Meet Ziyue Guo

We were lucky to catch up with Ziyue Guo recently and have shared our conversation below.

Ziyue, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?

I found my purpose not in a single breakthrough moment but through years of listening and observing. In my work with different organizations and projects, I kept meeting people in transition, stepping away from work, adjusting to new environments, or simply waiting for what comes next. Their circumstances varied, but what connected them was a sense of being in-between, a stage I came to call a “pause.”

What struck me was how rarely these pauses are named. In the way we usually tell stories, life is framed as clear beginnings and triumphant endings: the new job, the big move, the fresh start. But the in-between, the months of uncertainty, self-doubt, or quiet growth, is often overlooked or dismissed. And when people feel they must hide it, they carry isolation and shame that make the pause even harder.

That realization was my turning point. I saw a recurring pattern that was seldom acknowledged or supported, yet almost everyone had lived through it. Out of that insight, I founded F.O.U.N.D., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to supporting individuals in pause. F.O.U.N.D. does not focus on background, gender, age, race, or even public roles. We focus on what places someone in pause, and how they can be supported there. We define pause as any stage when external or internal forces, legal, medical, emotional, or social, slow down public-facing life. A pause doesn’t erase your path, it’s a chapter within it.

For me, purpose is about making the invisible visible, transforming silence around life’s pauses into spaces for recognition, connection, and growth.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

Since its launch in April 2025, F.O.U.N.D. has grown rapidly from an idea into a living community. What began as a response to a recurring silence has become a platform where silence itself transforms into connection. In less than half a year, we’ve built a dedicated, volunteer-powered team of about 35 members across the U.S., including but not limited to California, Texas, Oregon, New York, and Florida, as well as internationally in Canada, Brazil, Chile and China. Our team brings together educators, researchers, healthcare professionals, and creatives, which allows us to design programs and content that are both human-centered and practical.

We have also built our programs to be multilingual, with content currently in English, French, Mandarin, Vietnamese, Spanish, and Portuguese. This choice comes from a simple belief: when life feels uncertain, it matters to engage in the language that feels most natural. Multilingual content ensures that people experiencing pause can read, reflect, and reach out without barriers, ensuring our community is accessible to as many voices as possible.

Even at this early stage, we consistently receive long, heartfelt messages from people who say that FOUND gave them language for something they had lived but could never name. Some share that our work has helped them reframe their own pause, from silence and self-doubt toward clarity and action.

These responses remind us that FOUND is becoming more than a nonprofit, it is a platform where people can step out of isolation, connect across differences, and begin to talk openly about pause without shame. More and more, we see people recognizing that pause is not absence, but a chapter worth honoring.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

Looking back, three qualities have shaped my journey the most.

First, openness to learning from everyone. I’ve found that every person carries a lesson, when you approach others with humility and curiosity, you grow in ways you can’t predict.

Second, perspective on past experiences. Even setbacks or uncertain times add meaning to your path, though you may not recognize it right away. The best you can do is engage fully in the present, trusting that its value will reveal itself in time.

Third, cross-cultural communication. Engaging with people across languages and cultures has revealed both the vastness of the world and the humility of my own place within it. Rather than discouraging, this perspective makes you more grounded, patient, and inclusive.

My advice for those early in their journey: cultivate these qualities intentionally, stay curious about others, trust the process of your own story, and keep practicing communication across difference. They will carry you further than technical skills alone.

One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?

We are always looking to collaborate with people and organizations who believe in creating visibility for life’s in-between stages. This could mean guest speakers who bring unique perspectives, community partners who share our values, or simply individuals who want to contribute their skills and voices.

We’re currently preparing our first online workshop, which will serve as a space to bring these conversations to life and spark wider connection. This will also mark the beginning of a recurring series, where stories and voices from diverse communities come together. If you’re reading this and feel a resonance with the idea of “pause,” we’d love to hear from you, whether it’s sharing your story, collaborating on programming, or helping us grow the conversation.

You can connect with us through our website foundtogether.org, follow us on social media to be part of our early community and the first to know about new workshops and guest speaker events, or reach out directly via [email protected].

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