December 15, 2024 • 23 mins
Rachel Arditi, Senior Director at Sage Therapeutics, shares a fascinating journey of juggling her master's degree with a demanding career. Discover how her theater background has been instrumental in cultivating her leadership skills and work ethic, all while leveraging classroom lessons in the real world. Our conversation sheds light on the vibrant dynamic between academic endeavors and practical application, offering listeners insights into how diverse experiences can fuel motivation and personal growth. Together with Dr. Rick Garrowood, we reflect on the exhilarating yet challenging path of reaching academic milestones, emphasizing the lifelong value of continuous learning and the importance of early life experiences.
Navigating the decision to pursue further education while working full-time is no small feat, and this episode dives into the strategic considerations that come into play. From setting clear objectives—be it career advancement, increased salary, or personal development—to consulting with advisors and seasoned professionals, we explore the roadmap to academic and career success. Personal stories, including shifts from arts to business, highlight the need for clarity and adaptability in balancing studies with professional commitments. With a message of encouragement, we urge younger listeners to be open to change and new opportunities, reminding everyone of the significance of support systems and self-care amid ambitious pursuits.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:17):
Hello and welcome to another edition of the Leader
Brew podcast.
I am Dr Rick Garrowood and I'myour host today, looking forward
to catching up with a formerstudent who I often see on
campus, and one of the thingsthat I always feel is this
enormous amount of energy andexcitement, and every time I run
(00:38):
into her it's just like I getthis boost of energy what we
call referent power, I'm quitesure.
So I'm joined today by RachelArditi, and she's currently
working at Sage Therapeutics.
There, she's the SeniorDirector of Research, operations
and Business Management.
Really, you're the chief ofstaff, truth be told, right?
(00:59):
So that's really what's goingon there.
So I just wanted to welcome youto the show and you're nearing
the end of your master's degree.
Speaker 2 (01:10):
I am One more week.
It's so exciting.
Speaker 1 (01:13):
Wow, what does that feel like?
Is it sort of like if you'rerunning a marathon and you're at
the 26-mile mark and you've got0.2 to go?
Speaker 2 (01:25):
Yeah, that's such a great analogy.
For me, it feels like such anincredible accomplishment when I
started three years ago andthis program we're working full
time too.
When you're at the beginning itfeels like the top of the
mountain is really high up thereand you've got a long way to go
(01:46):
.
But it's just incredible, Ithink, when I reflect back on
what I've been able toaccomplish in the last three
years and I think what has beenreally wonderful is doing the
part-time program has allowed meto really apply it in the work
setting too, and so I see theselike incremental changes or
(02:07):
incremental ways of thinkingabout things differently, and
just it's just incredible toalmost be done and have met such
wonderful people, including you, dr Arrowood, and you know my
cohort, so it's very exciting tobe almost to the finish line
and I'm ready to kick in andreally push to this.
(02:28):
Last week.
Speaker 1 (02:29):
Yeah, you know, I think what's interesting about
our conversation today is when Iset out to do the Leader Brew
podcast, you know, my thinkingwas from the classroom to the
real world, but I think what'sevolving that I find interesting
is, yes, it's from theclassroom to the real world, but
(02:49):
then it's the real world backto the classroom and then once
again we're back in the realworld.
This feedback loop, thiscontinuous feedback loop, yeah
continuous feedback loop and Ithink that's just as important
to understand.
How do you keep your energy upat all this?
I mean you're working full time.
You did three years of intensestudy, at nighttime, most likely
(03:14):
right Most of the classes,because 630 to 930 sort of time
frame, or 730 to 930.
So how do you keep Rachel upand motivated?
And like what's that centercore?
Speaker 2 (03:28):
Yeah, no, caffeine plays a big role, definitely.
But you know, for me, I havealways been really motivated by
learning new things.
You know, I, about eight yearsago, I switched from a different
industry.
I was in the theater world andthen I transitioned into
(03:51):
pharmaceuticals, right.
So I always joke that I wentfrom working with opera singers
to neuroscientists, right, thevery different groups of people,
very different subject matters.
And what has been a bigmotivation to do this MBA and
then, you know, continue to dowell in my industry, is just to
(04:12):
learn more.
I think knowledge is really youknow everyone says this but
knowledge is really power, and Iit's just fascinating to learn
more things, be exposed todifferent perspectives.
So for me that when I feelstimulated and challenged,
that's when I'm my best self andyou know that's what brings me
excitement and energy to things.
(04:32):
And I think that's in the lastthree years, you know, doing the
MBA.
It's been another way tochallenge myself and get
exposure to different subjectmatters, people, perspectives.
Speaker 1 (04:42):
That's great Now.
So do you think you kind ofstarted out that way in life?
