Network Assignments

Kim Doe Jung is a commercial attaché in the Korean embassy. She works as an investment and financial consultant providing useful information and data to those interested to invest in Korea. Prior to the interview we had met at a luncheon organized in our college by the Korean Embassy. The luncheon was targeting students wishing to take their post graduate studies in a foreign country. Also invited along with students were business persons with an interest of investing in the expanding economy of Korea. Kim Doe Jung was a guest speaker and I was able to secure an interview through the help of one of my father’s friend who works in the embassy.

She is an MBA graduate from a Korean University specializing in financial matters. The mere thought of interviewing was exciting and inspiring too. She had been able to accomplish what I have always looked forward to; she has my dream career.

The interview took place inside the Korean Embassy’s expansive offices. She has a beautiful office facing the oval offices from afar. I was taken right up to her 3rd floor office by a security officer and she received me cordially which was rather flattering as I believed she had to be a very busy person.

I had a large interest in knowing what her work duties and responsibilities entail. A commercial attaché she told me was generally an agent of her own country, sent to a foreign land to represent her country’s commercial and financial affairs in that foreign land, I was hoping for a more specific answer and to get it I asked her to describe her typical average day to me.

She arrives early in the morning, the first thing she does is to update the ambassador on any developments in her field. Then businessmen and women start coming in with all manner of issues. Some would wish to enquire on the likely trend that the inflation in Korea is taking and what the government is doing about it, how their investments are doing, any viable investment opportunities available.

Koreans also drop by just for a casual visit, others have solid reasons like wishing the Korean government to negotiate for  trading concessions and low export duties for their goods. This is her typical day. Day in day out she is supposed to have answers to these questions as well as be able to analyze the recommendations she receives from the public.

Her answers enabled me to have an idea of what to expect in my career dreams and was able to get from her responsibilities the enormity of the challenges a career diplomat goes through.

To her, being a diplomat job is quite a challenge and ideal candidates for the job have to exercise diligence and good work ethics. One has to have high analytical and communication skills, be a team player, have a willingness to learn new things, physical stamina to withstand long working hours and ability to cope and interact with persons of diverse communities. This was very helpful, and this being my dream career, I was able to know the areas I needed to improve on as well as appreciating my strengths (Zachary Bromer, n.d).

The working conditions are just marvelous as I could discern from what I could see: her office was smart and exotically furnished with expensive Korean rugs, she was also expensively dressed. She told me that her job is well paying as one has to be well compensated for accepting to work overseas away from her family.

This interview, I must say, was an eye opener. It was my first interview with a person of such a high social standing and who represents interest of a far away state. Her confidence and intelligence were equally inspiring. Now I have a strong conviction to follow my intended career path, armed with the information that she gave to me.I have to act with reasonable diligence, work to improve on my strengths and weaknesses to achieve my life time goal of a career diplomat.

Reference:

Zachary Bromer, Salary.com contributor; Dream job: diplomat

Available online at http://www.salary.com/careers/layouthtmls/crel-display-cat10-ser136-par236.html Accessed