Top 3 Secrets to Success from an Amazon Marketing Manager
Hi Girls!
My name is Isabel Lee and I am currently a second-year student at UC Berkeley studying Psychology. When our founder, Dimple Mathradas reached out to me back in May telling me about her idea for this organization, I was immediately intrigued. She envisioned Glow Up Tech to not only be a career inspiration source but a community where young women in high school and their early college years can work with one another and push boundaries in career discovery all while indulging in their favorite topics like beauty, travel, and fashion. And that’s how our “Day Parties” were created!
At our Virtual Day Party Launch event, we were lucky enough to have Amazon/Goodreads Marketing Manager, Mimi Chan come to speak to us about her journey into the tech industry. She spoke to us for nearly an hour, sharing her story about how she got to where she is today, working at one of the largest multinational companies in the world. As an Asian-American woman, who immigrated to the US and graduated from Stanford University, there were so many incredible pieces of insight, which we like to call “Glimmers of Gold”– that she was able to share with us– Here are my top three takeaways from her story that I think everyone needs to hear:
Put yourself in those uncomfortable positions, even if you make mistakes. Mimi shared that one of the greatest obstacles she faced growing up stemmed from language, as she was an immigrant and English was not her first language. She struggled with public speaking, which is something that many of us can relate to as well, but she knew the only way to get better was to keep practicing and allowing herself to be vulnerable. Whether public speaking is something that we excel at or struggle with, each one of us has something that scares us and can become barriers to our ambitions. It’s easy to overlook them and pretend these fears don’t exist, but once we realize that challenges will only make us stronger, that’s when we will be able to see progress in achieving our goals.
It’s all about your MINDSET and ATTITUDE. Mimi shared some struggles between differentiating her identity against the common stereotypes that society has placed upon Asian women. Whether it falls upon the idea that women should “know their place” or that we shouldn’t speak up for ourselves, Mimi found “strength and power in disagreeing” and not prioritizing what others thought of her. Instead, she prioritized her personal values and shifted her mindset to break away from the common labels that had been placed on her.
Self-confidence is the foundation of all your successes. Along with reframing the stereotypes and shifting her attitude, Mimi had to learn that this change could only happen with her own self-confidence. Oftentimes we are conditioned to seeking the approval and validation of others when what’s really missing is our personal trust in ourselves. Yet, she made it clear that this doesn’t mean we have to be perfect, and that we can’t make mistakes. But it’s about embracing and trusting our decisions and taking our failures as an opportunity for growth. This piece of advice falls into every aspect of our lives, not just our careers. It comes down to self-love, and we truly cannot define our worth through others.
This was just a tiny glimpse of the MANY Glimmers of Gold we got from Mimi. While Mimi truly encompasses success in her career, her true success story lives in her character, her attitude, and her desire to push for change.
If you missed our Day Party with Mimi, don’t fret because she will be sharing more Glimmers of Gold on our social media channels. Follow us @glowuptech on Instagram, Pinterest, and TikTok and look out for Mimi Chan and our other fabulous female tech leaders contributing to Glow Up Tech to make you a future tech leader!
