I chose one of the preset designs and configured it to meet my needs. The front of the card states my name and my tagline. Words make for a cleaner tagline than phrases or sentences about your abilities. Keeping the number of words in your tagline low allows it to be more impactful.  I chose the following:

• Engineer - I am an advocate for women + minorities in STEM and proud of my engineering degree. 
• Volunteer - I volunteer for various social causes and would love to get involved in more.
• Learner - I love to learn and connect with people who are willing to teach me something new.

My personal card has three things on the back:

• my website to demonstrate some of my work outside of my profession
• my email which is a link to me in a more formal way
• my cell phone number which is a link to me in an informal way

While some experts say that you should add a picture, I felt that linking my website allows someone to see my face again if they find that necessary.  Social media handles can be included if that is more applicable to your work but in general, my volunteer work contacts need a phone number to call for help and an email to send confirmation details after the conversation. Whatever choices you add to your design, make sure you spellcheck before saving the final design and paying for the cards!

My wonderful job sent me out to SF for 3 weeks last October 2016 and 5 weeks this year in May 2017. This place is so different than anything that I have ever experienced before on my program. I am always in a plant, working with operators and solving day to day fires. Here, I am working on software or projects that will benefit my function or more at work. While I am certainly not an expert on Silicon Valley, I wanted to share a little bit of my takeaways from this sweet place.


1. Do not box yourself in thinking. Before I came here, I always worked on stuff for my function at work and while here, I go to lots of different seminars or networking events in things I do not know. For example, I went to an event on Artificial Intelligence at the Google Launchpad space in SF. I did not know much about AI but while at the event, I learned about limitations, potential problems, types of networks and how this all related to different types of machine learning. After the meeting, I bought some books on Kindle to read and learn more about this. I never thought AI would be this present in our lives but the idea of AI helping human decisions is so interesting.



2. Network with all of the great people out here! There are so many cool business ideas being created right here in SF. At each of the events, I find myself meeting people who are truly going to disrupt the current business models of the world or make a difference in the lives of people. It's really cool to feel the passion from these people and absorb their innovative and creative energy.


3. Physical fitness is almost as important as intelligence. Taking care of your body allows your brain to work better. Here in SF, I was very lucky to live within 30 minutes of my job. I walked to work every day and walked back from work or an event every night.Walking to different areas of the city like Fisherman Wharf or Coit Tower (shown above!) instead of taking an car or bus was super good for my health and also for a brain break. The only time I take an Uber is when my intended location will be more than 45 minutes to walk somewhere. I also went hiking and played some Frisbee while I was out here. All of this made me feel sharper at work and I will definitely continue while on my Italian rotation.

4. Try as many new things as possible, especially things that I would never see in another city. In one week here in SF, I went to a coffee cupping, an urban mobility panel, an intro to Python class, and met up with some old high school friends. The week before, I went to yoga in Grace Cathedral and a product management class. Living in a city is a unique opportunity for me right now as my current company is located mostly outside of cities. I try to take advantage of anything free or less than $15 that will give me a lasting memory.

5. Technology and software are evolving way faster than we can understand in our daily life. Try everything out and keep an open mind about how this new technology will change the way we live currently. There might be less accountants or engineers or operators in plants but this change allows them to learn new skills and integrate into the economy in a new and possibly more lucrative way. Being afraid of the changes that are coming will never be beneficial to you in the end. I am trying some Augmented Reality glasses and while far out for now, this could be the new way of training operators instead of people or videos.

Now after my last move with just a car, I can honestly say that I have become a pro at fitting what I need for 6 months besides furniture into a car. My rotational program provides furnished apartments for me but the rest I have to supply or use whatever the previous tenant left behind. Here are 5 tips and tricks that I have learned in this process and I hope that they can help you move in a minimalist way.

I've packed 9 pairs of pants. The bottom row are the Athleta Destination pants. I love them for work or play. They do not wrinkle when packed and the bow tie on the top is adorable. The middle row has my more formal pants - some Old Navy khakis, J. Crew olive green dress pants, and Lululemon black sweatpant dress pants. The top row is all Gap jeans - one dark skinny, light boyfriend and dark flare jeans. I always try to pack different color bottoms - the only repeats are black pants and dark jeans because they tend to work better for work functions.


For tops, I also try to pack a variety that work with the pants but also can layer nicely.  in the bottom row, I packed one company sweater, two merino wool J Crew Sweaters and 1 Uniqlo sweater tunic. The 3rd row has all of my formal shirts - one peplum button down and 4 button blouses. In the second row, I packed two silk like shirts and 2 peplum t-shirts. The top row is all t-shirts - two company t-shirts, one 3/4 quarter sleeve white shirt and one long sleeve striped tee. All of these work nicely tucked into flare pants or draped over my skinny pants/jeans.


