Kim Nai: "Constantly Ask What the Core Goal Is in Your Work"

K-Women Club Seminar Session 3
'Kim Nai's Career Counseling Center'
Develop Your Own Expertise
Find References Outside the Company

Career accelerator Kim Nai is giving a lecture on the careers of female office workers at the '2023 K-Women Club Seminar' hosted by Asia Economy on the 6th at the Marriott Hotel in Yeouido, Seoul. Photo by Jo Yongjun jun21@

"You need to think about what you can do differently from others in your current work. Look for references of people and companies who excel in the work you want to do."

Career accelerator Kim Nai advised that to prepare for Career Day, one must continuously explore their own expertise and ask what they want to achieve in their work. This was at the 'K-Women Club Seminar' hosted by Asia Economy on the 6th at the Marriott Hotel in Yeouido, Seoul.

The seminar, themed 'Kim Nai's Career Counseling Center,' gathered female office workers in their 20s to 40s with various career concerns. The K-Women Club is a membership program for women who want to build their careers well, held three times a year in March, June, and September. Kim, the accelerator, said, "To develop expertise and excellence, you need to find references outside your company and observe how the market is changing," advising, "Look for what they do well and what differentiates you from them."

Kim worked at Hyundai Card, Korea Investment & Securities, and JP Morgan before experiencing a career adolescence and transitioning to a career accelerator in the fall of 2014. He has conducted career counseling for over 4,000 companies and office workers and describes himself as "someone who listens to and answers many career questions." Currently, he serves as the Chief Strategy Officer at healthcare startup Gajilab, while also working on creating an AI version of himself.

Career accelerator Kim Nai is giving a lecture titled "Kim Nai's Career Counseling Center" at the "2023 K-Women Club Seminar" hosted by Asia Economy on the 6th at the Marriott Hotel in Yeouido, Seoul. Photo by Jo Yongjun jun21@

Before considering changing jobs or quitting, he advised thinking about "what you would want to do if there were no constraints." He said, "If you can't answer this question, you need to observe how you spend your time," and suggested, "Find what you enjoy doing the most for even 30 minutes a day or an hour a week."

Kim also had a period of uncertainty after quitting his job. He started visiting libraries daily, picking books with titles that caught his interest. After a few months, he noticed a common theme in the books he read: 'growth stories.' He said, "I was more interested in how small companies grow than stories of successful people," and added, "I thought I should share stories about work experiences and changes."

To find your own expertise, he emphasized asking and answering yourself: △ Why do I do this work? △ What can I do differently? △ What kind of work am I passionate about? △ Am I reading market changes? △ Am I visualizing my skills and influence? He defines expertise as "defining your work in your own language." He said, "Think about what you want to achieve in your work, apply it to yourself as you would produce results in a company, and execute it," adding, "You need to let people know what kind of weapons you have."

The expertise required in the Chat GPT era boils down to "experience in solving problems." He advised, "Ultimately, problems start with people, and you need to ask good questions. How sharp and clear the questions are to solve problems is important."

Career accelerator Kim Nai is greeting participants and listening to their career concerns at the '2023 K-Women Club Seminar' hosted by Asia Economy on the 6th at the Marriott Hotel in Yeouido, Seoul. Photo by Jo Yongjun jun21@

Kim also answered participants' concerns during the event. Kwon Hyemin, an 8-year career worker, asked, "I'm about to get married and considering childbirth, but I'm worried about how to balance work and personal schedules." Kim advised, "Marriage and parenting don't go as planned, so I hope you don't worry about timing."

Lee Sangmyeong, who is in charge of product planning, said, "When I was a junior, it was important to complete tasks alone, but now as a middle manager, I have many concerns about how to perform my role well." Kim encouraged him, saying, "Just thinking that juniors learn by watching you can make you a good middle manager."

Working moms returning from parental leave showed great interest in positioning themselves within the organization and growing their careers. Park Chani, who has an 8-year-old child, worried, "My child has entered elementary school, and I have been working for over 10 years, but I feel like I am just surviving my career and struggling." Kim advised, "Women in their early to mid-30s sometimes feel marriage and parenting as a career cliff, but until the child grows to a certain extent, you have to keep juggling work and life."

Lee Jeongeun, who participated in the K-Women Club three times consecutively, said, "It was good to empathize with the concerns I have as a junior, senior, and working mom, and to get clear and structured tips on career worries," adding, "When thinking about what I want to achieve in work, the phrase 'Plan B is to make Plan A work no matter what' resonated with me and I kept it in my heart."