When you have a job, you spend a third of your day with your co-workers. Each country has a different culture, so each individual thinks differently. At work, you have to work on many things together with your colleagues. Maybe that's why you can feel the cultural difference the most when working in a foreign country. Hansung Kim left Korea and came to the Netherlands to work as a barber in Netherlands. Mike from the US works in the Korean branch of an American company. Through the eyes of the two people, we hear about the life that they experience while working as foreigners.
1. Please introduce yourself!
︎ Hansung
︎︎︎ Hello, my name is Hansung Kim, and I’m currently working as a barber specialising in men’s haircuts in the Netherlands. Before I came to the Netherlands, I was born in Korea and raised in Ansan, a small city near Seoul. So it’s my first time living abroad after living in Korea for 26 years. Somehow, it’s already been 2 years since I started working, learning, and enjoying here.
![]()
Photo by Hansung
︎ Mike
︎︎︎ My name is Mike, I am from the USA, and I am 28 years old. I have been living in Korea for about 7 months, working with my American company as an expatriate.
![]()
Photo by Mike
2. How did you come to live in the Netherlands or in Korea? Is there a specific reason that you have chosen to live in that country?
︎ Hansung
︎︎︎ When I was in Korea, I wanted to be a composer making music. I started learning music when I was 20 and tried for 6 years to be a composer, and yet there was very little progress to be recognised. I decided to go to Australia to study. But I met a dream girl in the Philippines, where I went for the last trip with my friends just two weeks before my departure. She was also on a trip with her friends. Fate led us to continue our contact even after returning to Korea. As she meant more than my dream, I cancelled my flight to Australia and stayed in Korea. But soon, I felt that my personal growth was standing still the more I stayed in Korea. After a deep conversation, we came to understand each other's situation and decided to leave our relationship behind and follow our dreams again. I like dealing with appearance and doing things with my hands, so I came up with the idea of learning male haircuts and becoming a professional barber. To become a barber, in particular, it's important where you start learning, and the Netherlands is the hometown for Barber culture and the best place to learn the technique. This is how I came to the Netherlands, a country with the best barbershop in the world.
![]()
Photo by Hansung
︎ Mike
︎︎︎ I live in Korea because of an opportunity to work here with our partner company. We have a few different options for working abroad at my company; however, I prefer East Asia to Europe or Latin America, so Korea was my top choice.
3. How long do you plan to stay in that country?
︎ Hansung
︎︎︎ At first, I only planned to stay for a year. I couldn't even think of working as a barber here. One day, my dutch friend showed me a barbershop and said, "you should apply for this. They are hiring a new barber, and you're so bad at cutting my hair. You should go and learn there." There was nothing to lose on my end, so I applied for the job. Apparently, I must have given a strong impression during the job interview. I got the job and have been working till now. I've been living in the Netherlands for 2 years now, but I plan to stay one more year and look forward to my future goals.
︎ Mike
︎︎︎ I am working under a 2-year contract, so I will most likely stay in Korea for about 2 years.
4. Name one thing you love & hate about the country you live in currently.
︎ Hansung
︎︎︎ Living in the western culture, the best thing I found out here is the people. The friendliness and comfort from local people is something that I couldn't feel in Korea. However, the weather in the Netherlands is very unpredictable, perhaps because it is a country surrounded by the sea. You can experience hail, rain, sunshine, and clouds, all in one day. This is the kind of weather that you will never be able to experience elsewhere.
︎ Mike
︎︎︎ In Korea, I really enjoy how much cleaner public areas are, how much safer it is, and how much better and respectful everyone is with concerns about Covid-19. Besides the winter weather, there isn’t much I dislike, but I feel some sympathy for things other people dislike in Korea, such as income inequality and pressure to look and act a certain way. As a foreigner and company worker, these issues do not apply to me, but I understand it is difficult for many Korean people.
5. Is there a difference in the relationship between you and your colleagues compared to when you were working in your home country? How’s the working environment compared to your own country?
︎ Hansung
︎︎︎ There's a strict hierarchy between the owner and employee in Korea, whereas a 100% horizontal relationship applies here. There is no clear concept of an owner, and we treat each other as if they were just friends, so you can easily discuss with each other when you have personal concerns. Even when learning work, rather than scolding people for making mistakes or making mistakes, we discuss how it happened and how to improve it.
︎ Mike
︎︎︎ The working environment is a bit different, I think, mostly because of cultural differences. In meetings in my home country, many people sometimes speak at the same time, whereas in Korea, each person takes their turn to speak. We have many conference rooms with closed doors to have these meetings whereas this does not exist in the Korean office I work in.
︎ Hansung
︎︎︎ I don't have experience in the same field in Korea, but I'm sure that it's a lot different. The power that comes from language is very powerful. Since Korean culture is based on Confucianism, you respect people you meet for the first time and address them in an honorific. However, when you speak Dutch or English with customers, you can keep the conversation going as if you were old friends and work in a more relaxed atmosphere.
