In 2021, I moved to Korea. I asked my boss to go remote, and since I had been performing well, he agreed. He even offered me the option to work Korean hours, but I opted to keep Toronto hours (an 11-hour offset) to make it last.
My work hours were 10pm to 6am most of the year, and 11pm to 7am during daylight savings. I’d sleep from 7am to 3pm, living my life from 3pm to 10pm.
The Benefits
Money
The biggest benefit: I earned 110k CAD while living in Korea. While mid-level tech jobs in Korea pay around ₩60,000,000, I had an income nearly double that. My post-tax savings were equivalent to ₩45,000,000, compared to the ₩10,000,000 I would have saved on a local salary. With double the income, I had 4.5x the spending power. I splurged—vacations, fine dining, daily outings—and still saved more than I did in Canada.
Exploiting globalization? That’s the real “American Dream”.
Life
Anyone who’s gone to renew their driver’s license at 2pm on a Thursday knows being on a different schedule is amazing. The gym was empty, services had no lines, and the solitude was invaluable. I remember hiking mountains at 10pm or walking the city streets at 4am—it was peaceful and refreshing.
Though I made friends through night school and climbing, the quiet hours allowed me to experience life at a slower pace.
The Bad Things
Social Activities
Weekend trips were brutal; I’d leave in the morning, when I normally slept, and rely on caffeine to get through the first day. More than once, I’d fall asleep at my friends’ houses.
Events starting at 10am? A struggle. Corrective naps became essential. If you wanted to hang out for 4+ hours, it had to go until after sunset.
Sleep
Sleep hygiene required intense care - No phones in bed. White noise. Eye mask to block out all light. Strict sleep and wake up times (that got wrecked and had to be rebuilt after trips). I got by and learned how to power nap like a machine, but my immune system took a toll. I got sick more frequently, and took longer to recover. But yolo :P
Now, You
If you want to move to Asia on a remote job:
- It’s doable with the right motivation and discipline.
- Visas and taxes are complicated but manageable—just ask ChatGPT.
- Learn to sleep; I never used to be able to take a nap, I can borderline do it on command now. Like anything else, it’s a skill that can be mastered (: