In the fast-moving world of agency hustle, being present and focused amidst the buzz can be challenging. That is, we are always anticipating what’s next for our clients. Add in modern-day maladies —...
Jocelyn Kinsey is a principal at DFJ Growth; a venture capital firm focused on growth-stage investments in enterprise, consumer and disruptive technology companies. When Jocelyn isn’t meeting with innovative startups, she’s traveling the world and collecting unique keepsakes along the way. We sat down with her to learn more about her life and the gear she totes around each day.
I love traveling to different countries as a way to refresh and break from my routine in the Bay Area. I’m reminded of the amazing places I’ve been to by picking up interesting objects during my adventures. For instance, I got this hairbrush during a trip to Paris. This pink notebook is from Vietnam. I bought it from a street artist during my trip there over the holidays. It actually supports an essential part of my day. Every morning, I have this practice where I write down what I'm grateful for, and it really sets my tone for the day. I track everything in it — my mood, my health, my exercise, my sleep patterns, you name it — so having a journal with me at all times is vital.
Work demands on my time are unpredictable, which makes it really hard to maintain a consistent exercise schedule. My solution is to combine workout and breakfast meetings. I meet with startup founders, colleagues, and other investors at Barry’s Bootcamp. I recently tried Rumble, which is a boxing fitness class. Yoga is a pretty regular choice, too. Sweating together is a great way to break the ice and get to know people better. And, it’s a healthy alternative to grabbing drinks. I’m always carrying spare workout clothes and my reusable S’well or Hydro Flask water bottle to stay hydrated.
Sunscreen! I'm not a huge makeup person, but I'm a big skincare person, especially when it comes to SPF. I like Glossier’s sunscreen. It goes on nice and easy, and it’s clear, so it doesn’t leave any residue behind. Second to sunscreen are facial serums and moisturizers. Especially if I'm working out in the morning, I need to moisturize my face. For this purpose, Drunk Elephant's Virgin Marula Luxury Facial Oil is fantastic. I always carry a regular moisturizer with me, and Tula’s is my favorite because it has probiotics in it. My makeup routine is pretty basic: mascara, eyeliner, and concealer. That's all I wear every day.
Late-stage investing is an adventure. We love to geek out at DFJ Growth, and constantly immerse ourselves in emerging technologies to inform our investment strategy. When we became interested in virtual and augmented reality, we went on a field trip to test out products under development from leading companies. It was a fun team outing and really understanding the state of the market landscape helped drive our investment in Unity. Another sector we’re excited about is the rapidly growing 3D printing market. We invested in Formlabs in 2013 and have their Form 2 printer in our office. 3D-printed items are not only cool, but they’re also useful, like the metal 3D-printed bottle opener I keep in my bag for impromptu celebrations.
Apple Airpods are a must. I also keep an old school set of headphones handy, because you never know when you’ll need them. My Fitbit is a more recent favorite due to its sleep tracking functionality. For work, I always carry my ThinkPad and my iPad/pencil. It’s heavy carrying both, but I need my ThinkPad for Excel and my iPad for note-taking in meetings. I recently switched to the iPad pencil combo from pen and paper, and it’s been a major productivity booster.
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