We’ve scoped out media bosses in New York City and fashionistas across both coasts, and now we’re taking you to Brit + Co’s hometown city of San Francisco. In our latest installment of #IAmaBoss, you’ll meet three ladies who are working tirelessly — across multiple industries — to support and advocate on behalf of SF’s less-privileged populations. Scroll on for their productivity tips, fave apps and more!
Christine Moore: Christine was born and raised in Northern California’s East Bay, and after college she decided to follow her dreams of living abroad and joined the Peace Corps. After two years of teaching English in China with Peace Corps, and three months of traveling around India, Nepal and Southeast Asia, she returned to live in San Francisco and find a job that would utilize the skill sets she learned abroad. She works with Compass Family Services as a Bilingual Case Manager on their SF Home team, to help support and find housing for homeless families in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Nicole Marquez: Nicole is a staff attorney at Worksafe where she focuses on the health and safety rights of low-wage and immigrant workers. Nicole has brought her interest in and passion for addressing issues related to intersectionality of race and gender to the world of health and safety rights. She created and facilitated a pilot project, “La Voz,” a holistic legal clinic and know-your-rights training program for immigrant women domestic violence survivors and workplace sexual assault victims. She is actively involved in working within coalitions with worker centers, unions, community-based organizations and other worker advocacy groups. Nicole earned her law degree from the University of Denver, Sturm College of Law and her BA from San Diego State University. She uses breaking (break dancing) as a way to fuel her creativity, connect with the hip-hop community and break barriers/social stigmas associated with hip hop.
Teshika Hatch: Teshika grew up in Seattle, WA and spent her childhood both in Seattle and Tokyo, Japan. In college she studied Sociology and Psychology with an emphasis in Social Justice work and worked as a multicultural recruiter and admissions counselor for a couple years immediately after graduating. After realizing that her job was less about students’ needs and more about the institution’s goals, she decided to “switch sides” and now works at a college access and youth development organization, Juma Ventures, where she is a mentor, advisor, counselor and advocate for a group of first-generation, college-bound high school students.
What Is Your Morning Routine?
Christine: Every morning I start with about five minutes of stretching and make sure to do at least five sun salutations. Next, I drink one or two large glasses of lemon water while cooking breakfast and listening to the news or a podcast. Following breakfast, I take about five minutes and write down one or two affirmations, and then make a list of the things I need to accomplish for the day. After that I either head out for a morning run or join in on a Pop Physique class.
Nicole:
7:25 am: Wake up, make some tea and pack my lunch and my gym bag.
8:0o am: Shower/put on my disguise (aka my makeup).
8:30am: Out the door!
Teshika: Because I work with high school students, my hours are a little unusual. I don’t have to be in the office until about noon, so my mornings are usually the only time I have to relax, drink coffee and get updates on the world. This also means that every morning is different, so I don’t have much of a “routine.”
I’m usually woken up by either my hungry dog or my 8:30am alarm. The first thing I do is decide whether or not to keep sleeping. I usually spend another 30 minutes or so laying in bed on my phone, either reading the news, browsing Facebook (thank you, socially active friends) or checking my email. I jump in the shower and get ready for work and try to end my morning on my deck with my dog and a cup of coffee.
I can’t start my morning without ______:
Christine: Checking the headlines in the New York Times, SF Gate and NPR.
Nicole: A cup of tea.
Teshika: Drinking coffee.
Tell Us Your Favorite Weekday Breakfast
Christine:
Vegetarian Breakfast Sammy:
1 Multigrain English muffin
1 slice avocado
1 egg
1 slice tomato
Copious amounts of hot sauce
Nicole: My favorite weekday breakfast is steel-cut oats (made with coconut oil, cinnamon and honey) + fresh fruit (preferably berries and apples and mango) and a side of egg whites.
Teshika: A piece of toast with Nutella or an everything bagel with cream cheese. Or my favorite is the five-dollar Safeway deals for a giant tub of “bear paws” or blueberry muffins.
What are your productivity tips?
Christine: Making a list each day of the things I absolutely need to accomplish, and having a separate list that is ongoing of things that I want to get done but that can wait. This helps me to better know how to prioritize my agenda.
Nicole: Lists and calendars. I have a master list of legal tasks that I have to complete on a white board in front of my computer. There are dates associated with each of those tasks and they are ordered based on priority. I also calendar everything, even when I am going to go to the gym, what I am going to work on or when I am going to practice breaking with friends.
Teshika: Google calendar has saved my life. I also love using different colors for different types of events, so opening up my calendar at work is actually an enjoyable experience. I also calendar everything, including setting aside time to work on individual projects or tasks.
Tell Us About Your Favorite Apps for Work and Play
Nicole: Waze is my favorite app. I drive a lot, so I need to know where to go and how to get there in the most time-efficient manner. I also like Lotus Bud, a mindfulness bell that chimes every so often and reminds me to breath. I use Whatsapp for international travel so I can stay up to date with my folks. Ted Radio Hour: I try to listen to this podcast during an early work morning workout, or when I am driving somewhere long distance.
Teshika: I recently discovered Calendly, a site that I use to schedule one-on-one meetings with my students. For play, I was addicted to this game, “Little Alchemy,” for a while, where you can combine elements to create new elements. I thought it was a perfect game for students who love playing games on their phones, but it’s also a sort of learning experience to make things like “glass” from “sand” and “fire.”
I Wish Someone Had Told Me ______ When I Graduated from College
Christine: How to better prepare for all the crazy things life throws at you, but I guess that’s a little tricky since we’re all still trying to figure that out.
Nicole: That I would miss seeing all my friends on a daily basis. Those connections you make in college are some of the most beautiful friendships you will create. Try to make sure you see your college homies at least once or twice a year.
Teshika: That it’s okay to enjoy the journey of life. Planning every moment of your career and your future will actually get in the way of finding out what you’re good at, what you still need to learn and what you might actually want to do in your life but didn’t know before. You don’t need to have a solid career plan, but by trying out different jobs and careers, you’re actually able to learn more about yourself in the process. My mom always taught us to “get out of your comfort zone,” and I think that’s true for every part of your life — not just for when you choose a college, but when you leave college as well.
Does their advice resonate with you? Know a #girlboss we should interview? Send an email to editorial@brit.co and she could appear in the next column!
