Statement Mondays: Interviews With Women Who Wear ”Heels” to Work
Natalie Muenster
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Natalie interviews career-minded women to discover how they use and grow their identities throughout their careers.
Available episodes
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May 31, 2021
Tough Enough: Caroline Cuffe, Oil Trader
When do you dial up the toughness and dial it back? Caroline Cuffe built up a (necessary) thick skin as an oil trader but realized she'd have to change how she approached her next and very different role of marketing planning director. In this interview she talks about how her identity of being tough came to be, and how building relationships and making other people's jobs easier has been key to her success. Ready for some crazy stories?
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May 31, 2021
Tenacious & Fiery: Kelly Stefanowicz, VP at Morgan Stanley
Kelly figured out how to be taken seriously without having to be serious. She brings a new, bubbly perspective to the financial services sector as one of Morgan Stanley’s rising young female leaders. In this interview, she talks about why she turned down Morgan Stanley twice before accepting their offer, giving insights on taking control over your career, plus examples of the unique ways she's built relationships at her company. Turns out being young in financial services isn't necessarily a disadvantage...
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May 24, 2021
Pave the Way: Lindsey Boylan, Politician & Whistleblower
Lifting others up drives everything that Lindsey Boylan does. She is a New York politician (running for Manhattan Borough President!) and career urban planner, and also the first whistleblower against NY Governor Andrew Cuomo in February, 2021 for sexual harassment. In this interview, we discuss what makes her bold and unapologetic. She shares how her identity has changed (or not) after coming forward, and explains the connections she seeks with other women. Lindsey strives to pave the way for future generations of women -- because progress only exists because other people before you failed trying to achieve it.
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May 10, 2021
Mind vs. Body: Noopur Chhabra, Facebook Recruiter
The secret to becoming the better version of yourself you envision? Practice! Facebook recruiter Noopur Chhabra knew what she "brought to the table" when switching jobs, which helped her stand up for what she knew she needed from a work environment. This episode explores some thought-provoking takes on what roles your mind and your body play in shaping your identity and career.
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May 3, 2021
Statement Extra: Find Your YaYa's
Happy Statement Monday! In v2 of this new segment, Natalie does a short but intense interview with Paula Hernández and Jackie Neumann about their journeys and as a collaboration to help spread the word about this much-needed app they're building called YaYa. Want to be in on a global community of women who all uplift and empower each other? Visit joinyaya.com to download!
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Apr 26, 2021
Prove Them Wrong: Emma Kalayjian, NASA Designer
If someone told you they didn’t think you could do something, would you sit there and agree or would you do everything in your power to prove them wrong? Meet the Elle Woods of the automotive industry, our firecracker guest Emma Kalayjian:
* She is a user interface & experience designer at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (UI/UX @ NASA JPL)
* She’s obsessed with cars
* She is also on the 2021 Forbes 30 Under 30 list
* She never thought a space company would be hiring for business majors. Did you?
In this episode, we’ll learn about stigmas around hiring practices, the importance of giving space (heh) to your feminine and masculine energies, and what it means to take responsibility for your successes. Emma is currently working to make educational content on aerospace and automotive more accessible to young girls.
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Apr 19, 2021
Power of Perspective: Susie Kimmel, Healthcare IT Leader
Self-worth should not be based on work successes. Susie Kimmel, a leader at a large healthcare IT company (and new mother!), learned the hard way about the importance of separation between day-to-day job performance and her happiness outside of work. After discovering she had breast cancer at age 25, she quickly adopted a more balanced perspective of her many life roles while managing to maintain her identity at work. She is still outspoken, still sets a high bar in the office, she values giving and receiving feedback well, and is even called a “war helicopter” on occasion...
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Apr 12, 2021
The No Chill Club: Tyler Lussi, Professional Soccer Player
Professional soccer player Tyler Lussi is the definition of intense. This trait has shaped her personality and launched her career -- all the way through playing at Princeton and then for the past five years on the Portland Thorns. In this episode, Tyler emphasizes the why and how of her “always on” mindset and how it paved the way for her success today, and shares what taking the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) public means to her (aka being able to buy and sell shares of it). Ready for a sneak peak into the No Chill Club?
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Apr 5, 2021
Little Spark of Madness: Paulina Ramos, Activist & Engineer
What happens when you decide to pursue your life mission instead of the “normal” life path? Paulina Ramos explains why she quit Uber to volunteer with the Syrian refugee crisis, and the irreversible effect it’s had on her career as well as her life in general. Intrigued? You should be because this interview is POWERFUL and you’ll come away knowing more about value-driven lifestyles, the intersect of (or separation between) work and passion, and you may even question your own existence a bit...
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Mar 29, 2021
Turn Nothing Down: Michelle Greenfield, Veterinary Student
No one will fault you for wanting to learn more. Aquatic medicine student and “Aquadocs” podcast host Michelle Greenfield approaches her veterinary studies by jumping at every opportunity available -- even though her “heart is with the dolphins,” she would never turn down the chance to work on something different like equine (aka horse) orthopaedics. Tune in to learn one way to be a trailblazer in your industry without being an expert, and to deep dive into the world of aquatic medicine (you’ll even learn how to draw blood from a dolphin!).
