Ask Me Anything - July 24, 2020

July 24, 2020

Do you do a mani/pedi?

In pre-COVID times, I’d get a pedicure once a month. Manicures, rarely. I haven’t gotten either since February.

I have upgraded my own hand and foot care at home, however. I love Alchimie Forever’s dry skin balm for my hands and feet, and Beauty Pie’s retinol hand cream is another great treatment.

Thoughts on feeling stuck in your job. I’m a mid-level manager, 10 years experience.

It happens to ALL of us. But your next move is up to you, and this is how I would approach it:

  • Is there something I can do on the side to find fulfillment and a new challenge while keeping the security of my day job?

  • Are there opportunities in my current company that I should pursue?

  • Am I ready for something new, entirely? What is it?

Once you identify which one of these paths feels like the right next move, I recommend writing a Magic 20 list and then getting to work!

What do you make for dinner when you don’t feel like cooking?

We always have the ingredients for these recipes on hand! They’re quick, easy, and delicious.

Excited about new Taylor album?

IT IS SO SO SO GOOD. Right up there with Red and Lover as my favorite Taylor Swift albums.

BEAUTY PIE RECS

What’s your Equilibria routine?

I take a softgel every morning and the mint oil every night. I’ll also take a quarter dropper of the oil during the day if I’m extra irritable or overwhelmed.

The bath products are INCREDIBLE. I use the salts or a bath bomb once a week, and I apply the relief cream on sore muscles or on my lower abdomen for period cramps.

I use the rollers every day. I keep the energizing roller at my desk and the calming one on my nightstand.

If you’re just starting out, I highly recommend the Brilliance Box - Mint to try all my favorite products, and I’d definitely add a box of the bath bombs as well. Equilibria is offering 15% off signature boxes right now, and you can get an additional 15% off using my code HITHA.

Favorite Peloton rides? Just got my bike! Who is your favorite Peloton instructor?

I really love the artist series workouts, especially the pop ones.

On the bike, groove rides are my favorite. I’ll do a HIIT ride if I’m short on time and need to get my workout in. My favorite cycling instructors are Cody Rigsby, Tunde Oyeneyin, Ally Love, Robin Arzon, and Hannah Frankson,

On the treadmill, I mostly do fun runs. My favorite instructors are Robin, Matty Maggiacomo, Adrian Williams, and Jess Sims.

For yoga, I love Aditi Shah and Chelsea Jackson Roberts. I love every single yoga flow on the platform, but have a soft spot for Flow And Let Go and Power Yoga.

What. do you do with your old Silk + Sonder journals?

Mine recently joined the pile of Rho’s ‘practice art’ to get shredded and recycled at Office Depot. I do snap pictures of the goals and reflections pages to go back and reference.

Do you see similarities between Desi culture and Jewish culture?

I do! We both are incredibly family focused, are obsessed with feeding people, and our cultures are very ritual-driven. Generally speaking, there’s a huge emphasis in higher education and going into certain careers and parents meddling in their kids’ lives. There’s also this underlying classism that older generations appear to still prioritize.

Have you been following the issue of the Swastika ban in NY?

Not this story, specifically, but I do want to share my perspective on the Swastika. It was a sacred symbol for Hindus and Buddhists that was abhorrantly appropriated by Hitler and the German Nazis. It now stands for the Holocaust.

Hitler’s swastika should be unequivocally banned. But I do think it’s important to teach that this symbol was usurped for evil and has stood for peace & prosperity for billions of people, for thousands of years.

Just found out I’m having a boy. Tips for raising a kind, feminist son? Feeling overwhelmed.

I’m guessing you had a vision of how you would raise your daughter - the books she’d read, the toys she’d play with, etc. Get them for your son. Raise him to listen to others, to share his toys and the space/airtime in a group setting, and the power of supporting.

I shared some deeper thoughts about this topic in this Instagram post.

Is it a good time to start something of my own?

It’s a great time to test various ideas, especially if you have the security of your day job and the flexibility to work from home. Here are some resources I’d recommend to get you started:

How do you assess taking risks in your career?

I’m very calculated about them. I make a lot of lists and weight options carefully before making a decision. But once it’s made, I’m all in and I forge on.

There are different ways of assessing risk, based on what’s happening (do I look for a new job? do I pursue this opportunity? How do I navigate a difficult manager situation). If you have a more specific question, please DM me or ask it below! I know this answer is frustratingly general.

What is the most interesting application of AI in healthcare to you?

Precision medicine is great, particularly in complicated disease. But my biggest issue with AI in EVERYTHING is that it’s coded largely by men - and white or Asian men in particular - and AI will be inherently biased if it’s not developed by a diverse group.

White, male, cisgender bias is already a major problem in medicine and healthcare. AI can help resolve this gap or exacerbate it.

What was that temporary desk that you had gotten while you were staying with your family?

Recommended career coach? Need help to progress in my career.

Keren Eldad and Antoinette Beauchamp are mine, and they’re fantastic.

How did you start investing? Any advice on how to start and find the companies that need investment?

I wrote about the start of my investing journey here!

Pipeline Angels has an excellent angel investing bootcamp, which I highly recommend.

Syndicates are a great place to source deal flow. Tech Coast Angels and Backstage Crowd are two that I recommend.

Scared to start a family with ongoing mental health issues. Any advice?

It’s completely understandable and I’m sending you a lot of love.

Lucy Hutner is a reproductive psychiatrist (a rare specialty) that I would recommend reaching out to. She has an incredible app, and is just a wonderful person.

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