From pitch decks to de-risking strategies — how to turn promising research into an investible opportunity

You’ve got strong data and maybe even a breakthrough idea, but can you convince an investor or pharma partner that it’s worth their millions?

🔍 What You’ll Learn:

In this second part of the Drug Discovery Roadmap series, we move from the bench to the boardroom.

If you’re a STEM researcher or biotech founder wondering what turns great science into an investible opportunity, this episode unpacks it straight from investors, pharma veterans, and researchers who’ve been through the process.

You’ll learn:

• How to pitch your science to investors — what to include, what to leave out, and how to get a second meeting.

• Why a realistic, conservative market size matters more than billion-dollar dreams.

• The smart ways to de-risk your project — from alternate indications to veterinary and agricultural applications.

🎯 Play this episode to learn how to make your science fundable and credible in the eyes of those who write the cheques.

🧠 About the Guests:

Recorded live at the 2025 ARCS Drug Discovery Forum, this episode features insights from industry investors and researchers who’ve lived the highs and lows of drug translation:

• Mike Lamprecht, Investment Manager at Tenmile, on what catches his eye in a biotech pitch (and what sends red flags).
• Dr Wolfgang Jarolimek, Head of Drug Discovery at Syntara, on why you should never bet everything on one indication.
• Dr Daniel Beard, Founder and CSO of Shearflow, on how feedback from the Forum reshaped his strategy for stroke therapy.
• Tim Boyle, CEO of ARCS Australia, on why collaboration and “asking the right questions early” are key to commercial success.

📌 Episode Highlights:

00:00 Welcome back — what makes a project investible

02:00 Tim Boyle on building the bridge between research and industry

03:45 The number one startup killer: running out of capital

04:00 Mike Lamprecht on how to pitch science to investors

06:00 Market size myths — why “$10B market” slides backfire

08:00 The antibiotic paradox: when life-saving drugs still fail commercially

10:00 Diagnostics, payers, and the hidden gap between science and buyers

11:00 Daniel Beard on differentiating his stroke therapy

14:00 How to reframe your science for clarity and investor appeal

16:00 What clinicians need to see before trials

17:00 De-risking your project: alternate indications and sectors

19:00 The case for parallel applications — human, veterinary, agriculture

20:00 Why every biotech needs backup plans

21:00 Closing takeaways: the intersection of science, strategy, and story

♻️ Share this episode with researchers and biotech scientists and anyone trying to get their science to market.

Want to craft a career story that opens doors?

I help STEMM professionals speak with clarity, confidence, and purpose and show up as thought leaders —so the right opportunities find you.

📬 Let’s connect: angeliquegreco.com.au | LinkedIn 

⭐️ Help More People Reinvent Their Careers

If you enjoyed this episode, please:

• ✅ Leave a quick ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify 🙏
• ♻️ Share it with a friend who's questioning their path in STEM

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You’ve got strong data and maybe even a first-in-class idea, but do you know what it really takes to get your molecule from the bench to the bedside?

🔍 What You’ll Learn:

If you’re a STEM researcher, biotech founder, or academic thinking about commercialising your work, this episode breaks down the unseen steps between great science and a viable medicine.

You’ll learn:

• Why promising discoveries often fail — and how to spot the strategic blind spots early.

• How to define your target product profile and use it to align experiments, reduce risk, and attract funding.

• The “adjacent” essentials that make or break translation: IP timing, manufacturing readiness, and regulatory strategy.

🎯 Hit play to learn what investors, regulators, and industry partners really want to see before backing your science.

🧠 About the Guests:

This episode features insights from the 2025 ARCS Drug Discovery Forum, where early-stage researchers pitched their projects to a panel of industry veterans and investors.

You’ll hear from:

• Tim Boyle, CEO of ARCS Australia, on why upskilling and connection across the ecosystem are critical for success.
• Dr Wolfgang Jarolimek, Head of Drug Discovery at Syntara, on the importance of early pharmacokinetics and target engagement.
• Mike Lamprecht, Investment Manager at Tenmile, on designing “fail fast” experiments that protect capital and credibility.
• Dr Pegah Varamini, University of Sydney, and Dr Daniel Beard, University of Newcastle, on the real-life questions and lessons from taking lab discoveries closer to market.

📌 Episode Highlights:

00:00 From promising data to the maze of translation

02:15 Tim Boyle on why ARCS bridges research and industry

05:00 Why there’s no one-size-fits-all roadmap

08:00 Why “good science” isn’t enough for commercial success

10:00 The Target Product Profile — your map from lab to market

12:30 The art of “fail fast” and defining go/no-go experiments

13:45 The non-negotiables: pharmacokinetics and target engagement

16:00 When $500M fails: the Simtuzumab story

18:00 How Pegah Varamini prepared for investor questions

21:00 The GMP vs non-GMP debate — what founders should know

23:00 Parallel priorities: IP, formulation, and manufacturing

24:00 Key takeaways and what’s next in the series

🤔 Reflection Time:

1. If you had to define your Target Product Profile today, what would your “no-go” experiment look like?
2. Which adjacent area — IP, manufacturing, or regulatory — could derail your science if ignored too long?
3. Who do you need in your circle to ask the right questions before it’s too late?

♻️ share this episode with researcher and biotechs scientists.

Want to craft a career story that opens doors?

I help STEMM professionals speak with clarity, confidence, and purpose and show up as thought leaders —so the right opportunities find you.

📬 Let’s connect: angeliquegreco.com.au | LinkedIn 

⭐️ Help More People Reinvent Their Careers

If you enjoyed this episode, please:

• ✅ Leave a quick ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify 🙏
• ♻️ Share it with a friend who's questioning their path in STEM

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From student curiosity to space entrepreneurship, discover how enthusiasm, visibility, and action can unlock unexpected doors in STEM careers.

Ever felt stuck in a career box, unsure how to take the next step? What if the secret wasn’t a perfect plan — but contagious enthusiasm that opens doors you didn’t know existed?

🔍 What You’ll Learn:

If you’re a STEM professional ready to design your own career — not just follow the one written for you — this short episode breaks down five lessons from Australian engineer and entrepreneur Nina Hooper, who built an extraordinary journey from Harvard to mining the moon.

