Watch me thrive

Another day, another email starting with 'we regret to inform you'

rejection sucks, that's the most profound way we could put it

but we hope venting and discussing the way we reflect on our rejections during this episode brings you comfort and reassurance that you are not alone and it DOES get better!

as the saying goes, rejection is redirection and we hope you find the courage and tenacity to bounce back if rejection is killing your vibe just now 

enjoy the episode and stay tuned for the next one dropping soon!

Welcome back for a new episode! Joining us as a 2021 recording all the way from the windy city is the wonderful Akshina- an old classmate Anu went to school with back in India. Akshina speaks to us about the challenges and appeal of academia, the tricky issue with career progression and workplace obstacles as a brown woman. We get nostalgic pretty quick and talk about how the pandemic has affected us as Indians who live abroad and have most of our family back home in Kolkata and how this impacts our sense of self. An episode rich with reflection and a conversation that shows how Akshina illuminates the path for future women of colour in her field, we hope you enjoy it as much as we did recording it!

Check out Akshina's website to follow her work here: https://akshinabanerjee.com/

Coming in straight from Kolkata -founder of niyor perfumes, dancer since he was a child, entertainer, host, digital creative and all-round life enthusiast Ishan Bhasin joins us in Episode 22 to chat about his career trajectory so far. An undergraduate in business, an MSc from Edinburgh - Ishan is candid about the pros and cons of academic achievements and what it feels like to bounce back from challenging situations as a student. We delve into marketing, social media and what it means for branding and relationships with consumers now and into the future. Interestingly, Ishan notices that 'the people who win on social media are those who are able to exclude a demographic from the beginning' and that takes us into discussing how developing a niche is helpful to being a creative online. He also shares his own relationship with social media and why breaks are important. We hope you enjoy our conversation with him and look forward to seeing you for the next episode!

Hey! it's been a while

the world keeps spinning and life sort of hits us out of nowhere now and again doesn't it? in this episode I'm talking you through the comedown from a jubilant first of January beginning of the year high- all the way to a rocky Feb and March, now on to a hopeful Spring. Health is so hard to navigate and being a woman of colour adds complexities which have felt draining. This episode is about talking it out, sending out comforting energy and virtual hugs to anyone going through something similar and ending with something a bit more related to our career chats ethos- year abroad tips! We chat about what happens during the average year away, whether it really makes a difference to your CV/career or not 

Stay tuned for more episodes including some fantastic collaborations coming your way soon, thanks for the love you show always

Welcome back to another episode, our first guest interview for 2022! Our guest is a music icon (literally). He's got his own Wikipedia info, he's a professional musician and producer, he's worked within the incredible 'Underground Authority' group and as part of the duo 'Paloma and Adil'. Despite such a successful career at such a young age, Adil comes across extremely warm, approachable and human in our conversation. We speak about the way the pandemic has changed the practicalities of a career in music, the pros and cons of working within the music industry and listen towards the end for a funny story about a famous Bollywood star! We also touched on the subject of being Muslim in India which is particularly important given the current political climate so please give the episode a listen and share how you found it with us on instagram, twitter or our blog. See you at our next episode! Thanks as always, for listening. 

Links where you can find Adil

Paloma and Adil on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SX-kT6BVZpU

Adil on insta: https://www.instagram.com/adil_rashid_official/?hl=en

Adil on FB: https://www.facebook.com/adil.rashid.official

Underground Authority: https://www.facebook.com/UndergroundAuthorityInc

Welcome back to another week! For this episode we consider whether women of colour can ace everything and have it all.

Even if there is a world where they can, should they?

Is this third wave feminism at its finest or ultimate capitalism?

How does our ethnic minority background configure into our sense of achievement? 

Does having it all fulfil us? 

Is personal and professional success just an external front?

From Shruti Sailesh on Quora:

When people say “women can’t have it all”, there’s a grain of truth to it. Women can’t have it all if they’re expected to achieve as much professional success as their male counterparts while also performing all the duties of a 1950’s housewife. If we want women to be able to have it all, we have to seriously reconsider both what it means to be a woman, and what it means to “have it all”.