︎ Mike
︎︎︎ In my home country, colleagues are more social during the workday, and the office is much louder. However, in Korea, it seems more than everyone focuses on work during the day and separates social life.
6. How do you feel, as a foreigner, at your workplace? When do you feel the most like a foreigner?
︎ Hansung
︎︎︎ As the Netherlands is one of the countries where many nationalities and cultures are mixed up, most of the barbershop employees are foreigners. So I don't particularly feel "foreigner" among my colleagues from different countries, such as the US, Morocco, Italy, Colombia, Greece, and the Netherlands. Occasionally, when I have a Korean customer, I usually bow to greet them. My colleague once saw it and asked, "Han, do you indeed greet everyone like that in Korea?"
![]()
Photo by Hansung
︎ Mike
︎︎︎ In my case, there must be some people that are surprised to see a foreigner at my office, but mostly nobody acts differently. Given we have meetings in English and I work more closely with American colleagues, I do not feel too much like a foreigner most of the time.
7. What gives you the most stress?
︎ Hansung
︎︎︎ Missing Korea, I think. I miss my friends, and I miss Korean food. I think anyone living abroad must feel the same way. The job itself is more fun than in Korea. But to achieve something in a foreign country, you have to be patient. There's nothing to gain without pain.
︎ Mike
︎︎︎ The most stressful part of work is trying to be a representative of my American company in a country with a different company and work culture. It can be quite difficult to bridge the gap between what my American bosses ask for and what my Korean colleagues can accept. There can be a lot of pressure from my American bosses to move faster when we are not able to do so.
8. How do you spend your free time?
︎ Hansung
︎︎︎ I used to make music in my free time. But after I became a professional barber, I either travelled, exercised, or got relaxed at home. When I was making music, I worked without even taking a day off. It felt like a waste of time to rest, and I did not know how to take a rest. Back then, I couldn't understand my friends who watched TV without doing anything on their days off. Now I understand that resting in one or another way is necessary. So nowadays, I try to take a rest on my own as much as I can.
︎ Mike
︎︎︎ I occasionally enjoy biking or hiking because there are many trails and paths in Korea. I like to watch football (soccer) and baseball, so I hope to see some games when Covid-19 restrictions allow. More than anything, I enjoy travelling, so I also hope to visit more cities in Korea.
1. Please introduce yourself!
︎ Hansung
︎︎︎ Hello, my name is Hansung Kim, and I’m currently working as a barber specialising in men’s haircuts in the Netherlands. Before I came to the Netherlands, I was born in Korea and raised in Ansan, a small city near Seoul. So it’s my first time living abroad after living in Korea for 26 years. Somehow, it’s already been 2 years since I started working, learning, and enjoying here.
Photo by Hansung︎ Mike
︎︎︎ My name is Mike, I am from the USA, and I am 28 years old. I have been living in Korea for about 7 months, working with my American company as an expatriate.
Photo by Mike2. How did you come to live in the Netherlands or in Korea? Is there a specific reason that you have chosen to live in that country?
︎ Hansung
︎︎︎ When I was in Korea, I wanted to be a composer making music. I started learning music when I was 20 and tried for 6 years to be a composer, and yet there was very little progress to be recognised. I decided to go to Australia to study. But I met a dream girl in the Philippines, where I went for the last trip with my friends just two weeks before my departure. She was also on a trip with her friends. Fate led us to continue our contact even after returning to Korea. As she meant more than my dream, I cancelled my flight to Australia and stayed in Korea. But soon, I felt that my personal growth was standing still the more I stayed in Korea. After a deep conversation, we came to understand each other's situation and decided to leave our relationship behind and follow our dreams again. I like dealing with appearance and doing things with my hands, so I came up with the idea of learning male haircuts and becoming a professional barber. To become a barber, in particular, it's important where you start learning, and the Netherlands is the hometown for Barber culture and the best place to learn the technique. This is how I came to the Netherlands, a country with the best barbershop in the world.
Photo by Hansung
︎ Mike
︎︎︎ I live in Korea because of an opportunity to work here with our partner company. We have a few different options for working abroad at my company; however, I prefer East Asia to Europe or Latin America, so Korea was my top choice.
3. How long do you plan to stay in that country?
︎ Hansung
︎︎︎ At first, I only planned to stay for a year. I couldn't even think of working as a barber here. One day, my dutch friend showed me a barbershop and said, "you should apply for this. They are hiring a new barber, and you're so bad at cutting my hair. You should go and learn there." There was nothing to lose on my end, so I applied for the job. Apparently, I must have given a strong impression during the job interview. I got the job and have been working till now. I've been living in the Netherlands for 2 years now, but I plan to stay one more year and look forward to my future goals.
︎ Mike
︎︎︎ I am working under a 2-year contract, so I will most likely stay in Korea for about 2 years.
4. Name one thing you love & hate about the country you live in currently.
︎ Hansung
︎︎︎ Living in the western culture, the best thing I found out here is the people. The friendliness and comfort from local people is something that I couldn't feel in Korea. However, the weather in the Netherlands is very unpredictable, perhaps because it is a country surrounded by the sea. You can experience hail, rain, sunshine, and clouds, all in one day. This is the kind of weather that you will never be able to experience elsewhere.
