Hello, I am a marital therapist, communications trainer and author. I have thirty-five years helping couples and individuals make better relationships. I have written twenty-plus self-help books which include the international best-sellers ‘I love you but I’m not in love with you’ and ‘How can I ever trust you again?’ My books have been translated into twenty languages. I trained with RELATE the UK’s largest counselling charity. Perhaps it has been turning sixty but I have become interested in spiritual as well as psychological questions. Who am I? What are my values – as opposed to my parents, my teachers and the wider society? What makes my life meaningful? What do I believe about life, the universe and everything? Although my clients might come to me because of destructive arguments, falling out of love and infidelity, they are also interested in having more meaningful relationships and a more meaningful life. So what is the meaningful life? Why do we so easily lose our way and get lost in depression, anxiety, doubt, addictions and obsessions: the swamplands of the soul? One thing I know for sure is that there is not one answer...
https://andrewgmarshall.com/podcasts/
episode 151: Barbara Zitwer: Happiness, Korean Style: Look Through the Lens of a Different Culture and Refresh Your Life
What can Korean culture teach us about being happier and more fulfilled? New York literary agent and author Barbara Zitwer has spent decades figuring this out, culminating in her book, The Korean Book of Happiness.
Barbara and Andrew discuss the ancient Korean philosophies of Han, Heung and Jeong (resilience, joy and the art of giving), and Barbara’s experiences staying in a Buddhist temple and meeting with nuns in the mountains.
They also touch on the exuberant joy of modern Korean culture (which many of us may have experienced via Squid Game, K-pop, the 10-Step skincare routine or Korean daytime dramas).
Barbara J. Zitwer is an international literary agent specialising in Korean literature. She discovered Man Booker prize winning author Hang Kang (The Vegetarian) and New York Times bestseller Kyung-sook Shin (Please Look After Mom) along with Jeong you-jeong (The Good Son) and Un Su Kim (The Plotters).She was awarded the 2016 International Literary Agent of the Year Award by the British Publishing Association.
If You’re Looking for More….
You can subscribe to The Meaningful Life (via Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts) and hear a bonus mini-episode every week. Or you can join our Supporters Club on Patreon to also access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50.
This week supporters will hear:
⭐️How to feed your soul (Korean style).
⭐️Three things Barbara Zitwer knows to be true.
⭐️AND subscribers also access all of our previous bonus content - a rich trove of insight on love, life and meaning created by Andrew and his interviewees.
Follow Up
Read Andrew’s new Substack newsletter The Meaningful Life, and join the community there.
Read Barbara Zitwer’s new book The Korean Book of Happiness
Watch this KBS World Radio interview with Barbara Zitwer about her work promoting Korean literature and culture.
Follow Barbara Zitwer on Facebook @barbara.zitwer, on Instagram @barbarajzitwer and on Twitter/X @BZitwer
You might also enjoy our episodes on How to be Happier with Richard Nicholls; or A Deeper Connection With Everything Through Haiku with Clark Strand.
Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall