글또후기
I Just Went In to Write—Reflections on Completing the 9th Session of Geul-tto
Review of the 9th Session of Geul-tto! It’s super long, so brace yourself before you start reading.
Review of the 9th Session of Geul-tto! It’s super long, so brace yourself before you start reading.
My six-month “Gleotto” journey, which ran from November 2023 to May 2024, has come to an end. It’s been a month since the official schedule wrapped up, and about two weeks since I finished up all the other little tasks—but I’m just now getting around to writing this recap. 😂 I’d better write this while my memories are still fresh—before it’s too late!
(All the images used in this post were created by DALL-E! Since I love cats, I’m going with a cat theme! Meow 😺)
I realized that, at some point, I started going through periodic “boring” phases in my life, and 2023 was definitely one of those times. I had even lost all motivation and was just drifting aimlessly. The old me would have tried my best to break out of that rut, but seeing myself doing absolutely nothing was incredibly stressful. 어쩌면 내가 부정적인 감정에 잠식되어 가는 건 아닐까... My worries started to grow.
Around that time, a friend introduced me to “Geul-tto,” and just as I was starting to feel a little more at ease, I heard they were recruiting for the 9th cohort. At first, I applied to Geul-tto just to get into the habit of writing. Even though I didn’t know exactly what the program entailed, I enjoy writing—whether it’s diaries, reflections, informational posts, or jokes—and since I heard there was a certain level of accountability involved, I figured it would at least serve as motivation.
They required us to write an application essay (titled “Map of Life”), and while writing it, I was able to clearly identify the issues I was currently facing. Hoping these issues would be resolved, I began my journey with Geul-tto. Click here to read the post marking the official start of Geul-tto activities 👉 Geul-Tto 9th Cohort - Map of Life
This is the community’s main activity. With about 450 active members, we organized into groups based on job roles. I could check in on my group members’ weekly posts and occasionally visit their posts to find inspiration. Of course, there was a “pass” option, so I smoothly skipped my turn twice during the program. 💁♀️
Submitting once every two weeks is tougher than I expected. But I was determined to make it work somehow. Even if I couldn’t manage it, I made sure to start writing on Monday or Tuesday of the second week of every sprint. I figured that improving the quality of my writing would require taking additional action items, and that would depend on my determination going forward, so I just focused on writing first.
True to the name “Gleotto,” I thought that “when writing” is probably when a Gleotto member is most “Gleotto-like” :)
Since most of the activity took place on Slack, there were all kinds of channels. Each channel had its own topic, and people with shared interests gathered there. I joined just about every channel at first. (I even created a channel myself, but I was terrible at managing it… ㅠ) Initially, I made my presence known in many channels, but as time went on, I ended up being active only in a few.
The channel where I was most active in the beginning was the 아침 루틴 tracking channel. For about a month or two, I posted my wake-up time and to-do list almost every day to check in, and we cheered each other on. However, from January through mid-March, I was so busy at work that I naturally stopped being active, and after that, I mostly just lurked. (Back then, I could barely participate in Geul-tto at all.)
Other than that, I participated sporadically in channels 문화 활동, 사진, 강아지, 고양이, 클라이밍, and 스키, among others... We discussed a wide variety of topics.
There was also a networking event called 반상회. I met with people in backend and infrastructure roles, listened to presentations and group discussions, and went to an after-party to chat casually. Of course, there were department meetings for other roles as well, and anyone could attend regardless of their job title.
What made this experience so valuable was that listening to others’ presentations and sharing our concerns and philosophies allowed me to gain some perspective on my own situation. As I gain more experience, I constantly wonder, “Am I doing this right?” but it seemed like everyone was grappling with similar concerns. At the same time, I felt that others were taking a more proactive approach than I was in trying to solve these issues, and that was really motivating. So, this was definitely one of the events I’m glad I attended.
I really wish I could have attended the other meetings too—if only I’d had the time.
This was probably the activity I enjoyed the most, second only to writing. Since I really love meeting people and chatting—especially making small talk—I did a lot of coffee chats. We called them “coffee chats,” but really, it was just about meeting lots of people… We’d grab meals, go out for drinks, study together, and even meet up while traveling, haha.
I used to think of Coffee Chats as just getting together for a cup of coffee and a chat. But all those conversations with different people actually gave me a lot of insight. I think that’s because I got to interact with people from such a wide range of job roles, years of experience, and age groups. It was so enjoyable to encounter people with values that were similar yet distinct. For a while, I was afraid my brain had gotten stiff, but thanks to this, I feel like it’s become flexible again.
Because it was so much fun, I wrapped up the 9th season of “Gleotto” with my 16th Coffee Chat… I knew I’d done a lot, but I didn’t realize I’d done this many… 🙄
The activities I mentioned above are just the major ones; within the Geul-tto Slack channel, there were so many moments where we cheered each other on. People generously shared informative posts, and we even served as mentors and mentees for one another. We could also freely bring up things we couldn’t bring ourselves to say elsewhere.
Since the majority of the people I met at Geul-tto are positive and dedicated to their personal growth, it was wonderful how we motivated and inspired each other. I met many wonderful people with whom I could create synergy and grow through win-win situations. In that regard, I thought Geul-to was truly remarkable for allowing me to connect with so many of these individuals.
All of these elements are centered on “personal growth.” It’s not just about acquiring knowledge. You can also really develop your mindset as a developer and as a person. That’s proof of just how rewarding the experience itself was.
The team members, each from different fields, were active by leveraging their own strengths. Some developed tools to boost productivity within the community, others offered advice when members were struggling, and still others curated a selection of posts each week... I hardly noticed any gaps in this management style and thought it was run very smoothly.
I imagine they must have taken so many things into account and handled them all, so I wanted to express my gratitude and tell them how hard they worked. Thanks to them, I was able to have a truly enjoyable experience!
I had to skip some activities that seemed too difficult to balance with my day job, which was a bit disappointing. The biggest reason for that disappointment was “not being able to do developer-like activities.” You might be wondering what I mean by that… haha
There were plenty of small-scale activities—like coding sessions, writing workshops, and Maker’s events—where I could fully immerse myself in development, but I barely participated in any of them ㅜ Even though it’s supposedly a developer writing group.
If I participate in the next session, I definitely want to work on at least one side project. I think it would be fun to carry out that project in some form within Gilto.
Unless you’re writing a diary, writing is ultimately a medium for providing information or insights to others. Despite that, I never once properly promoted my posts during this session… It’s a bit of a shame to realize that now. There were two main reasons for this.
Back when I was preparing to become a marketer, I thought a lot about how to spread my content, and since I used to be very sensitive to statistics, I was actually a bit burned out by it.😞 So this time, I participated in the Geul-tto project with the mindset, “Let’s just write without worrying too much about view counts!”
However, there was a problem. I couldn’t judge whether my posts were actually of good quality. That kind of self-assessment ultimately comes from the perspectives and opinions of others, and this time, I feel like I let that opportunity slip through my fingers.
Since I was writing my tech blog with the mindset that it had to be 정보가 틀리면 어쩌나.., I actually felt a certain pressure—whether I realized it or not—to present something that would impress others. But when I really think about it, I used to write on my previous blog without worrying about any of that. In fact, if I wrote a good post, I’d receive comments of appreciation, and if there were mistakes, I’d simply accept the feedback.
I need to regain some of that confidence I had back when I wasn’t afraid. 💪
When work gets busy, blogging naturally takes a back seat. I suppose I should count myself lucky that I managed to write and publish even a few posts from January to March…
Since I can’t pour 100% of my energy into every activity, I understand that’s how it goes, but it’s still a bit disappointing. So, I need to find a better way to balance my energy.
Of course! Why even ask? It’s a waste of breath!
However, for the next cohort, I want to participate in a wider variety of activities to make up for the shortcomings I mentioned above.
Geul-tto was like a “playground.” Or perhaps a “gazebo” in the middle of the city.
It was clear that the Geul-to community itself was being built by good people with good intentions. It was full of activities that were great for refreshing myself from my repetitive daily routine, and thanks to that, I regained at least a little of the joy I used to feel from writing. It also served as a great opportunity to get back to doing the other things I’d wanted to do—like meeting new people, pursuing hobbies, and taking care of my health—which was a positive turning point for my life as a whole. Maybe I’ve even grown and matured a bit more…? 😊
Thanks to the renewed energy I gained from Geul-tto, I’ve ended up taking on two more extracurricular activities. My friends say I’m amazing, but after taking them on, I found myself thinking, “Why am I putting myself through this again?” lol 😭 But what can I do—it’s just so much fun and exhilarating! So, I’m managing these three extracurricular activities—including Geul-to—by setting clear priorities and allocating my energy accordingly. I’ll have to share more about the other activities later.
I didn’t expect this review to turn out this long... I guess I really do talk a lot, hehe… I think I’ll wrap up this post here. See you all in the next session! Bye 😍