Do we all really have the same 24 hours?

How do white women unaware of their privilege further white supremacy?

What is the impact of hostile white female colleagues in the workplace?

Are WOC and white women united in their fight against the patriarchy?

What does ally-ship in the workplace look like?

Happy 2022! This year we are leaving behind the notion that only parts of ourselves as poc are acceptable at work. We are whole, we are worthy of being appreciated for our fullest selves and in our authenticity we will find our voice and power. Let us know what you think and even better- leave us a review!

This episode is in response to the horrific racial abuse that has been hurled at black English football players today. In the aftermath of England losing the Euro final against Italy, this episode speaks about racism in the workplace, being anti-racist instead of being against racism in a superficial way, why working hard to be a model minority only harms us further and shining a spotlight on the amazing work done by the charity Kick it Out who work tirelessly to end discrimination in football.

To learn more about the Model Minority discussion: https://time.com/5859206/anti-asian-racism-america/

To fundraise, donate and learn more about Kick It Out : https://www.kickitout.org/about-us

To learn about the aftermath of the England v/s Italy final: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/57800431

Micheal is a third-year classical pianist at Birmingham conservatoire. We chat about being a musician, the intersection between race and classical music, and what one does after graduating from a conservatoire.

Apologies for the no sound in 19:30. This lasted only for a few seconds. 

The previous name of the podcast was used as Now go Thrive; this was an error*. We hope you enjoy hearing about Micheal's journey so far and find inspiration about the power of music and an insight into music as a profession as well as a passion.

Have you ever heard of the term 'post-graduate blues'? Your jobs a joke, you're broke, your love life...get it? This commonly used term really highlights the increasing number of young people who complete university and struggle with the transition into adult life. The truth is, everybody is now on different journeys and this episode covers the different ways that this happens. Whether it is watching your social circle get smaller, having a very highly demanding graduate job, feeling the pressure to succeed in your career straightaway or just feeling lost with no sense of direction (Did anyone catch the Miley Cyrus lyric there)- Anu has got you covered. Here's hoping that the episode brings you comfort, reassurance that you are not alone, encouragement to keep going and a solid high 5 for making it so far. Enjoy the endless memes on the post, enjoy the episode- leave us a comment or even better a review, see you for the next one soon!

Welcome back! in part 2 we continue our discussions regarding Aniket's daily life as an academic at Harvard, we speak about barriers for progression for academics particularly BAME and female academics. We have some candid conversations regarding issues in South Asia and how nationalism, regional identities and the media affect south asian politics. We end as usual with a humorous story about Aniket's time at work and hope this conversations gives you an insight into academia, happy listening!

Ever wondered what it's like to work in the most prestigious university in the world? This week we speak to Anu's friend Aniket De- who works at...wait for it...Harvard! That university they show you on 'The Social Network'. Aniket chats about his childhood in Kolkata, his love for history and his research while we cover our thoughts regarding South Asian politics and identity. We get to the good bits in Part 2 so stay tuned!

Welcome back! the summer heat gets to us both a little bit in this episode and we recorded on a thursday at the end of a long week but we really felt passionate about this topic so we decided to dedicate all of episode 12 to the theme of leadership! 

Questions we cover during the episode are:

1) what makes good leaders?

2)what barriers do poc and woc in particular face to leadership?

3)why is a superiority complex in leadership so damaging?

4)how can leadership be transformative in education?

5)how are we manifesting our career paths in leadership?

6)how is vulnerability connected to leadership?

enjoy the episode, leave us a comment on our socials or even a better- a review! we appreciate you, our listener, very much and we will see you soon for the next one!

For episode 11 we meet Iqbal who talks us through some pretty crazy changes in his life and how he has learned more about himself through the professional roles he has already had and how life so far has shaped his personal growth. 

You can (and definitely should!) find more content from Iqbal here: https://linktr.ee/iqtodabal

Welcome back! For episode 11 we meet Iqbal who talks us through some pretty crazy changes in his life and how he has learned more about himself through the professional roles he has already had and how life so far has shaped his personal growth. We chat about his time in Edinburgh, his work and interest in government issues in Malaysia and his current job working with ...wildlife?! He's a cool guy and this episode is bound to make you reconsider whether you are truly taking risks and exploring your interests, give it a listen and let us know what you think! Thanks again for tuning in and see you next time for our next episode.

