I am an editorial writer at The Korea Times, focusing on foreign policy, North Korea and domestic politics. My key areas of interest include North Korea, foreign interference in elections, election integrity, cyberattacks and human rights. Prior to joining the Editorial Board, I served as both Politics Desk editor and Culture Desk editor. During my career, I have reported on the Presidential Office under the Lee Myung-bak administration, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Assembly.
Books tout social media as cash cow
By Kang Hyun-kyung
In the digital age, social media is central. Experts laud digital technology for empowering individuals, who were previously powerless and couldn't make their voices heard, to influence the world.
Some authors portray social media as cash cows that can help internet users earn more and work less, encouraging those who are sick and tired of nine-to-five jobs to turn their attention to building influential social media presences and selling products as sales representatives or attracting online advertising.
Unlike offline business, they claim social media-based startups need no huge investment and naturally there are virtually no financial risks to take even if their businesses don't thrive.
Emma Gannon, author of “The Multi-Hyphen Method: Work Less, Create More and Design a Career that Works for You,” is one of the cheerleaders of digital technology.
“The Multi-Hyphen Method: Work Less, Create More and Design a Career that Works for You” by Emma Gannon
By Kang Hyun-kyung
The multi-hyphen lifestyle in her book title refers to diversification of income sources through multiple jobs as seen in job titles, for example, professor-author-YouTube creator.
She claims the multi-hyphen lifestyle is “about having a mishmash of projects going on with different income streams attached that make up a salary, instead of it coming from one source.”
Gannon, a British social media influencer with over 1 million subscribers, observes that traditional work culture in which employees are tied to their workplace all day long is undergoing significant change in the digital era, saying the old way works against efficiency and lowers morale of job holders.
“The notion of the nine-to-five working day was established in the Victorian era when no one really cared about the workers so it's no surprise that it bewilders the modern generation,” her book reads. “This is a generation who earn money from their bedrooms because they want to (maybe but also because they have to). It's confusing to have work emails on our phones while we're simultaneously told to work a rigid nine-to-five.”
Gannon wrote that technology has allowed people to rebel against what has been the norm for so many years. “It has given us more freedom than we ever dreamed of. We can change our set parameters of the working day, use tools and machinery to tick off items on our work-to-do list,” she states.
Her book implies that internet is a game changer that has fueled a paradigm shift in the work-life balance. “The internet has led to rises and falls too, for example: the fall of large-scale glossy magazines and the rise of our own curated magazines by real people on Instagram: the fall of traditional celebrity and the rise of internet fame of the everyday person.”
“Nomadic Businessman: The Secret to Success in One-Person Business” by Lee Seung-jun
Lee Seung-jun's book, titled “Nomadic Businessman: The Secret to Success in One-Person Business” published by Raon Books, echoes the same message.
He portrays social media as a prime platform to generate enormous income if users make the most of it.
“We are living in an era where social media influencers can earn much more money than landlords who own multiple buildings. Our wealth hinges on the online platforms we create,” he says.
The author himself is a one-person entrepreneur having several part-time jobs. He has a blog with 36,000 subscribers and teaches aspiring online startup founders how to build influential social media. He is also an author of two books. He said each of his jobs compliments each other, meaning his status as an author of two books helps him promote himself as a lecturer and as a social media-based businessman.
Gannon and Lee promote social media and digital technology as blessings for ordinary people and describe them as a panacea to go up in the socio-economic ladder.
They are skeptics of full-time jobs and one profession for life. Lee, for example, says salaried workers are stuck in the consuming circle of long hours of work and income that falls short of allowing them to balance their work and life.
It remains uncertain if their sweeping praise of social media as a springboard to their financial success holds true for everyone. Many people have their own social media accounts but few succeed in monetizing their social media activities.