Story & Lesson Highlights with Zihao Jin of Hangzhou

We recently had the chance to connect with Zihao Jin and have shared our conversation below.

Zihao, really appreciate you sharing your stories and insights with us. The world would have so much more understanding and empathy if we all were a bit more open about our stories and how they have helped shaped our journey and worldview. Let’s jump in with a fun one: What are you chasing, and what would happen if you stopped?
Actually, I have multiple life goals.
Among them, the two related to my personal interests and professional pursuits are: being able to continuously create and design better works, and making a short film that satisfies myself.
These two goals are almost the comfort and driving force for my life path.
So I can’t imagine what it would be like if I didn’t have such hobbies and pursuits—I would probably be at a loss, completely unsure of what to do next, and that would be really heartbreaking.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m a concept artist with over a decade of experience in game development, and I’m deeply passionate about science fiction. I have participated in numerous well-known game projects, such as Star Wars, Warhammer, and Diablo.
I also run my own online training courses—while sharing my teaching philosophy and design skills, I have made many more friends. I have always enjoyed building friendships with my students and gaining knowledge I lack from them.
Additionally, I love exploring all interesting things in life and nature. I believe every existing thing can be iterated and transformed through design.
When I was a child, I liked climbing onto the roof to gaze at the starry sky; it always felt so close. Back then, there was not much light pollution, so I could easily see the Milky Way.
Therefore, I now have a life plan to find another place where I can witness the Milky Way again.

Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. What was your earliest memory of feeling powerful?
When I apply my professional skills to create design works in projects, while clearly expressing my ideas and successfully communicating them to other team members, it makes me feel extremely energized.
For the proper combination of linguistic communication and professional skills is what I have been pursuing all along.
I believe both the ability to express oneself and the ability to absorb information are extremely important.

When you were sad or scared as a child, what helped?
When I was a child, I basically relied on self-regulation to ease setbacks or fears. It seems I never got used to relying on others for help, even from an early age.
To this day, I still don’t know why—maybe it’s innate? Of course, when I was around three years old, I loved drawing very much. I would make up stories for my drawings and talk to myself.
This could almost be my “magic cure” at any time, giving me a free space to release my emotions. Even now, this habit still remains.

I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. What truths are so foundational in your life that you rarely articulate them?
The two concepts I cherish most in life are “deliberate practice” and “long-termism.”
In fact, I had never heard of these two ideas a few years ago. But looking back, it seems I have been following them since I was three years old—like with drawing and design.
It all started with interest, but setbacks are inevitable in the learning process. The core way to overcome these setbacks is to practice repeatedly. In this process, I gradually summed up the relatively correct direction and kept moving forward. At the same time, progress in any profession cannot be achieved in a short period of time.
We need to avoid impetuosity and pursue it in the long run. Setting overly short time limits for ourselves will only create obstacles and anxiety.
And in the internet age, there is no shortage of things that fuel anxiety and mental internal friction. So it’s better to take a longer-term view and make progress slowly.

Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. If you knew you had 10 years left, what would you stop doing immediately?
I would immediately stop working, travel for a period of time first, and visit those less crowded niche places.
Then I would wholeheartedly dive into creations that fully respect my inner voice—shooting or making an animated short film to leave my ideas in this world.
Of course, some of these ideas may be abstract and only understandable to myself, but that doesn’t matter. It would also serve as a summary and reflection on my own inner world. I believe in this process, I will gradually come to accept that people will eventually leave this world.
Having a work that expresses I once existed is truly meaningful.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.artstation.com/jinzh
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jinzh-
• Youtube: @jinzh2021