Yo! I’m Paul Jun.
You might know me from my work at CreativeMorings, as a coach for Seth Godin’s The altMBA, or things I worked on at the brand agency COLLINS. I also co-created The Observers, a publication about photobooks. Maybe I took your portrait. Or you may read my old blog from 2010-2019, Motivated Mastery (RIP), my book Connect the Dots, or my essays on Adobe’s 99u. Today, I’m the Principal Creative Director at Mixpanel.
I’ve been writing for over 14 years and have worked in tech, startups, agency land, non-profits, and as a freelance writer and photographer.
I love building brands, products, stories, and communities. My writing connects the dots on everything I’m learning, observing, and thinking about.
WTF is Kimchi & Gabagool?
I’m a Korean American born and raised in (North) New Jersey. Recently, I’ve learned to appreciate my upbringing and be more curious about the lives of other Asian Americans and children of immigrants.
We have similar experiences: feeling ashamed, out of place, bullied, held to insane standards of excellence, and relying on hip-hop, sports, or video games to fit in.
The one difference uniquely tailored to me: I remember eating gabagool and fresh mutz at friends’ houses—marinara is Sunday gravy—and, by night, sitting on the floor cross-legged eating rice, kimchi, and Spam with my old-school Korean parents. I played football, got into many fights, almost became a pro gamer, and failed through high school and college. I had many friends just ten minutes away who grew up in the hood.
I’ve learned to feel fortunate for how I grew up and all the realities I saw—the families that let me into their lives and how this would shape my life. I saw extreme wealth and heartbreaking poverty. I clawed my way out of Jersey, building a career as a writer and artist, and through incredible luck, made it this far.
Why, I thought, don’t I allow this to show up in my writing?
So, to name this new endeavor, I asked myself: What two foods represent me?
Alas… Kimchi & Gabagool 🤌
The amazing illustration of kimchi being wrapped with a slice of gabagool is done by Naomi Otsu. Why read anything I have to say?
I’ve had a weird career as a “writer”—from leading the marketing and content for the world’s largest creative community; growing and sending a weekly newsletter to 250k people; building campaigns for notable brands; interviewing legends in photography about photo books; being part of the early team to build Seth Godin’s altMBA program and coaching 300 students; telling the untold stories in design for a globally renowned brand agency, and contributing to rebrands like Robinhood, Crane, Clubhouse, Match.com, The Seaport, Mixpanel, and The San Francisco Symphony.
Hopefully, the stuff I share will be helpful, funny, and insightful. I guarantee you it will be spicy, opinionated, and sweet.
Some of my essays to get a flavor:
Creativity is about practice.
Self-delusion is vital in leading a creative life.
Before Ryan Holiday revived stoicism (he also recommended Meditations to me back in the day, thanks to Ryan), I wrote about how philosophy bolsters creativity.
All great artists write.
Don’t grow your garden in someone else’s yard.
I got candid about burnout and post-burnout clarity.
What brands can learn from philosophy?
I believe self-education is the only path worth taking to design the life you want to lead.
