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This essay was commissioned by Netflix as part of My Brilliant Career: My Way, a series of personal essays inspired by Netflix’s new series My Brilliant Career, out now. From Netflix’s My Brilliant Career, out now. Speak up “Keep your head down, be quiet, work hard.” That’s what my parents told me when growing up and when I entered the workforce. This is something that is writ large in some parts of Chinese culture and other Asian diasporas – clearly, in my family.

I opened up my Instagram to Q&As and answered a handful. There’s enough for subsequent parts. If you have any other questions, comment here and I’ll add it to the list. The contrast black leather tie on this Lemaire x Filt Croissant bag really makes it. Filt is France’s oldest manufacturer of netted shopping bags. Fun, whimsical like a rucksack, but pulled together with the leather detail. New Zealand brand Yu Mei makes a nylon crossbody.

There’s something interesting happening in fashion now. There’s not a newness per se, but a doubling down of what’s already happening in fashion. Trends have long been a dirty word in fashion (I’ve written about it here) but now we’re really going hard with what catches our fancy. Fringing and devore, statement belts, jackets that say something, embellished tiny handbags, surfy board shorts worn off the beach.

Specific articles I would recommend: ‘Have I been influenced, or is this actually me?’ How personal taste fell out of fashion, by Rachel Aroesti for The Guardian and TasteSlop on Substack Surely you’ve seen the taste discourse everywhere. Is it over? Is the algorithm telling us what our taste is? Taste is still there, but, it’s being sold back to us.

Expecting a “Here’s how I packed” story? No, reader, this is not it. Instead, you can learn from my mistakes because if I would rate myself on how I packed, I’d give myself a four out of 10. Maybe a 5 if I was feeling generous, but I wouldn’t deserve it. Before COVID I used to travel regularly for work and for fun. Australians will know what I mean by this flex: I have lifetime Gold Frequent Flyer membership at Qantas.

Buying vintage used to convey taste and insider knowledge. It was a flex. But now, everyone is on Vestiaire, eBay — which just bought Depop — and The Real Real, which is on the New York Stock Exchange. TikTok trends exist where people are showing what they can find at ZZER in Shanghai. When I first went to Amore Vintage in Tokyo, it was located on the upper levels of a concealed office building.

If there’s one thing I really hate, it’s boring small talk. “How are you going? How’s work?” It’s not that I’m ever going to deep in on it on small talk, because the most is appropriate is “Oh, you know, the usual!” I got to thinking about this because a lot more goes into working for yourself than it may appear. To wit: I am currently sitting in Tokyo on a five hour long layover. I have spent the majority of my time eating in the lounge, and working.

There’s a specific kind of girl who eschewed Lauren Conrad and Whitney Port and instead watched the superintern, Emily Weiss, spellbound. That was me. For those who really know, Weiss went on to found Glossier. It has had its highs and lows and plateaus, but Weiss came to be one of the unofficial faces of the term girlboss, even though I’m sure she’ll hate that. To me, she came to personify a particular kind of ambition that I hadn’t seen articulated but her presence was one I could look up to.

If you read this newsletter edition about content strategy and founder content strategy, you might assume I’m a proponent of founder-led content. Actually. I’m not. That piece was about how to do it thoughtfully if you’re going to do it. I had crafted that for brands who didn’t actually intend to start off with focusing on the founder, but grew into it (let me know if you want me to go more into that later). This newsletter is the question that you should be asking before all of that.

Perhaps a controversial opinion, but I love winter. Warming, comforting (and rich) foods, dressing for cooler temperatures in outerwear and scarves, hot chocolate and being cosy. And yes, it’s porridge season. I am enjoying the next few weeks in Australia before I go to England for just five days to attend a friend’s wedding. So perhaps in that context I’m feeling more pining than usual for winter, but it’s the contrasts in life that make you appreciate the other side so much more.