Huijeon Ryu (40 yrs old / Incheon, Korea)

During the Asian Financial Crisis when the IMF bailed out Korea, our company went into receivership and then merged with another company. In 2004, as everything was still unsettled and changing chaotically, a new vice president was assigned to our company. He used to work in the field of finance and had no idea about printing. All the employees pretended to be nice and friendly towards him, but somehow they were also wary of, ignored, and looked down on him.

Nevertheless, what he showed us was pretty impressive. He never seemed distracted or showed hesitation, and he even went to each one of the employees and tried to talk to us. He never asked us to come to see him in his office, instead he came up to us to ask questions like, “These days, what do you find difficult while working?” or “Do you have any concerns or problems?” He worked hard on studying and trying to better understand the printing field. When it was hectic and busy, I saw him standing right in front of the printing machine and assisting in the work.

I once thought about quitting my job because I was so exhausted from the workload, but he and I had many conversations and I was able to get through it with him.

He told me, “I understand you are having a difficult time working here and you want to move to another company. Of course that would be great too. But, don’t you think it’s also worthwhile to make this company more stable and stronger by putting more effort into it?”

Our vice president was one who always set a good example. And because all the employees were encouraged by him, our company ended up getting back to normal and started functioning properly again.

Whenever I got the chance to talk with him, it felt like he was sincerely listening to an employee’s mind. Regardless of one’s position or hierarchy, I felt relaxed while talking to him as he would listen to whatever I had to say.  Having watched him for many years, I’ve realized what it means to harmonize like how water flows whenever and wherever you are. That is exactly what he did. I really want to be like him, and I’m getting more and more interested in this meditation that he practiced.


Source: maummonthly.com