Episode 12: From Chemical Engineering to Real Estate Development: Owning your story
The Career Switch PodcastShow Notes
Part of the reason I do this podcast is because it is so inspiring to speak to people, not only about how they made the courageous leap into a new field or industry, but about how they realized that their skills are so applicable across such a wide range of potential careers. Even if you think your skills are too specific – or even if you’ve spent years getting a deep education in one particular area, such as our guest today – it’s still worth looking around to see if there are unconventional applications of your skills. Remember, what seems “easy” or “common sense” to us might not be as obvious to another person. We all have something unique to offer.
My guest on the podcast today is Richelle Delia, PhD. Richelle is an award-winning scientist who spent the first ten years of her career as a chemical engineer in research and development, before realizing she wanted to build something fully her own. Now, she and her husband are co-founders of Housing Joint Venture, a real estate education and development firm helping professionals explore income property ownership as a safety net, to diversify or create wealth. Today on the show, we talk about overcoming the “sunk cost fallacy” and breaking through mental barriers to own the story of your career.
More from The Career Switch Podcast
The pandemic has been a journey (to say the least) for teachers, who have had to deal with so many emotionally, mentally, and physically in caring for their students remotely and then dealing with the change of going back to school. For many teachers, this time has forced them to re-evaluate their lives and careers in this new context – and who can blame them?
Jemma Zoe Smith began her career as a strategy consultant, working across companies such as Proctor & Gamble, KPMG, and Credo Business Consulting. A 3-time Oxford graduate, Jemma worked during her studies to expand access to education for underrepresented sectors, and realized a passion for the education space. Now, Jemma works as an international tutor and education consultant through her tuition agency, The Education Hotel, where she focuses on students ages 11-18 – and she recently launched her second business, Top School and Uni, offering advice on UK schools and universities. On this episode, we talk about overcoming imposter syndrome and taking the leap into doing something you love – even if everyone around you is doing the “normal thing.”
Our guest this week is Margaret Becker, a community health nurse and lactation consultant based in Spain. Before going full-time to pursue her passion for maternal health, she worked as a Contracting Officer for the military for more than 5 years. In addition to her clinical and consulting work, she also hosts the Mobile Milk Maid Podcast, where she shares stories and conversations about women’s and infant health.
For this latest episode, I wanted to try something a little different. We have so many entrepreneurs on the show – people who have made a huge career change to start a business in a field they’ve never worked in, or those who took a risk to hang their own shingle after years of experience in the corporate world. Today, I wanted to dive a bit deeper into entrepreneurship by talking to someone who has made his whole career out of it.
This week is all about getting used to the idea of taking risks – even making risk-taking and change-making a habit in your daily life. That’s something that Raechel Lambert, founder of the Founder’s Marketing Playbook, has done really well – from moving to San Francisco from the East Coast sight unseen with no plan, to taking the leap from finance, to marketing, to entrepreneurship.