Getting Simple

#17: Saba Ghole — On Growth Mindset

Listen Later

CEO of NuVu, Saba Ghole, on creating an innovation school & reinventing high school education; growth mindset; art and design as expressive mediums; changing places; simple life habits; technology; and more.


Opportunities to talk to people like Saba Ghole and learn about how they understand life and what drives them to do what they do every day, is what moves me to continue with the Getting Simple project.

"I had a chance to reminisce with Nono about what it means to get simple and embody a growth mindset on his very special podcast. Mixed in are bits about my childhood, my artistic pursuits, and my current love and passion, NuVu Studio." —Saba Ghole, Co-founder and Chief Creative Officer of NuVu Studio

If you're intrigued about how growth mindset can be taken to reality, listen to this episode and learn about how NuVu, an innovation school for middle and high school students, helps students build long-lasting core competencies and creative skills.


Saba Ghole (@sabarani) is an entrepreneur, designer and artist. Around 9 years ago, she co-founded NuVu Studio, an innovation school for middle and high school students. NuVu builds creative skills in youth with a strong focus on real world interdisciplinary projects. NuVu is based in Cambridge, MA, USA, but its pedagogy and programs expand to cities around the world. Prior to founding NuVu, Saba studied architecture and urban design at MIT. While working in architecture and planning firms, she focused on the re-design of urban centers and designing new health-science-technology buildings in the Middle East and Asia. Saba also has a passion for designing and building large-scale interactive art installations that use technology and biofeedback — like Pulse and Bloom, a widely-featured piece — to raise social awareness and strengthen community connection.


Favorite quotes
  • "Take a deep breath. Leave behind any of a stressful thought, or a bottleneck, or a challenge that you were facing yesterday. And focus on one thing that you'd like to accomplish today. And do it."
  • "Simplicity gets to the essence of what makes me happy in its most basic way."
  • "[If] the same tool you're using to do one task [has] access to all these other apps and programs, you have to be very deliberate in how you monitor yourself. And that can be very challenging."

    • Links
    • Saba Ghole's Travel & Packing Checklist
    • NuVu
    • NuVu X
    • Pulse and Bloom
    • Burning Man
    • The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
    • Can you learn creativity? Saba's TEDxSanJoseCA talk
    • Nurturing a Beginner's Mind. Saba's INKtalks talk

      People mentioned
      • Saeed Arida
      • David Wang
      • Saurabh Mhatre
      • Jose Luis García del Castillo y López
      • Jack Dorsey
      • Zaha Hadid

        Outline
        • Saba Ghole. [0:47]
        • India & California. [4:52]
        • Sound - What are the things that Saba appreciates (and misses) when living in India versus Orange County. [7:28]
        • An expressive medium. [13:06]
        • The studio model. [15:22]
        • Homeschooling. [17:34]
        • NuVu - An innovation school for middle and high school students. [18:57]
        • Core values - What values do NuVu students acquire? [24:12]
        • Collateral skills. [28:09]
        • Growth mindset. [29:38]
        • Jump into it - What would you say to someone who's afraid of trying something? [34:12]
        • "Nu vu" or "new view." [35:59]
        • Motivation - What's in NuVu for the students and their parents? [36:33]
        • Mindset - What will NuVu students be doing in ten to twenty years? [38:54]
        • NuVu X. [44:04]
        • Formats - Learn about the different programs NuVu offers to students. [47:53]
        • Connect. [49:44]
        • Back to Saba Ghole. [50:37]
        • Daily routine - What does your day-to-day look like? What are your routines, exercises, morning and sleep habits, meditation practices, and mindful moments. [50:55]
        • Commute. [54:45]
        • "Me time" [55:31]
        • The plan - Does Saba plan ahead of time, or does she like experimenting as she goes? [58:13]
        • Your best ideas - When do you think you get your best ideas? [59:23]
        • Distractions - What distracts you? [1:02:31]
        • Notifications. [1:04:33]
        • Email. [1:05:23]
        • Disconnection - Time and activities Saba uses to be with her own thoughts. [1:06:23]
        • Deliberate practice. [1:08:06]
        • Boredom. [1:09:27]
        • Technology - "Are we better off as a society and globally because we have these enhanced technologies in our lives? Have our lives improved? And, where are we headed? Some of that can be very frightening. [1:09:56]
        • Social media - How do you think social media affects the "growth mindset" of students. [1:13:37]
        • Healthy tech - Who's responsible for how we use technology? [1:16:04]
        • Personal success. [1:19:01]
        • Day starter. [1:19:36]
        • Someone successful. [1:20:21]
        • Simplicity. [1:22:39]
        • A positive influencer. [1:23:46]
        • A little thought. [1:25:11]
        • Books. [1:25:39]
        • Your work online. [1:27:00]
        • Money. [1:27:45]
        • A purchase. [1:28:25]
        • Essential travel - Learn about Saba's system to travel. [1:29:30]
        • Clothing - One in, one out. How to keep a simple wardrobe. [1:30:44]
        • Physical clutter. [1:32:14]
        • Digital clutter. [1:32:52]
        • Pulse and Bloom. [1:33:43]
        • Outro. [1:35:37]

          • I'd love to hear from you.

          Submit a question about this or any previous episodes.

          Join the Discord community. Meet other curious minds.

          If you enjoy the show, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts/iTunes? It takes less than 60 seconds and really helps.

          Show notes, transcripts, and past episodes at gettingsimple.com/podcast.

          Theme song Sleep by Steve Combs under CC BY 4.0.


          Follow Nono

          Twitter.com/nonoesp

          Instagram.com/nonoesp

          Facebook.com/nonomartinezalonso

          YouTube.com/nonomartinezalonso

          ...more
          View all episodesView all episodes
          Download on the App Store
          Getting SimpleBy Nono Martínez Alonso
          • 5
          • 5
          • 5
          • 5
          • 5

          5

          31 ratings

          More shows like Getting Simple

          View all
          PA Talks by Hamid Hassanzadeh

          PA Talks

          4 Listeners