At 33 years old, Kim Woo-jin was seriously contemplating quitting his job at Twishi Korea.
They say every office worker harbors a resignation letter in their heart, but that wasn’t always the case for Kim Woo-jin.
He had solemnly penetrated the narrow job market, squeezing through a needle-like competition to finally land a gig. When he first got hired, he was over the moon, so much so that he actually did a couple of backflips!
However, those days were long gone. Once he hit the fifth year of his career, even that initial enthusiasm had faded away.
He was just going through the motions, without a thought of dedicating himself to the company or spearheading some grand project as a proud member of the team.
“I want to quit.”
All he wished for was a sweet paycheck that came in monthly, occasional holiday bonuses, and extra incentives. The mortgage, car taxes, and living expenses turned him into a slave to money.
So, simply put, Kim Woo-jin was working because of money, and he was, without a doubt, a prime example of today’s office worker.
This wonderful Kim Woo-jin was, like always, battling chronic fatigue while diligently working from early morning.
And then it happened.
“Ho ho ho, good morning, Woo-jin!”
A man arrived who only intensified his desire to resign.
Manager Son Myung-soo, often referred to as Manager Son. He was whimsical, unpredictable, and had clawed his way up the ranks through charm. It was a rather sharp assessment but irrelevant; after all, it was just Woo-jin’s personal thought, one that he shared with no one.
“Hello, Manager. How are you?”
“Why do you look like that, Woo-jin? Didn’t sleep well?”
“Uh, well…”
Woo-jin said, pressing his sore eyelids. Strangely, talking to this guy only seemed to amplify his fatigue.
“Oh dear. A young person should be sleeping well! You can’t just push yourself around because you’re young. You might not feel it now, but if you don’t get proper rest and wander around like a zombie at night, when you hit 40? That’s when the damage hits! It’s not easy dealing with the aftermath.”
“Yes.”
“My friends are like that too. They’re the same age as me, and some of them are even younger by a year or two. But those guys? Once they hit their 40s? They’re all falling apart! Once they cross the mid-40s, it’s like they’re on the brink of death. But look at me! I’ll be fifty in two years, and I’m still spry! What’s that saying nowadays? You know, what do they call a youthful 40-year-old?”
“But look at me, I’m turning fifty next year and I still feel great. What do they call it these days? You know, Woojin, that thing? What do they call people who are in their forties but still act young?”
“What the heck are you talking about? Young forties or whatever, I just wish they’d sit in their place.”
“But Woojin had too much to lose to spit out his true thoughts. He was too deeply ingrained in society, just a weak office worker.”
“…Are you talking about ‘Young-forties’?”
“Young-forties! Exactly, young-forties. It’s that blend of the ambition and energy of the twenties, the trendiness of the thirties—all rolled into one! Sensitive to trends, with the flexibility that comes from financial stability, and lively activities just like those young friends in their twenties. It’s perfect for me!”
“Seems like it.”
These days, the term is more often used to mock those who are aging yet trying to act young—much like the generational divide referenced by the MZ generation. But that was something Team Leader Son didn’t need to know.
After boasting about his own exploits and expounding on the importance of physical fitness for a while, he got to the main point.
“Oh, by the way, gather the employees in the conference room this morning.”
“The conference room?”
“There’s a topic for discussion.”
So at 10 AM, after wrapping up various tasks, Woojin gathered everyone in the conference room.
“Listen up, everyone. It’s not a regular meeting, so what gives? I’m sure many of you are curious. We’ve got a little budget allocation from above.”
“A budget?”
“What kind of budget…”
Murmurs filled the room.
As the employees buzzed, Team Leader Son continued speaking.
“It’s nothing new; they want us to plan a program like last year. They’re hoping we can create something for official broadcast, just like the National Trek last time.”
“Ugh, they said the cast struggled too much and got a ton of backlash.”
“The viewers weren’t thrilled either…”
However, the team leader shook his head, following orders from above.
“But still, doing something is important. We can’t just leave it hanging without any program, right?”
On the surface, it sounded like a really cool line, but all Woojin could manage was a sigh.
He knew all too well that it was all glitz and no substance. He knew there was no accountability; the great ideas would lead to Team Leader Son’s accolades while the employees who came up with them just ended up with more workload. He witnessed this magical outcome too many times.
