Kitchen to Capitol: On Being First, Finding Your Way, and the Jobs Nobody Tells You About

Alex Mitchell didn’t have a plan when he graduated from high school. No one in his family had gone to college, and he didn’t apply to a single university. He started at community college, changed his major five times, and it wasn’t until a political science professor connected history to present-day policymaking that something finally clicked.

Then the pandemic hit. Alex decided virtual learning wasn’t for him, so he packed up and moved to San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, where he spent a year cooking in his godfather's restaurant kitchen. He learned kitchen Spanish, fell in love with the craft of feeding people, and had one of the best experiences of his life.

When in-person school returned, so did Alex’s sense of purpose. He completed his political science degree and landed an internship in the office of a California Assembly member. He never planned to stay, but ended up staying three years as a legislative aide, staffing committees on transportation, criminal justice reform, and more issues than he ever anticipated caring about.

Now he’s back in Southern California doing government relations for the Port of Long Beach, building on the policy and transportation expertise he developed in Sacramento, and surfing again.

In this conversation, Alex talks about what it means to be the first in your family to go to college, why he’s glad he took the long route, and why grace - for yourself and your process - might be the most important thing he’d tell his younger self.

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Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Give yourself grace. Give yourself time to really figure out what the right path is for you and be open to different opportunities. And don't force yourself into something that isn't the right fit.

SPEAKER_00 0:12

Hi everyone and welcome to Pathfound, the podcast about the real, messy, unexpected journeys that lead us to the work we love. I'm Monica Argandonia, and every week I talk with someone whose story proves there's no single right way to build a meaningful life. There's a version of Alex Mitchell's story that looks from the outside like it was always going to end up this way. A sharp young professional in a suit, navigating the hallways of the California State Capitol, staffing legislative committees, shaping policy on behalf of millions of people. That version of the story would have you believe he had it all figured out. He didn't. I first met Alex when I brought my environmental politics class to Sacramento on a field trip. He was working in the office of our local assembly member. And when a group of college students showed up, he didn't just wave us through. He went out of his way to talk with them, answer their questions, show them around. And after he left the room, I noticed something. My students were so excited. And what they kept coming back to was how young he was. Barely out of college himself in this serious, important job, and he made it feel possible. That stuck with them. It stuck with me too. When Alex moved back down to Southern California for a new role, I jumped at the chance to bring him in in front of our students again. Because Alex is the kind of guest who tells the truth about what the path actually looked like. Not the polished retrospective version, but the real one. The one where he didn't apply to college when he graduated high school, where he followed his love of food to a kitchen in Mexico during a pandemic, where he changed his major five times in community college before a political science professor changed everything. Alex Mitchell is early in his career, now doing government relations for the port of Long Beach, and the winding path he took to get here is exactly the point. This is an episode for anyone who's ever felt behind or like they were the only one without a plan. Let's get started. So, Alex, I am very happy to have you as a guest today. You are my youngest guest so far, and probably in a very different place than a lot of the other people I've interviewed who, you know, kind of at the career path for years and years. But I I really just want to get your perspective. I think you have a lot to say to people who've recently graduated and what was college like and you know, kind of how you picked that path, and then what happens after. But I will start as I start with all my guests. If you could tell us a little bit of what you were like growing up, what were you like as a kid in high school?

SPEAKER_01 2:37

I think I was always outside. I was never a kid go to be indoors or play. I was never into video games or watching TV shows. I was always just running around in the front yard. I grew up in a little cul-de-sac, and my neighbor was my best friend. And from the second we got home from school, we're just outside until the sun went down. Different games, different sports every day, every week, just depending on what we were into. And then, you know, that transitioned into playing sports in high school. I played football and then I got really into surfing. So anything that could keep me outdoors, really.

SPEAKER_00 3:11

Nice. So were you a good student?

SPEAKER_01 3:13

I was an all, I was a very average student. I think the B's and C's for me, really.

SPEAKER_00 3:19

All right. Did you ever think you could translate the outdoor adventures and all of that to a job later on? That did that even cross your mind, or what are you thinking in high school and what it what's your trajectory?

