impostHER

Monica chats with Swapna Savant, Director of Engineering at Headspace Health and founder of Adapt Up, an organization that helps individuals grow in their careers. Swapna shares her own journey with imposter syndrome and self doubt and the turning point that pivoted her career toward leadership. She explains the importance of delegation as both an effective manager and IC and touches on how she shows up for her team (and herself) even when current events are incredibly bleak (like right now!) Learn more about Adapt Up and their upcoming events at https://www.adaptup.org/

This week we welcome Liz Roche, one of Taylor's bootcamp besties, to the pod! We discuss what to do when you don't want to code full time leaving a bootcamp and finding a reciprocal relationship with a mentor. Liz Roche is a coding bootcamp grad turned Chief Data Officer at Accelerate 360. Prior to joining Accelerate360, Liz led Havas North America's data consultancy as the General Manager of North America and the Chief Strategy Officer where she oversaw brands like Fitbit, Loews Hotels, Rite Aid, Amazon, Liberty Mutual, Keurig, AutoZone, and more. Beforehand, she worked at Facebook where she launched a number of alpha products centered around customer loyalty and personalization for top retailers.

'Tine Zekis shares her theory of the Experience Tax, in which systemic racism and sexism form the perfect environment for your imposter syndrome to thrive. Listen as 'Tine calls upon us all to take back our seat at the table, and form Hype Squads to remind us we belong in the moments we forget. 'Tine is an educator turned software engineer, keynote speaker, and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion advocate. Find her writings here and visit her website at careerundaunted.com. You can also directly reach out at tine@careerundaunted.com.

Monica manifests the 4 day work week and Taylor channels the energy of a violent macaque who overthrew the patriarchy within her troop. 

Monica makes it to day 8 at her new role and Taylor grapples with being tapped as the lead for a big ass project.

In a departure from their normal content, Monica and Taylor chat with lawyer-to-be Patricia Brennan. Patty discusses her decision to enter a field that famously demands long hours, as well as the old-school gender norms certain courtrooms still uphold. We object!

Monica grapples with her time at Headspace coming to an end and Taylor decides she's going to ask for help more.

Monica dreams she was hired at Square to play basketball and the gals discuss the horrendous Texas abortion law.

Sarah discusses her path from the Air Force to technical recruiting and how that path crossed with Taylor's when she interviewed at Literati. Sarah Lambertson is a Talent Leader and technical recruiting expert, who currently leads technical recruiting for Literati. Sarah has worked with numerous startups and leading tech companies, and previously served in roles including Head of Talent, as well as founder of her own consultancy. 

Monica reveals what she has been up to for the past month. 

Taylor starts her new job and Monica has a weird interaction at her gym. They also try to figure out how to feel a sense of accomplishment at the end of the workday and finish the episode with some really important deep dives into reality TV.

This week we are joined by the co-founders of Talentdrop, Maddy Nguyen (CEO) and Janelle Tiulentino (CTO). We talk about their decision to work together on ideas that are their own and how they are growing their startup in this summer's Y Combinator batch (which, by the way, has a 1.5% acceptance rate!). We also discuss how imposter syndrome has actually caused them to be more prepared and organized in the early stages of building their company and has contributed to fostering a safer, more inclusive company culture. Most importantly, we bond over having bougie cats. 

Reformed “Type A+“, Keya Patel, joins us on the pod this week! We talk to Headspace's former Director of Product Growth about her strategies for building relationships and incepting ideas with executives. We discuss how age can play a role in imposter syndrome, how you can have imposter syndrome for an entire year, and her strategies for getting out of a cycle of doubt and a situation that doesn't serve you. She also explains her weekly reflection practice and how she tweaks it to make it work for her in the moment. 

Is there anything better than seeing the words "Next Steps" in a recruiter email?  After a month of interviewing (and refreshing my email anticipating said emails), Taylor has accepted an offer.

This week we are joined by Cornell Verdeja-Woodson, Headspace's first ever Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion! Cornell got his start educating others by clapping back with facts on ignorant Facebook posts and decided to make a career out of it. We learn about how his Teach for America experience shaped his understanding of how higher education can better support all students. Cornell also shares his approach to giving individuals the tools to create a culture of belonging for everyone.  Separately, we reflect on the Juneteenth national holiday. 

This week, Shawn Bullock, Monica's former instructor at Hack Reactor, joins us! Shawn is a self-taught programmer who started hacking away on Apple 2s before the internet even existed. He worked as a senior architect at FreeCreditScore.com/Experian and then began teaching software engineering after falling in love with the bootcamp model at Hack Reactor. He now spends his free time thinking up solutions for how to unblock people trying to find success in software engineering and trying to understand and find solutions to imposter syndrome. What an absolute gem!