Or, you know, if we go back tosort of high school days and
those early college days, areyou pretty much the same then as
now?
Speaker 2 (04:58):
Yes, I would say so I've always had a real strong
work ethic.
I think, if I think back, youknow, in high school and in
college, theater were really bigparts of my life, and what's
inherent in that culture isyou're working long hours,
you're, you know you have afinite amount of time to amount
(05:19):
of production and, you know,every five to six weeks you're
working with a totally differentgroup of people, and so there's
a lot of energy and drive to dowell and to make sure that the
production and the cast are asgood as they can be.
And so I think that really setthe stage for some of my early
(05:41):
thinkings and just what I'vereally kind of taken in my life
and really tried to, you know,really show up as a leader.
I think accountability is huge,and so, yeah, I would say
anyone who knows me wouldprobably say, yes, I'm similar
to what I was in high school andcollege.
Speaker 1 (05:58):
That's great.
So tell me, you know, as wesort of look at that theater
experience, which I'm a bigproponent of.
In fact, many, many years ago Iserved as the president of a
community children's theater andthat also led me to a local
community theater where Imanaged to get cast in a role
(06:20):
playing in a mental insaneasylum it was the Curious Savage
by Jeffrey Patrick, and I wasone of the what they at that
time called the inmates, and itwas one of my greatest
experiences.
I had absolutely no desire toperform.
That was just not my initialdesire at least.
(06:40):
But I will say after threeweeks, when the show closed the
following day was the hardestbecause no one was applauding
and I really have to say I lovedthe applause every night.
I loved the energy of the, Ilove the energy of the, of the
audience.
Speaker 2 (06:59):
Well, it gets reinforced right.
Your, your great work has, youknow, that instant gratification
.
It's amazing.
Speaker 1 (07:06):
Yeah, it's kind of like how my classes are right,
because I think in many ways asfaculty there is a performance
role.
I mean, particularly in thoseevening classes.
If we don't keep that energy upsomehow whether it's caffeine
and donuts or, you know, theoccasional sense of humor to put
in there, then I think it wouldbe a miserable experience.
Speaker 2 (07:28):
Yeah, I think the professors that I in the
classroom setting, haveresponded to the most are those
who are most engaging and thepassion for what they're
teaching comes through.
And you're right, by the end ofthe day, everyone's you know
kind of running on theirreserves.
So I think it is a reallyimportant part, that
performative element.
(07:49):
I think it really helps.
When I think about your class.
That was our first class of ourMBA and you, yeah, which was.
It was great, though, becauseyour style was so engaging and
interactive.
Right, we were up and movingabout in the classroom and
really kind of putting thatpractical application to what we
(08:11):
were talking about, so thatclass has always stuck with me.
Speaker 1 (08:14):
Oh well, that's great .
I love to hear that.
Tell me a little bit about theimportance of building
connections within the classroom, but not just that classroom,
you know, sort of a continuationover the three or four or five
years, however long it takes.
(08:34):
How important is it forstudents to really genuinely
connect with other classmatesgoing through similar
experiences?
Speaker 2 (08:46):
Yeah, I think it's huge.
I had this mentor when I wasstarting out in the theater
world 15 years ago.
He was an incredible guy andthe culture that he instilled
was something that totally stuckwith me.
And the very first day inonboarding he went over the four
pillars of respect.
(09:07):
The four pillars of respect, hesaid that it was listening,
supporting, showing kindness andbeing polite.
To translate that into theanswer for your question I think
that's how we can show up forother students Listening.
I think we all want to feel likeour opinions are valued and
(09:28):
that we're being heard, and Ithink that's how you can show up
for your classmates.
I mean, we all have ourdifferent experiences but
someone else's experience isjust as valuable as your own and
I think being open to that andthat perspective, you know
supporting each other.
You know there are some toughtimes when you're doing your
finals, your group projects, etc.
And I think it's reallyimportant to make someone feel
(09:52):
that they're supported throughencouraging them, et cetera.
And I think as students,there's a lot of pressure and
demands that are both within theclassroom and in the external
environment, and just a kindword every once in a while I
think goes a really long wayShowing kindness.
I think that the way that Ithink that shows up in the
classroom and also in theworkplace is really just having
(10:16):
starting from what is the mostrespectful interpretation of
what the other person is saying,and I think that goes a long
way to building thoseconnections and building those
relationships.
It's huge.
You know this job marketexternally, the macro
environment, people are reallyhaving to leverage their network
(10:37):
and you know I think you alwayshad to to a certain extent, but
now with you know you'reworking against AI and the bots
that are reading the resumes andyou really kind of need that
in-house connection or that youknow, to help get your foot in
the door, even through a phonescreen.
