My three years with Square Magazine have taken me from model to Cast Director to Editor-In-Chief, and that progression has been one of the most formative experiences of my life. Starting as a model gave me an understanding of what it feels like to be on the other side of the creative process — the vulnerability, the trust, and the energy it takes to show up and perform. That foundation shaped everything that came after it.
Issue 5 brought an entirely different challenge. Stepping into the Cast Director role meant I was now responsible for finding the people who would carry the magazine's vision, with no guarantee any of it would come together the way I imagined. The casting process was more difficult than I expected — it required persistence, an eye for the right fit, and the ability to make confident decisions with limited information. There were moments of doubt, moments where the pieces didn't seem like they were going to align, but pushing through that taught me how to trust my instincts and lead even when the outcome wasn't certain.
Issue 6 as Editor-In-Chief was a different kind of hard. The pressure wasn't just on one piece of the process anymore — it was on all of it. Every creative decision, every layout choice, every word on the page ultimately came back to me. I had to learn how to hold a team together, manage competing ideas, and stay committed to a vision through the chaos of production. It tested my patience, my communication, and my ability to lead people through uncertainty while keeping the standard high.
Each issue came with its own version of struggle, and each one left me a better creative and a better leader than the one before it.