This week, returning champion and friend of the pod, Ellie Demis, subs in for Taylor to treat Monica to a rundown of her latest interview conquests! Listen to hear about her process, how she anticipates what she'll be asked, and how she studies smarter, not harder. As a four-time technical interview veteran, she's got advice you won't want to miss!

This week we are graced with the presence of Dion Fulwood, our former engineering colleague at Headspace. We dive into his birth chart, DE&I efforts, and discuss his philosophy on leaving the space better for "the next Dion". We also discuss the importance of being connected to your work and identifying strongly with a mission. Also, happy Pride! Find information on giving to 9 Dots here.   Dion began his tech journey at Georgia State University in Atlanta, GA. Upon receiving his Computer Science degree, he moved to The Bay Area to continue his education at an advanced software engineering immersive program and taught programming fundamentals to students just beginning their own journey. After completing the immersive program, he moved to Los Angeles to contribute his skills within the mindfulness and legal space!

This week we are joined by Monica's college roomie, Stephanie Shaw! Stephanie has been a product leader for 10 years at both early and late stage companies and across verticals such as gaming, ad tech, AI analytics, and design tooling. Stephanie discusses her leadership style and whether or not we should have to mold to others'. She also shares how the heck she started her own business and how she stays organized (girl loves her spreadsheets!).  Be sure to listen to the end as Taylor shares some *rare* wisdom on how to return things from Amazon. 

Taylor chats with “the guy who didn't look her in the eye in the interview” (he reached out!) and Monica and Taylor do a dramatic reading of a troll-y thread.

Bhavini Soneji, current VP of Engineering at Headspace, discusses putting people first and fostering a safe, inclusive company culture. We talk about the hiring funnel and all the drop-off points along the way that cause women to lose out on jobs. Taylor exposes creepy messages she's received and we talk about moments of bias that are less public.   *EDIT: We introduce Bhavini as having a decade of experience. That should've been decadeS, plural. She's a queen.

Lupe Gonzalez, VP of Member Experience at Headspace, shares how she builds relationships by having vulnerable and uncomfortable conversations. As a prime example of an empathetic and compassionate leader, she discusses how she provides a space for her team to unload emotions in order to turn them into productive action. Monica and Taylor also discuss what will happen if you tell us to “smile”.

Sabrina, a life coach who incorporates mindfulness, meditation and Reiki practices into her coaching, joins us this week. She teaches us what Reiki actually is and how her approach to coaching helps her clients feel complete and whole, paving the way for professional and personal success. She drops wisdom on concepts she uses in coaching including “naming the monster” and “borrowed love” and urges us all not to compare our first chapter to someone else's twelfth. Also, Taylor almost goes viral on LinkedIn. Find Sabrina on Instagram @lightofmori or her website https://www.morilight.com/.

Monica and Taylor are joined by CEO and Founder of Ascend, Shivani Berry. Shivani gives incredibly valuable advice for women in leadership including getting buy-in from dominant personalities and winning respect. We also cover why introducing yourself can be so cringey and how to stop saying sorry at work. Ascend's online leadership program teaches a community of women the skills and actionable frameworks to get buy-in, overcome imposter syndrome, and lead. Find more information on the program here.

Monica and Taylor answer questions live at a Codesmith event and encounter a hater in the comments! Watch the YouTube recording here.

Monica and Taylor chat with our first Founder and CEO, Riana Singh of Boss Women Collective. Riana discusses how she grew her business from a coffee meetup of 15 people at Blue Bottle to a community of 25K Instagram followers and events with 100+ attendees. She also shares how she feels being referred to as a "female CEO" and how she maintains balance between running her company and still having a full-time job.  Follow Riana and BWC on Instagram at @bosswomencollective.  

Monica and Taylor talk to Headspace's former QA Manager, Jasmine, about her experience being an introvert and leader. Jasmine discusses how being an introvert is a superpower in itself and how she's learned to deal with the challenges it brings. She also gives great advice for managers to best support each of their reports' unique working styles. Jasmine Sureddi has been in the tech industry for 20 years, at companies like Intuit and eHarmony, with a specific focus on delivering quality products to customers. She has 13 years of experience leading and building QA teams from the ground up and introducing automation strategies. She's recently pivoted from management to Senior Software Engineer at Headspace.  