So I think it's just reallyimportant and you know I just
(10:58):
tie it back to sort of theculture that you know my mentor
had instilled a long time agoand I try and bring that to my
interactions with my classmatesand then also in the work
setting.
Speaker 1 (11:10):
Yeah, and I think it's important for faculty to
set aside some time, you know,not necessarily each class
period, but throughout the term.
I think it's what I havelearned over the years,
particularly in the I thinkundergrad well, possibly
undergrad and graduate.
Now that I think about it is,you know, I'll often say to
(11:31):
students look to your right andnow I want you to look to your
left.
These are people you're goingto want to know.
The chances of them perhaps oneday starting a new business for
which they're going to behiring is pretty good, right
when you really think about it,or they have a connection to
someone.
It's that sort of six degreesof separation.
So get to know, at minimum, getto genuinely know the person to
(11:55):
your left and the person to theright, and it's not about just
putting them on your LinkedInand, you know, years later
wondering should I reach out tothem or not.
Speaker 2 (12:02):
No, it's asking them questions.
It's getting to know them,getting to know the person that
you're sitting next to,absolutely.
Speaker 1 (12:16):
You know, I think that's it and I think it expands
even more.
I mean, from my perspective, Iwant to get to know every single
student I have.
Now, the practicality of thatis not as good as you know, my
enthusiasm for it is, but I, youknow, I try my best.
I want to get to understand asmany of the students as possible
in that short period of timethan, of course, staying with
them afterwards.
So I do think that we asfaculty do have to sort of lead
(12:38):
the classroom and say networkingis a crucial, an important role
, and that doesn't mean that youstart off each relationship
with what can I get out of you?
Who are you?
You know all of those things.
It's about that humanistic,encouraging.
You know, that's really whatit's genuinely about, because
(13:02):
the truth is you're all in thesame boat, right?
Everyone's experiencing prettysimilar issues.
You know cost of education,cost of books, transportation.
you know, All of it is justgoing up.
(13:25):
Yeah, authority, it's sometimeschallenging for them to
transition into a differentdynamic in the classroom where
they're not in charge, and soyou know I'll see that
occasionally too.
You know that that'lldefinitely pop up when you look
at your classroom experiences.
How, how does that connect toyour working, your coworkers, so
(13:54):
your relationships at work?
I mean, is there sort of I'mtrying to wonder like, is there
kind of a similarity to theclassroom and then to the
workplace?
Speaker 2 (14:06):
Yeah, I mean, I think so, I mean I would say it's all
.
I mean it really comes back downto people and how you relate to
people, and I think theimportant part is really what's
great about the classroom isthat you get to try out
different communication stylesright To reach objectives.
It's the same thing at work too.
(14:27):
If I think of a group projectssetting especially the group
projects where they're assignedby the faculty, you know it
could be a group of people thatyou've never worked with or
never met before, right, and soyou're all trying to figure out
sort of what is your commonground and how are you going to
work together to achieve a goal.
I mean that's very similar inthe work environment too.
(14:49):
And again, I think it comesback to those four pillars of
respect that I mentioned earlier.
It's really just making surethat you're showing up in a way
that makes people feelcomfortable and you're creating
sort of that safe space toengage thoughtfully and
collaboratively, and I thinkthat's the classroom is a great
(15:13):
training ground for that andtranslates directly into the
work environment.
Speaker 1 (15:19):
Yeah, it's sort of the academic laboratory.
Speaker 2 (15:22):
Exactly you know.
Speaker 1 (15:22):
If you're going to make a mistake, this is the
place to make it A hundredpercent.
I say to students that are soafraid to do presentations this
is the time to do it right.
You're in this control.
Speaker 2 (15:33):
Get that feedback?
Yeah, Get it.
Speaker 1 (15:35):
Get it now Absolutely .
You know you mentioned a littlebit earlier about AI and
chatbots and that sort of thing.
We hear so much about theemergence of AI and within that
you know, llms and robots andall things technology and it
seems, to some extent it seems alittle scary.
(15:56):
But tell me in terms of realworld, right in your workplace,
what's the pulse, what's sort ofthe receptiveness of it?
Speaker 2 (16:07):
Cautiously optimistic , I would say, especially in the
pharmaceuticals.
There's a lot of platforms outthere Google, nvidia, they are
looking at drug discoverypipelines and how you can
leverage AI to more efficientlyidentify targets et know, break
(16:30):
down complex data sets, etcetera.
So I think there is a lot ofenergy and momentum around how
do we harness that while weprotect our own proprietary IP.
So I think right now I noticein my workplace there is
definitely I've been workingwith our informatics team really
(16:53):
to look at this there'sdefinitely optimism and sort of
an acknowledgement that in orderto move to the future, we're
going to probably have to bringin AI, but I think it's still
relatively new, so it'sunderstanding sort of what are
the pitfalls around security etcetera, or how do you protect
security.
