“Be reckless first.
“Take the first step!”

From last place in the school to vice president at Stanford University and educator without borders
Paul Kim's Life Approach: Turning Fear into Courage

★ Strongly recommended by Kang Won-guk, Draw Andrew, and Lee So-ra! ★
★ tvN's "You Quiz on the Block" Hot Topic ★

Are you anxious because you feel like you're the only one left behind? Feeling lost and lost because you can't see the future? True change in life doesn't begin with a grand leap forward, but with "just one courageous step."
"What Courage Did You Show Today?" is a life guide written by Paul Kim, an educational engineer who rose from last place in his class to become vice dean of the prestigious Stanford University Graduate School of Education and is called a "mentor to young people around the world," for those who hesitate in anxiety and fear.

After graduating from high school with grades in the bottom 1%, Paul Kim went to study abroad in the United States and eventually rose to the position of Vice President at Stanford University, attracting attention from the domestic media and broadcasting industry.
But he did not stay in a stable position.
In the latter half of his life, he boldly abandoned the title of Stanford University and pioneered a new path as an "educator without borders," breaking down educational boundaries and expanding learning opportunities around the world.
The author says:
“Life is not given as something complete, but rather something we create as we walk through it, imperfectly.”
And he emphasizes that the only weapon we can choose in life is 'attitude', and that it is the key to leading us to the life we ​​want.

This book, based on the author's experiences overcoming failure and fear, as well as vivid anecdotes from countless people he met around the world, presents seven life attitudes you can put into practice right now.
What courage did you summon today? For those who feel anxious, feeling stuck no matter how hard they try, the author offers the courage to step out of the well and take a step forward.

There is only one precious legacy given to me.
This is the ‘attitude’ I learned from my father.
No matter what the world says, if I have the will to live my life the way I want, the belief that I can achieve what I want, and the courage not to bow my head in the face of impossibility, there is nothing I cannot do in this world.
I still believe that it is the only force that can transform faint possibilities into clear realities.
So if someone were to ask me what legacy I want to leave my children, I would say it's not money or fame, but a proactive attitude toward life.
It is not a life that is good in the eyes of parents or others, but a life that is valuable and that I want to protect, and the uniqueness contained within it that ultimately becomes my most certain asset.

--- p.15, from "Prologue"

Taking back control of my life and courageously choosing to live a hyper-self-directed life is what makes me truly 'me'.
At first, the changes may be minimal.
Forging a new path is always unsettling.
But as your own 'do's' accumulate one by one, one day you will meet the person you have always dreamed of.
And then you will know.
What makes you who you are is not countless plans or goals, but the fact that it is your own verb that you have quietly created day by day in the present.

--- p.44, from “Chapter 1: The Answer to Creating the Life You Want Is Within Me: Super Self-Direction”

In 2005, while participating in a home-building volunteer activity with a light heart, I found a clear purpose that would change the direction of my life.
When I went to volunteer in a remote area of ​​Mexico, what struck me most was not the dilapidated living conditions.
When I saw children working on the farm and asked the locals when the children went to school, they said there was no school in the village at all.
In an age where the entire world is connected in real time through wireless communication, I was speechless and heartbroken to see children living their lives without even learning how to read and write.
From that day on, a new goal appeared in my life.
Once I had a clear goal of providing quality education to children in underprivileged areas, my thoughts and actions naturally began to move toward that goal.

--- p.114, from “Chapter 3: Find your own ‘WHY’ rather than just living blindly: Sense of Purpose”

Is there something you've been thinking about for a long time but haven't gotten around to? If you desperately want to do something but are stuck in fear, unable to take the first step, pause for a moment and write down why.
The more you write it down and face it, the less your fear will be.
Susan Jeffers, a psychologist and author of "Try It: Act Like You've Never Failed," said:
“Feel scared, but do it anyway.”
According to a study from Pennsylvania State University titled "Exposing Worry's Deceit," 91.4 percent of the worries people with generalized anxiety disorder had never actually happened, and even 30.1 percent of the times they did happen, the outcome was better than expected.
Ultimately, you'll find that only a very small number of things are truly difficult to handle.