You’ll learn how to:

• Use enthusiasm as a catalyst to create life-changing opportunities — even without the “right” network or background.
• Let one step lead to the next, discovering that vision often emerges through motion, not planning.
• Build your own launchpad by testing ideas and learning through creation (even small projects count!).
• Work smarter, not harder, using AI and expert conversations to accelerate your learning and credibility.
• Share your story strategically, so opportunities and collaborators start finding you.
• 
  

🎧 Press play to discover how Nina turned curiosity into a global career — and how you can do the same starting this week.

👉 Listen to the full interview with Nina Hooper for her complete story from Harvard to lunar resources:

🔗 Full Episode — Multiple Hats

💡 Or tune into the 5-minute Quick Fire Chat version for actionable insights you can apply today:

🔗 Quick Fire Chat — Multiple Hats

🧠 About the Guest:

Nina Hooper is an Australian aerospace engineer and entrepreneur whose career spans Harvard, Stanford, venture capital, and her current role in business development at Interlune, a company developing technology to mine the moon for future energy resources. Passionate about creating opportunity through enthusiasm and initiative, Nina embodies how STEM professionals can design a career that’s anything but linear.

📌 Episode Highlights:

00:00 — From curiosity to career: Why enthusiasm is gold

03:00 — How a cold outreach led to an internship with a Nobel Prize winner

07:00 — Vision emerges in motion: Why you don’t need the perfect plan

10:00 — Creating your own vision through entrepreneurship during COVID

13:00 — What running an ed-tech startup teaches you about sales, mindset & confidence

15:00 — Working smarter with AI and mentors

18:00 — The art of visibility: Why storytelling matters as much as hard work

19:00 — Reflection prompts for your own reinvention journey

🔗 Resources Mentioned:

• Interlune – https://interlune.space

🤔 Reflection Time:

1. How can you make your enthusiasm more visible this week so others feel compelled to help you?
2. What’s one small step you can take — without waiting for a perfect plan — to move toward your next opportunity?
3. How might you use AI or expert conversations to fill a skill gap faster and smarter?

Want to craft a career story that opens doors?

I help STEMM professionals speak with clarity, confidence, and purpose and show up as thought leaders —so the right opportunities find you.

📬 Let’s connect: angeliquegreco.com.au | LinkedIn 

⭐️ Help More People Reinvent Their Careers

If you enjoyed this episode, please:

• ✅ Leave a quick ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify 🙏
• ♻️ Share it with a friend who's questioning their path in STEM

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Which career myth is secretly holding you back: thinking hard work is enough, that skills don’t transfer, or that your work will speak for itself?

🔍 What You’ll Learn:

In just 10 minutes, Nina Hooper, astrophysicist turned entrepreneur and now business development director at Interlune, shows you how to reframe the beliefs that limit most STEM professionals. If you’re ready to stop playing small and start shaping your own career, this quickfire chat delivers clarity and motivation fast.

• Why your technical skills transfer further than you think — and which ones transfer best.
• How working smarter (and asking for help) beats grinding harder every time.
• Why visibility and storytelling matter more than letting your work “speak for itself.”
• How to move past perfectionism, analysis paralysis, and the myth that you need “all the resources” before you can start.

🎯 Press play for a mindset reset that could open your next big opportunity in STEM.

🧠 About the Guest:

Nina Hooper is an Australian aerospace engineer turned entrepreneur and investor. She has studied at Harvard and Stanford, launched startups, worked in venture capital, and is now Director of Business Development at Interlune, a company pioneering lunar resource extraction.

📌 Episode Highlights:

00:00 Busting STEM career myths in 10 minutes

01:00 Why technical skills transfer beyond academia

03:00 Working smarter vs. working harder

05:00 Getting past analysis paralysis and perfectionism

07:00 Do you really need more resources to start?

09:00 Why visibility matters more than “great work alone”

🔗 Resources Mentioned:

• Nina Hooper on LinkedIn
• Interlune – Lunar Resources Company
• 
  

🤔 Reflection Time:

1. Which STEM career myth do you secretly believe — and what would shift if you dropped it?
2. Where could you work smarter by asking for help or using tools instead of grinding harder?
3. Who could you share your vision with this month to increase your visibility and attract new opportunities?

Want to craft a career story that opens doors?

I help STEMM professionals speak with clarity, confidence, and purpose and show up as thought leaders —so the right opportunities find you.

📬 Let’s connect: angeliquegreco.com.au | LinkedIn 

⭐️ Help More People Reinvent Their Careers

If you enjoyed this episode, please:

• ✅ Leave a quick ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify 🙏
• ♻️ Share it with a friend who's questioning their path in STEM

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What if your enthusiasm—not your credentials—was the spark that could turn your STEM career into a launchpad of endless opportunities?

🔍 What You’ll Learn:

If you’re a STEM professional who feels boxed in, Nina Hooper’s story shows how you can turn your own spark of curiosity into life-defining opportunities. From interning with a Nobel Prize winner to Harvard and Stanford, launching startups, and now helping build a company mining the moon, Nina reveals how to reinvent your career by standing out, stepping out, and showing up.

• Why enthusiasm is your unfair advantage: how showing up with energy makes you memorable and opens doors credentials alone can’t.
• How stepping out of your comfort zone to test your vision—even briefly—can accelerate your corporate or entrepreneurial career.
• Why visibility and connections matter more than great work alone, and how to use them to attract opportunities.
• Bonus Learning: How the future of energy may be powered by helium-3 and other resources extracted from the moon, with insights from Nina’s work at Interlune.

🎯 Press play to learn how to make your STEM background the launchpad for entrepreneurship, visibility, and influence.

🧠 About the Guest:

Nina Hooper is an Australian aerospace engineer turned entrepreneur and investor. From interning with Nobel Prize winner Brian Schmidt to studying at Harvard and Stanford, launching her own ventures, and working in venture capital, she’s now Director of Business Development at Interlune, a company pioneering lunar resource extraction. Nina is passionate about helping others see curiosity as a career driver and visibility as a catalyst for influence.

📌 Episode Highlights:

00:00 Curiosity as the spark for aerospace engineering

The promise of helium-3 and the future of lunar energy resources

04:15 How a Nobel Prize connection changed Nina’s trajectory

08:30 Why enthusiasm makes you stand out in STEM

13:45 From Harvard to NASA: chasing vision over comfort zones

20:10 Selling ideas with energy and conviction

25:50 Lessons from founding a STEM education startup

32:00 Flipping the script: moving into venture capital

37:45 Working smarter, not harder in STEM careers

42:00 Why visibility and storytelling matter more than great work alone

🔗 Resources Mentioned:

• Brian Schmidt – Nobel Prize in Physics
• Nina Hooper on LinkedIn
• Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
• Interlune – Lunar Resources Company
• 
  

🤔 Reflection Time:

1. How could enthusiasm and energy make you stand out in your current STEM role?
2. What’s one step outside your comfort zone you could take to begin shaping your own vision?
3. Who could you connect with this month to increase your visibility and open new doors?

