Pics from Joey (thanks!)

Here are some pictures that Joey sent from the party. He and Justin were basically the only ones who remembered to bring something for the Kris Kringle, so they exchanged some funny gifts. Justin brought several varieties of everyone's favorite drink, Soju. And Joey was kind enough to bring a lovely Christmas sweater!

Christmas Party Video!

Here it is folks...the Christmas Party 2006 video. Hope you enjoy it! Tell me what you think!

Jason

Christmas Party 2006

Well, I want to thank everyone who came to the ASK Now and ETO Christmas Party 2006.

It was an amazing time! Some of you came from near, others from far away (Eric coming all the way from Gwangju may be the furthest, but Aaron in Gumi and myself from Daegu were far enough as well. Anyone else from further? Sorry if I left you out!)

Anyhow, it was a great time, and our hosts at The Wolfhound worked really hard to keep up with our need for more and more beer! It was a great experience to see everyone get along so well, and I think a lot of people made a lot of new friends.

Throughout the evening, there were a couple of common themes that I heard. I certainly got the idea that this is something that we should do more often, and that even if it was a "go Dutch" style, that people would be very interested in getting together more often. That sounds good, and we are certainly going to work on that.

Another thing that was amazing to hear were the many compliments we received. I'd really like to thank all of you who took the time to tell us that we are doing a good job. You have no idea how much that means to all of us. We really are trying to do our best to help create a good experience for those who want to teach in Korea. And, hearing your feedback, it seems like were on the right track. Thank you very much for taking the time to let us know personally that you are happy with things. I say that on behalf of all of the ASK Now and ETO staff who were there, and those still working hard in Canada who couldn't make it (but will for a future party, I'm sure)

I hope you had the chance to exchange contact information with each other, and that new friendships (romances?) were created. I will work on a bulletin board type of thing for the site, and will have it for all ASK Now clients to use to communicate with each other, so that perhaps spontaneous parties may arise, and people can help each other with advice on places to go etc...

From seeing how people got along and had a great time, I think we have a real opportunity to create an outlet for a group of people who are in Korea, enjoying themselves, and want to meet with like-minded people.

For those who couldn't make it, no worries, there will be another party soon enough. Be sure to make it for the next one if possible!

As always, any feedback on how things worked out is much appreciated. You can comment on the blog or e-mail me with any comments or suggestions.

Anyhow, once again, Merry Christmas to all of our clients and their guests, and I hope 2007 is successful for everyone!

Jason

What Are You Waiting For?

That's a good question, isn't it?

If you're considering teaching in Korea, or making any significant move,
what are you waiting for?

The perfect moment? For everything to be "just right?" For someone to
push you to go ahead?

One thing I've learned is that action is a very important factor in any
undertaking. While thinking about something and having a positive
attitude towards it is a good start, you must then take action steps
towards the accomplishment of this goal. No action, no forward motion.

What are some examples of action?

Fill out an application.

Have an interview.

Review a contract.

Put your car up for sale.

Give your boss notice.

There are so many different little steps that you can take that will help
you build momentum towards the big steps. But, you have to start with
that forward motion in order to build up towards the big decisions.

When I decided to return to Korea, one of the big steps I took was to book
a plane ticket. That was a pretty defining moment. Once you "go hard on
the money", you become more committed to a project.

So, in a moment of self-confidence, take a bold step forward, and you'll
see that you will begin to progress. This applies not only to pursuing a
job overseas, but to anything that you want to accomplish.

So, what are you waiting for? Make a move!

Jason

Getting Ready to Party

Tomorrow we will be having our ASK Now/ETO Christmas Party. Looks like we
will have over 60 people there. That's pretty exciting!

For those who can't make it to this party, we will certainly have
something else in the new year. Perhaps we can get together for a ski
trip? We'll see.

Aside from that, we're getting ready to head home for Christmas soon. The
only issue there is that I don't have a passport. Wait, that's not true.
I have a passport, but it is in the possession of Korean Immigration.
They are processing my F2 visa. It may only be ready the day before we
leave, so that's a bit tight. Oh well!

I'll be happy when that's taken care of because it means I won't have to
worry about visas for a very long time and will be able to come and go as
I please, and not worry about work permits etc... Very nice.

Too bad Canada is tougher with this process. For something similar in
Canada, it would cost about $1500 CDN, but here, it costs about $50 or
somewhere around there to process.

So, that has nothing to do with a party...but...still getting ready for a
party!

