Living Abroad: How Teaching in South Korea Changed One Woman's Life

Episode #0014

Ever feel like you're stuck in a never-ending cycle of work just to survive? That's exactly where Renee found herself before making a life-changing decision to move halfway across the world.

After spending 14 years in the U.S. working two jobs just to stay afloat, she took a leap of faith and moved to South Korea to teach English. Nearly 14 years later, she's still there—and she has zero regrets.

Escaping the "Capitalist Hell"

"For the greater part of 14 years, I was working two jobs just to survive," Renee explains. Working accounting jobs by day and retail or catering on weekends, she was making decent money, but it wasn't going anywhere.

"I was sleeping and working. That's basically how it felt," she recalls.

The American Dream? Not quite. Despite her hard work, the high tax rates and rising costs of living meant she was barely keeping her head above water. Sound familiar?

When friends from college started teaching overseas, Renee began considering alternatives to what she bluntly calls "capitalist hell." Teaching English to children in South Korea sounded more appealing than the exhausting grind she was trapped in.

Taking the Leap

The decision wasn't made lightly. Renee researched South Korea for years before making the move. She even interviewed with a Japanese ESL program but postponed her plans during the 2008 financial crisis when the Korean won plummeted against the U.S. dollar.

When she finally boarded that plane in 2011, at age 40, she admits she spent half the flight in tears. "What have I done?" she wondered. The journey was grueling—over 30 hours from Atlanta to Seoul, followed by a four-hour bus ride to Jeonju, where she'd be teaching.

Imagine arriving in a foreign country in the middle of the night, exhausted, uncertain, and unable to communicate. That was Renee's introduction to her new life.

Cultural Shock: The Good, The Bad, and The Unexpected

Adjusting to life in South Korea came with its share of surprises. Like the time an elderly Korean woman ran up to her on the street, shouted "USA number one!" then grabbed her chest before running away giggling. Talk about a welcome!

"How do you react to that?" Renee laughs. "I just started laughing... it was like, 'Welcome to Korea!'"

The work culture in South Korea presents its own challenges. Despite escaping the need to work multiple jobs, Renee found the Korean work ethic intense. With just 10 vacation days per year (many of which the school decides for you), and employers often reluctant to approve time off, it's a grind in its own way.

"I love living in Korea, but I get tired of working in Korea," she admits. The students, however, make it worthwhile. "I love my students. They're amazing, they're so smart, they make me laugh all day."

Another cultural difference? The direct commentary on appearance. "Koreans will very much tell you how they feel about your appearance, good or bad," Renee explains. "They think it's helpful to tell you if they think you're fat or if they don't think you're handsome or pretty."

Finding Community

Luckily, Renee wasn't alone in her journey. She quickly connected with other English teachers, forming a tight-knit community of expats from the U.S., UK, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Ireland.

"We would go eat Korean barbecue together or see shows together," she recalls. The group even organized events like murder mysteries to raise money for local orphanages and performed The Vagina Monologues to support a women's shelter.

These connections proved vital in navigating her new life and maintaining her mental health so far from home.

The Language Barrier

Despite living in Korea for almost 14 years, Renee admits her Korean language skills aren't where she'd like them to be. Between her teaching schedule, lesson planning, and general exhaustion, finding time to master Korean has been challenging.

"To become fully good at speaking the language, it's over 2,000 hours of study," she explains. "With my teaching schedule, of course, my job is speaking English... and then I'm tired, I'm not gonna lie."

The Education System

Renee teaches at a "hagwon," a private academy where students go after their regular school day. The commitment to education in Korea is intense—children attend school all day, then often go to multiple hagwons afterward to study different subjects.

"They're always studying," Renee says. "Their parents constantly have them study, study, study, study."

This relentless focus on education stems from Korea's competitive culture and its rapid economic transformation following the Korean War. Students work tirelessly to get into top universities, hoping to secure jobs at prestigious companies like Samsung or LG.

Finding a New Perspective

Living abroad has changed Renee in profound ways. It's given her a different lens through which to view her home country and taught her about her own resilience.

"It's taught me how adaptable I can be and how strong and self-reliant I can be," she reflects. "When you live abroad and everything is different, it teaches you how to take care of yourself in a way that I never knew was possible."

She's become an avid solo traveler, refusing to let fear limit her experiences. "There's this perception that the world is such a scary, dangerous place. And while there are scary people in it, I think more of us than not are good."

Where Is Home?

When asked where home is now, Renee pauses. "I wish I knew. I'm still looking for home."

She describes expat life as being "fragmented"—when she's in Korea, there's much about America she misses (particularly her friends and, oddly specific, turkey and dill pickles). Yet when she visits the U.S., she finds herself missing Korea after just a couple of weeks.

"No matter where you are living or exploring, you still leave parts of yourself in the cultures you've lived in," she explains.

Finding Happiness in Experiences, Not Things

For Renee, happiness isn't about collecting possessions but about collecting experiences. She's not interested in designer handbags or status symbols—she craves new challenges, new places, new adventures.

"I love to learn new things and have new experiences," she says. "Seeing new places or riding horses in Mongolia... eating snails for the first time in Cambodia, those weird little things—those stick with me more than physical things."

Her Instagram account showcases her photography skills and love of travel, though she admits feeling conflicted about being in front of the camera. "It feels narcissistic sometimes," she says, "but I'm trying to show people my life and travels."

Should You Move Abroad?

Renee encourages others to consider living abroad, even if just for a short time, but emphasizes the importance of research before making the leap.

"I would definitely research before you make the leap," she advises. "Do at least minimal research about what you should be given on your visa, what's legal, what's illegal."

South Korea, she suggests, is a good entry point for those interested in teaching English abroad, with less cultural shock than other Asian countries might present.

"It's a good place to begin and test if this is really what you want to do with your life," she says.

The Lesson

Renee's story reminds us that sometimes the best way to change your life is to completely upend it. While moving abroad isn't for everyone, her experience shows how stepping outside your comfort zone can lead to personal growth, new perspectives, and a richer, more fulfilling life.

As work cultures around the world continue to evolve and younger generations question the value of sacrificing everything for a paycheck, stories like Renee's offer an alternative vision—one where quality of life takes precedence over grinding yourself down just to survive.

Would you consider making a similar move? What's holding you back? Sometimes the scariest decisions lead to the most rewarding journeys.

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