I’ve always been curious of how other pastors and church leaders work. So I shamelessly ripped of Lifehacker.com’s How I Work series and began to ask other church leaders questions about their work.

Helicon Kuan

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Location: Santa Barbara, CA

Your Ministry: Interim English Pastor

One word that describes how you work: Dynamic

Current mobile device: iPhone X

Current computer/laptop: HP Spectre X360; iPad Pro 10.5

Describe a Recent Work Day:

Tuesday – Wake-up… get ready for the day. Head to coffee shop. 30 minutes of prayer and personal devotions. 30 minutes of personal reading. 1-2 hours of sermon prep. Meet w/student or ministry leader (1-2 hours). Grab lunch (~1 hour). 2 hours of sermon prep. Meet w/church member (1-2 hours). Take afternoon break (2 hours). Grab dinner. Head to Resound community… (2-3 hours)… fellowship group. ~1 hour post-community hang-out/conversations. Head home… relax and watch tv. Go to bed.

Gadgets/apps/tools that you cannot live without:

Notability. Amazon Kindle. iPad Pro with Apple Pen is great for note taking. Google Drive for my notes and writing.

What’s your workspace set-up like? (Do you do majority of work from office or do you work remotely):

Remotely… from coffee shop. Set up is fully-charged laptop ~6-7 hours of use. iPad Pro; other additional resources I may need for prep. iPhone for music & Bose QC25 for ANC while prepping listening to jazz, chillhop or classical… helps me get into zone.

Best short-cut; life hack you use:

Conversations with friends and family have often segued into illustrations and inspiration for sermons. My little brother often knows my stories and his suggestions have helped me with prep.

How do you keep track of what you have to do?

Apple iPhone reminders AND Google Calendar with alerts and reminders.

What’s one of the least favorite aspects of what you have to do:

Administrative logistical work… informing people and waiting for responses which are often slow.

Passion/Side project of yours?

Sociological studies… studying on Race, Identity and church especially in context of Asian American perspective.

What gives you joy about your work

Discipling and watching those you serve and love become deeply devoted, capable and mature men and women in Christ.

Currently reading/ or anything you’d recommend one to read

You Are What You Love: The Spiritual Power of Habit – James K.A. Smith

We Were Eight Years in Power: An American Tragedy – Ta-Nehisi Coates

How God Became King: The Forgotten Story of the Gospels – N.T. Wright