What Kind of Society Loses Its Future

What Kind of Society Loses Its Future

Having lived in Korea for a long time,

I've come to feel one principle deeply.

And this principle,

I believe, is the minimum foundation that not only Korea but any society must remember.

The statement is very simple.

As we go through life,

we sometimes see people being treated at psychiatric hospitals,

we hear about the lives of people held in correctional facilities,

we encounter people working without a moment to catch their breath in convenience stores or service jobs,

and we meet people barely getting through each day out on the streets.

From the outside,

it might look as if someone's life has stopped.

Or as if they've failed.

Some people may be standing far behind others at the starting line.

But no one is an "insignificant being."

The moment this principle collapses,

that society begins to lose some very important capacities.

First, it loses the ability to discover new possibilities.

Creativity always comes from unexpected places.

In the overlooked seats, the quiet seats, the small seats,

the seeds of innovation often grow.

A society that treats people as insignificant

throws away the very chance to discover those seeds.

Second, those who make mistakes lose the room to get back up.

Everyone makes mistakes.

Only a society with space to recover from those mistakes

keeps from losing its talent.

Korea is unusually short on this kind of structure.

Third, the creative energy that comes from diversity disappears.

If you don't respect that people are all different,

society cuts everyone down to a single mold.

That mold is comfortable, but in exchange,

it keeps world-changing innovation from ever being born.

Fourth, trust disappears.

A society where respect has vanished

runs on fear and defensiveness.

Rather than moving forward, people start watching one another.

Such a society does not last long.

Because I've lived in Korea,

I was able to learn, through direct experience,

the ways in which Korea has lost respect.

And I can only speak based on that experience.

On the other hand, because I haven't yet lived in another society,

I try not to make sweeping judgments about those societies or to draw comparisons.

Everywhere has its strengths and weaknesses,

and every society carries its own challenges.

But there is one thing I can say clearly.

A society that does not respect people

loses innovation,

loses opportunity,

loses its future.

Because in the end, that society

depletes its most important resource—"people"—by its own hand.

"Whoever the person standing before you may be,

however insignificant they may seem to you,

never judge them carelessly.

That one small act of respect saves a person's life,

and changes the future of a society."

I learned that.

Very painfully, and very clearly.