SPEAKER_01 3:31

No, that that never crossed my mind. I had no, I don't I don't even think I thought about what I was gonna do as for a career in when I was in high school. And I didn't even know what the process of really getting a career was like. Both of my parents are are hairdressers, nobody in my family's gone to college, so I didn't even know what that looked like. So I I guess maybe I was just trying to be like in the moment, uh enjoy yourself now because you don't know what's gonna happen in the future. And yeah, I I guess that just led me to not think, not think about it maybe as much as I should have.

SPEAKER_00 4:02

So in high school, did you even think ham and I apply to college?

SPEAKER_01 4:06

No, no, and I I didn't apply to college. After I graduated, all my friends were like, We're or a couple of my friends are they're you know moving away to college. I was like, Oh, I didn't I just totally missed that process. I didn't apply to a single college, and so I I went to community college for for a couple of years, figure it out. And you know, when you do your GE, you kind of take different classes in different fields, and that was amazing for me because I I literally had no idea. I think when I was in community college, I changed my major at least five times, just different classes would get me interested in different things. And then finally, I took a political science course, and the professor was amazing, and I think it really was perfect for me because I was always interested in history. I thought history was fascinating, and then this political science professor really tied it all into me of how history really is just politics of the past. And then in political science, you get to see how all those decisions made in the past have gotten us to where we are today, and the decisions that we are today will dictate how our future is.

SPEAKER_00 5:08

So when you're done community college and you kind of figured out, oh, I like polysi, then what'd you do?

SPEAKER_01 5:13

Well, I I stopped going to school, actually. I because I the whole time when I was in community college, I was working in kitchens. I I've always loved cooking. I think the the best gift you can give to somebody is something that you've made with your hands. And so I've always loved feeding people. I always thought cooking was an amazing display of culture, and I was super fascinated with it. So after community college, I still wasn't sure that I wanted to go and get a four-year degree. So, like, you know what, I'm just gonna give give the kitchen life a shot. And also, it was during the pandemic that this happened. And like I said earlier, I was I never wanted to be inside on a computer, so the virtual learning experience was was not for me at all. So I was like, okay, if until schools open up to in-person learning again, I'm gonna go try something else. And that was going all in in cooking. And actually, during the pandemic, I moved to Mexico, to San Miguel de Allende, which is in like if you had a map of Mexico, it's it's right in the middle. And so I went there and I worked in kitchens for a year, and I had the the most amazing time. The the food we're cooking was amazing, the town itself is amazing, people there are great, and and just immersing myself in a different culture was an incredible experience. And I wouldn't trade that for anything that I've done. I'm so happy I did that.

SPEAKER_00 6:31

Why Mexico?

SPEAKER_01 6:32

So the the restaurant that I was working at in LA got shut down during the pandemic, and I I'm horrible with having free time. I need to always be busy. So I was I was not down to collect unemployment and just stay at home, but I needed to find someplace that's that's still open where I can go work. And my godfather is actually an amazing chef, and he has a restaurant in San Miguel. And so I reached out to him and was like, hey, this is my situation. Do you have a spot on your team for me? And he said, Yep. And so I think two weeks later I packed up all my things and and moved down to Mexico.

SPEAKER_00 7:06

Are you fluent in Spanish?

SPEAKER_01 7:07

No, no, not at all.

SPEAKER_00 7:09

Are you now?

SPEAKER_01 7:10

It was very rough. I can speak kitchen Spanish now.

SPEAKER_00 7:13

That's so funny. So, how come you never thought of culinary school?

SPEAKER_01 7:16

I thought about culinary school for a little bit, but I thought the experience that I was getting in the kitchens was more valuable than what I would get in a classroom. You know, people get go to culinary school to go work in nice kitchens, and I I'd already gotten to the point where my skill level was I was working in nice kitchens. And so just being there and going through the motions every single day, like to me, that was my culinary school.

SPEAKER_00 7:37

So, how long were you there?

SPEAKER_01 7:38

I was in Mexico for a year.

SPEAKER_00 7:39

And then then what?

