SEVENTEEN’s Jun Opens Up On How He Broke Out Of His Shell And Became More Confident Over The Years

“I was so cautious that eventually, I stopped speaking altogether.”

SEVENTEEN is a group full of members known for their incredible talent as well as their outgoing personalities. While most of the members appear bold and extroverted, some members, such as Jun, are known for being more introverted.

In a recent interview with Weverse Magazine, Jun opened up on how he’s become less introverted and more confident over the years.

Q: Even in this short time talking with you, I can tell you’ve become more expressive when you’re speaking Korean than before.

Oh, I can tell, too. (laughs). Observing the other members was key, just like how kids learn by listening to their mom and dad and mimicking them. You memorize what to say and when and then imitate that. I could really tell when we were doing ‘GOING SEVENTEEN’ in particular. It was harder to talk on the show than I expected, but I learned how to from observing the members there, too. It’s important to be funny, but confidence was even more important.

— Jun

Jun explained that even their most outspoken members such as Seungkwan may say boring things from time to time but can easily save it by wrapping it up well.

Seungkwan says a lot of boring things too, actually. (laughs) But he always wraps up what he’s talking about in a good way, so it’s more fun (laughs). If you say something boring and don’t follow it up with anything, it’s really boring, but our members always go on to say something like, “You can just ignore that.” I learned a lot about that kind of attitude and how you can make the show more fun just by using a simple phrase like that.

— Jun

 

Jun continued and explained that, at the start of their debut, he was too afraid to say something wrong but has now gained more confidence.

Q: You used to have this public image as the shy, quiet one, but it seems like now your real personality is coming out.

It could be because I’ve become more confident, and maybe also because the group’s become more established. I was really afraid of saying something wrong when I just debuted. I was so cautious that eventually, I stopped speaking altogether. Thinking about it now, I was sort of dumb. (laughs) There was no need for me to be that cautious. Better late than never, though, I guess.

— Jun

Luckily, Jun was able to grow more confidence because of his loving members!

Q: You must feel like you’ve changed a lot.

Of course, I do. Thanks to the members, it’s easy to tell. To be honest, I have a harder time dancing and singing in front of the other members than I do for people who aren’t CARAT. We’ve been with each other a long time, and everyone knows each other and what they’re good and not good at. It’s harder to be good in front of people who know me so well. So if I can speak well when I’m with the other members, I can speak more easily when we make appearances. In some ways, I think it makes me feel more confident when the other members acknowledge my ability (laughs). If they say, ‘Nicely done!’—I think I feel more confident when I’m out in the real world.

— Jun

SEVENTEEN