I’m blessed to know Natalie Mukhtar. She might not remember this, but the first time I met her was on a grassy spot on campus. I had joined the upperclassmen Bible study with the Christian club I was involved with at SJSU and I was in dire need of friends since I was new to the area. The conversation came up that I was a Recreation major and a bunch of people said, “You have to meet Natalie! She loves Hume Lake (a popular Christian camp in California)!” I was instantly drawn to her spirit and laughter, and knew that I wanted to be her friend.

Things you need to know about Natalie: she gives the BEST hugs. I was never lacking in the hug department. She is extremely talented. Her mind thinks creatively and in an abstract way. I have also had some of the best conversations about the Lord with her. I’m able to be vulnerable with her due to listening ear and grace filled heart.

I’m thrilled to be sharing Natalie with you. She’s a person you need in your life.

S: Where do you live and how old are you?
N: I live in the middle of the Silicon Valley, and I’m 24 years old.

S: What did you get your degree in?
N: I graduated with a BS in Industrial Design, which is more like product design and less like architecture.

S: What were you like as a kid?
N: I built everything that came into my mind out of Legos – that’s what occupied most of my brain space. I was also super shy and timid, never felt “big” enough to approach an adult for anything, so I always just kept to myself. That’s probably why I used Lego as my expressive outlet. My cousins would probably tell you I was very empathetic. Kind of like how a dog senses sadness or happiness or fear. I could always pick a low spirit out of a room, and apparently I’d walk over and try to comfort the person with a  hug or some slobbery kid kiss. And then go back to building robots out of Legos. I remember this on a few instances but never thought anything of it. That’s me in my kid years.

S: What three words describe you?
N: Creative, loving, and determined.

S:What do you do for a living?
N: I’m an industrial designer at a couple design firms in the Bay Area. That basically means I think of an idea for a new or existing product, and then I design and make it. Someone smarter comes in to find a way to sell it in stores. Can I add that I’ve been mesmerized with the process of creating things lately? I can’t hardly believe humans have the ability to think of something and then make it exist. This is precisely why I love my profession, it reminds me of Genesis – God’s ability to think of something and speak it into existence. It reminds me that we’re made in His image, because we have that same awesome ability to think and create, but realistically, on a much smaller scale.

S: You were always so busy in your classes. Was there ever a moment when you wanted to give up?
N: That’s funny. I often reached many “ends,” but never thought of fully giving up. I switched majors two years in to avoid wasting time on my original degree, and changed little bits and pieces of my college experience until I found a sweet spot that kept me going. I remember church shopping mid-college career so that I could plug in and be fed spiritually. Friend shopping was a blessing when I needed emotional support.  For the rest of it, God kept opening doors so that I would realize that He had me right where I needed to be. Every time He opened a door I was rejuvenated and encouraged enough to go on until the next door opened. Don’t get me wrong, I had so many drained, wiped clean, rock bottom days, but somewhere in the low days I would remember His faithfulness, and it wasn’t fair to recognize His devotion to me and not reciprocate it. So I stayed on the path He laid out, even when I felt blind.

S:What kind of advice would you give to someone going into a design career?
N: I would say only do it if you love it. It is so not worth the late nights and baggy eyes and friendship-pauses, if you don’t feel at all fulfilled by it, or if you don’t feel like you’re helping others with it.

S: Quick resume?
N: Interned at a small design firm in 2012 in San Jose
Interned at a tech company from 2013-15 in the greater Bay Area
Now working at two design firms in San Jose

S: What do you like about what you do?
N: I wish I could infect every person on this earth with immense joy. But I can’t…or can I…
My absolute favorite part of my job is that everything I make is available to billions of people all around the world. And if I design my products with good intention (which I try to do), then the experience people will have with my products will hopefully be at minimum, pleasant, and at most, life changing. BOOM, billions reached.

S: Share a cool moment in your young career.
N: When one of the first products I’ve worked on launched, I was so excited to see it in stores that I went to a local Costco, picked my baby off the shelf and took an ecstatically unashamed photo with it…but didn’t buy it because it was still too expensive. I bet people walking by thought I was nuts. I later realized that people don’t normally take photos with items they find in stores… so that’s just me.

*Of course we had to share the picture 😉

S: Favorite verse?
N: Philippians 2:3 – Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.

S: What makes a Captivating Woman?
N: Confidence! But not the ego-filled, self-facing kind, because that’s monotonous and circular. I think all of my friends are captivating women, and they are the least self-indulgent people I know. I am drawn to them firstly because of their joy for life. They always seem to have something to be thankful for, and in turn they treat others with generosity and kindness. I’m not the deepest person intellectually, I don’t think I think more than the average person, but I see confidence when I see people helping others. When people aren’t afraid to sacrifice a bit of themselves to grow someone else, that’s attractive, and that’s captivating.

S: Favorite story in the bible?
N: Um a bit odd, sorry for the horror story, but I love the startling prophetic story in Revelation 11:1-14 written by John. Two witnesses are sent to earth (many scholars believe they are Elijah and Moses since they ascended and never actually physically died) to prophecy for 3.5 years while the spiritual state of the earth is dismal. God gives the prophets the amazing ability to breathe fire and destroy their enemies, and also gives them power to stop the rain, turn water to blood, and strike the earth with any plague as often as they want. The authority handed to them by Him, who has authority over them, is astounding and indicates complete trust in their judgment. Well, at the end of the 3.5 years of prophesying they are killed by “the beast,” and their bodies lay dead on the open ground for 3.5 days as people pass by, mock them, and rejoice over their death. On the third day, they are raised from the dead and ascend to heaven. Sound familiar? And the story ends with an earthquake, “At that very hour there was a severe earthquake and a tenth of the city collapsed. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the survivors were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.”
There are lots of reasons I like this story. In an odd way, it comforts me to be reminded that it’s never too late to turn to God. Even if you mock Him or his people for the majority of your life, in your last moment of life you can genuinely turn to Him and He will accept you. But this story also indicates urgency. You never know when your life will end, you could be one of the ones that dies in a tragedy, or you could be safe until your natural end, but why wait to find out?

S: Who are some Captivating Women in your life that we need to know about?
N: Kristen Rhea, Katie Assadi, &. Esther Han. These women love God and are pursuing careers in the fields that God has gifted them in. They are determined, content, confident women who have active goals and aspirations. I respect their drive. They are pavers and natural leaders, and the way they conduct themselves is captivating.