WHAT'S IN MY BAG?

Do you ever have weird pockets of downtime between class, work, and ministry, and sit amiss because you realize that you couldn't get anything done because your bag is ill-equipped? Here's a peek into what I carry every day as a student, employee, designer, letterer, and Christian.

LIFE IN LA

I (along with many people) have a love-hate relationship with Los Angeles. To start with the negatives.... traffic. Honestly, that might be the main thing that drives (hah) me away from staying here long-term. The three-mile drive from Sawtelle (best ramen around here!) to UCLA on a Friday night can take forty minutes. Don't do it... just take my word for it. Sometimes parking costs more than my lunch. The stalled car on the side of the 405 freeway is the most interesting thing to drivers and causes a five-mile back-up. But, the bright side is that God uses traffic to teach us patience :) But seriously, though. I get a lot of questions from friends about life in LA. What's the food scene like? Art presence? Fashion culture? What are your favorite coffee shops? Do you study at the beach?

As a student at UCLA, I really don't need to go off campus. Class, work, gym, friends, and food (really good food) are all within one square mile. It's not as snazzy as you may think—I wear a sweatshirt, leggings, and Nikes to class every day and try to save money by cooking. I organize each day with my Google Calendar and would probably forget to do everything without it. A typical day starts with: Waking up at 6:30, going to the gym, showering, and spending time in the Word. I love morning devotional time because God refreshes and prepares my heart for the day. I'm not perfect at this spiritual discipline, and am constantly learning to fight for sweet moments to drink deeply from the Bible! Work or class starts at 9am and continues throughout the afternoon. I'll meet up with a friend for lunch and/or dinner, work on some calligraphy commissions, do homework, job-search, and attempt to sleep by 11pm (this rarely happens, but a gal can have goals, right?). It can get mundane and repetitive, so sometimes it's nice to spend time away from UCLA every once in a while.

I get off campus at least once a week for church. I attend Grace Community Church, and this is hands-down my favorite part of being in Los Angeles! I've found my home here with its biblical preaching, Gospel-centered leadership, loving community, and many areas to serve. The church coffee shop also serves the best coffee in LA (I'm probably biased, but check for yourself on Steeplehouse's Yelp reviews!). When my friends decide to be spontaneous, or my fiancé and I want to go on adventure, we can always find a new place to explore.

Here's a roundup of a few of my favorites: These are my favorite coffee shops for studying. They have free WiFi, abundant seating, a few outlets, and excellent milk alternatives (that last one is practically mandatory for any LA coffee shop nowadays). There's free street parking for The Boy and The Bear, Verve, and Groundwork; just be careful to read the street signs about time limit and exceptions. For ChitChat, there's a free parking structure farther down Sawtelle Blvd. There's an abundance of overpriced avocado toast in LA, but these are two of my favorite brunch spots. Lunetta All Day has a free parking lot (BLESS), adorable outdoor seating with vines crawling up pink walls, and stellar brunch dishes. Republique has the most gorgeous open space with communal tables, natural light, high ceilings, hanging lamps, and tiled floors. They serve a well-curated menu; kimchi rice, pastries, and waffles have never tasted so good together. Guisados (restaurant) and Leo's (truck) can be found at multiple locations all over LA. I love the Guisados sampler plate becuase I'm indecisive, and Leo's has mastered the pineapple-al pastor combo. These places are authentic: small corn tortillas, perfectly-seasoned meat, and reasonable prices.

ON THE JOB HUNT

Honestly, I feel like I have no authority to write about this topic because I'm in the midst of a transitional season and oftentimes feel hopeless because I still haven't found a full-time postgrad position. I oftentimes have bouts of discouragement and hopelessness, because it seems like everyone I know has their grad school or job offers lined up. Though I'm happy that my friends are doing well, deeper inside I fall into a selfish state of self-pity.

Well, (1) that's not true (2) that's not helpful.

And maybe, just maybe, as I spend late nights researching and applying to jobs, experience a flood of emotions, and struggle to trust that it'll work out, I can connect with some of you.

I'll offer a few tips and lessons learned here:

1. Build a network because you genuinely care about the people that you're connecting with. Real relationships will lead to a job; don't try to use people because they can see right through that (especially if they're recruiters and do this for a living).

2. Start research early and create a document or spreadsheet of the jobs you want to apply to and why. As you see your reasoning behind each job, you'll hopefully begin to see a common thread behind your interests. Besides the job title, you'll see more subtle preferences come out! Are they big or small companies? Tech or fashion? Teaching or learning? Do you enjoy working with people or behind a computer? Do you stick to one main role, or love the freedom to try out other tasks? What about internal services versus client-based work? Do you like to travel or work remotely? Is work-life balance important?

3. Combine deep effort with the "spray and pray" method. A mentor whom I respect joked about the "spray and pray" technique: sending out tons of applications and praying that you'll hear back from one or two. We tend to do this, hoping that it increases our probability and chances of getting an interview. But don't let that decrease the quality of the applications you really care about! If there are companies that you've researched and love, come to their applications with fresh eyes and put together an application with your best effort.

4. Get help. Have your friends, other professionals, school counselors, and club advisors read and critique your resumé and cover letter. Hit up friends that you respect in the industry and grab coffee to learn about their career path and life. Soak up all the advice... but take it with a grain of salt! You don't have to make every single resumé edit that your mom suggests. Just because your friends got their jobs in a certain way doesn't mean that you will too. Understand that your career path and timing is unique to you and doesn't look exactly the same as anyone else's. Especially if you're in the creative field!!

5. If you're a Christian, trust that God provides perfectly. God has sustained you up until now—isn't that enough proof of His faithfulness to continue trusting Him forever? He clothes the lilies of the valley and cares for the sparrow—so trust Him to provide for you. It may not look like the glamorous start-up in San Francisco with a $100k salary and free lunch every day. Or maybe it will. But you're not in control, so trust and love His will and plan for you.