Want to craft a career story that opens doors?

I help STEMM professionals speak with clarity, confidence, and purpose and show up as thought leaders —so the right opportunities find you.

📬 Let’s connect: angeliquegreco.com.au | LinkedIn 

⭐️ Help More People Reinvent Their Careers

If you enjoyed this episode, please:

• ✅ Leave a quick ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify 🙏
• ♻️ Share it with a friend who's questioning their path in STEM

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What if you could draft your first piece of thought leadership in just five minutes — and start shaping how opportunities find you?

🔍 What You’ll Learn:

Feeling underutilized, pigeonholed, or stuck in roles that no longer light you up is a common frustration for STEM professionals. The solution isn’t waiting for the perfect job ad — it’s owning your narrative. In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Why you already have what it takes to be a thought leader (no TED stage required)
• How to increase your visibility so opportunities align with your ambition, not your old job description
• A simple 5-minute framework (plus AI prompt) to turn your expertise into consistent, value-led content
• 
  

🎯 By the end, you’ll have a repeatable way to share your perspective — without bragging or perfectionism holding you back.

👉 Action: Hit play to learn the 5-minute framework that will help you start posting, speaking, and showing up as a STEM thought leader today.

🧠 About the Guest:

Angélique Greco, is a biotech strategist and founder of Multiple Hats. Angélique equips STEM professionals with tools to reframe their expertise into thought leadership, helping them break free from pigeonholing and design careers that truly matter.

📌 Episode Highlights:

00:00 Why STEM professionals feel boxed-in and underutilized

01:00 What thought leadership really is (and isn’t)

03:00 Why your work alone isn’t enough to open doors

05:00 How building a presence advocates for you 24/7

07:00 Everyday examples: meetings, networking, and even the school gate

09:00 The three lenses for picking your core topics

10:00 Angles for your message: best practices, frustrations, common questions, misinformation

11:00 Using AI to polish your first draft (without losing your voice)

12:00 Why consistency beats perfection

13:00 Step-by-step walkthrough of the 5-minute framework

15:00 How to post, tag, and start practicing visibility

🔗 Resources Mentioned:

• 5-Minute Thought Leadership Framework (Free Guide) – includes examples and an AI prompt
• https://www.angeliquegreco.com.au/stem-starter-pack-5min-framework

🤔 Reflection Time:

1. What’s one topic you want to be known for — and why does it matter to you?
2. Which angle feels easiest for you to start sharing: a best practice, a frustration, or a common misconception?
3. How could posting once about this help others see you differently — and connect you to more aligned opportunities?

Want to craft a career story that opens doors?

I help STEMM professionals speak with clarity, confidence, and purpose and show up as thought leaders —so the right opportunities find you.

📬 Let’s connect: angeliquegreco.com.au | LinkedIn 

⭐️ Help More People Reinvent Their Careers

If you enjoyed this episode, please:

• ✅ Leave a quick ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify 🙏
• ♻️ Share it with a friend who's questioning their path in STEM

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When someone asks, “So, what do you do?” — does your answer reflect your ambition, or just your current job title?

🔍 What You’ll Learn:

If you’ve ever felt uninspired by job ads, overlooked for projects, or disappointed by the opportunities that land on your desk, the problem isn’t your qualifications — it’s clarity. This episode helps STEM professionals shift from vague intros and stale job titles to intentional positioning that matches their ambition. You’ll discover:

• How to define what you really stand for, beyond your current role or resume
• A simple self-audit to check if your current pitch matches the opportunities you want
• How clarity makes you more referable, filters out the wrong work, and helps you attract the right collaborators
• 
  

🎯 By the end, you’ll know how to reframe your presence so others see you for what you want to achieve, not just what you’ve already done.

👉 Action: Tune in to learn how to run a quick brand audit and shift your pitch so people immediately recognize you for the career opportunities you actually want.

🧠 About the Host:

Angélique Greco, is a biotech strategist and founder of Multiple Hats. Drawing on her experience helping STEM professionals design work that reflects their full ambition, Angélique shares practical tools to move past pigeonholing and start showing up with clarity.

📌 Episode Highlights:

00:00 Why you feel overlooked for meaningful opportunities

01:00 Why your presence hasn’t caught up with your ambition (yet)

03:00 The problem with introducing yourself by job title

04:00 The five elements of clarity: what you stand for, impact, vision, flow, and nightmare projects

05:30 Positioning as a magnet: attract aligned opportunities, gently repel mismatches

06:30 Quick brand audit: ambitions vs. your current pitch

08:00 The test: what would colleagues recommend you for blindly?

09:00 Clarity as the foundation of being seen, referred, and invited in

10:00 How to use AI prompts to refine your elevator pitch

11:00 What’s next: how to share without feeling like you’re bragging

🔗 Resources Mentioned:

• Fill this to get your free brand clarity call
• Brand Audit / Know Thyself Guide (PDF) – includes an AI prompt to refine your pitch

🤔 Reflection Time:

1. If your best friend asked, “What do you really want to achieve?” — what would you say?
2. Does your current pitch or job title reflect your future ambition, or anchor you in the past?
3. Who at work would recommend you blindly for a project — and would it be the project you actually want?

Want to craft a career story that opens doors?

I help STEMM professionals speak with clarity, confidence, and purpose and show up as thought leaders —so the right opportunities find you.

📬 Let’s connect: angeliquegreco.com.au | LinkedIn 

⭐️ Help More People Reinvent Their Careers

If you enjoyed this episode, please:

• ✅ Leave a quick ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify 🙏
• ♻️ Share it with a friend who's questioning their path in STEM

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Have you ever felt that your hard work should “speak for itself” — yet the right opportunities never seem to find you?

