SLĀ Foundation Presents The Power of Storytelling with Shane Adams

Lori Mankin is an Integrated Marketing Manager at Lifesize, a video conferencing software company with clients like Netflix, LinkedIn, and many more. Lori sits with Shane to talk about her college experience at California State University, Chico and how she found her passion in journalism. She tells about her rocky road to where she is now as she had to deal with childhood bullies, financial instability, and mean bosses. Lori also talks about going to therapy to cope with the challenges she still faces.

Mrignayni Chhotwani, or Maggie, is a senior software engineer at Visa. Shane and Maggie talk about her love for stand-up comedy, her recent relationship status, and her thoughts on the importance of persistence. She also discusses some of the challenges she faces being a woman in a male-dominated industry, how she found her love for computer science, and how she was able to acclimate after a big move from India to the US for her master’s degree.

Mrignayni Chhotwani, or Maggie, is a senior software engineer at Visa. Shane and Maggie talk about her love for stand-up comedy, her recent relationship status, and her thoughts on the importance of persistence. She also discusses some of the challenges she faces being a woman in a male-dominated industry, how she found her love for computer science, and how she was able to acclimate after a big move from India to the US for her master’s degree.

Dana Rygwelski is Founding Director for MassChallenge, a startup accelerator. Originally from Pennsylvania, Dana sits down with Shane to talk about her many many feats, including being one of 5 women to squat over 700 pounds, working in some awesome positions in companies like Hulu, and even defeating cancer. Dana is an open book as she sits down to tell Shane about obtaining an abortion in college and even getting caught as a rebellious teen for stealing. Despite all these struggles, Dana was able to find a place in the top in the world of startups as she helps companies get where they need to be.

Dana Rygwelski is Founding Director for MassChallenge, a startup accelerator. Originally from Pennsylvania, Dana sits down with Shane to talk about her many many feats, including being one of 5 women to squat over 700 pounds, working in some awesome positions in companies like Hulu, and even defeating cancer. Dana is an open book as she sits down to tell Shane about obtaining an abortion in college and even getting caught as a rebellious teen for stealing. Despite all these struggles, Dana was able to find a place in the top in the world of startups as she helps companies get where they need to be.

Aanandh Chandrasekar is a chemical engineer major who became an Investor Evangelist at Capital Factory. Aanandh talks with Shane about growing up in Sugar Land, Texas as a child of Indian immigrants. He talks about being bullied for being smart and going to Nationals for Quiz Bowl. Aanandh offers the challenges he faced in college, advice on finding jobs, and details on his work in venture capital. He talks about how he didn’t let his college major determine his career and that an unconventional pathway, sometimes, is the right one.

Aanandh Chandrasekar is a chemical engineer major who became an Investor Evangelist at Capital Factory. Aanandh talks with Shane about growing up in Sugar Land, Texas as a child of Indian immigrants. He talks about being bullied for being smart and going to Nationals for Quiz Bowl. Aanandh offers the challenges he faced in college, advice on finding jobs, and details on his work in venture capital. He talks about how he didn’t let his college major determine his career and that an unconventional pathway, sometimes, is the right one.

Stephanie Cantú, PhD is the Senior Student Program Coordinator at The McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin. Stephanie and Shane sit down to talk about growing up as a child of divorce, being bullied for being less affluent than her peers, becoming a yoga instructor, and studying the social psychology of mating. She recalls the major factor that led her to where she is today— seeing a female president of Texas A&M University and being inspired to become a female president of a university herself. Stephanie also talks challenges of being a woman of Hispanic heritage in the world of academia and how she overcame those challenges.

Stephanie Cantú, PhD is the Senior Student Program Coordinator at The McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin. Stephanie and Shane sit down to talk about growing up as a child of divorce, being bullied for being less affluent than her peers, becoming a yoga instructor, and studying the social psychology of mating. She recalls the major factor that led her to where she is today— seeing a female president of Texas A&M University and being inspired to become a female president of a university herself. Stephanie also talks challenges of being a woman of Hispanic heritage in the world of academia and how she overcame those challenges.

Danny De Los Santos is a Global Sales Enablement Manager at the technology company Cloudera. Danny came from the small town of Mercedes in the south of Texas. In this episode, Danny discusses his sexuality with Shane and struggles he’s faced because of it. Danny also talks about breaking out of the status quo when it comes to extracurriculars. He mentions how one of the best way to escape a bad situation is through obtaining an education, which is why he was the first in his family to go to college. He talks about his decision to deviate from his family of migrant farmworkers to pursue a marketing career that played to his creative strengths.