Author Archives: Jay Woo

You wake up Saturday morning feeling groggy from the night before. You already know it will be one of those lazy days where you stay in your PJs. Turn up the heat. Scroll through Netflix for a couple minutes before deciding to crawl back into bed where you just lie there. Something feels off. MaybeContinue reading “Learning to Listen to Yourself”

“The parts of you like everyone else are less important. The parts that make you weird are what you contribute to the world” – Alex Akagi As I go through much of my life, a predominant thought has been “what would be normal in this situation”. The feeling of wanting to fit in is stillContinue reading “Embrace the Weird”

It’s that feeling of not wanting to approach a stranger to ask for directions because you’re afraid they will brush you off. It’s that feeling of seeing a familiar face at a party and being hesitant to walk up because you don’t want to bother them, because what if they don’t remember your interactions asContinue reading “Anxiety”

Every summer evening during my freshman year at Berkeley, I would walk across campus to Hearst Gym. Go up the stairs. Turn on the lights. Bring out the speakers. And play the first Waltz song. I’d remember the beauty of being the only one in the room and being able to truly dance freely. FeelingContinue reading “A Love Letter to Ballroom”

There are 168 hours in a week. There are a few ways to live those hours. One way is to let them pass by as soon as possible, racing to a finish line where you can begin your real life. Another is to live each moment as if it’s your last, clinging onto what willContinue reading “Life Journal: Thanksgiving Update”

One way to characterize life is as a series of good advice not taken. Maybe it’s your friends telling you to quit that job that you hate yet still choose to stay. Maybe it’s that 4am drinking habit you complain about when you’re hungover the next day. Maybe it’s when in high school your momContinue reading “Don’t Be So Hard on Yourself”

“Hey – you’re really cute and I had to come up and say hi”. One of the most transformational periods of my life happened back in 2013 when as a high school senior, I went up to UC Berkeley twice a week to cold approach and pick up girls. The catalyst for this pursuit wasContinue reading “Don’t Chase the “Yes””

This last year has been one of the most transformation for me across all aspects of my life in how I make decisions and choose to live the life I want – socially, professionally, and romantically. Much of these decisions are guarded-railed by the phrase “just because I can doesn’t mean I should”. Just becauseContinue reading “Just Because I Can Doesn’t Mean I Should”

I grew up in a lower middle-class family. As most immigrant stories go, my parents sacrificed their family, friends, and stability from their home country to come to the States so that my sister and I could have a better life. And despite the cultural and language barriers leaving me not as close to themContinue reading “On Personal Narratives and Being Trapped in the Past”