🔍 What You’ll Learn:

As a STEM professional, you already sit on a wealth of insight. But without sharing your perspective, people won’t know how to connect with you or refer you to the projects that align with your passion.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• How thought leadership can transform your career path — no stage, TED talk, or fame required
• Why good work is only a “ticket to play” and not enough to create meaningful opportunities
• Simple, actionable ways to start sharing your expertise so that opportunities begin finding you

🎯 This episode will help you move from quietly doing good work to actively shaping the conversations that open doors.

👉 Action: Press play to discover how to reframe thought leadership as a tool for career reinvention in STEM — and start shaping opportunities that truly matter to you.

🧠 About the Host:

Angélique Greco is a biotech strategist, portfolio careerist, and founder of Multiple Hats. She draws from years of interviewing STEM entrepreneurs and professionals who refused to be pigeonholed, showing you how to apply thought leadership to design a career on your terms.

📌 Episode Highlights:

00:00 Why STEM professionals already have thought leadership material

02:15 The difference between opinions, research papers, and thought leadership

05:00 Why good work is only a “ticket to play”

07:30 The real reason opportunities aren’t finding you

09:00 Everyday moments that already count as thought leadership

11:00 Busting the biggest myths: it’s not about being famous or self-promoting

13:00 Leading with value and empathy instead of bragging

14:00 Easy first steps: comments, posts, and conversations

15:00 What’s coming next: positioning audit and clarity

🔗 Resources Mentioned:

• 5-Minute Thought Leadership Framework (Free Download) https://www.angeliquegreco.com.au/stem-starter-pack-5min-framework

🤔 Reflection Time:

1. What’s one belief or perspective you rarely say out loud — and could share today?
2. When did you last help someone see a problem from a different angle? How could you capture that as thought leadership?
3. Who outside your direct manager knows what you really want to achieve in your STEM career?

Want to craft a career story that opens doors?

I help STEMM professionals speak with clarity, confidence, and purpose and show up as thought leaders —so the right opportunities find you.

📬 Let’s connect: angeliquegreco.com.au | LinkedIn 

⭐️ Help More People Reinvent Their Careers

If you enjoyed this episode, please:

• ✅ Leave a quick ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify 🙏
• ♻️ Share it with a friend who's questioning their path in STEM

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Does your career feel like a jumble of unrelated projects — and your to-do list like a slow-motion burnout plan?

🔍 This is a quick win episode where You’ll Learn:

If you’re a STEM professional with more than one passion (and more than one income stream), you don’t have to choose between them. This quick win episode will help you tie it all together so your career feels cohesive — and sustainable.

Here’s what you’ll take away from Dr. Chloe Lim’s portfolio career journey:

• How to find the common thread that unites all your professional hats.
• A simple way to communicate your brand without confusing your audience.
• Why outsourcing isn’t a luxury — it’s a growth strategy.
• 
  

🎯 Press play to discover how to build a connected, recognisable portfolio career while protecting your time and energy.

🧠 About the Guest:

Dr. Chloe Lim is a scientist turned portfolio career creator. After leaving academia, she built a multifaceted professional life — combining a government role as a regulatory scientist with a science education company, public speaking, a podcast, and even a balloon artistry business. Her secret? A unifying “glue” that ties it all together, plus the willingness to delegate.

📌 Episode Highlights:

00:00 What a portfolio career really means (and what it’s not)

03:00 Finding the common thread in your work

04:00 How to tailor your message for different audiences without losing your story

06:00 The case for outsourcing before you hit capacity

07:00 “Who Not How” — the mindset shift from doing it all to finding the right help

09:00 Your next steps: define your glue, delegate your first task

🔗 Resources Mentioned:

• Full Interview with Dr. Chloe Lim
• Who Not How by Dan Sullivan & Dr. Benjamin Hardy
• This Working Life by Lisa Leong & Monique Ross

🤔 Reflection Time:

1. What’s the “glue” that connects all your different roles and projects?
2. Which audience needs to hear each part of your story — and where do they hang out?
3. What’s one task you can delegate in the next 30 days to free yourself for higher-value work?

Want to craft a career story that opens doors?

I help STEMM professionals speak with clarity, confidence, and purpose and show up as thought leaders —so the right opportunities find you.

📬 Let’s connect: angeliquegreco.com.au | LinkedIn 

⭐️ Help More People Reinvent Their Careers

If you enjoyed this episode, please:

• ✅ Leave a quick ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify 🙏
• ♻️ Share it with a friend who's questioning their path in STEM

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Have you ever felt like the door to your academic career was closing — and wondered if it could actually be the opening to something bigger?

🔍 That's a quick win episode from the full interview where you will learn:

If you’re a STEM professional feeling boxed in by your current role — or even pushed out of academia — this quick win episode will help you see why it’s not the end, but the beginning of your reinvention.

Here’s what you’ll take away from Dr. Chloe Lim’s story:

• How to reframe career setbacks as a launchpad for reinvention.
• Ways to identify and translate your transferable skills into entirely new roles.
• The mindset shift from waiting for opportunities to actively creating them.
• 
  

🎯 Press play to discover how your skills and experiences — even the ones you think are unrelated — can fuse into a career that’s uniquely yours. Your beautiful patchwork.

You can listne to the full interview: Full Interview with Dr. Chloe Lim

🧠 About the Guest:

Dr. Chloe Lim is a scientist turned multi-hyphenate professional. After leaving academia, she carved out a portfolio career spanning government work as a regulatory scientist, founding a science education company, writing children’s books, and running a balloon artistry business — all while mentoring women in STEM and raising three children.

📌 Episode Highlights:

00:00 Why leaving academia can be your career launchpad

03:00 The motherhood factor — and the “woman brain drain” in STEM

05:00 From maternity leave setback to building multiple income streams

07:00 Transferable skills: your secret weapon in career change

09:00 Merging science, artistry, and storytelling for STEM education

11:00 Taking ownership: creating opportunities instead of waiting for them

14:00 Shifting mindset and conversations to attract the right work

you can listne to the full interview: Full Interview with Dr. Chloe Lim

🤔 Reflection Time:

1. Which of your current skills could be applied to a completely different role or industry?
2. If you weren’t afraid of starting over, what would you try?
3. What’s one bold action you can take this week to move toward the career you want?

Want to craft a career story that opens doors?

I help STEMM professionals speak with clarity, confidence, and purpose and show up as thought leaders —so the right opportunities find you.

