In light of our fall issue’s pioneer theme, we hope that you’re feeling inspired to blaze your own career trail. Whether your true love is in business, music, film or giving back to the community, pioneering your own path doesn’t have to feel daunting. We’ve broken down the steps so you can get started on anything from passing a neighborhood law to starting your own company.

Joseph Vincent is exhausted. But if there’s anyone who deserves a break, it’s him. In just a few short years, Vincent has grown from receiving his first guitar at the age of fifteen and posting simple covers on YouTube to recently completing an exhilarating tour throughout Australia—which is why he was catching up on some much needed rest at home in Southern California when Mochi spoke with him.

While she is technically one-eighth Chinese, celebrated author Lisa See, whose novels have landed on The New York Times bestseller list, has always felt a deep connection to her Asian roots. Many of her works, such as the most recent Snow Flower and the Secret Fan (which was turned into a Hollywood movie), as well as Shanghai Girls and Dreams of Joy follow the perspectives of strong, young female characters overcoming various hardships and challenges. And through her beautifully written stories, See sheds light on the unique and fascinating aspects of Chinese culture, all while spinning compelling hook-line-and-sinker stories.

We’ve all had “oops” moments in our love lives, from small date slip-ups to bigger relationship bumps. Here are some touching, funny and real reflections from Mochi boys on their classic romantic blunders—and our advice on how to deal.
Quotes edited for clarity.
Physically Hurting Someone: Penn, 23, University of Michigan
I was tossing around a football with my girlfriend at the time. I threw it too hard at one point and her finger slipped when she caught it. She thought something might be wrong with her finger and asked if she should …

Beijing, a symbol of China’s booming economy and rich cultural history, is a
remarkable city to visit. As the capital of China and home to more than 20 million
residents, Beijing is a bustling metropolis blending the modern and traditional,
where rows of gleaming skyscrapers stand just blocks away from intricate,
ancient hutong alleyways and residences.
For those of you who have your sights set on visiting this capital gem, for either
a short-term trip or a longer time period to study abroad, here’s a basic guide of
things to do and places to see to get …

Whether you’re interviewing for a job in high school or attending a company mixer in college, you’ll inevitably come across situations where professionalism and putting your best face forward are key. Unfortunately, sometimes it’s the smallest mistakes that can cost you a great opportunity—I once missed an entire job interview because of a careless time mix-up (BIG oops!). To prevent moments like these, here are some tips to help you shine.
General Tips
Be organized. This is a simple rule, but it’s your ultimate weapon to showing up and being prepared in …

Meet Mark Bao, Diane Keng, Jessica Mah and Pooja Upadhyaya – If you haven’t heard of their names before, you’re bound to read about them again soon. At 20 or under, these incredibly talented entrepreneurs have founded and pioneered products and companies from the ground up. Though each of these young entrepreneurs followed unique paths, their collective accomplishments are a great example that anything can be achieved with a combination of brains, drive and conviction.

We’ve heard it all before: college is the time to make new friends, discover yourself and enjoy the kind of freedom you didn’t have in high school. But in the midst of all the adventure, classes are just as important. If you’re feeling stressed about keeping up, don’t worry—Mochi staffers (who have been through it all) have gathered our top tips on acing college classes and leaving those pesky final exams in the dust.

As a high school student, Pooja Upadhyaya had an eye-opening experience working as a medical volunteer in Mumbai, India. While tagging along with a doctor and a nurse to set up clinics in different slum areas, she couldn’t help but wonder about the people she had helped—what happened on all the other days when a doctor wasn’t present?

Mark Bao likes to solve problems.
In search of a better way to keep in touch with his extended family in China, Bao founded Genevine, a company that helps families easily share photos, messages and videos with each other through a simple online platform. Seeing a big communication problem between devices and people, he created Avecora, a long-term technology innovation business that he predicts will become “the one communication device for your life” when it launches in 2013. And to solve the problem of never getting an honest opinion of yourself, …

It’s a given that businesses and entrepreneurs focus a lot of attention on making money. But how much effort do they actually put into effectively organizing and managing that money once it’s made?

Be it Facebook, Twitter, Flickr or Tumblr, the majority of us regularly use multiple social media platforms. But what if you could access and manage all of your social media accounts from one place and conveniently update all of them at the same time?

Face it—guys can be confusing. To find out what they really look for in girls, we went straight to the source and asked college guys across the nation for their thoughts. Here’s what they said:

The college dating scene is often associated with quick hook ups at parties, temporary flings or even the scandalous “friends with benefits” arrangement. Add in the chaos of classes, extracurricular activities and interning—and finding the time to maintain a long-term relationship may seem a bit like an impossible feat.

Picking a major that could potentially influence the rest of your life can be daunting, so we’ve compiled a guide to the 10 most common majors to get you thinking about which could be the best fit. While there are many other majors out there that we highly encourage you to explore, this guide is meant to get you on the right track.