SPEAKER_01 7:40

And then that's when school started to open up again. And you know, it was always in the back of my mind that I was gonna go back, go back to school because nobody in my family has ever has ever done it. So I was I had in my mind I'm gonna be the first. But at the time, I was like, okay, I'm gonna go, I'm gonna get this degree in political science. It's something that I'm interested about. I'm curious about the whole college experience. So I'm gonna go do it. But then I thought I was gonna get my degree and then go back to the kitchens. I never thought it would amount to anything. I didn't even know what kind of job a political science degree can get you. I I didn't want to be a politician, that that's for sure. I didn't know all the jobs that surround the policy and legislative spaces. Yeah, one thing just led to another.

SPEAKER_00 8:20

So you go to Cal State Long Beach, yes, poly psy. You're do you like it? Is it what you thought it was?

SPEAKER_01 8:27

I loved it. I had the most amazing time. And I'm so glad that I weighted out the pandemic and virtual style learning because to me, some of the most educational conversations or the best lessons I learned were just from the candidate conversations that happened because we're all sitting next to each other, and you know, these conversations just come up. And the professors that I had were incredible, and you know, I always had somewhat of an interest in it, but then I I became somewhat obsessed. I was like, wow, this is you could potentially do some really impactful work in in this space, and you know, we're learning about these huge issues that affect millions of people. I loved it.

SPEAKER_00 9:06

So then what what happened?

SPEAKER_01 9:07

You graduated and yeah, so my I was going into my last year, and yeah, I I felt like I had more questions than answers at the points. I was looking for any experience that I could get to okay, like what what can I do after this? What's what's the next move? And I learned about the SAC semester program, which is a program where they take about 30 students from across all 23 Cal states and they send them up to Sacramento, where they're a guest student at Sacramento State, and then they get placed in internships in the legislature. And I learned about that. I thought that would be an amazing way to transfer the lessons that I learned in the classroom to real life experience and see, you know, how these political theories actually inform government practices. And so I applied to that and I got in and then I moved up to Sacramento and I was I thought I was gonna be there for four months because the the internship program is is a semester long. So I thought I was gonna be there for four months. I got placed in the office of Assembly Member Lowenthal, and who he represents Long Beach, Long Beach, Cataline Island, Signal Hill. So it was it was really cool to work in the office that served the district that I came from, to have a personal connection to the people you're serving. And I I fell in love with the work. I thought it was incredible just how how many different ways you can go in in the policy space and really just in in the government and public sector, public sector space. There's so many different kinds of jobs, so many different pathways you can go. And so that was amazing for me because I didn't know what kind of job political science degree gets, you know. And then I was just introduced to it all. And you know, there's you're surrounded by so many brilliant people and experts in all these weird little niche issue areas, and you know, they're just there to be a resource. So any curiosities you have, there's somebody there who can answer the questions. And and so after the internship program, I was offered a job in in the same office, and I was like, hell yeah, I'm I'm I'm gonna do this, I'm gonna commit to this. There's just so much work to do, and I I just I want to get more involved. And so I did that, and I ended up staying for for three years in that office working as a legislative aide. Amazing.

SPEAKER_00 11:24

So you were in Sacramento, you didn't really know anybody, right?

SPEAKER_01 11:27

This is all a brand new experience, and yeah, I had never been to Sacramento until I moved there.

SPEAKER_00 11:33

So, what did you do for the office but after interning? Like what kind of work were you doing? What particularly did you like?

SPEAKER_01 11:40

So there were certain policy committees that I staffed, committees that my boss sat on, like transportation committee was the first committee that was ever given to me. So every single there's about you know 2,000 bills that are introduced every year, and they go to different policy committees depending on on what the bills touch on. And so every bill that was introduced that had something to do with transportation, I would analyze it and give voting recommendations to my boss. I wrote talking points for press conferences or floor speeches, and I staffed bills myself. So my boss authored many bills, and so I got to staff those and take those through the legislative process and bills and all kinds of different issue areas like criminal justice reform, transportation. I'd worked on a number of bills to address the issue of roofing or drink spiking, and and that was really cool because those are all things that I never thought about them, period. I got I went up to Sacramento and say, okay, yeah, I think I'm interested in environmental policy, but now I'm working on transportation stuff, criminal justice reform stuff. And so you're you're just forced to to really do a deep dive in all these issues that you never thought you would, and you never know what's what's gonna catch your eye or what you're gonna find interesting. And so, you know, you you go up there with all these preconceived notions of what it's gonna be, and then it's it turns out it's nothing like that, and now you're exploring all these different opportunities.