📬 Let’s connect: angeliquegreco.com.au | LinkedIn 

⭐️ Help More People Reinvent Their Careers

If you enjoyed this episode, please:

• ✅ Leave a quick ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify 🙏
• ♻️ Share it with a friend who's questioning their path in STEM

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Do you ever feel your 9-to-5 can’t contain everything you’re capable of—and that putting all your energy into one income stream is a risky bet in today’s world?

🔍 What You’ll Learn

If you’re a STEM professional feeling stuck, craving flexibility, or worried about job security, this episode is for you. Here’s what you’ll take away:

✅ Why one career path isn’t your only option—and how a portfolio career gives you more security and fulfillment.

✅ Practical ways to turn side passions into income streams, even if you’re starting small.

✅ The mindset shift to stop waiting for opportunities and start creating them, so you can build a career on your terms.

Hit play now—because your next big career move might not be a job, but a portfolio.

🧠 About the Guest

Dr. Chloe Lim is a scientist-turned-entrepreneur, founder of Twisty Science and Giggly Wiggly Balloons, author of the children’s book What Makes You Unique, and host of the Cloud Voices in STEM podcast. She’s passionate about STEM education, creativity, and mentoring women to design careers that truly fit their lives.

📌 Episode Highlights

00:00 Do you really want to bet everything on one job?

02:10 From epigenetics research to balloon twisting (yes, really!)

06:45 The trigger that pushed Chloe out of academia

10:55 Transitioning into government work, why it matters and the transferable skills

17:20 Starting businesses without burning out: Chloe’s approach

23:00 Lessons from an accelerator: is investment right for you?

29:00 Pricing, profit, and building financial sustainability

38:30 The mindset shift: from “How can I?” to “Who can help?”

45:20 How to keep multiple careers aligned under one personal brand

52:00 Coaching, visibility, and why women in STEM need to own their narrative

01:02:00 Chloe’s advice: stop waiting, start creating

🔗 Resources Mentioned

• Profit First by Mike Michalowicz
• Who Not How by Dan Sullivan & Benjamin Hardy
• Be the One (Book on personal responsibility)
• Library for All – Free children’s books

🤔 Reflection Time

1. What’s the one thing you’ve wanted to try but keep putting off because it feels “too risky”?
2. If your current role disappeared tomorrow, what would you want to do next?
3. What’s one small “yes” you could say today that might open a new door?

Want to craft a career story that opens doors?

I help STEMM professionals speak with clarity, confidence, and purpose and show up as thought leaders —so the right opportunities find you.

📬 Let’s connect: angeliquegreco.com.au | LinkedIn 

⭐️ Help More People Reinvent Their Careers

If you enjoyed this episode, please:

• ✅ Leave a quick ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify 🙏
• ♻️ Share it with a friend who's questioning their path in STEM

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ever wonder why some people always seem to make progress—while others stay stuck Googling for answers?

Here’s the truth: Success often starts with one simple, underrated skill—just asking.

In this Quick Win episode, we unpack three powerful insights from ShanShan Wang, an industrial designer turned MedTech founder, to help you move forward today. These lessons apply whether you’re trying to switch careers, start a project, or simply want your work to matter more.

🔍 What You’ll Learn:

• The underrated power of asking: How ShanShan turned casual conversations into mentorship and secured her first $2M investment by simply asking.

• Why you don’t need to live the problem to solve it: Learn how empathy—not personal experience—can help you spot solvable, sizeable, overlooked problems (the sweet spot for impact, as discussed in Moral Ambition).

• How to rally others behind your vision: Why communicating passion and purpose matters more than perfection—and how to start doing it today.

👉 Press play now and take 10 minutes to learn how to move from “stuck” to “starting.”

📌 Want More?

This episode is part of our Quick Win series. For the full conversation with ShanShan Wang—including how she built a venture-backed MedTech company from a student project—listen here or visit Roam Technologies.

🤔 Reflection Prompt:

What’s one sizable, solvable, overlooked problem you care about—and who can you ask today to take your first step?

Want to craft a career story that opens doors?

I help STEMM professionals speak with clarity, confidence, and purpose and show up as thought leaders —so the right opportunities find you.

📬 Let’s connect: angeliquegreco.com.au | LinkedIn 

⭐️ Help More People Reinvent Their Careers

If you enjoyed this episode, please:

• ✅ Leave a quick ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify 🙏
• ♻️ Share it with a friend who's questioning their path in STEM

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Busting career-limiting beliefs and unlocking smart, strategic action for STEM professionals

💥 Are your beliefs about being “just a scientist” quietly holding you back from the impact-driven career you actually want?

🔍 What You’ll Learn:

This episode is your wake-up call if you’re a STEMM-trained professional who feels stuck, unseen, or unsure how to translate your technical skills into a bigger mission. In this quickfire conversation, industrial designer turned MedTech founder ShanShan Wang dismantles common self-limiting beliefs and shows how to take bold, strategic steps—starting now.

• Learn why communication is one of the most powerful, underrated STEM skills when transitioning out of the lab or technical fields.

• Discover how to work smarter (not harder) by thinking big and acting strategically—yes, even from Day One.

• Get practical on what’s “good enough” to start and how to stop hiding behind the excuse of needing more time, resources, or experience.

🎯 Action:

Press play to get the mindset reset and tactical clarity you need to stop waiting and start building your own meaningful path in STEM.

Full interview : https://shows.acast.com/multiple-hats/episodes/67e61b153cc004e4537316be

🧠 About the Guest:

ShanShan Wang is an award-winning industrial designer and the founder of Roam Technologies, a MedTech startup developing a handheld oxygen device. She’s a powerful voice in the STEM entrepreneurial space who’s turned her design lens into a tool for high-impact problem solving and product innovation—without waiting for permission.

Full interview:

🔗🎧 https://shows.acast.com/multiple-hats/episodes/67e61b153cc004e4537316be

📌 Episode Highlights:

00:00 Introducing ShanShan Wang and the power of tackling limiting beliefs

01:10 What’s the most underrated transferable STEM skill? Communication.

02:45 Work smart vs work hard: how ShanShan designed for scale from Day 1

04:00 Why “my work will speak for itself” is a myth (and what to do instead)

04:45 What’s good enough to start? Three priorities and a simple to-do list

05:20 Final thoughts from Angelique

🔗 Resources Mentioned:

• Learn more about Roam Technologies: https://www.roamtech.ai

🤔 Reflection Time:

1. What’s one belief you’ve been holding about yourself that might be limiting your potential?
2. How could you reframe your “I don’t have X” excuse into a clear, doable first step?
3. Are you expecting your work to speak for itself—or are you learning how to make others care?