This is a big one for us! Our first collaborative episode is with the lovely ladies of Dope Black Women. We chat about identity, authenticity, advocating for ourselves and fighting imposter syndrome, championing our communities while also maintaining a critical awareness of their shortcomings and much more. Tune in to listen to the first part of our chat and please let us know what you thought of the episode as a comment or a review or even better, a voice note! 

Welcome back! We began this podcast with the intention of nurturing what it means to fully be ourselves, to embrace our identity and this episode is an extension of that with a specific focus on representation. In this solo episode from Anu, the topic of representation is broken into how life can feel without it, how it can benefit our sense of identity and our confidence and how we can go on to increase representation for ourselves virtually and in our own lives- both professional and personal.   In all of the spheres we operate within- whether it is our office, our homes, our social circles, representation should be meaningful and it should empower us. We hope the episode provides you with some inspiration about creating and increasing representation and to celebrate your own identity. You are awesome! You belong, you are enough. Let us know what you think either as a comment online, an Apple podcast review or even better, send us a voice note! Thanks for listening and see you soon for our next episode.

Welcome back! we recorded this episode in February, the month of 'love' and during the episode we try and delve into our journeys with mentors, mentoring ourselves and now mentoring new members of staff. We share some of our not so pleasant moments learning (or not learning) from a mentor and how it has shaped how we understand leadership and our role as educators of colour. Happy listening!

Coming in as a breath of fresh air for Episode 7 is the lovely Tavelah, who trained with us as a TeachFirst trainee in the West Midlands in 2017 to teach English in a secondary school in the Midlands. We chat about self-confidence, the BLM protests, diversity in schools and the power of music because Tavelah is an incredible musician alongside her passion for education. Let us know what you think of the episode and join us again for Part 2!

Ever felt like you have no clue where your life is headed? 

we have all been there, don't worry!

this mini episode is some brief reflections looking deeper into this feeling of dread we all experience in our 20s and how to navigate it

In this episode, I speak to Namrata about following one's dreams and finding an alternative path to get to our dreams/goals. Namrata is a medical student and a writer in her spare time.  Below are her details. 

Email: namrata.n.mishra@gmail.com

Instagram: @silkwovenwords

                 namrata_mishra1

We chat about being a woman of colour in STEM and how to avoid feeling like you don't belong. 

We have 4 months left in 2020! Somehow that feels completely understandable but ridiculous at the same time. This week we are joined by battery research engineer Rohin Titmarsh. Rohin talks us through his experiences in the engineering world, why we don't have enough diversity in engineering yet, opportunities for engineers to grow and learn more in their career and the benefits of doing a Year in Industry. We end the episode with a quick recap of his summer job litter picking at a music festival (oh the things we do when we are 17) so go listen and on our instagram @nowgothrivepod make sure to check out the resources recommended by Rohin for engineering advice and tips! 

Hey! this week we are chatting about settling back into work, returning to school full time, how setting goals might actually harm us and our first week online! you guys, this podcast thing is real now, WOW. We are so excited by the community we have already started to gather, every like comment and share really does make our hearts skip a tiny beat. It is amazing to feel supported and encouraged by other podcasters who come from diverse communities, we are ready to thrive with you! Episode 2 is about setting processes not goals, nourishing ourselves in this uncertain time and really just keeping it real. We give a shoutout to the 2020 teacher trainees- you guys are really doing the most in a pandemic, we hope the classroom shapes you in powerful ways like it did for us! 

Please have a listen to the episode and share your thoughts with us, you can find us on twitter, instagram and our WordPress blog  as @nowgothrivepod 

episode art image credit goes to pinterest

Welcome to our first episode! We introduce ourselves, our journeys into the world of work -tracing our steps from university. We also go on to talk about self confidence, job applications, interviews, the TeachFirst graduate scheme and our vision for the podcast. We hope you like it, stay tuned for more!