Should You Ever Work with Your Friends?

Prior to starting Korean Vegan Beauty, I had the chance to spend time with two incredible founders of a mega successful beauty brand. One of the things that struck me about them was that prior to starting their company, the two founders were good friends. I asked them whether starting the company with a friend was instrumental in their success. Absolutely, they both agreed. They explained that starting and running a business is so hard that there were many points during which they were grateful they weren't doing it alone. When I heard this, I determined that were I ever to get Korean Vegan Beauty off the ground, I would have to do it with a friend. Enter Nemanja Golubovic. Owner of the extraordinary popular restaurant Kale My Name, I knew Neman to be a savvy and experienced business person. More importantly, if there was ever someone I could count on in the trenches of business ownership, I knew it would be him. So, I invited him to be KV Beauty's Creative Director.  And now, he's going to ask me a handful of rapid-fire questions, the kind of stuff we do as friends and now as colleagues! Neman: If you heard that I'd been arrested, what would you assume I'd done? Joanne: I would assume you got into a fight defending one of your friends or trying to protect them from ICE. Neman: If we switched lives for 24 hours, what is the first thing you would do as me? Joanne: I would eat nachos at Kale My Name, with the Beyond Meat Chicken chunks. Then, I would play with your dog Kale for 5 hours in a row. And then, I would beat my husband Anthony at chess. Multiple times. Neman: If we were in a reality TV show, who would be sent home first and why? Joanne: For sure, me. Because I am boring and play by all the rules. I'm too nice to everyone and don't pick fights and can't stand causing drama. All the things that producers and watchers would not find very interesting. Whereas you are a TV darling. Neman: What's something I was completely wrong about, but you didn't tell me because you didn't want to argue? Joanne: Nothing. I disagree with you frequently, but I've never pretended otherwise. Neman: If you had to describe our friendship in just 3 words, what would they be? Joanne: Fun, Honest, and Loyal. Neman: If you could delete one of my personality traits, which would it be? Joanne: The one where you let people defraud or take advantage of you. Neman: What's one misconception that people have about me? Joanne: I don't think this is a misconception, per se, but people definitely underestimate your intelligence. You're a comedy creator and some people might assume you're just silly and unserious, but in actuality, you're one of the smartest persons I know. That's why you're so good at chess. Neman: Is there something you always wanted to tell me, but haven't? Joanne: No. I'm an open book. Neman: Knowing what you do today, if you were to meet me for the first time, would you still want to be friends? Joanne: Absolutely. --- Anyhoo, these were pretty fun questions! And in some ways, more revealing than I thought they'd be. Starting KVB with Neman by my side was one of the best decisions I've made as founder!! 

The other day, my therapist said,  You know? Here's how I would describe you. You are a storyteller. Over the past several months, we have been working on "filling the bucket." What do I mean by that? The "bucket" is my identity. And in lieu of filling it with achievements, awards, and milestones, we've been—very slowly—trying to fill it with things I love, things I am. Because all the things I do? They are merely... evidence of the things I am. They do not form identity. Rather, they evidence identity. I was raised to prize achievement and productivity above ALL things. And thus, it's been difficult, to say the least, to change the way my brain works. I am trying so very hard to identify and value the things I am, over the things I do. I founded Korean Vegan Beauty, because I love animals, because I am vegan.  I founded The Korean Vegan, because I love kimchi, because I am Korean and vegan. But when Dr. Seth called me a "storyteller," I assumed it was because he'd Googled me. I've been called the "Storytelling Chef" for years, now. It's "part of my brand." But when I said as much, he gave me the classic "deer in headlights" look and said, I have no idea what you're talking about. He continued, I'm calling you a storyteller because it's so obvious from the way you speak. Even in our sessions. You lay everything out, from beginning to end. You tell a story. If you're reading this, I have no idea whether you found me because you follow The Korean Vegan, bought one of my cookbooks, or randomly googled "Korean vegan beauty products." But, I wanted to introduce myself (or reintroduce, as the case may be) and tell you that Dr. Seth was more right than he realized. I am a storyteller. And over the past year, I've been writing the story of my life. Not just mine. But my mother's. My grandmother's. I've had hours and hours and hours of conversations with my mother. I've delved deep into historical archives regarding North Korea, South Korea, and The Korean War. I've tried to retrace the steps my family took from a small fishing province in North Korea to Busan to Jeolla-doh and Chicago, Illinois. And through that journey, I discovered an inheritance waiting for me in the ruins. Uncovering it has been simultaneously joyous and painful, full of wonder and grief. Because our choices are almost never black and white. And neither are we. Regardless of why you're here, I'm just glad you are. And I'm thrilled to share this cover and this moment with you.