Full interview: https://shows.acast.com/multiple-hats/episodes/67e61b153cc004e4537316be

Want to craft a career story that opens doors?

I help STEMM professionals speak with clarity, confidence, and purpose and show up as thought leaders —so the right opportunities find you.

📬 Let’s connect: angeliquegreco.com.au | LinkedIn 

⭐️ Help More People Reinvent Their Careers

If you enjoyed this episode, please:

• ✅ Leave a quick ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify 🙏
• ♻️ Share it with a friend who's questioning their path in STEM

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What if you saw a path to a life saving device?

Would you have the courage to turn it into a company—and convince others to come with you?

🔍 What You’ll Learn:

If you’re wondering whether there are more impactful things you could be doing with your STEM skill set, this episode is your masterclass in spotting sizeable, solvable, yet overlooked problems—the perfect intersection for maximum impact.

• Learn what industrial design really is—and how its problem-solving mindset applies to building MedTech devices that actually get used.

• Understand why you don’t have to personally experience a problem to solve it—and how empathy and observation can be the gateway to innovation.

• Discover how to find your “patchwork” by combining corporate experience, technical design, and purpose—and how that patchwork became foundational to ShanShan’s leadership.

• See how to move from “Could I really build this?” to “Here’s how we’ll do it”—with practical strategies for forming your founding team, pitching your first investor, and making your vision contagious.

Action:

Press play to learn how to break through in a space with little innovation, conquer a complex value chain to build a better future—and what you can build when you back your own vision.

🧠 About the Guest:

ShanShan Wang is the CEO and co-founder of Roam Technologies, a medtech startup developing a tankless, portable oxygen device designed to replace bulky cylinders and improve patient mobility. Originally trained as an industrial designer, she applied her skills to a pressing problem she couldn’t ignore—and turned her thesis into a patented, clinically validated device backed by investor capital.

📌 Episode Highlights:

00:00 – From design school to a life-changing observation

03:00 – Why innovation is so rare in oxygen therapy

06:22 – Engineering a simple solution to a complex, systemic problem

10:10 – What patients need vs. what the system rewards

15:00 – The chemistry, process, and real-time tech behind Roam

18:00 – The role of design in translating complex needs into usable products

21:00 – How corporate life became a testbed for entrepreneurship

25:00 – Turning a side project into a company—with no Plan B

30:00 – Getting people to believe: mentors, investors, and the first yes

38:00 – Pitching without a product: what investors really want to see

45:00 – The secret to rallying a team with no money—just mission

52:00 – What underrated STEM skills matter most in startups

58:00 – From control freak to visionary founder: embracing growth and risk

🔗 Resources Mentioned:

• Roam Technologies: https://www.roamtech.ai/
• NSW Commercialisation Training Program
• ANSTO Innovation Hub
• MedTech Actuator
• Medical Device Fund – NSW Health
• 
  

🤔 Reflection Time:

1. What’s a problem you’ve seen that you can no longer unsee?
2. What existing skills are you underestimating because they don’t “sound” entrepreneurial?
3. Who can you ask your next question?

Want to craft a career story that opens doors?

I help STEMM professionals speak with clarity, confidence, and purpose and show up as thought leaders —so the right opportunities find you.

📬 Let’s connect: angeliquegreco.com.au | LinkedIn 

⭐️ Help More People Reinvent Their Careers

If you enjoyed this episode, please:

• ✅ Leave a quick ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify 🙏
• ♻️ Share it with a friend who's questioning their path in STEM

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

❓What if the real barrier to your next career move isn't your capabilities but your plan B?

🔍 What You’ll Learn:

For every STEMM professional feeling stuck delivering someone else vision 9-5,

This episode help you reframe your frustration into opportunities with one simple question.

You will learn from yet another PhD who turned around their academic career to live up to their own vision and :

• the catch 22, that traps entry level into a loop of needing experience to get experience, especially in clinical research.
• How to magnetize people by communicating your purpose so well that you can open door that you never felt were possible.
• How to unlock your full resourcefulness potential by forcing full commitment.
• Tactical first steps for launching a values-driven career transition—from personal vision to rallying people and pricing experiments.

🎧 Ready to break the cycle of regrets? Hit play to learn how Sue went from postdoc to purpose-driven entrepreneur.

🧠 About the Guest:

Dr. Sue Nguyen is the founder and CEO of Clueo Clinical, a training and coaching organisation on a mission to solve the entry-level catch-22 in clinical research. A cancer genomics PhD turned entrepreneur, she combines deep scientific knowledge with a heart for impact—empowering the next generation of STEMM professionals to find their place in industry.

📌 Episode Highlights:

00:00 Why clinical research has a skills gap—explained

03:45 What CL Clinical teaches (and who it’s for)

06:10 From cancer research to clinical trials

09:00 Growing up in Vietnam, chasing free education

14:15 “Why did my grandmother get sick?” A question that sparked a career

17:30 How real passion landed her first job—without applying

22:10 The untapped potential of academics in industry

24:00 Leaving corporate life during a pandemic—cold turkey

30:00 Bootstrapping without a fallback plan

36:00 Why vision > backup plan

40:00 The three first steps to make your idea real

45:00 Serving underserved regions—and charging sustainably

53:00 From early adopters to sustainability (3-year journey)

56:00 Winning the Global Healthcare & Pharma Award

🔗 Resources Mentioned:

• CL Clinical
• Global Health & Pharma Awards
• 
  

🤔 Reflection Time:

1. What core question or injustice in your field keeps you up at night—and could drive your next career chapter?
2. Can you articulate your passion and what you stand for?
3. Do you have any limiting mindsets that keeps you small?

Want to craft a career story that opens doors?

I help STEMM professionals speak with clarity, confidence, and purpose and show up as thought leaders —so the right opportunities find you.

📬 Let’s connect: angeliquegreco.com.au | LinkedIn 

⭐️ Help More People Reinvent Their Careers

If you enjoyed this episode, please:

• ✅ Leave a quick ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify 🙏
• ♻️ Share it with a friend who's questioning their path in STEM

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🎙️ Creating Your Own Path as a STEMM Professional with Dr. Anushi Rajapaksa

"If not me then who" - why you may actually be the one who should take the first step and how to get started.