SPEAKER_00 13:01

And I think there's a lot of distrust of politicians and they get bad mouthed and they're punching bags, but setting that group aside, just the staff, did you find that they they really are there to want to do well, to do better for the world?

SPEAKER_01 13:16

Yeah, I think the legislature is filled with the most amazing people, and it's really staff that that make the whole place work. And yeah, because you know, the pay isn't great in the legislature. So it's people are there because they they want to do good, they want to to make the state a better place, and they're just really, really committed people who you just want to do good, and so it was really, really cool to be a part of that community. And I I think that was my favorite part is you know, every day, like we we go up, we we show up and we do this work not to benefit ourselves, but to benefit our the state of California.

SPEAKER_00 13:55

So, why did you decide to leave?

SPEAKER_01 13:57

I was born and raised in in Southern California in in the LA area, and I knew I always wanted to go back. That this is this is home for me down here, and I also I surf, but there's there's no surf in Sacramento. So I knew at some point I was gonna go back down, but I I wasn't willing to just jump ship for for any given opportunity. Like it had to be something that that I aligned with, something that I would still be able to use the skills that I developed in Sacramento. Like I said earlier, the first committee that was assigned to me to staff was transportation. And so I did that for three years and really became familiar with the issue. And I got to to build the network of people who represent different advocacy groups or or just different stakeholders in this space. And through that, I got to be connected with folks at the port of Long Beach who came up doing advocacy trips or whatever it may be. And I thought what they did was super fascinating because they were, you know, tracking legislation. They got to work on policy, they were doing some really cool environmental work. I was like, wow, what a what an amazing combination of different things that I'm interested in. And they're down here in Southern California. So I it's it was the best of both worlds for me. And so a job opportunity came up and I I took it. So now, yeah, I I do government relations for the port of Long Beach.

SPEAKER_00 15:12

How long have you been there?

SPEAKER_01 15:14

About two months now.

SPEAKER_00 15:15

So so far, do you like it?

SPEAKER_01 15:16

Yeah, I like it a lot. There's a huge learning curve, and you know, I I think there's trying really hard to build a foundational knowledge of just what happens, you know, the all the acronyms and and just all the lingo that gets thrown around at the port. It's it's all very different from what I was used to. So there's there's a huge learning curve, but I I do like it. I, you know, I'm I'm still tracking and analyzing policy, and now I get to be a part of some of the environmental projects that that they're doing at the port and hopefully see these things through fruition.

SPEAKER_00 15:47

So it's too early to ask you if you know what's next for you, I think.

SPEAKER_01 15:52

But yeah, I'm trying to get good at what I do now.

SPEAKER_00 15:54

Right.

SPEAKER_01 15:54

I try to think about what's next.

SPEAKER_00 15:56

Do you think you'll ever go back to cooking?

SPEAKER_01 15:58

Well, I mean, I still cook all the time here at home. And so that's I think that's always going to be a part of my life. Like at every professionally? I don't know about professionally. May maybe that'll be like a fun like retirement project, you know, open a little bakery or something.

SPEAKER_00 16:13

Well, you have a ways for that.

SPEAKER_01 16:14

Yes, yes, I do.

SPEAKER_00 16:16

So you were an average student, didn't know what you wanted to do, didn't really land in college or your four-year university right away. What advice would you give people who are in high school not knowing what to do or at the beginning of college? You know, what kind of lessons did you learn and what advice would you give?