For extra pieces, I like to pack a pair of Pixie Pants - thick nice leggings. I also packed a pair of metallic leather leggings to go out in, and two skirts - one black leather and one blue suede. I tend to wear all black when I go out so the leggings and skirt should go with the tops I have packed. I also packed one black wrap dress for any surprise formal events.


I pack my toiletries and makeup and unmentionables in these bags. They are so nice and if I need to remove things for an overweight bag at the airport - I usually grab one of these out to reduce weight.


For shoes, I pack flats that are comfortable for a full day of walking and a pair of rain boots. Not shown are the heeled sandals I will bring and will wear on the plane. Shoes are a great way to add some texture or color to an outfit.

Last but not least, I pack a backpack for weekend trips, a long champ for rain or extra things, two jackets and one vest. It is good to be ready for all kinds of weather.


And that will all go in my suitcase - a 25 inch Delsey Chatillion Checked Bag! I will do a post of what I pack in my carry on bag very soon.

I travel a lot or a little depending on the rotation that I am in currently. I went on a stint of 6 weeks living out of a suitcase for several projects and I've went to conferences with the tiniest bag to push myself out of overpacking. As this post is posting on the blog, I am on a plane to SF! In all of these instances, I've gathered 5 tips that help me feel at the top of game during a trip.
1. Make sure to have travel sizes of the types of products you may need. For me, I cannot live without hand lotion, facial oils, and masks. I have various types hand lotion but I always go back to L'Occitane as favorite one. I love the vanilla and the rose scents. For oils, I use Sunday Riley UFO oil, Desert Essence Tea Tree Skin Ointment, and Korres Wild Rose Brightening Oil. For masks, I love anything with clay to draw out an gunk that gets in my pores at the plants or acids to peel the dead skin off my face. My go to masks are Aztec Healing clay which I put in a small jar from the Muji Store, GlamGlow Super Clearing Treatment, and Peter Thomas Roth Cucumber mask. I travel with all of these on all of my trips and it truly makes a difference in my skin.
2. I only pack fabrics that do not wrinkle easily. For plants, I pack DryFit polos or thick cotton t-shirts. For more formal situations, I love blouses or silky t-shirts. I tend to go more casual on the top and formal on the bottom. For bottoms, I love Gap Skinny Pants or Athleta Wide Leg Destination Pants. I have multiple pairs of each and they have changed my life for the better.

3. I love packing cubes when traveling with a carryon bag. I have several packing cubes - I do one for work clothes, workout clothes, and casual clothes. I also do one for underwear, one for dry toiletries like wipes or powders, and one for shoes. Pack in these packing cubes and roll each outfit together. When you get up in the morning at your destination, you just have to pick a bundle that will not be wrinkled and go in the morning. This lets me sleep in 15 extra minutes and that is worth it!

4. Always bring a fun book and a work related book on the plane. Plane rides are the best time to catch up on things that you don't have time for and that don't require internet. I love to catch up on reading, movies, and practice languages via apps while flying.

5.Always bring snacks and drink mixes. I have powdered coconut water packets, matcha packets and mushroom coffee packets that I always travel with because water is not expensive! For snacks, I like Luna bars or Lara bars because they have them almost everywhere but Square Bars and Perfect Bars are becoming my new favorites.

For everyone. networking is crucial to getting a dream job straight out of college. I know that without the networking I did throughout my 4 years, I probably would not have gotten my full time offer. Networking is crucial because the people in your network can vouch for you. In my case, networking got me the foot in the door, I killed the interviews and ended up with an awesome job. To me, there are two types of networking. There are networking events where you go solely to make friends with others in your field or above you versus networking with friends or older students at college in major specific clubs. They are totally different in my opinion and I have tips for either situation.

Networking Events

When at conferences, they often have mixers where you can just chat with other professionals in your field. For these events, I like to prepare by reading some recent articles about the conference or if within your company, brushing up on some of the newest technology. If there is a lull in the conversation, you can save it with bringing up something that most people should have a basic to advanced understanding of from work.

Second, bring business cards but be selective about who you give your information to at the event. Not everyone you meet deserves a card and that sounds very harsh! Make sure that you are giving your information to people you clicked with because that is the best way to connect and keep in contact. It is important to make connections but you have to maintain them or they will fade.

Networking in General

If possible, try to reconnect with everyone at least once a year. This means sending an email, a text message, having a phone call or meeting in person. One of the key lessons I learned is that you don't want to hear from someone when they want something. You should have a good enough relationship that you can reach out whenever for advice or new job prospects but this only works if you maintain your connection with that person.

Make sure you become friends on Linked in and start to endorse each other for skills if you know the other person is proficient. It is really crucial to have endorsements when you look for a new job or internship so keeping on top of that part of your Linkedin profile will keep you in the game.

How do you maintain and work your network?