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Mar 22, 2021
One Big Experiment: Vicki Chang, Facebook PM
How do you know when to quit? Vicki Chang, a product manager on Facebook's New Product Experimentation team (NPE), is always asking herself three specific questions to figure this out. She has a unique background as a chemistry PhD dropout and infuses her experimental and scientific way of thinking into both her day-to-day and her own Big Life Decisions. This was going to be the last episode of Season 1 but NOT ANYMORE! Look forward to more episodes each Monday! And today, listen in to hear why Vicki loves collaborating with people, what she's learned from her career experimentation, and to compare an entirely different product manager personality from last week's guest from Tesla, Kate Park.
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Mar 15, 2021
Earn Your Respect: Kate Park, Tesla Autopilot PM
Respect in the workplace is highly sought after but not easy to earn. Kate Park is a senior product manager on Tesla's Autopilot team (and one of my closest friends!), and through a series of stories involving Shakespeare Camp and a Tesla Executive meeting she shares what role respect has in her day-to-day... how she earns it, why she needs it, and how she uses it. Her intense and technical workplace has different dynamics and requires different Statement tactics than the previous women we've heard from so far, so listen today for a fresh perspective!
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Mar 9, 2021
Statement Extra: I Challenge You
Happy International Women's Day! In this new segment, Natalie poses a challenge to YOU and shares some comments she's gotten about Statement Mondays so far. Intrigued?
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Mar 1, 2021
Passion & Obsession: Rachel Greenwald, Matchmaker
Celebrity matchmaker and bestselling author, Rachel Greenwald, launched her impressive career with an ~adrenaline journal~ and a single Google search. In this week’s episode, Rachel explains her extremist personality and dives into the crazy story of how she became a renowned matchmaker. Throughout the interview, Natalie and Rachel also discuss burn-out culture, passion, and obsession, in and outside of the workplace.
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Feb 21, 2021
Open, Ready, Curious: Cynthia Grutzik, Dean of Education
Be open, ready, curious -- this is Cynthia Grutzik’s life motto, and it has served her well. Cynthia lived the first 14 years of her life in Cameroon, Africa, which has greatly shaped her understanding of the world. She is currently a Dean at San Francisco State University, and she had her first teaching job in Cameroon where she learned how to prioritize the needs of her students. Listen to hear how her unique upbringing impacts the way she approaches her job now in terms of being patient, interacting with students, and expressing gratitude.
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Feb 15, 2021
Intentions Make You Stronger: Salma Mahmoud, Bodybuilder
Bodybuilders also wear heels... Salma Mahmoud finally took her needs and wants into her own hands once she realized she had the space and initiative to do so after college. Salma completed a rotational program at Visa while investigating what new hobby she wanted to pursue, and soon dove headfirst into data science and her newfound interest in bodybuilding. In fact, bodybuilding (and the confidence that came with goal-setting and training), has changed so much about the way Salma thinks, works, and lives. Could her coworkers tell she's a bodybuilder? We'll see! Join us for this week's episode as we discuss the power of body image, personal goals, and the importance of celebrating your hard work.
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Feb 8, 2021
Becoming a Force: Lauren Jonas, Founder & CEO
Lauren Jonas understands that confidence doesn't often come on its own, it's gained over time. Now a serial entrepreneur and CEO, she started two companies at a young age (out of necessity!) both focused on plus-sized women: a fashion blog called The Pear Shape, and a community platform called Part and Parcel. In this interview, we’ll hear about how she found self-confidence and success by connecting with other people who have her same unfulfilled needs, and by paying attention to how those around her perceive her (that's how she knows she's a force!). She currently works on Facebook's New Product Experimentation team.
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Feb 1, 2021
Pride in Where You Came From: Karla Magaña Figueroa, MBA & MPP
You'd never guess that Karla Magaña Figueroa was previously an undocumented immigrant until she shares how much strength her background has given her throughout her life and education. She is now pursuing two degrees, an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth and an MPP from Harvard Kennedy School, and is intent on learning more about business and policy and entering the public sector. In this episode she discusses growing up undocumented in America, being a woman in finance, and receiving amazing mentorship and paying it forward.
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Feb 1, 2021
People Are Scared of Smart Women: Nicole Mueller, High School Teacher
Nicole Mueller is an outspoken woman who doesn’t take no for an answer, not even from herself. She is a high school English teacher in Wisconsin who is so invested in her job as an educator that she steps into an entirely different persona in the classroom in order to best challenge her students. Join in as Nicole and Natalie discuss curated identities and the paradox of being a smart woman.
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Feb 1, 2021
My Clothing Is My Armor: Fischer Yan, Marketing & Consulting
Welcome to our first ever Statement Mondays episode! We talk with Fischer Yan, who has worked on marketing for Uber and GGV Capital, and who derives much of her workplace confidence from her outfits. In this episode, learn how to be a badass well-dressed warrior, and how to find your "personal monopoly" as she reveals the personal experience that led her to start her own consulting business in LA focusing on minority- and women-led companies in e-commerce.
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Nov 5, 2020
Statement Mondays Trailer - Be Bold!
Welcome to Statement Mondays! Natalie is a software engineer two years out of college and she's on a mission to discover how bold women bring themselves to work and navigate their careers. In this trailer, she describes the origins of Statement Mondays as a movement and podcast, and how she hopes to inspire YOU to be bold and take control of your own identity and career.
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