Interview with Sarah Kim, the Jetsetting Goddess
Overachiever Magazine got the opportunity to sit down with Sarah Kim, the woman behind the popular Instagram account, @jetsettingoddess. She was born as an only child to Korean parents, who immigrated to Canada, whom later became monks when she was at the age of 9. She always traveled, finding new adventures with and without her parents, and spent her last year of high school on a 188ft tall ship circumnavigating the globe. After spending 6 months in Nepal on her ‘inner journey’, she went to study Psychology and Theatre Arts at Richmond, The American University in London, England. During that time she went on an exchange program in Seoul at Yonsei University, where she got picked up by an agent and found herself doing TV. As it was one of her uncle’s dreams to see her crowned as Miss Korea, she ended up applying whilst being a translator for a pro women’s basketball team in Seoul, to later become a contestant at Miss Universe Canada GTA, as she was Canadian, and thankfully Canadians could not discriminate against race, height, or ethnicity. She spent 10 years in the Middle East, and is currently based in Hong Kong.
What do you consider to be your biggest accomplishment?
No one great victory. Lots of little wins, every day. Sometimes the air underneath my daughter's skates. A shared joke with my husband. A friend helped, a problem shared. Total solutions are oversold. The key I guess is turn up every day and stumble joyfully in the right direction.
Sum yourself up in one word:
Resilient.
If you could ask yourself any question, what would it be, and what is the answer?
I don't live with unasked questions. If I need to fix it, I generally do. Difficult for me to get through the day otherwise.
What advice would you give to your teenage self?
Something my father told me once ‘Just keep going’.
Who do you look up to?
My grandmother. She is ninety three. Raised a family through two wars. Still contributes every day. Cooks, cleans and still has time to take care of her skin and exercise.
Have you ever personally experienced discrimination?
Yes. But I don't carry it with me. Time for more positive energy.
What's a common misconception about you?
That IT’s easy.
There are hard moments. It's just about one change in perspective.
What is your dream career?
No regrets. I am living it.
What is your go-to coffee order?
Iced Oat milk latte.
What do you consider the biggest problem facing Asian women today to be?
Nah, let's end on a high. Asia is dynamic, bright, exciting - and women are blazing the trails!
