Hi there. My name is Wonmin (pronounced like one minute) and I wanted to explain how/why I decided to make a board game (for the literally dozens of people out there who are curious).

A bit about my background–

1. I am a 27 year old based in NYC.
2. I worked for a tech company out of college for three years.
3. I quit when I realized that there was nothing stopping my youth from disappearing into the giant machine of corporate America.
4. I started an internet service with my brother to help people sell domain names.

While it was gratifying to be my own boss and to build a product from the ground up, I knew deep down that it wasn’t what I truly wanted to do.

---

“What made you decide to make a board game?”

I get asked this question a lot at these social gatherings people call "parties."

Photo by Priscilla Du Preez

When people ask this question, I usually give the following spiel:

1. I’m a huge gamer and I’ve always wanted to make my own game.
2. I’ve been coding for the past two years and I’m a bit burnt out.
3. So the only way to make a game without coding is to make a board game!

Usually this satisfies whoever is asking and stops them from prying further into my private life. But that’s not what this blog’s about, right? You deserve a more detailed answer than that.

---

My thoughts before making my game.

Here are some of the thoughts and considerations I had before plunging into creating a prototype.

1. But I’m not a huge board game enthusiast!

   I had three board games when I first started in May and now I own about eight. I have probably less than a hundred total hours of board gaming. Meanwhile I have over 2,500 hours on Dota 2 alone.

2. I saw someone do it on Reddit (so it must be easy, right?)

   About eight months ago, I saw an AMA post on Reddit that made me realize that there are people in the world who make board games for a living.

3. My dad owns a printing company

   This is a huge competitive advantage that I have over some others in the same boat as me that I fully intend on leveraging.

4. I have technical (coding) skills

   If my board game is ever a success, making an phone app or web version would be a relatively easy next step.

---

I have no idea what I’m doing.

On a more philosophical note, I am trying this new-age thing where I do things that I want simply because I want to do them.

Here’s a cool tweet I found the other day that relates to this.

My parent were tasked with the job of survival and I with self-actualization. The immigrant generational gap is real. What a luxury it is to search for purpose, meaning, and fulfillment.

— Bo Ren (@Bosefina) December 1, 2017

It’s a huge privilege to be able to follow one’s dreams without worry for the basic necessities of survival. Therefore, I want to share my experiences to hopefully inspire others in similar situations (or dissuade them from doing what I am doing).

Below are some topics that I want to explore in future blog posts:

• Being unemployed and single when what feels like literally everyone around you is getting promoted and/or married.
• Balancing cultural expectations of filial piety with chasing your own dreams.
• Climbing the corporate ladder or endlessly chasing the carrot?

At the end of the day though, I have no idea if what I’m doing is the right path for me or not. I’m just doing it because I want to. And that’s a lot more than what I could’ve said tens of thousands of dollars in salary and a few years ago.