On the way I sat beside the chief of staff, and we talked about finding hobbies. We agreed that when life is this busy, it’s hard to find a hobby you can enjoy on your own. On this topic, we discussed our university life. Interestingly, she was an artist and enjoyed making 3D art. But the constant demand to make art didn’t seem to match her lifestyle, as she explained. So, I jokingly suggested that she make a piece for our somewhat sterile office environment. Haha

We arrived at the cafe and immediately found a table large enough for all of us. It was great to be able to talk about the things that matter to us.

Furthermore, everyone was very respectful of one another’s opinions, and the CEO and moderator kindly led the event to ensure we finished on time for our next activity.

The next activity was a visit to a whisky distillery! I am a keen whisky drinker, and this was the perfect opportunity to show my somewhat greater-than-average knowledge of the process of making whisky and tasting it. The tour guide took on the challenge of explaining the distillery in English and Korean. We first looked at the process of adding the wheat to the vat and soaking it to extract the sugars. Afterwards, we also got to see the product after it had been fermented for approximately a couple of days. Lastly, we saw the still, which was described as looking like a giant chocolate drop. Inside, it was approximately 30 degrees, so it was very relieving when the tour guide asked us to go outside to see the storage buildings.

The barrels were stacked to the roof with various kinds of wood. Some of the ends of the barrels were labelled with Gochujang, which was a Korean-inspired fusion. We were even given the chance to try the whisky straight from the barrel, which is approximately 60% alcohol by volume! Everybody’s throats were on fire!

To finish up, we had the chance to try their final products, whiskies aged in different barrels. We also got to try their gin, which in hindsight was a mistake: it had a strong mushroomy note.

To wrap up the day, we travelled back to Seoul in the van, found a bar and had a few quiet ones together before everyone went back to their homes. We did so much in one day, and I think we learned a lot about each other while enjoying the activities together!

If you are ever looking for a workplace in Korea, reach out to me!

Why openness is still my default

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The standard arguments for transparency are all true, and I’ve seen each of them play out. When people understand the reasoning behind a decision, they trust it, even when they don’t love it. When they have the same information I do, they make good calls without waiting on me. And nobody enjoys discovering they were out of the loop on something that affected them.

Where raw transparency goes wrong

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Three ways, mostly.

Volume. Forwarding every half-formed update buries the things that actually matter, and people learn to tune out.

Context. Raw information without the surrounding story breeds confusion. “We’re reviewing the roadmap” means one thing with an explanation attached, and something much scarier without one.

Timing. Share something before it’s actually decided and the team spends a week speculating about outcomes that were never on the table. Half-decided news can eat more energy than the final decision ever does.

Waiting isn’t the same as hiding

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Choosing the moment to share something sounds manipulative. Done honestly, it’s the opposite: it’s making sure news arrives with enough context to be understood. Bad news lands softer when it comes with a plan attached. Good news lands better when it isn’t buried in a Friday afternoon dump.

But waiting has a cost, and it compounds. Sit on information too long and people can sense it. The rumour mill fills any vacuum you leave, and rumours are reliably worse than reality. And if someone is consistently the last to know, they read it as a statement about their worth. Fair enough, too — it usually is one.

How I decide now

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Before sharing (or holding back) something sensitive, I run through a few questions. Does the team need this to do their jobs, or do I just want it off my chest? Can I explain the context properly yet, or would I be handing over raw fragments? And how is this likely to land — do I have answers ready for the obvious follow-up questions?

Then, whichever way I go: deliver context along with the information, make it easy for people to ask questions afterwards, and pay attention to how it went so the next call is better calibrated. Different people want different amounts of detail, and you only learn that by watching and asking.

Default to openness, add context, and think for a minute about how it’ll land before you hit send. That covers most situations I’ve run into so far.