So I would say, cautiouslyoptimistic.
Speaker 1 (17:16):
Okay, that's kind of what I was sort of feeling from
the other side, not being in itnecessarily, but that's what I'm
doing in that way.
Tell me about sort of what areyour thoughts?
Let's say there's someone whois interested in pursuing a
master's degree.
They're currently working, butthey're just not sure.
(17:37):
So what sort of advice wouldyou give them in terms of going
back, you know, in this casefrom the workplace to the
classroom?
Speaker 2 (17:47):
Yeah, I think I would say get serious about why you
want to go back to school, whyyou want to get your master's.
What are you, what is yourobjective from it?
You know some people are.
For me it was I wanted to kindof round out my educational
experience.
Coming from having a bachelor'sof fine arts, I wanted to
(18:08):
really kind of boost my businessknowledge.
That was my own personal reason.
Some people feel like they needit for career advancement, you
know, to get to that nextpromotion, to get to that next
level.
Some people are, you know, froma salary perspective.
So I think it's really gettingclear about what you're going
back to school for because it isa significant time commitment
(18:32):
and you want to feel like you'retotally ready to school for.
Because it is a significant timecommitment and you want to feel
like you're totally ready to dothat.
I also think just talking topeople right Understanding for
people who have connect withpeople who have finished a
master's degree or a part-timeprogram and understand what
their experience is.
I think Northeastern inparticular has great advisors to
(18:52):
connect with and speak to and alot of events too that you can
go to and kind of get a betterunderstanding.
So it's really about, I think,like talking to people, getting
clear with yourself sort of whatis your goal for it, because I
think that also shifts where youwant to go to school.
Like, if I think of, there's alot of schools that are geared
(19:13):
towards entrepreneurship youknow, starting your own business
, you know in a master's program, and maybe that's where you
want to go to.
But I think it's just reallygetting clear about why you want
to go back to school and whatyou're hoping to get out of it.
Speaker 1 (19:27):
Yeah, because that clarity of the why is really
what's going to get you throughthe two or three or four years
of studies.
That's what's going to get youthrough the.
Oh, I have to write anotherpaper, I have another discussion
board.
Speaker 2 (19:41):
Yeah, what is your North Star that you're going
towards, you know, and to helpkeep everything in perspective,
especially when you're goingthrough those moments of like.
Oh, another assignment, youknow.
Speaker 1 (19:51):
Yeah, I think that's great.
Well, one of the questions thatwe always like to ask on the
podcast is what would you tellthat eight-year-old who's just
starting to think about what ismy future?
Speaker 2 (20:06):
Yeah, I would say it's okay to try different
things.
I think about my career path inparticular, and I was, you know
, at 18,.
You're making sort of a majordecision of, like, what is your
career path focus?
And when I started to get tothe tail end of my theater
career I had such fear abouttransitioning to another
(20:31):
industry.
You know, there's that wholeimposter syndrome, like you know
, are my skills transferable?
You know, can I do somethingdifferent, etc.
And I think the eight year oldif I could just have told my
eight year old self it'll beokay, right?
You know, I think things willopen up and take some of that
(20:51):
pressure and stress off ofyourself.
I think the time to try thingsis when you're young, you don't
have so many majorresponsibilities and I think
it's just coming at things withan open mind.
And if I could go back in timeI would say, hey, is it going to
be okay?
Don't stress as much, just kindof let it go and let it come to
you.
Speaker 1 (21:12):
I think that's so important.
It's going to be okay don'tstress as much, you know just
kind of let it go and, you know,let it come to you.
I think that's so important.
It's going to be okay.
It's going to be okay, it will.
You know.
Time is going to go on and Ilook back over life and I think
to myself why did I worry somuch?
Why did I stress out, you know,why did I not take that chance?
And most of it was, I think, tosome extent fear, you know,
fear of loss, fear ofuncertainty, fear, fear, fear.
Speaker 2 (21:35):
But fortunately stepping out of that comfort
zone too.
I mean, I think that is that'shuge right.
You know you're having to bevulnerable and you know kind of
put yourself out there, andthere's always that fear of like
, ok, well, they accept me, willI be able to do X, y and Z?
Speaker 1 (21:56):
But you know something will happen, and
usually it leads to somethingeven better than what you could
have thought, and that's thebeauty of it.
That's awesome.
Rachel, thank you so much forbeing a guest on today's podcast
.
We really, really do appreciateyou coming in.
Keep up your absolute glowingspirit, that energy that you
have.
You know, be sure to take abreak from time to time.
I've learned that lesson.