--- p.152, from “Chapter 4 The More You Are Willing to Be Reckless, the Clearer Your Life: Growth Engine”

Even now, I sometimes recall my childhood days, when I would happily play with my friends and family in a closet-like room, boiling and eating discarded chicken.
Looking back, it seems like we lived relying on each other's positivity.
The bright hearts of my friends, their families, and I protected each other from being immersed in a gloomy reality.
Even in difficult circumstances, the face of my friend's mother, who always welcomed me with a smile, is still vivid in my mind.
Who could have imagined back then that my friend and I would grow up to be successful and stand on the podium of a university?
A positive mindset that finds the good in any situation and knows how to enjoy itself has become a bright guide for our future.
We gave each other the strength to dream of a bright future beyond the pessimistic reality.
I learned from my friends that what's more important than living better than others is how you face life.

--- p.186, from “Chapter 5: A Perfectly Prepared Tomorrow Never Comes: Super-Positive Execution”

You probably have at least one 'ridiculous' idea in your head.
Take it out.
It's okay if it's not perfect.
That small beginning may one day bring about amazing changes.
Goethe said:
“Thoughts that do not lead to action are a disease.” No matter how brilliant an idea is, it is useless if it is not put into action.
If you just think about it, there is no way you can fail.
But there is no way it will succeed.
Many people put off their dreams by saying, “Someday.”
But the reality we face is always ‘today’.
So start right now.
It doesn't matter if it looks funny.
Like Kyle's red clip, like Demi's hairpin, like the English airline communications that the boy from the seaside village of Geumodo began to hear, no one knows where that small beginning will lead.
But one thing is clear.
If you don't execute, there is no failure, but there is also no success.

--- p.225~226, from “Chapter 5: A Perfectly Prepared Tomorrow Never Comes: Super-Positive Execution Power”

At the end of the meal, Charak took something out of his wallet.
It was none other than an old, worn-out $100 bill.
“Teacher, do you remember this?” I was speechless.
I still have that bill from 12 years ago.
“This was my compass.
Whenever I had a hard time, I looked at this and tried not to forget my original intention.
The desire to provide educational opportunities to children in my hometown.
“Now I can be someone who can give this hope to others,” he said, adding that he has already established and is running a small training center in India.
He was sharing what he had received.
We often think that our small actions are meaningless.
The world is so big, and what we can do seems so small.
But Charak's story suggests another possibility.
My small act of kindness, which I don't even remember, could be a turning point in someone's life.
To me, it was just a small moment of giving all the money I had, but to him, it became a compass that would stay with him for the rest of his life.
--- p.241~242, from “Chapter 6 We are connected with compassion: Global citizenship”

Are you currently living a life different from the one you dreamed of? If so, you may be on Plan B.
No matter how desperately you wish for it, few people cruise along with Plan A from the start.
Switching to Plan B in such cases is not a failure, but a natural process of life.
Many people view Plan B as a second-best option or a sign of defeat.
But I think differently.
In life, plan B is not failure.
It is a valuable process of building resources and experience to return to Plan A.
Plan B is a training ground that pickles me to eventually get to where I want to be.
Sometimes the way back is the fastest way.

--- p.268, from “Chapter 7: Completing Life is Ultimately Plan B: Self-Resilience”

When I was working at Stanford University, I had a meal with a professor from the d.school.
It was the end of the semester when grades were being calculated, so I asked a question I'd always wondered about.
"Professor, how do you evaluate design assignments in class? There's no right answer, and it's difficult to objectively quantify it." The professor smiled and answered, as if he'd been asked this question many times before.
“There is one very simple yet objective criterion.
"It's weight." Weight? For a moment, I opened my eyes wide, unable to understand.
The professor burst into laughter at the sight of me and then continued his explanation.
“We collect and weigh all the unselected drafts before the final result is produced.
“The depth of your learning is determined by how many times you try, fail, and improve again.” Only then did he nod.
What he really values ​​is not the finished product, but the journey that led to that result.

--- p.276~277, from “Chapter 7: Completing Life is Ultimately Plan B: Self-Resilience”