SPEAKER_01 16:35

I would say I think I was never a good student in in high school just because I felt like I wasn't connecting with a lot of the material that would that we were learning. And so that's what was so amazing about going to community college for me was being forced to take classes in different fields. And so I would give the advice of just take your time and really figure out what it is that you do like. And even if it takes you a little bit longer to get through community college or university or your GE, just take your time and you know, and if you have these preconceived notions, okay, like this is what I have to do, then you go and you take this class and you don't like it, listen to to how you feel because you know it's it's not just four years that you have to get through it in in a subject that you might not like, but you know, the goal is to get a job in that field afterwards. So you're you're really setting yourself on a track that that's gonna may potentially dictate your whole career. So take your time and and figure out what it is that you're interested in. And then when you do find it, just really apply yourself, allow yourself to to get your hands dirty to get in the weeds and go all in.

SPEAKER_00 17:40

You didn't really follow the major because you thought it was gonna lead to a job. Yeah, you just found something I thought it was cool.

SPEAKER_01 17:47

Yeah, I thought I was curious about the subject. I liked history, so I wanted to do something that you know that it was like the next step of history to me. And I I just loved being in a class and hearing really smart people talk about it.

SPEAKER_00 18:00

So I'm gonna ask a question that I don't usually ask because I think I always put it on people them students or people themselves. What advice would you give the universities or your teachers, your professors in order to engage students more?

SPEAKER_01 18:15

I absolutely love the internship program that I was involved in. So just providing the students with activities outside of the classroom that somehow tie in the lessons that are learned inside the classroom. That was always amazing for me. So yeah, I think just setting up like whether it's you know, volunteer work with nonprofits or or just any sort of out-of-the-classroom experiences where students can maybe be introduced to professionals in in this field.

SPEAKER_00 18:43

So that's a nice segue to networking. And you mentioned it earlier on. You kind of grew your network. Was that something that kind of came easy to you? How did you how were you able to do that?

SPEAKER_01 18:54

No, it didn't come easily to me. I feel like I'm a pretty introverted person. So I I don't see myself really going out of my way to put myself out there. But then again, like I was talking about being in the capital with all these amazing people who just want to do good. And so I think it it kind of fosters an environment where like you just want to connect. Like, okay, what are you working on? Like, how do you do that? And this is what I'm working on. I need help with this. And so I guess you grow a network by being new at something and and needing help and and being comfortable asking for help with people who have already been through those motions or people who are experts in in one field or another. And so I I guess that's how I grew my network is just asking for help and and asking people for answers that that I didn't have.

SPEAKER_00 19:37

It's it's probably too soon to ask you this question, but I'm gonna ask anyway. If you could go back, like when you first started out in community college, knowing what you know now, is there some advice you'd give yourself?

SPEAKER_01 19:48

I think I would tell myself or I would ask to give myself a little bit more grace. I I think naturally I put a lot of pressure on myself. So there was a lot of frustration, you know. Like I think the first major I chose in community college was business. And I'm sitting in these economics classes and I I hated it. And but for some reason I was like, no, like you have to, this is what you chose, you have to stick with it. But yeah, I would tell myself, give yourself grace, give yourself time to to really figure out what the right path is for you and be open to different opportunities and and don't force yourself into something that isn't the right fit.

SPEAKER_00 20:21

Nice. Well, Alex, I want to just thank you because you've been really great about wanting to help students and you know get through this, and you're so sincere about it. And I think that's gonna make the difference for somebody else. So I appreciate you.

SPEAKER_01 20:36

Yeah, yeah. Thank you for letting me do this. This is amazing.

SPEAKER_00 20:39

Thank you so much for listening to Pathfound. If anything we talked about today connected with you or gave you a new perspective, we'd love it if you subscribed, left a review, or shared the episode with someone you care about. You can also find us on Instagram at Pathfound Podcast. To explore more stories, resources, and ways to get involved, visit Keystoneetwork.org. This podcast is just one part of the journey. At Keystone Network, we're helping young people and anyone figuring it out as they go build meaningful futures one step at a time. A huge thank you to my podcast editor, David Strutt. You can find him on LinkedIn for helping bring these stories to life, and to Elizabeth Minor at Silvermine Creative for the beautiful artwork and web design. And if you're on your own path, navigating the unknown, making a pivot, or simply figuring it out as you go, just know you're not alone. The route may not be linear, but there's always a way forward. I'm Monica Argandonia, and I'll see you next time on Path Found.