It's Nice to Know People are Flying Right Now

As I check my e-mail this morning, I realized something. Right now, there
is likely someone flying overhead who is on their way to Korea in small
part thanks to our business.

That's a pretty good feeling. I like the idea of helping people get on a
plane and fly over to a whole new place. It's particularly nice because
it is a fairly long process for most people. Not everyone makes the cut.
Some people decide that it's not for them.

But, for those who decide it's right, it's good to know that they are
possibly on a plane as you read this. Look up and wave!

Jason

Did You Know You Can E-mail Your Blog?

Of course you do...

Well, I figured it must be possible, but I didn't think it would be so easy.

So, now that I know how to simply post to the blog by sending an e-mail, I
will do so more often. Although I like Blogger, I don't like having to
log in evertime I have something to say.

However, I do spend hours a day logged into my e-mail, so it's nice to
know that I can just send an e-mail and have an up to date blog.

Jason

The Party is Getting Big!

From the response we've received, it looks like we are easily going to
break the 50 people mark at the ASK Now/ETO Christmas Party.

That's exciting news. I'm happy that I will finally meet many people who
we've dealt with over the last while, but have not seen face to face. It
will be a great opportunity to socialize.

Be sure to sign up if you haven't already. Late entries will be accepted!
See you there...

Jason

I'll be home for Christmas

You can count on me.

Cool People in Korea

Contrary to my previous post about weird people in Korea, I must also say that there are plenty of cool people in Korea.

This weekend, my wife and I headed to Aryanna hotel in Daegu to meet her teacher and some of her teacher's friends. First, a blurb on Aryanna hotel: It's a beer and food buffet. All you can eat and drink for 15,000 won. This goes on until 9pm. After that, there is another all you can drink buffet for 15,000 won...but the food part is out, except for a few snacks. We arrived after 9pm, so I missed all the good food. But my wife had been before and said it was really good. During this whole time, there is a band from the Philippines playing live English music.

So, we went there and had a great time. It had been a while since I'd been out doing the "foreigner thing". There are lots of foreigners who head out to this event, thus making it a good mix of foreign and Korean.

We made a couple of new friends, and in typical living in Korea style, got along right away. It had been a while for me, so I forgot about the vibe of going out, meeting other teachers, and then partying together like you were friends since being in school.

We all headed out to another couple of places together and everyone had fun.

The point of this story? Go out...have fun...meet people. It's neat how you can hit it off so quickly, and how people are so easy to get along with. You will make some great friends while teaching in Korea.

Some you will see often, some you will lose touch with. But, even if you don't seem them in 2 years, when you meet up again, it will be natural to get along just like old times.

Jason

Weird People in Korea

I've been reminded that there is no lack of weird foreingers in Korea. While I would say the majority of people who teach English in Korea are pretty normal, there is a fairly high number of weirdos.

It has been my experience that these are the folks who create the negative image you sometimes come across about teaching in Korea. Whereas they can speak English with great fluency, their social skills are, errr...lacking.

Korea seems to be a great place not only for recent grads looking for an opportunity to explore the world, but it also attracts those who were, dare I say, outcasts back home.

Yes, Korea does offer a great place to run away. When you think about it, the qualifications are not that hard to obtain. Plus, when you can sneak in without a face to face interview, you're just asking for trouble.

I was reminded of this when over the weekend I was at a certain meeting for teachers. There was a presenter who did a great job. However, a few of the participants were...well...just plain weird.

So, what do I mean? Have you ever been to a presentation or a class where someone consistently asks questions or makes comments that no one else understands? Everyone else just sits there and kind of cringes, feeling bad for the presenter.

The presenter acts nice and tries to answer the question or comment, and get back on with the presentation. This happens several times throughout the presentation. You know the kind of person I'm talking about.

Well, like I was saying, I forgot these people were around. But...they are! So, I guess our goal at ASK Now is to reduce the amount of people we send who would fall into the category of "about to be fired." Not only do these people get themselves fired, they also tend to be the ones that are most outspoken.

But, their written English is good...so they come across as rational people (for the most part). But, if you were to sit down and have a conversation with one of these chaps, you would realize that listening to their opinion is the last thing you want to do.

Well, I guess that's it...I don't want it to seem like I'm complaining or making fun of people. I just want people to understand that you may work with some strange cats, and that some strange cats may be posting not so positive remarks about decent places.

So...watch out for weirdos!

Jason