What if your unique combination of STEMM degrees could solve a global health problem?

Are you a STEMM professional ready to pivot your career or start something new?

 In this episode, Dr. Anushi Rajapaksa—biomedical, mechanical and aerospatial engineer and medtech founder—shares how she used her diverse STEM background to create Misti, a groundbreaking respiratory care and lung advanced drug delivery innovation. Learn how interdisciplinary thinking, knowledge brokering, and imperfect action can help you build your own path outside traditional science careers.

🔍 **What You’ll Learn: 

• How to identify your unique "knowledge brokering" superpower and your purpose
• learn practical steps to start validating your ideas (even with Nobel Prize winners!),
• gain the confidence to take imperfect action because "scrappy progress is better than no progress."
• How to put together a roadmap that can get you started and later on grow

Listen now to transform your perspective from "I need more credentials" to "I already have everything I need to start."

 📌 **Key Topics:**

In this episode we explore additional themes, including :

• How to recognise opportunities
• The financials of getting through the first 6 months
• How to get your opinion heard and why it matters
• Why being clear on your message is the foundation of creating opprotunities
• Why you don’t have to be part of the 5am club everyday

And much more

Episode Timeline:

• [00:00] Introduction to Multiple Hats and Dr. Anushi Rajapaksa
• [02:45] What is Misty and why it should exist
• [06:30] The two product lines: My Misty and Med Misty
• [13:00] Anushi's academic journey: from electrical to aerospace engineering
• [16:30] The undervalued superpower of "knowledge brokering"
• [21:45] Early career experiences and grant writing lessons
• [28:00] Giving your expertise a voice and platform
• [31:30] First steps in founding Misty during the pandemic
• [37:00] Morning routines and managing priorities
• [38:45] Building a roadmap with IP, regulatory and customer focus
• [45:00] The role of accelerators and mentors
• [49:30] Funding journey: from small experiments to product development
• [55:30] Overcoming the perfectionism trap in product development
• [57:30] Customer engagement strategies without marketing
• [1:01:30] Privileges and systemic issues faced as a founder

🔗 **Resources & Links:**

Misti: https://www.misti.com.au

Anushi on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-anushi/

Startmate Accelerator: https://www.startmate.com/

🤔 Reflection time:

What pivot could your unique combination of STEMM skills make possible?

Discover how your apparently unrelated experiences might be your greatest superpower.

Want to craft a career story that opens doors?

I help STEMM professionals speak with clarity, confidence, and purpose and show up as thought leaders —so the right opportunities find you.

📬 Let’s connect: angeliquegreco.com.au | LinkedIn 

⭐️ Help More People Reinvent Their Careers

If you enjoyed this episode, please:

• ✅ Leave a quick ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify 🙏
• ♻️ Share it with a friend who's questioning their path in STEM

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

🎙️From Uni to CEO: How Mechatronic Engineer Sophia Kurianski Took on Decades-Old Industry Norms with Jinolo

Challenging outdated 3D design processes straight out of university, Sophia Kurianski turned frustration into a startup—and built Jinolo from the ground up

🔍 What You’ll Learn:

• How questioning outdated systems can spark breakthrough ideas
• How to validate a product idea before writing a line of code
• What building a tech startup as a solo founder really looks like
• Why grants and customer discovery are key early tools
• How STEMM professionals can reframe failure in sales as growth

🧠 About the Guest:

Sophia Kurianski is a mechatronic engineer and the founder of Jinolo, a 3D collaboration platform transforming how technical and non-technical teams work together. Straight out of university, Sophia rejected “the way things have always been done” and built a startup that now serves over 500 customers. In this episode, she shares how problem-solving, lean execution, and persistence powered her entrepreneurial leap.

📌 Episode Highlights:

• 00:00 Welcome to Multiple Hats
• 00:29 Meet Sophia Kurianski: Founder of Jinolo
• 00:37 The problem with legacy 3D design workflows
• 01:21 Bridging technical and non-technical collaboration
• 03:34 Engineering roots and early work experience
• 13:01 How Jinolo started: the first iteration
• 19:26 Building a minimum viable product
• 22:30 Getting feedback + iterating
• 27:40 Customer discovery & early sales strategies
• 34:37 Launching solo: founder mindset
• 40:07 Hiring contractors and scaling
• 46:34 Technical scalability vs customer onboarding
• 55:00 Funding the startup & managing cash flow
• 58:58 Personal growth through selling
• 01:06:57 Final reflections + future vision

🔗 Resources Mentioned:

• Visit Jinolo
• Sophia Kurianski on LinkedIn

🤔 Reflection Time:

What processes around you feel outdated? Could your discomfort with “how it’s always been done” be the clue to your next move?

How might your STEMM background position you to create a better way?

Hey, I hope you have enjoyed this interview and the career twists!

While you listen, can you see the pattern - Founders tend to go get their destiny and create their own luck.

And so can you!

Creating your own luck has a lot to do with how you put yourself out there and speak about what you want to do.

Send me a message if you want to start being at the right place, at the right time and make your own stars align.

visit my website angelique.greco.com.au or send me a message on LinkedIn

linkedin.com/in/angelique-greco

Want to craft a career story that opens doors?

I help STEMM professionals speak with clarity, confidence, and purpose and show up as thought leaders —so the right opportunities find you.

📬 Let’s connect: angeliquegreco.com.au | LinkedIn 

⭐️ Help More People Reinvent Their Careers

If you enjoyed this episode, please:

• ✅ Leave a quick ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify 🙏
• ♻️ Share it with a friend who's questioning their path in STEM

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Femtech revolution with Ida Tin, founder of Clue

Did Apple "forgot" to add a period tracker to the Apple Heath tracker at a time when Femtech was not a thing?

Imagine you’re pioneering a product in a completely new sector, carving out an entirely new market category.

That’s the journey of Ida Tin, the co-founder of Clue, one of the largest Femtech health apps serving 10+ million active users across 190+ countries.

Ida coined the term 'Femtech,' to provide a unifying banner for the sector dedicated to women's health technology.

We get to hear how it started from the ida of a home hormonal test ( a decade before home testing of anything was a thing) to taking a 100% digital approach to contraception.

