Superbloom Madeline Song and Melanie Epstein

In this episode, Madeline sits down with Christine Chun, a Senior Product Designer at Instacart. Christine (Wellesley ’15) shares how she made a successful career pivot from beauty marketing to product design and what it’s like working as a product designer, from small startups to big tech companies. Christine knew she wanted to work in the Bay Area after graduation. While on a trip to the Bay Area during her last year of college, she reached out to a number of companies for interviews and landed a job at Tatcha, a Japanese beauty brand started by Wellesley alumnus, Vicky Tsai. Christine started her career working in beauty marketing as a Communications Specialist at Tatcha. However, after a year into her first job, Christine realized beauty marketing wasn’t the right fit for her. After exploring different career paths, Christine decided to pursue a career in product design. In the past 5 years, Christine has worked in product design across the tech industry at ZapLabs, Instacart, and Facebook. Christine also runs a YouTube channel, chunbuns (with more than 80k subscribers and 3 million views) where she shares her experiences working and living in San Francisco. In this episode, Christine tells us what she’s learned working as a product designer in the tech industry. We also talk about her post-grad advice and tips, everything from imposter syndrome to the power of authenticity and vulnerability, especially when it comes to networking and mentorship. Learn more about Christine on YouTube and Instagram @chunbuns. Find us on Instagram @superbloompodcast and email us at superbloompodcast@gmail.com.

In this episode, Melanie sits down with Diarra White, Vice President at BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager. Diarra (Columbia ‘15) tells us about her experiences launching her career, navigating the financial services industry, and breaking barriers as a female leader and woman of color in a male-dominated industry.  During her time at Columbia, Diarra worked at two top investment banks before joining BlackRock on their strategic product management team. After graduation, Diarra joined BlackRock as a full-time analyst on their Institutional Client Business team. In her current role as VP, Diarra leads client engagement at the BlackRock Investment Institute. As a Sociology and Business major, Diarra shares how she crafted a narrative that helped her break into the finance industry and how young women can create their own elevator pitches to stand out in the interview process. She shares what it’s like working in an internal versus client-facing role and why she prefers working directly with clients. She also walks us through her career path and how she worked towards her current leadership position as VP at BlackRock. We talk about the importance of staying authentic to yourself and finding a team and organization where you can succeed. Diarra also tells us how she keeps herself motivated and performing at her highest level, especially during work from home. Find us on Instagram @superbloompodcast and email us at superbloompodcast@gmail.com.

Join Madeline as she sits down with Wendy Cartagena, a Tech Business Analyst and Founder at Invested Millennial. In this episode, Wendy (UCLA ‘16) shares how she landed her first job in tech, how she leveled up her career through strong networking and communication skills, and what skills and experience young women need to break into the tech industry (hint: it’s not just software engineering and STEM backgrounds). We talk about what Wendy learned from her internship at the United Nations and State Department and why she decided to launch her career in the tech industry. Wendy gives us an inside look into what it’s like working at one of the most innovative companies in the world. She tells us about her role as a Business Analyst and walks us through other non-technical roles in the tech industry. Wendy is also the Founder of Invested Millennial, a platform empowering women to learn about personal finance and investing. Wendy explains why building a business and investing your money can help you achieve financial independence (and why that is important!). We also talk about the personal finance and investing advice that every young woman needs to know, and Wendy shares her top financial resources (books, apps, etc.) to help you get started with your financial goals. Learn more about Wendy on YouTube and Instagram @investedmillennial. Find us on Instagram @superbloompodcast and email us at superbloompodcast@gmail.com.

Join Madeline as she sits down with Kristina Choi, a Management Consultant at Root. In this episode, Kristina (UC Berkeley ‘13) shares her experiences working in public relations, or PR, pursuing a Master’s in Management at the University College London, and making a successful career pivot from PR to consulting in her early 20’s. We talk about how Kristina found her first internships and jobs after college (in fashion and video game PR) and how she used her post-grad years to try out different industries and find the right fit for her career goals. Kristina shares why she changed careers from PR to consulting and how she successfully navigated this pivot (starting with grad school). We discuss career paths in consulting, the differences between MBB, Big Four, and boutique firms, and Kristina’s role as a change management consultant. We also chat about Kristina’s YouTube channel (which has more than 100k subscribers!) and how she balances a full-time job with her successful channel. Learn more about Kristina on YouTube and Instagram @kchoi. Find us on Instagram @superbloompodcast and email us at superbloompodcast@gmail.com.

Join Melanie as she sits down with Stephanie Harrison, Founder & CEO at The New Happy and former Head of Learning Experience at Thrive Global. In this episode, Stephanie (NYU ‘11) shares her experiences working as a management consultant at Deloitte, leading product marketing initiatives at LinkedIn, and pursuing her Master’s degree in Positive Psychology at UPenn. Stephanie tells us how she landed her dream jobs by emphasizing her personal strengths in interviews and advocating for herself in the workplace. Stephanie shares what to look for in potential job opportunities and how you can use these tips to find a fulfilling career in your early 20's. We also discuss Stephanie’s company, The New Happy, and how you can integrate key principles behind their health and wellness initiative into your personal and professional life. Find Stephanie at thenewhappy.com and on Instagram at @newhappyco. Find us on Instagram @superbloompodcast and email us at superbloompodcast@gmail.com.

In this episode, Madeline sits down with Dana Kim, Founder & CEO at Showcase Insights. Dana (Barnard ‘13, Wharton ‘20), shares how she explored a variety of career paths during college (such as fashion, e-commerce, law, and psychology) and how she decided to work at Kelton Global, a brand strategy firm, after graduation. We discuss how to navigate the early stages of starting a company, what it’s like attending a top business school, and how you can get involved in venture capital as a student. Dana tells us how she overcame obstacles in the early stages of her startup and why confidence and determination are key to breaking barriers as a female entrepreneur. Dana also shares her tips on time management and how you can make the most out of your time as a student, between classes, internships, “side hustles,” and more. Learn more about Showcase at showcaseinsights.com. Find us on Instagram @superbloompodcast and email us at superbloompodcast@gmail.com.