(22:16):
Make sure you have a little bitof break from here and there,
but just keep doing what you'regoing to do and I think it's all
going to be fine.
Speaker 2 (22:24):
Thank you.
This is so nice to be invitedonto the show and talk with you
this morning and I reallyappreciate all the support over
the last three years.
Speaker 1 (22:33):
You got it and there's more to come.
All right, thank you all verymuch for listening to today's
episode.
I hope you got something out ofit.
We want to say thank you toNortheastern University,
swinburne University, theSoliton Group and, of course,
jared Zamarowski, our amazingaudio engineer.
Thank you all and have a greatday.
Thank you.
Hello and welcome to another edition of the Leader
Brew podcast.
I am Dr Rick Garrowood and I'myour host today, looking forward
to catching up with a formerstudent who I often see on
campus, and one of the thingsthat I always feel is this
enormous amount of energy andexcitement, and every time I run
(00:38):
into her it's just like I getthis boost of energy what we
call referent power, I'm quitesure.
So I'm joined today by RachelArditi, and she's currently
working at Sage Therapeutics.
There, she's the SeniorDirector of Research, operations
and Business Management.
Really, you're the chief ofstaff, truth be told, right?
(00:59):
So that's really what's goingon there.
So I just wanted to welcome youto the show and you're nearing
the end of your master's degree.
Speaker 2 (01:10):
I am One more week.
It's so exciting.
Speaker 1 (01:13):
Wow, what does that feel like?
Is it sort of like if you'rerunning a marathon and you're at
the 26-mile mark and you've got0.2 to go?
Speaker 2 (01:25):
Yeah, that's such a great analogy.
For me, it feels like such anincredible accomplishment when I
started three years ago andthis program we're working full
time too.
When you're at the beginning itfeels like the top of the
mountain is really high up thereand you've got a long way to go
(01:46):
.
But it's just incredible, Ithink, when I reflect back on
what I've been able toaccomplish in the last three
years and I think what has beenreally wonderful is doing the
part-time program has allowed meto really apply it in the work
setting too, and so I see theselike incremental changes or
(02:07):
incremental ways of thinkingabout things differently, and
just it's just incredible toalmost be done and have met such
wonderful people, including you, dr Arrowood, and you know my
cohort, so it's very exciting tobe almost to the finish line
and I'm ready to kick in andreally push to this.
(02:28):
Last week.
Speaker 1 (02:29):
Yeah, you know, I think what's interesting about
our conversation today is when Iset out to do the Leader Brew
podcast, you know, my thinkingwas from the classroom to the
real world, but I think what'sevolving that I find interesting
is, yes, it's from theclassroom to the real world, but
(02:49):
then it's the real world backto the classroom and then once
again we're back in the realworld.
This feedback loop, thiscontinuous feedback loop, yeah
continuous feedback loop and Ithink that's just as important
to understand.
How do you keep your energy upat all this?
I mean you're working full time.
You did three years of intensestudy, at nighttime, most likely
(03:14):
right Most of the classes,because 630 to 930 sort of time
frame, or 730 to 930.
So how do you keep Rachel upand motivated?
And like what's that centercore?
Speaker 2 (03:28):
Yeah, no, caffeine plays a big role, definitely.
But you know, for me, I havealways been really motivated by
learning new things.
You know, I, about eight yearsago, I switched from a different
industry.
I was in the theater world andthen I transitioned into
(03:51):
pharmaceuticals, right.
So I always joke that I wentfrom working with opera singers
to neuroscientists, right, thevery different groups of people,
very different subject matters.
And what has been a bigmotivation to do this MBA and
then, you know, continue to dowell in my industry, is just to
(04:12):
learn more.
I think knowledge is really youknow everyone says this but
knowledge is really power, and Iit's just fascinating to learn
more things, be exposed todifferent perspectives.
So for me that when I feelstimulated and challenged,
that's when I'm my best self andyou know that's what brings me
excitement and energy to things.
(04:32):
And I think that's in the lastthree years, you know, doing the
MBA.
It's been another way tochallenge myself and get
exposure to different subjectmatters, people, perspectives.
Speaker 1 (04:42):
That's great Now.
So do you think you kind ofstarted out that way in life?
Or, you know, if we go back tosort of high school days and
those early college days, areyou pretty much the same then as
now?
Speaker 2 (04:58):
Yes, I would say so I've always had a real strong
work ethic.
I think, if I think back, youknow, in high school and in
college, theater were really bigparts of my life, and what's
inherent in that culture isyou're working long hours,
you're, you know you have afinite amount of time to amount
(05:19):
of production and, you know,every five to six weeks you're
working with a totally differentgroup of people, and so there's
a lot of energy and drive to dowell and to make sure that the
production and the cast are asgood as they can be.
