Peter Underwood’s New Book: First Mover Korea: Will you be content with being ranked within the top 10 richest countries in the world? Break away from the mind of a small nation. Instead of the ‘hurry hurry’, try becoming the first mover—with creative moves. The book First Mover offers advice to the Korean society, acknowledging the Korean optimistic mind. The author is Peter Underwood (Korean name: Won Han-seok), and as a reader may have guessed, he is the descendant (great-grandson) of Reverend Horace G. Underwood (1859~1916), who founded Yonsei University and Saemoonan Presbyterian Church. Although he was born in America, Peter Underwood came to Korea when he was three months old; and except his years in the MBA at University of San Francisco and four years living in Japan, he has lived and worked in Korea as a business management consultant since 1988. He mainly works with international companies in Korea, and he has notices that one of the frequently asked questions from foreigners is “Why is Korea~?” or “Why are Koreans~?” He has written this book in response to such questions—“in an attempt to explicate the ‘why?’ or curiosity due to cultural differences between Koreans and many foreigners and to present a proposal for the advancement and growth of ‘dear’ Korea. His claims are clear. He is proud of Korea’s remarkable achievement from one of the countries in extreme poverty to the outstanding national prosperity. But it is time for another shift. Until now, following the past traces of other countries was enough—in other words, solving sample or practice questions quickly and correctly was the key. Now, Korea takes on the responsibility to write up new questions and set the standards. Catching up with Japan is no longer a goal for Korea; now, it is crossing its own obstacles such as authoritarianism, and conglomerate monopoly. Defining himself as a Westerner whose identity is deeply rooted in Korea, Peter Underwood even uses woorinara (meaning ‘our country’) mixed with Hankuk (‘Korea’) when speaking in Korean. In many ways, he is somewhere halfway between a foreigner and a Korean. Nevertheless, there are a number of ideas, practices, and situations that he finds intriguing and perplexing. His remarks of what he believes some, if not many, Koreans are less aware of themselves are outspoken and sincere. For example, he asks his fellow Koreans whether they find the following scenes familiar: a) Why am I the only one talking here? I ask you to give your opinions and ideas! [The person saying this is the figure who actually inhibits any discussion.], b) Who is in charge of this? [A question indicating that this trouble or problem should be and will be addressed not as in a system but as an individual’s fault or failure.], and c) Evaluations will be conducted exclusively on performance/capability [Unlike how it was very recently…]. The author points out that in Korea there appears to be a ‘king’ in every group—i.e., classroom, family, company, or even government agencies. While ‘brother’ in English refers to an equal and horizontal relationship, hyeong (brother in Korean) designates a vertical relationship. He illustrates the prevalence of authoritarianism, which restrains creative minds and active participation. In his book, Peter Underwood proposes ‘Just think about it’ approach—instead of the ‘Just do it’. He highlights the importance of planning ability over executive ability and of problem-finding over problem-solving. His optimistic view of Korea’s future is based on the outstanding abilities, attitudes, and experiences of many Korean young adults. This emerging generation is more educated and exposed to a wide variety of cultures and languages, which in turn enables them to discuss freely and develop creative strategies. Eventually, companies who take on such open and frank discussions will take the lead in progress and prosperity. All his antecedents took up their career as a missionary, including his great-grandfather, grandfather, father, and elder brother Won Han-gwang, who was a former professor at Yonsei University. Peter Underwood says, “I am the first to diverge from the family’s tradition.” To people who ask him “Why didn’t you choose to become a missionary?”, which he understands is a normal question by the many people who know about the Underwood’s, Peter Underwood asks them back: Now that many Koreans do missionary service around the world, do you think Korea needs a fourth-generation missionary? When the time comes for me to be buried at Yanghwajin Foreign Missionary Cemetery with my great-grandfather and father, I hope Korea is a superpower country that is globally admired for its creativity.