‘Godsaeng’ is a word that combines the English ‘God’ and the Korean ‘Saeng,’ meaning life. It has been a long time since the new expression first appeared, meaning daily productive plans, living accordingly, and living diligently. Nevertheless, various media outlets still use the word ‘Godsaeng.’
According to a survey conducted in 2023 by ‘albachunkuk,’ 77.4% of respondents answered that they pursue Godsaeng. In addition, in November 2023, a survey conducted by the Korea Broadcast Advertising Corporation among 2,000 individuals revealed that the awareness of Godsaeng among those in their 20s was 79.5%.
Content on social media related to Godsaeng, commonly known as the ‘Godsaeng Challenge,’ includes various activities. For example, ‘Today’s Exercise Completion Challenge,’ which exercises and uploads a proof shot. ‘Miracle Morning,’ which involves engaging in self-improvement activities early in the morning. As such, some people enjoy certifying their achievements through SNS and visually showing their Godsaeng, while others feel deprived or humiliated about their lives by checking other people’s Godsaeng on SNS like YouTube.
They often harbor resentment towards the formalized portrayal of Godsaeng content or they are often blamed for being compared to the appearance of diligent people. There are also complaints that the blind social atmosphere that advocates this is inappropriate for Godsaeng because it does not consider individual characteristics.
Society believes that no one forces Godsaeng, but because it is socialized into the culture, an attitude to accept it appropriately is also necessary. Furthermore, if the number of young adults experiencing self-loathing or self-reproach through Godsaeng content continues to rise, there is a recognition of the need for societal attitude shifts towards fostering social change.