And so I think that really setthe stage for some of my early
(05:41):
thinkings and just what I'vereally kind of taken in my life
and really tried to, you know,really show up as a leader.
I think accountability is huge,and so, yeah, I would say
anyone who knows me wouldprobably say, yes, I'm similar
to what I was in high school andcollege.
Speaker 1 (05:58):
That's great.
So tell me, you know, as wesort of look at that theater
experience, which I'm a bigproponent of.
In fact, many, many years ago Iserved as the president of a
community children's theater andthat also led me to a local
community theater where Imanaged to get cast in a role
(06:20):
playing in a mental insaneasylum it was the Curious Savage
by Jeffrey Patrick, and I wasone of the what they at that
time called the inmates, and itwas one of my greatest
experiences.
I had absolutely no desire toperform.
That was just not my initialdesire at least.
(06:40):
But I will say after threeweeks, when the show closed the
following day was the hardestbecause no one was applauding
and I really have to say I lovedthe applause every night.
I loved the energy of the, Ilove the energy of the, of the
audience.
Speaker 2 (06:59):
Well, it gets reinforced right.
Your, your great work has, youknow, that instant gratification
.
It's amazing.
Speaker 1 (07:06):
Yeah, it's kind of like how my classes are right,
because I think in many ways asfaculty there is a performance
role.
I mean, particularly in thoseevening classes.
If we don't keep that energy upsomehow whether it's caffeine
and donuts or, you know, theoccasional sense of humor to put
in there, then I think it wouldbe a miserable experience.
Speaker 2 (07:28):
Yeah, I think the professors that I in the
classroom setting, haveresponded to the most are those
who are most engaging and thepassion for what they're
teaching comes through.
And you're right, by the end ofthe day, everyone's you know
kind of running on theirreserves.
So I think it is a reallyimportant part, that
performative element.
(07:49):
I think it really helps.
When I think about your class.
That was our first class of ourMBA and you, yeah, which was.
It was great, though, becauseyour style was so engaging and
interactive.
Right, we were up and movingabout in the classroom and
really kind of putting thatpractical application to what we
(08:11):
were talking about, so thatclass has always stuck with me.
Speaker 1 (08:14):
Oh well, that's great .
I love to hear that.
Tell me a little bit about theimportance of building
connections within the classroom, but not just that classroom,
you know, sort of a continuationover the three or four or five
years, however long it takes.
(08:34):
How important is it forstudents to really genuinely
connect with other classmatesgoing through similar
experiences?
Speaker 2 (08:46):
Yeah, I think it's huge.
I had this mentor when I wasstarting out in the theater
world 15 years ago.
He was an incredible guy andthe culture that he instilled
was something that totally stuckwith me.
And the very first day inonboarding he went over the four
pillars of respect.
(09:07):
The four pillars of respect, hesaid that it was listening,
supporting, showing kindness andbeing polite.
To translate that into theanswer for your question I think
that's how we can show up forother students Listening.
I think we all want to feel likeour opinions are valued and
(09:28):
that we're being heard, and Ithink that's how you can show up
for your classmates.
I mean, we all have ourdifferent experiences but
someone else's experience isjust as valuable as your own and
I think being open to that andthat perspective, you know
supporting each other.
You know there are some toughtimes when you're doing your
finals, your group projects, etc.
And I think it's reallyimportant to make someone feel
(09:52):
that they're supported throughencouraging them, et cetera.
And I think as students,there's a lot of pressure and
demands that are both within theclassroom and in the external
environment, and just a kindword every once in a while I
think goes a really long wayShowing kindness.
I think that the way that Ithink that shows up in the
classroom and also in theworkplace is really just having
(10:16):
starting from what is the mostrespectful interpretation of
what the other person is saying,and I think that goes a long
way to building thoseconnections and building those
relationships.
It's huge.
You know this job marketexternally, the macro
environment, people are reallyhaving to leverage their network
(10:37):
and you know I think you alwayshad to to a certain extent, but
now with you know you'reworking against AI and the bots
that are reading the resumes andyou really kind of need that
in-house connection or that youknow, to help get your foot in
the door, even through a phonescreen.
So I think it's just reallyimportant and you know I just
(10:58):
tie it back to sort of theculture that you know my mentor
had instilled a long time agoand I try and bring that to my
interactions with my classmatesand then also in the work
setting.
Speaker 1 (11:10):
Yeah, and I think it's important for faculty to
set aside some time, you know,not necessarily each class
period, but throughout the term.
I think it's what I havelearned over the years,
particularly in the I thinkundergrad well, possibly
undergrad and graduate.
Now that I think about it is,you know, I'll often say to
(11:31):
students look to your right andnow I want you to look to your
left.
These are people you're goingto want to know.
