Life, Deconstructed

Christina Wallace is a Harvard Business School lecturer, serial entrepreneur, and self-described ‘human Venn Diagram.’ She joins us to go in depth on her new book “The Portfolio Life,” a thought-provoking takedown of our outdated concept of work-life balance, with deeply practical advice on how to build a life that, in her words, is bigger than a business card.

*Why having a ‘solid career path’ is no longer the path to a stable future

*How to leverage your skills to transition between seemingly unrelated careers

*Establishing an identity bigger than your job

*Why everyone should create their own personal ‘board of directors’

And much, much more.

She's a globally successful singer-songwriter, musician and composer who sings in Hebrew, Arabic and French. Riff Cohen's music doesn't fit neatly into any one category - it's been described as modern Middle Eastern  Rock or Algerian folk,  but it's also the kind of sound that blends influences so vividly, it's better to just listen instead of label. She was born to parents of Tunisian and French-Algerian origins, raised in Israel, and took an artistic scholarship in Paris, where her appropriately titled hit debut album, 'A Paris,' was born. She's since toured the world and released two more albums. Amid work on her fourth, Riff spoke candidly about the all-consuming process of creation and the fear of releasing it into the world, on discovering her femininity, and on learning to live peacefully with her fierce inner critic - and to own her success. 

This week we’re bringing you more distilled advice from the talented and inspiring women on the show, who’ve all opened up and shared candid reflections about how they got to where they are, and what they figured out along the way. And that’s really at the core of these conversations: getting a peak behind the curtain at the winding, often unexpected paths that lead to success. For some of the women you’ll hear from, it’s more about a life philosophy. Others share specific tools they’ve used to figure out their next steps.

This week we’re continuing to highlight some of our favorite words of wisdom from the incredible women on the show - this time, sharing the best advice they ever got, and the best life lessons they ever learned. You’ll hear from women from all kinds of industries, from fashion and design, to tech, security, journalism, law, and film. They share their insights on fear and failure, work culture and loving what you do, confidence, and more.

A special episode of Life, Deconstructed, as we start to pull together some of our favorite anecdotes and insights from the incredible women on the show. As always, our conversations are with fascinating women from all kinds of fields and backgrounds: from an ex-CIA operative, to tech CEOs, fashion founders and award-winning journalists and producers. They each had their own unique, winding, often unpredictable path to get to where they are – but no matter how different – there are common threads in all of their experiences. Here are 12 inspiring women on imposter syndrome, and learning how to take up space.

Adeena Sussman has had a pretty intense five years: co-authoring two bestselling cookbooks with Chrissy Teigen, getting married and moving to Tel Aviv, and writing her first solo (and wildly successful) cookbook, Sababa, named a Best Fall 2019 Cookbook by the New York Times, Bon Appétit, and Food & Wine. But finding her lane - and success - didn't come overnight. It came out of a winding path, trial and error, odd jobs, and eventually co-authoring over a dozen cookbooks. While working on her next book, Shabbat, Adeena opened up about her orthodox upbringing; how almost burning down a famous author's apartment ended up being a blessing in disguise; coming to realize something she loved could be an actual job, and being open to try new things - always.  

This week Michelle Morgan takes us inside her path into marketing, branding and strategy - how she found a space to create real impact and find personal meaning in her work. It started out with ditching the pre-med track in favor of the fashion closets at glossy magazines she always dreamed of; but following more of what she calls 'conscious decisions' led her to working on high-profile, inclusive campaigns for Dove, and the Crown act: legislation helping put an end to hair discrimination, especially for black women. She talks about rerouting her direction along the way, why working at an ice cream shop taught her skills that paid off big in her career, playing a role in changing standards of beauty, and finally getting comfortable and confident with her natural hair. 

Chama Mechtaly was born and raised in Casablanca, Morocco, to Arab Muslim parents. But in middle school she discovered her dad's family secret, hidden even from her mom: his Jewish roots. It changed the course of her life - setting her on a path of trying to understand her country's true history, as well as her own. She's channeled it into incredible work aimed at healing rifts between Jews and Muslims. Now based in Dubai, she created the jewelry line Moors & Saints as a creative and unexpected way to do exactly that. In a raw, open conversation she talks us through the path to understanding her identity, being censored by everyone from her country to an (ex) partner, and her secret to having tough, uncomfortable - and great conversations. 

Her designs are raw, purposefully imperfect - and endlessly elegant. Back in 2012, feeling lost and a bit heartbroken, a (boring) one-day wax carving class set Rosh Mahtani on a completely new path. She ended up founding Alighieri, a jewelry collection inspired by Dante Alighieri's 'Divine Comedy.' Less than 5 years later, the business had an annual growth rate of 500% and was sold in big-name stores like Selfridges, Net-a-Porter, and Matches Fashion. As the brand moved into its new London showroom, Rosh talked to us about growing up in Zambia, why she hates being put in a box, and how she dove fearlessly into launching a meaningful jewelry brand, with no "official" jewelry making experience. 

To say Mariam Wardak has an unusual life story is a bit of an understatement. Born to a family with a prominent legacy in Afghanistan. Raised as a boy by her father until the age of 3. School in America. And a short trip back to Kabul that ended up changing the course of her life. She's since played a major role in her country — from the National Security Council to founding Her Afghanistan, supporting Afghan women in everything from tech to peacebuilding. She tells us about the life lessons learned as a 15 year-old at tribal elder meetings in Afghanistan, her 'own brand' of feminism, finding the courage to walk away from things that look great on paper, and learning to communicate with the Taliban — and her husband.