︎ Mike
︎︎︎ In Korea, I really enjoy how much cleaner public areas are, how much safer it is, and how much better and respectful everyone is with concerns about Covid-19. Besides the winter weather, there isn’t much I dislike, but I feel some sympathy for things other people dislike in Korea, such as income inequality and pressure to look and act a certain way. As a foreigner and company worker, these issues do not apply to me, but I understand it is difficult for many Korean people.
5. Is there a difference in the relationship between you and your colleagues compared to when you were working in your home country? How’s the working environment compared to your own country?
︎ Hansung
︎︎︎ There's a strict hierarchy between the owner and employee in Korea, whereas a 100% horizontal relationship applies here. There is no clear concept of an owner, and we treat each other as if they were just friends, so you can easily discuss with each other when you have personal concerns. Even when learning work, rather than scolding people for making mistakes or making mistakes, we discuss how it happened and how to improve it.
︎ Mike
︎︎︎ The working environment is a bit different, I think, mostly because of cultural differences. In meetings in my home country, many people sometimes speak at the same time, whereas in Korea, each person takes their turn to speak. We have many conference rooms with closed doors to have these meetings whereas this does not exist in the Korean office I work in.
︎ Hansung
︎︎︎ I don't have experience in the same field in Korea, but I'm sure that it's a lot different. The power that comes from language is very powerful. Since Korean culture is based on Confucianism, you respect people you meet for the first time and address them in an honorific. However, when you speak Dutch or English with customers, you can keep the conversation going as if you were old friends and work in a more relaxed atmosphere.
︎ Mike
︎︎︎ In my home country, colleagues are more social during the workday, and the office is much louder. However, in Korea, it seems more than everyone focuses on work during the day and separates social life.
6. How do you feel, as a foreigner, at your workplace? When do you feel the most like a foreigner?
︎ Hansung
︎︎︎ As the Netherlands is one of the countries where many nationalities and cultures are mixed up, most of the barbershop employees are foreigners. So I don't particularly feel "foreigner" among my colleagues from different countries, such as the US, Morocco, Italy, Colombia, Greece, and the Netherlands. Occasionally, when I have a Korean customer, I usually bow to greet them. My colleague once saw it and asked, "Han, do you indeed greet everyone like that in Korea?"
Photo by Hansung
︎ Mike
︎︎︎ In my case, there must be some people that are surprised to see a foreigner at my office, but mostly nobody acts differently. Given we have meetings in English and I work more closely with American colleagues, I do not feel too much like a foreigner most of the time.
7. What gives you the most stress?
︎ Hansung
︎︎︎ Missing Korea, I think. I miss my friends, and I miss Korean food. I think anyone living abroad must feel the same way. The job itself is more fun than in Korea. But to achieve something in a foreign country, you have to be patient. There's nothing to gain without pain.
︎ Mike
︎︎︎ The most stressful part of work is trying to be a representative of my American company in a country with a different company and work culture. It can be quite difficult to bridge the gap between what my American bosses ask for and what my Korean colleagues can accept. There can be a lot of pressure from my American bosses to move faster when we are not able to do so.
8. How do you spend your free time?
︎ Hansung
︎︎︎ I used to make music in my free time. But after I became a professional barber, I either travelled, exercised, or got relaxed at home. When I was making music, I worked without even taking a day off. It felt like a waste of time to rest, and I did not know how to take a rest. Back then, I couldn't understand my friends who watched TV without doing anything on their days off. Now I understand that resting in one or another way is necessary. So nowadays, I try to take a rest on my own as much as I can.
︎ Mike
︎︎︎ I occasionally enjoy biking or hiking because there are many trails and paths in Korea. I like to watch football (soccer) and baseball, so I hope to see some games when Covid-19 restrictions allow. More than anything, I enjoy travelling, so I also hope to visit more cities in Korea.
Read more
Other articles in Vol.06
No 1. Life outside the big cities by Ines Miranda de Dios, Yeon Choi 최승연
No 2. The way I work, the way we work. by Mike Gaitan, Hansung Kim 김한성
No 3. We speak the universal language by Wael Fahmy Ibrahim, Sunmi Hong 홍선미
No 4. Lessons without lectures by Marta irene Giotti, Jiyoun Jung 정지윤
No 5. Life in International Marriages by Anonymous, Eunjoo Ji 지은주
No 1. Life outside the big cities by Ines Miranda de Dios, Yeon Choi 최승연
No 2. The way I work, the way we work. by Mike Gaitan, Hansung Kim 김한성
No 3. We speak the universal language by Wael Fahmy Ibrahim, Sunmi Hong 홍선미
No 4. Lessons without lectures by Marta irene Giotti, Jiyoun Jung 정지윤
No 5. Life in International Marriages by Anonymous, Eunjoo Ji 지은주