The chances of them perhaps oneday starting a new business for
which they're going to behiring is pretty good, right
when you really think about it,or they have a connection to
someone.
It's that sort of six degreesof separation.
So get to know, at minimum, getto genuinely know the person to
(11:55):
your left and the person to theright, and it's not about just
putting them on your LinkedInand, you know, years later
wondering should I reach out tothem or not.
Speaker 2 (12:02):
No, it's asking them questions.
It's getting to know them,getting to know the person that
you're sitting next to,absolutely.
Speaker 1 (12:16):
You know, I think that's it and I think it expands
even more.
I mean, from my perspective, Iwant to get to know every single
student I have.
Now, the practicality of thatis not as good as you know, my
enthusiasm for it is, but I, youknow, I try my best.
I want to get to understand asmany of the students as possible
in that short period of timethan, of course, staying with
them afterwards.
So I do think that we asfaculty do have to sort of lead
(12:38):
the classroom and say networkingis a crucial, an important role
, and that doesn't mean that youstart off each relationship
with what can I get out of you?
Who are you?
You know all of those things.
It's about that humanistic,encouraging.
You know, that's really whatit's genuinely about, because
(13:02):
the truth is you're all in thesame boat, right?
Everyone's experiencing prettysimilar issues.
You know cost of education,cost of books, transportation.
you know, All of it is justgoing up.
(13:25):
Yeah, authority, it's sometimeschallenging for them to
transition into a differentdynamic in the classroom where
they're not in charge, and soyou know I'll see that
occasionally too.
You know that that'lldefinitely pop up when you look
at your classroom experiences.
How, how does that connect toyour working, your coworkers, so
(13:54):
your relationships at work?
I mean, is there sort of I'mtrying to wonder like, is there
kind of a similarity to theclassroom and then to the
workplace?
Speaker 2 (14:06):
Yeah, I mean, I think so, I mean I would say it's all
.
I mean it really comes back downto people and how you relate to
people, and I think theimportant part is really what's
great about the classroom isthat you get to try out
different communication stylesright To reach objectives.
It's the same thing at work too.
(14:27):
If I think of a group projectssetting especially the group
projects where they're assignedby the faculty, you know it
could be a group of people thatyou've never worked with or
never met before, right, and soyou're all trying to figure out
sort of what is your commonground and how are you going to
work together to achieve a goal.
I mean that's very similar inthe work environment too.
(14:49):
And again, I think it comesback to those four pillars of
respect that I mentioned earlier.
It's really just making surethat you're showing up in a way
that makes people feelcomfortable and you're creating
sort of that safe space toengage thoughtfully and
collaboratively, and I thinkthat's the classroom is a great
(15:13):
training ground for that andtranslates directly into the
work environment.
Speaker 1 (15:19):
Yeah, it's sort of the academic laboratory.
Speaker 2 (15:22):
Exactly you know.
Speaker 1 (15:22):
If you're going to make a mistake, this is the
place to make it A hundredpercent.
I say to students that are soafraid to do presentations this
is the time to do it right.
You're in this control.
Speaker 2 (15:33):
Get that feedback?
Yeah, Get it.
Speaker 1 (15:35):
Get it now Absolutely .
You know you mentioned a littlebit earlier about AI and
chatbots and that sort of thing.
We hear so much about theemergence of AI and within that
you know, llms and robots andall things technology and it
seems, to some extent it seems alittle scary.
(15:56):
But tell me in terms of realworld, right in your workplace,
what's the pulse, what's sort ofthe receptiveness of it?
Speaker 2 (16:07):
Cautiously optimistic , I would say, especially in the
pharmaceuticals.
There's a lot of platforms outthere Google, nvidia, they are
looking at drug discoverypipelines and how you can
leverage AI to more efficientlyidentify targets et know, break
(16:30):
down complex data sets, etcetera.
So I think there is a lot ofenergy and momentum around how
do we harness that while weprotect our own proprietary IP.
So I think right now I noticein my workplace there is
definitely I've been workingwith our informatics team really
(16:53):
to look at this there'sdefinitely optimism and sort of
an acknowledgement that in orderto move to the future, we're
going to probably have to bringin AI, but I think it's still
relatively new, so it'sunderstanding sort of what are
the pitfalls around security etcetera, or how do you protect
security.
So I would say, cautiouslyoptimistic.
Speaker 1 (17:16):
Okay, that's kind of what I was sort of feeling from
the other side, not being in itnecessarily, but that's what I'm
doing in that way.
Tell me about sort of what areyour thoughts?
Let's say there's someone whois interested in pursuing a
master's degree.
They're currently working, butthey're just not sure.
(17:37):
So what sort of advice wouldyou give them in terms of going
back, you know, in this casefrom the workplace to the
classroom?
