Today we’d like to introduce you to Teresa Zhou.
Hi Teresa, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Thank you for having me! My story starts in Singapore – I’m originally from this sunny little island and lived there all my life. I’ve always been a lover of life and a massive explorer, so you’ll usually find me out doing something, whether it’s discovering a new spot in the city or wandering around a country I’ve never been to.
What really sparked my hunger for traveling was my university exchange program in Lugano, Switzerland. I lived there for five months, and it was my first real taste of adapting to a completely different culture. I absolutely loved it, and it planted the seed that one day, I wanted to work abroad too.
After about five years of working in Singapore (and two years after COVID) in a company I had loved dearly, I felt ready for a change. I applied to roles across cities in the UK and US, honestly just trying my luck. And as luck would have it, a global marketing agency in the UK took an interest in me. Within three weeks, I had the job, and three months later, I packed up my life in Singapore and moved to London!
I spent two wonderful years in London between 2022 and 2023, growing so much as a person and as a professional. My company encouraged global connectivity and supported employees visiting offices around the world, so I really made the most of it. By the end of those two years, I had visited eight of our 26 offices (a dream for someone who loves exploring as much as I do).
As I neared the end of my second year in London, I secured a two-week secondment to San Diego to meet my American clients for a planning session. It was my first time in the US, and I was so excited. I made the absolute most of it (which will be for a whole other story). Shortly after, the company asked if I’d consider relocating to San Diego. They were looking for new talent who could bring fresh perspectives and thought I’d be a good fit.
Leaving London and the life I built there wasn’t easy. I had made several amazing friends who were hard to say bye to and created a whole new world for myself. But the opportunity was too good to pass up, so I took the leap again.
In January 2024, I moved to San Diego, and now I’m coming up on my two-year mark here – and I have no regrets at all! I’ve learned even more, grown even more, and I’m constantly in awe of how much there is still to see in this world and how many more people there are to love.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It hasn’t been a smooth road, but it never felt like the wrong decision. And the obstacles I hit ended up teaching me some of the most valuable lessons of my life.
1) Learning to be okay with growing physically apart from my family and friends – and redefining guilt.
Missing key milestones back home (birthdays, weddings, day-to-day life updates) naturally makes you question your role in the lives of the people you love. It’s easy to spiral into worries about whether you’re doing enough or whether you’re showing up in the right ways. A friend once reframed it for me in a way that completely shifted my perspective: time spent away is time spent becoming a better version of yourself.
The things I learn, the people I meet, the opportunities I get – these are all building blocks that stretch me and shape me. Having physical distance actually gives me space to think, to reflect, and to live more intentionally. What felt difficult initially ultimately grounded me in a deeper sense of purpose and self-growth.
2) Learning to adapt to completely new environments – in life and at work.
Each city has its own rhythm. In London, ending the workday with a drink at the pub is normal, helped along by the convenience of public transport. In San Diego, people usually head straight home because of driving distances, traffic, and simply not wanting to drink and drive.
Work cultures differ just as much. How people run meetings, how they ask questions, how they collaborate – Americans, Brits, and Asians each have their own communication styles. Even the humor shifts across cultures. The British love darker, self-deprecating jokes, while Americans often lean into pop culture and internet references – that quick, witty, “if you know, you know” humor rooted in shared cultural moments. Experiencing those differences firsthand has been fascinating, illuminating and humbling.
And despite all of that, I’m deeply aware of how lucky I am.
Not everyone gets the chance to rebuild their life in new places and learn from discomfort. The challenges were real, but they also expanded my world in ways I wouldn’t trade.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I’m a Managing Director at TEAM LEWIS, leading our San Diego office and overseeing Integrated Strategy. In practice, that means I work across all our disciplines – PR, organic social, paid marketing, research, and analytics. I move between these as client needs evolve and build omni-channel strategies that solve real challenges, not just channel-specific ones.
Over the past year, I’ve been especially focused on tech and AI as our company launched several new AI products, including Training for Trust, the world’s first biometric AI coaching tool designed to help people communicate with more clarity and confidence, and our Artificial Intelligence Optimization (AIO) offering, which helps brands show up in answers generated by tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini. I’ve loved being a part of our company’s internal training as well as sharing these exciting updates with clients to see how we can elevate our work together.
I’m very grateful for my global experience across APAC, the UK and Europe, and now the US. It’s given me a deeper understanding of how different audiences think, what motivates them, and how to build strategies that truly work across cultures. That perspective shapes everything I do – from how I approach a brief to how I help brands tell their stories.
That said, I’m not defined only by my work. I take a lot of pride in what I do and in the relationships I build with clients, but I come alive outside of work. I genuinely love life – exploring, trying new things, meeting people – and that energy feeds directly back into my creativity. I draw inspiration from everywhere I go, and I try to bring that same curiosity and openness into the strategies I build. I’ll share more in the next question!
Are there any important lessons you’ve learned that you can share with us?
I’ve learned just how incredible it is to be alive. I get excited about almost everything, and you’ll always find me out doing something. In San Diego alone, I’ve gone from SoFar Sounds mystery concerts to holding an actual human brain at the Brain Observatory, to taking acting classes at the Star Theatre in Oceanside, to wandering the Renaissance Faire, to discovering new beaches and farmers’ markets.
And when I travel, I go all in. I once took a 38-hour Amtrak ride from San Diego to Seattle just to experience the journey. I did a two-week solo road trip across Arizona and New Mexico, stumbled into towns like Truth or Consequences, and had the best time. I’ve also been getting into car and tent camping all around Southern California and enjoying outdoor cooking. Life is good – wildly, surprisingly good – when you treat your own city like a place worth exploring and as a tourist. A lot of my discoveries come from a mix of Google Maps deep dives, social media recommendations, tips from friends, and simply walking around and talking to people. Curiosity has never steered me wrong.
But on a more serious (and slightly philosophical) note, the biggest lesson I’ve learned is that life is all about perspective. I live by two mantras: there’s always a reason, and there’s always a blessing in disguise. Sometimes you need patience; sometimes you need to shift the angle you’re looking from.
It’s hard for me not to be optimistic because I genuinely believe there’s more good than not. When you stay open to receiving, and when you give freely without keeping score, life has a way of giving back a hundredfold. And above all: be kind. Kindness never fails to make you happier, and most of the time, that energy comes right back to you.
So if any part of you is curious about stepping out of routine, exploring your own city, or taking a chance on something new – take this as your sign. Say yes. You’ll surprise yourself with how beautifully things unfold. And I promise you it will always work out.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/terenex
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/teresazmh/
