 |
| Political commentator Choi Young-il, author of "Power of Experience: creating wealth" / Courtesy of Choi Young-il |
Author advises readers to be author of their own life stories
By Jung Da-min
Choi Young-il, a KBS radio show host, is a veteran commentator with experience covering a wide range of topics in the fields of politics, economy, society and culture.
Before becoming a full-time commentator about 10 years ago, he spent 20 years in businesses and startups.
"I was a startup founder and experienced many failures at the time. Now I also work as a consultant and teach media communication at a university. Having various experiences from different jobs has provided my know-how as a commentator to give lively comments on various topics," Choi said in a written interview with The Korea Times, Tuesday.
Choi is an adjunct professor with Kyung Hee Cyber University's media department and a consultant for business, media and government organizations.
To share his know-how as a commentator or storyteller, he wrote a book recently, titled "Power of Experience: creating wealth." The book, published in January, consists of Choi's various life stories, from dating and volunteering experiences in his childhood and university days to business experiences and failures.
He also shares insights into people around him including his family members, as well as culture including famous movies and songs.
The core message of the book, however, goes beyond a mere presentation of his dynamic life stories, as he tells readers constantly to create their own content by recording their own life stories and sharing them with people through storytelling and media publication.
 |
| The book "Power of Experience: creating wealth" / Korea Times photo by Jung Da-min |
"In modern society, everyone has their perspective and analysis of various events. It's like everyone is a commentator. But if they publish their stories through media, they would have a much bigger impact than when they just talk to their friends at pubs. They can even get paid for sharing their views and if they do it for a long-term period it could lead up to a personal brand," Choi said.
Choi said becoming a professional commentator is possible not only for experts such as politicians, professors, lawyers and journalists but also for ordinary people if they are good at presenting themselves with good storytelling skills.
"For the past 10 years, I've been on many different TV shows. I drive a Harley-Davidson motorcycle so as not to be late for live shows. But looking back, news stories are highly volatile and the things I talked about are hard to claim as my own, although I was always talking about historical events. This is why I decided to write this book about my own content," Choi said.
Choi said he is also planning to write two more books about relationships and existence with the titles "Power of Exchange" and "Power of Existence."
"I think life can be divided into three stages. You will have to survive before you will be able to approve your capabilities and achieve your values. Then in the second stage, you can create surplus value through input and output to be rich. After this, you can be one of a few successful people with social influence. I want to accomplish this life cycle myself," Choi said. "As a commentator, I want to be remembered as a sincere humanist who pursued warm-hearted comments beyond keeping a clear head."
![[INTERVIEW] With '30 Days,' Kang Ha-neul finds new level of comfort in acting](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/83a5770de8d8420da3634fb8b78266c1.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
![[INTERVIEW] ONEUS returns as 'mermaid prince'](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/8cc3b8d992cd4b8bb43395b014670ca2.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