Speaker 2 (17:47):
Yeah, I think I would say get serious about why you
want to go back to school, whyyou want to get your master's.
What are you, what is yourobjective from it?
You know some people are.
For me it was I wanted to kindof round out my educational
experience.
Coming from having a bachelor'sof fine arts, I wanted to
(18:08):
really kind of boost my businessknowledge.
That was my own personal reason.
Some people feel like they needit for career advancement, you
know, to get to that nextpromotion, to get to that next
level.
Some people are, you know, froma salary perspective.
So I think it's really gettingclear about what you're going
back to school for because it isa significant time commitment
(18:32):
and you want to feel like you'retotally ready to school for.
Because it is a significant timecommitment and you want to feel
like you're totally ready to dothat.
I also think just talking topeople right Understanding for
people who have connect withpeople who have finished a
master's degree or a part-timeprogram and understand what
their experience is.
I think Northeastern inparticular has great advisors to
(18:52):
connect with and speak to and alot of events too that you can
go to and kind of get a betterunderstanding.
So it's really about, I think,like talking to people, getting
clear with yourself sort of whatis your goal for it, because I
think that also shifts where youwant to go to school.
Like, if I think of, there's alot of schools that are geared
(19:13):
towards entrepreneurship youknow, starting your own business
, you know in a master's program, and maybe that's where you
want to go to.
But I think it's just reallygetting clear about why you want
to go back to school and whatyou're hoping to get out of it.
Speaker 1 (19:27):
Yeah, because that clarity of the why is really
what's going to get you throughthe two or three or four years
of studies.
That's what's going to get youthrough the.
Oh, I have to write anotherpaper, I have another discussion
board.
Speaker 2 (19:41):
Yeah, what is your North Star that you're going
towards, you know, and to helpkeep everything in perspective,
especially when you're goingthrough those moments of like.
Oh, another assignment, youknow.
Speaker 1 (19:51):
Yeah, I think that's great.
Well, one of the questions thatwe always like to ask on the
podcast is what would you tellthat eight-year-old who's just
starting to think about what ismy future?
Speaker 2 (20:06):
Yeah, I would say it's okay to try different
things.
I think about my career path inparticular, and I was, you know
, at 18,.
You're making sort of a majordecision of, like, what is your
career path focus?
And when I started to get tothe tail end of my theater
career I had such fear abouttransitioning to another
(20:31):
industry.
You know, there's that wholeimposter syndrome, like you know
, are my skills transferable?
You know, can I do somethingdifferent, etc.
And I think the eight year oldif I could just have told my
eight year old self it'll beokay, right?
You know, I think things willopen up and take some of that
(20:51):
pressure and stress off ofyourself.
I think the time to try thingsis when you're young, you don't
have so many majorresponsibilities and I think
it's just coming at things withan open mind.
And if I could go back in timeI would say, hey, is it going to
be okay?
Don't stress as much, just kindof let it go and let it come to
you.
Speaker 1 (21:12):
I think that's so important.
It's going to be okay don'tstress as much, you know just
kind of let it go and, you know,let it come to you.
I think that's so important.
It's going to be okay.
It's going to be okay, it will.
You know.
Time is going to go on and Ilook back over life and I think
to myself why did I worry somuch?
Why did I stress out, you know,why did I not take that chance?
And most of it was, I think, tosome extent fear, you know,
fear of loss, fear ofuncertainty, fear, fear, fear.
Speaker 2 (21:35):
But fortunately stepping out of that comfort
zone too.
I mean, I think that is that'shuge right.
You know you're having to bevulnerable and you know kind of
put yourself out there, andthere's always that fear of like
, ok, well, they accept me, willI be able to do X, y and Z?
Speaker 1 (21:56):
But you know something will happen, and
usually it leads to somethingeven better than what you could
have thought, and that's thebeauty of it.
That's awesome.
Rachel, thank you so much forbeing a guest on today's podcast
.
We really, really do appreciateyou coming in.
Keep up your absolute glowingspirit, that energy that you
have.
You know, be sure to take abreak from time to time.
I've learned that lesson.
(22:16):
Make sure you have a little bitof break from here and there,
but just keep doing what you'regoing to do and I think it's all
going to be fine.
Speaker 2 (22:24):
Thank you.
This is so nice to be invitedonto the show and talk with you
this morning and I reallyappreciate all the support over
the last three years.
Speaker 1 (22:33):
You got it and there's more to come.
All right, thank you all verymuch for listening to today's
episode.
I hope you got something out ofit.
We want to say thank you toNortheastern University,
swinburne University, theSoliton Group and, of course,
jared Zamarowski, our amazingaudio engineer.
Thank you all and have a greatday.
Thank you.
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