Even if good ideas were offered, the results would inevitably end up in Manager Son’s stomach, and the employee who came up with the idea would only find their workload magically increasing, something I’ve seen happen more times than I can count.
“Alright, alright, anyone got a good idea? I’m not that uptight. Open mind. The very definition of trendy. I’ll listen to any opinion and decide whether to accept it, so everyone, share your thoughts.”
Knowing this fact, the employees were not in a hurry to speak up. Even under the manager’s urging, the staff kept their mouths shut.
The meeting room was filled with employees who were busy reading the room, leaving only silence hanging in the air.
“Did our employees seriously have nothing to say? Is their creativity really this lacking? Hmmm….”
Frustrated by the continued silence, the manager rolled up his sleeves and took matters into his own hands.
“Let’s see, isn’t that trending these days? Intern Park.”
Intern Park. A 26-year-old contractor who had joined the internship program three weeks ago.
However, even at the call of the manager, and under the flood of gazes, he remained silent and unresponsive.
“Intern Park? Intern Park?”
“Oh, yes. Yes, Manager.”
“Can you focus a bit during the meeting? Young people these days can’t concentrate, can they?”
It was only after a colleague nudged him that Intern Park was jolted back to reality.
“Uh, you know that thing we saw recently, Intern Park?”
“What thing are you talking about….”
“You know, the one where streamers come on and work out. Running around like crazy with the handles. I caught you watching it during work hours.”
“Ah….”
Intern Park shot a look of dismay at his surroundings.
But Woojin didn’t particularly care. Whether Intern Park was slacking off watching streamers during work hours was not his concern.
Still, at least he was wasting time watching an internet broadcast. Monitoring a streamer’s broadcast was also part of a Twitch Korea employee’s job, so it couldn’t be called a complete abandonment of duty.
“I get it, I get it, you don’t need to make excuses. I didn’t bring it up to scold you for not working right now.”
“But why about that time….”
“Look, health is trending these days too. I thought if streamers got together to work out like that, it would be trendy and good, right?”
“Why not gather the streamers and have them exercise together like before? It sounds trendy and great.”
That guy’s trendiness…
Woojin sighed internally but, on a separate note, couldn’t help but think that Team Leader Son’s idea wasn’t half bad. The exercise broadcast that Intern Park was watching probably referred to Ring Fit.
If it was a broadcast where one grips the handle and performs all kinds of movements, there was hardly anything else.
Hosting a Ring Fit tournament where everyone exercises together and gives out prizes based on performance? It’s as straightforward as it gets, yet the viewers would have no choice but to tune in.
“If we just get the participant streamer lineup right…”
It seemed like the results wouldn’t be bad.
Besides, he didn’t want to drag out the meeting by contradicting Team Leader Son’s opinion unnecessarily.
“I think it’s a good idea, Team Leader.”
“Right? Woojin, young blood like you recognizes my trendiness! It’s all because I have a knack for spotting trends despite my age.”
“I’ll compile a list of streamers we can invite among the employees and submit a report.”
And just like that, the meeting was over. If Woojin hadn’t taken the lead, Team Leader Son’s monologue would’ve stretched beyond two hours, just like last time.
*
[Is the Twishi Workshop up??]
– Live Ring Fit with 20 simultaneous participants!
– Health improvement for the public, led by streamers!
Lineup: Han Kang, Hakchu, Quickjoo, Riri, Taker, Kayak…
Ring Fit Workshop chat LOL Twishi Korea is on fire LOL
– Oh, Ring Fit
– It better not be as boring as last time’s workshop, right?
– The lineup looks fun already LOL
– I hope many women show up, heh heh…
– Legal moaning sound appreciation meeting ㄷㄷㄷ
– Just having Kayak on the lineup is worth watching
– Kayak’s gonna hit 30,000 viewers LOL
– Finally gonna see the legendary Kayak movement that Wonjun was talking about?
ㄴ Who’s Wonjun?
ㄴ That person who recently linked a well-received analysis post about Kayak on stream
ㄴ They deleted that post
ㄴ Really? Why did they delete it?
ㄴ LOL They were obviously buttering Kayak up on stream. Isn’t it weird they didn’t delete it before?
ㄴ Honestly, it was a post that could lead to a lawsuit, no joke.
ㄴ Kayak probably won’t sue, which is a shame. It was a masterpiece.
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