Through the Spectacles

Let’s be honest— minor subjects don’t feel like majors. They don’t carry the same pressure. They don’t dominate your schedule. They don’t always seem directly connected to your future career. So it’s easy to treat them differently—to give less time, less effort, less importance. That reaction is understandable. But it’s also where the misunderstanding begins. Because the value of a subject isn’t measured by how “heavy” it feels—it’s measured by what it develops in you. I teach Art Appreciation to some courses that are not BFA, under our General Education program, and I see this mindset all the time. Students assume it’s light, flexible, or secondary. Something you can set aside when your major starts demanding more. And to be fair, Art Appreciation does not function like a major subject. It doesn’t train you in technical specialization. It doesn’t drill you for professional practice in the same way. It’s not supposed to. That’s exactly the point. General Education courses—including Art...

I remember one night, sitting in front of my laptop, staring at a blank screen while the city outside my window slept. My mind was buzzing with ideas, but my body felt completely drained. I had three deadlines the next day, and a client was messaging me for the fourth revision of a poster I thought was already perfect. “That’s when I realized I was burnt out.” Creative burnout is that overwhelming mix of stress, frustration, and sometimes desperation we feel when trying to finish a project—whether it’s a design, a written piece, a song, a choreography, or a stage play. Unlike ordinary fatigue, which a good night’s sleep or a meal with friends can fix, burnout digs deeper. It affects your motivation, confidence, and sometimes mental health. Many of your friends in the creative field—freelancers, designers, artists, and educators—have probably experienced it. And while we can’t always fix it for them, just being there matters. Most creatives say their work is their passion, and ...

We love movies with twists and turns, but life? Life writes its own plotlines—sometimes stranger, sometimes more meaningful than anything on screen. Today, I want to share one of my own twists, a journey that reshaped my career, my passions, and my understanding of myself. The Early Dreams As an undergraduate, I was a fairly typical student—not overly studious, not lazy, just… simple. I had simple dreams: to have a band, create art, and write plays for the stage. These were the things that made me feel alive. They weren’t necessarily practical, but I imagined a life where I could flourish in these pursuits, and for a while, that was enough to keep me motivated. Finding My Career Path After completing my BFA, I entered the workforce as an illustrator for a small children’s magazine. It was modest work, but it connected me with the professional world. Soon after, I became a graphic designer for retail, then hotels. During this time, I discovered a new aspiration: to beco...

Have you ever felt like you’re always on the run—especially when it comes to work? Like, no matter how much you give, how many hours you put in, or how hard you try, it still isn’t enough? These thoughts have been lingering in my mind for years. Why do we have to juggle two or three jobs just to make ends meet? And yet, somehow, even with all that effort, we never truly feel secure. Juggling Multiple Roles I am a job juggler myself. On the academic side, I work one full-time and one part-time position. On the creative side, I run a small business that serves clients whenever opportunities arise. If you only work a single job, this might sound impressive—or even enviable—but the reality is far from glamorous. Even with multiple streams of income, I still find myself stretched thin. Not empty, but never quite enough. “Despite technically managing three jobs, there are days when I have to tighten my belt just to make it to the next payday.” I live modestly. I buy only what I can afford,...

Lately, I have been thinking about how noisy the world has become. Everyone has something to say. Every issue invites a reaction. But in the middle of all this speaking, listening seems to be disappearing. Listening is not just about being quiet while someone else talks. It is about being open. It is about allowing another person’s idea to enter your mind before you respond. Today, however, many conversations feel like competitions. People wait for their turn to speak instead of trying to understand. Social media has made this more visible. Posts are judged by likes, shares, and views. What becomes viral is often treated as true. But popularity is not the same as truth. When we rely only on what trends, we stop thinking deeply. We react quickly instead of reflecting carefully. The philosopher Socrates believed that wisdom begins with recognizing that we do not know everything. This idea requires humility. To listen well, we must accept that we might be wrong or incomplete. Without tha...