🔍 What You’ll Learn:

• How Ida Tin co-founded Clue, one of the world’s most popular women’s health apps
• The origin story of the word "Femtech"—and how naming it shaped a $60B+ industry
• The workarounds of building a women’s health startup without a STEMM background
• Why data privacy, ethics, and inclusive design were non-negotiables for Clue and what happens to those who took shortcuts
• How to fund and grow a mission-driven product in a male-dominated VC landscape

🧠 About the Guest:

Ida Tin is the co-founder of Clue, a pioneering period and fertility tracking app with over 10 million active users in 190+ countries. While she doesn't come from a traditional STEMM background, her vision and language helped define an entire sector: Femtech.

Her story is one of category creation, mission-driven innovation, and challenging the norms of tech, funding, and health.

 🗂️ Episode Timeline:

00:32 Meet Ida Tin: The Mother of Femtech

01:45 The Journey of Clue

03:55 Data Privacy and Ethical Considerations

07:09 Challenges and Innovations in Femtech

17:55 Building the Clue Team

33:33 The Birth of the Term 'Femtech' , definition and a new unifying banner

39:41 Inclusivity in Femtech: Bridging the Gender Gap

40:57 The Duality of Periods: Normalization vs. Medical Attention

42:28 Creating a Supportive Work Culture for Women

44:11 Challenges in Femtech: Data Gaps and Funding Issues

51:31 funding , Ethics and Success in Femtech: A Comparative Analysis

56:24 Navigating Gender Bias in Venture Capital

01:07:14 Balancing Motherhood and Entrepreneurship

01:09:23 Conclusion: Building a Unified Future

🔗 Resources & Mentions:

Follow Ida Tin on LinkedIn

Sign up for her upcoming Femtech book

Download Clue on your app store

Want to craft a career story that opens doors?

I help STEMM professionals speak with clarity, confidence, and purpose and show up as thought leaders —so the right opportunities find you.

📬 Let’s connect: angeliquegreco.com.au | LinkedIn 

⭐️ Help More People Reinvent Their Careers

If you enjoyed this episode, please:

• ✅ Leave a quick ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify 🙏
• ♻️ Share it with a friend who's questioning their path in STEM

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

🎙️ 2024 Wrap-Up: Dream, Surround Yourself Right, Embrace Your Patchwork, and Take the Leap

Real-life examples and mindset shifts to help STEMM professionals take bold, imperfect action

🔍 What You’ll Learn:

• How to identify and act on the projects that resonate with your passion
• The importance of surrounding yourself with supportive individuals
• Strategies to embrace your unique combination of experiences—your "patchwork"
• Ways to overcome self-doubt and external criticism
• The value of taking risks, regardless of age or stage in your career

🧠 About the Host:

Angelique Greco is the host of Multiple Hats and founder of Thought Leadership Democratised, a coaching program that helps life science professionals position themselves as thought leaders and create career paths that align with their values and ambitions. With a background in drug development, real-world evidence, and science strategy, Angelique combines her expertise in storytelling, teaching, and critical inquiry to spotlight those reinventing what it means to succeed in STEMM.

📌 Episode Highlights:

• 01:02 The Importance of Community
• 01:50 Facing Detractors and Naysayers
• 02:58 Finding Support in Startup Communities
• 06:06 Real-Life Examples of Overcoming Detractors
• 13:37 Embracing Your Unique Path
• 17:17 The Value of Taking Risks
• 21:58 Age is Just a Number
• 25:38 Conclusion and Call to Action

🔗 Resources Mentioned:

• Take the Survey for a Chance to Win "How I Built This" by Guy Raz
• Angelique Greco's Website
• Angelique Greco on LinkedIn

🤔 Reflection Time:

• What project made your heart sing this year?
• Who are the people around you? Do they support or detract from your goals?
• What unique experiences make up your professional "patchwork"?
• What's one action you can take this month to move closer to your goals?

Want to craft a career story that opens doors?

I help STEMM professionals speak with clarity, confidence, and purpose and show up as thought leaders —so the right opportunities find you.

📬 Let’s connect: angeliquegreco.com.au | LinkedIn 

⭐️ Help More People Reinvent Their Careers

If you enjoyed this episode, please:

• ✅ Leave a quick ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify 🙏
• ♻️ Share it with a friend who's questioning their path in STEM

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

🎙️ From Fresh Grads to Founders: How Two Google Software Engineers Turned Chronic Illness into a Health Startup

Annabel Zhou and Vivian Shen launched Toastie—an app to track and manage chronic illness—just after graduating with computer science degrees, all while working full-time at Google

🔍 What You’ll Learn:

• How to spot real opportunities: Why a messy spreadsheet turned into a startup idea—and how to recognize your own “this could be better” moment
• Why you don’t have to wait until you’re 40: How two software engineers launched Toastie almost straight out of uni
• How to start without quitting your job: Smart ways to test your idea and keep your cashflow safe while working full-time
• How failure fuels future success: What second-time founders know about learning from what didn’t work
• What mindset helps you build for impact: How to go from frustration to mission-driven founder—even if you’re still figuring it out

🧠 About the Guests:

Annabel Zhou and Vivian Shen are software engineers at Google and co-founders of Toastie, a health tracking app designed to help people with chronic illnesses understand patterns in their symptoms, meals, and daily routines. Instead of settling for messy spreadsheets, they built an app that transforms scattered health data into meaningful, doctor-ready insights. Toastie is proof that you don’t need to quit your day job—or have it all figured out—to start something important.

📌 Episode Highlights:

• 00:00 Introduction to Multiple Hats
• 00:37 Meet Annabel and Vivian
• 01:05 Living with chronic illness and tracking with spreadsheets
• 03:34 From personal pain to product idea
• 09:19 Building Toastie while working full-time
• 13:01 Lessons from their first startup
• 19:26 Validating ideas with real users
• 22:30 Support networks and community
• 27:40 Future vision for Toastie

🔗 Resources Mentioned:

• Sign up for Toastie’s pre-release

🤔 Reflection Time:

• Are you sitting on an idea sparked by a personal frustration?
• What skill could you apply right now to start exploring a solution?
• Could your “annoyance” be your next opportunity?

Want to craft a career story that opens doors?

I help STEMM professionals speak with clarity, confidence, and purpose and show up as thought leaders —so the right opportunities find you.

📬 Let’s connect: angeliquegreco.com.au | LinkedIn 

⭐️ Help More People Reinvent Their Careers

If you enjoyed this episode, please:

• ✅ Leave a quick ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify 🙏
• ♻️ Share it with a friend who's questioning their path in STEM

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.