Monica and Taylor chat with Maya Hope, currently a Product Manager at Square, about feelings of imposter syndrome while leading a team. Taylor and Maya reminisce on their time together at a startup and discuss whether or not getting into a selective college at 17 says anything about you in your 30s. We discuss how the idea of “should” is a trap, and how imposter syndrome can be a negative feedback loop as you seek out evidence proving you aren't good enough. Maya shares how her imposter feelings have evolved throughout her career and how she no longer feels the need to overcompensate by picking up every menial task around the office. We also talk about how growth mindset may not be for everyone. Lastly, we wonder if question marks and smiley faces in emails actually reduce the clarity, or can we all just write emails in the way that feels most natural to us? Maya is a product manager at Square, where she leads a team that is responsible for moving millions of dollars a day, instantly. 

This week we have our first *gasp* MAN on the pod, Frank Bach! Frank broke the internet and went viral on LinkedIn (that's a thing!) by posting a picture of his adorable baby girl, and we talk about double standards for parents and the world his daughter is entering. As someone we consider to be a male ally, we ask Frank to share some things he does to lift up the women around him and give others space to excel. We discuss how an experience running a business with his wife and observing how she was treated primed him to be on alert for microaggressions in the office. We also touch on performative workplace antics and how counterproductive toxic positivity can be. Frank is a product designer who also works at Headspace in LA. Originally from Canada, he founded a digital agency with his wife before moving to the US. He speaks regularly at conferences about design and mindfulness. Find his infamous LinkedIn post here.

Nathalie explains how making website skins on Neopets at age 12 prepared her to study Computer Science at MIT, though it took her awhile to come around to declaring it as her major. We talk about being our own worst critics, how to flip the script through self-love, and combating imposter syndrome with self-affirmations. We also get into how advocacy starts with the relationship with yourself, helping you build the confidence to advocate for others who may be unable. Nathalie Huynh is a software engineer at Apple (previously Headspace), an MIT grad, and designs and creates beautiful jewelry. Find her on Instagram @nathaliehuynhjewelry.

Monica and Taylor chat with Headspace's Chief Creative Officer and proud mom, Caroline Pay, a self-proclaimed "anti-imposter". Caroline sets the example for being unapologetically herself and her own biggest cheerleader. We talk about not thinking things through too much and focusing on the "how" you'll get something done rather than doubting if you're capable. Also, can we normalize crying at work?

Taylor and Monica chat with Melinda Lim, a software engineer who got her degree in Computer Science from Cornell University. She explains how one glamorous female mentor changed the trajectory of her career by showing her that the field isn't just for "computer geeks". We talk about finding a mentor, being a mentor, and how you can still be successful if you go to brunch and binge TV on the weekends instead of working on side projects.   Melinda Lim is a software engineer with nine years of experience at companies like Microsoft, Stripe, and Uber. 

This one is for the bootcamp curious! Monica and Taylor chat with Chelsea De La Grana, Director of People and Compliance at Codesmith. We cover how to get in, what to expect during the program, and life after. We dive into everything from their philosophy on engineering empathy (which should really be required for all engineers), to pair-programming, and to the camp-like atmosphere including the event of the season, the talent show.    For more information on bootcamps including Codesmith and others visit: https://cirr.org/data  https://www.coursereport.com/    Email Chelsea with questions at chelsea@codesmith.io.

Monica and Taylor dive into self-care in this belated Valentine's Day episode (keeping track of time is so...2019). We address feeling guilty for not being extra productive in quarantine, burnout, and creating boundaries and routines that make work sustainable in our new normal.

Monica and Taylor chat with badass engineer and fellow bootcamp grad Ellie Demis, currently a Software Development Engineer 2 at Amazon. Ellie shares her philosophy on tackling salary negotiation and challenges the advice to "always negotiate". Join us as we work through the anxiety brought up by uncomfortable conversations and discuss how to find the confidence to ask for what you're worth.

Lyndsey Lustig, Talent Partner for Technology at Headspace, chats with Taylor and Monica to share valuable interview process insights and tips. We discuss how personality and perseverance can potentially fill in technical gaps and how a "wild card" can make it through the interview process. We also relive some uncomfortable interview moments and how we have all passed on candidates who refused to make eye contact with us! As the famous saying goes, “If you can't take the heat, get out of the interview!”

Guys, listen up. It's time to think twice about sending your female coworker 5 winking emojis at 8pm. In fact, let's call all "produce" emojis off-limits forever. Taylor and Monica swap stories about working in a male dominated industry and share some tips on how we can all help level the playing field and just be professional. Hint: complimenting our shoes is still acceptable and highly encouraged.

Monica and Taylor discuss the origins of this podcast and breakdown their own career paths.

Software engineers Monica and Taylor carve out a safe space to work through imposter syndrome in the male-dominated industry of technology.