When life stops going our way, most of us scramble to escape despair as quickly as possible. But Park Jinyoung (J.Y. Park) — the man who has led JYP Entertainment to the top for over 30 years — says the exact opposite. In a YouTube Shorts interview, he declared that "complete despair" is something everyone needs at least once in their life.
It sounds counterintuitive at first. But follow his reasoning, and you'll find yourself nodding along.
1. Why Complete Despair Is Necessary in Life
Here is Park Jinyoung's core message: those moments of total darkness — when nothing goes your way and every plan crumbles — are actually "a precious opportunity to sweep away all the useless greed, desires, and distracting thoughts inside you, and fully reset (Reset) your mind."
During times of unbroken success, certain things become invisible: the illusion that everything is going fine, a numbness to one's own greed, the way mental noise quietly becomes the norm. Only when everything collapses, he argues, do those layers finally get stripped away.
Rather than treating despair as a tragedy to avoid, Park Jinyoung sees it as a process you must pass through in order to empty yourself and begin again. That perspective is the essence of his life philosophy.
2. Park Jinyoung Has Been There Himself
This message doesn't feel like empty consolation — because Park Jinyoung has personally hit that bottom.
In the mid-2000s, he made a bold push into the U.S. market with the Wonder Girls. It didn't work. He has openly admitted to suffering enormous financial losses and deep personal pain. Watching his artists feel isolated and lonely so far from home left a lasting scar.
During that period of emptiness and loneliness, he began reading the Bible intensively and found faith. Later, in his essay What Are We Living For?, he chronicled how he filled the void with belief and inner peace.
His own life is the proof that complete despair can redirect a life entirely.
3. Park Jinyoung's Definition of Real Success
Not Success, But Respect
Park Jinyoung doesn't say his goal is simply to succeed. What he emphasizes is "not Success, but Respect."
When the process isn't righteous, people won't applaud the outcome. An amplified success built on dishonesty will eventually lose its audience. Only when truth, sincerity, and humility form the foundation can success truly last. That's exactly why JYP Entertainment's core values are "truth, sincerity, and humility."
Two Things, and Two Things Only
He names only two principles he considers most essential in life:
- Have I been diligent?
- Have I been righteous?
Results, he says, are a domain where luck plays a role — something humans can't fully control. So he made a decision: focus only on the process, the one thing entirely within his own hands. If every day's process was diligent and right, that alone is enough to feel satisfied.
4. The Power of Boring Repetition
A Routine Sustained for 30+ Years
Park Jinyoung has maintained a rigorous daily routine for decades: an organic diet, English study, exercise, and vocal practice — every single day. His idea of success is not a single dazzling moment, but faithfully enduring the monotony of daily repetition.
This is why he frequently uses the phrase "the power of boring repetition." If you want to achieve something, he says, what you need before any special secret is the quiet willingness to grind through another unremarkable day.
Be a Good Person First
His emphasis on character education, mental health management, and psychology classes for JYP trainees stems from the same belief. Before becoming a great artist, one must first become a healthy human being. Talent may be innate, but talent without character will eventually collapse.
5. If Despair Has Found You
If you're reading this in the middle of a desperate moment, it might be worth returning to Park Jinyoung's words one more time.
Complete despair is not the end of your story. It may, in fact, be the moment when everything unnecessary finally falls away — leaving you ready to move in a truer direction. Because Park Jinyoung has stood at that very bottom and climbed back up himself, these words carry real weight.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Q. Where did Park Jinyoung's quote about "needing complete despair" come from?
It originated from a YouTube Shorts video by the channel "사과파이 (Apple Pie)," titled "Why Park Jinyoung Says Complete Despair Is Necessary in Life." He explained that the darkest moments — when everything falls apart — are actually opportunities to clear away greed and mental clutter and reset your mind entirely.
Q. Has Park Jinyoung personally experienced complete despair?
Yes. In the mid-2000s, he led a high-stakes push into the U.S. market with the Wonder Girls that ended in major failure. He has openly spoken about the enormous financial losses and emotional pain he suffered, and has said that this experience ultimately led him to find faith.
Q. What is Park Jinyoung's definition of success?
He believes that Respect is more important than Success. If your process is just and diligent, the result matters less — a righteous process is itself the truest measure of success.
Q. What are JYP Entertainment's core values?
Truth, Sincerity, and Humility. These three values stem directly from Park Jinyoung's personal life philosophy, and they are embedded in the company's direction and the way it trains its artists.