happen in any workplace—quietly, casually, and then it stays with you. I. Second-year Assistant Manager at a 20-person company There’s one clear advantage to working at a small company: you get hands-on experience fast, and you grow fast. By my second year as an assistant manager, I was already negotiating with overseas distributors— handling consultations, discussing contract terms, and making real decisions at the front line. When a deal closed, I felt a strange pride—like I’d become the kind of “business person” you only see on TV. And because I could feel myself improving, my satisfaction with work was high. Right around the time I was gaining momentum, I got scolded by the director who had always taken care of me—someone known as a genuinely good person. II. “Why did you do it like this?” ...

This is a story about someone I know. I’ll tell it from her point of view. I. Where did it start to go wrong? The work never ends. And somehow, I’m packing my laptop again. After feeding the kids, doing the dishes, and finishing the laundry, it’s already 10 p.m. That’s when I start working. My body has been unwell for a while. 1 a.m. “I have to go to work tomorrow… I should sleep.” At the company, I’m considered the core person. Everyone assumes my salary must be huge. But what I actually earn is among the lowest for my age and title. “Because I’m not a developer?” “Because I’m married?” I worked at a tax accounting office for over ten years. When I joined this company, my first responsibilities were accounting and cash management. Then HR tas...