Hey Jane, tell us a little bit about yourself!
Hello, hello! I'm not so plain Jane, a Los Angeles native, 1st generation Russian 👋 I love to travel 🌎, sing ABBA songs on the reg 🎤, and have deep talks about spirituality and why things are the way they are ✨. I can cozy up to a good book 📚 or movie 🎥 and scarf down Ferrero Rocher's like no other.
I like sharing my story as it displays that the road is not always straight forward hoping that others find solace or comfort in knowing that other people have found success in the zig zag path 👉
In college, I studied film thinking I wanted to be a film editor - I was absolutely obsessed with the way that movies were cut (still am). I quickly realized that the editor career path was not for me and when I graduated I decided to go into marketing/social media. Years later I found myself in a job where I had to design and lead A/B tests for a company. The way that our websites were designed forced us to code our tests from scratch. I ended up really liking what I was doing and there was a creative aspect to coding that I hadn’t seen before. In my mind, I thought coding was dry and boring, but after trying myself I realized that couldn’t be further from the truth. I started studying on my own.
I would wake up at 5AM to code before work. I’d code on my breaks, code during lunch, code after work — it was eat, sleep, code, repeat. After doing that for months, I got promoted from a marketing role to a front end developer one. I had absolutely zero experience but I figured it out as I was going - c'est la vie!
Fast forward to today, I'm now in my first C-level role at a startup and loving it! 🌟 On the side I have a web design & development business - Intentional Kreative, a podcast - Drinking at the Foobar with Jane and Eric, and an e-learning platform I'm building called Veeazy.
I'm a multidisciplinary enthusiast and I'd rather be doing a bunch of things then focusing on just one single thing. Four Sigmatic Mushroom ☕️ and TianChi is my go-to!
Can you tell us what you do as Chief Product Officer for those who are unfamiliar?
I'm the Chief Product Officer at Move the Chain. I oversee the design and engineering departments and am the bridge between business and development.
How did you decide to pursue your specific career?
There were many pivotal moments in my career which included lots of disappointment from companies and managers. It was only until I hit my rock bottom that I really rose to the occasion. I was stuck in a job that I absolutely hated and had recently had some personal things happen that really affected my mental and physical state - I thought I would never climb out of the darkness.
I remember one day I woke up thinking that if I didn't find a way to gain my confidence back I would completely lose myself in the pain and depression. I decided to start a business and that's when Intentional Kreative was born ⚡️. Through the freedom that the business brought me, I began to find my value and confidence again. Through that confidence everything began to change...
What made you interested in your field? What do you like about it?
When I switched from marketing to engineering, I did it because I want to solve a new problem every day. I wanted to be constantly challenged. When I became an entrepreneur it was to have freedom. The freedom to make decisions and run things the way that I always wanted things to be run. There's nothing more freeing than being in charge of your own destiny.
Any advice on how to stand out and get hired for those starting off?
Market yourself and create your brand! Who are you..really? People want to know. That marketing will help you create invaluable connections that will come in handy in all walks of your life.
What are 3 character traits that would make someone excel in your field?
Grit, charisma, and confidence.
What fuels you to continue to do what you do?
There's nothing more in this world that fuels me than being able to empower and inspire other women in tech to get there and find what they really love to do by sharing my story and helping wherever I can. That's what drives me to be successful at what I do, so I can live and breathe the advice I can give.
Most difficult thing about your job?
Managing expectations - it's truly an art form I'm still learning to master.
What would you like to say to your younger self?
Accept yourself as you are, and work on the things you would like to change. If only I knew to play to my strengths rather than trying to constantly change myself in what I thought people would like me to be, I would have saved myself a lot of anxiety and energy if I had a better state of acceptance.
Best advice you've received/heard?
"Hope for the best, expect the worst". In managing your own expectations on what can happen, you can save yourself a lot of stress by accepting that "Que Sera, Sera" - Whatever Will Be, Will Be.
Any last thoughts, advice, or recommendations?
Schedule a session with me | https://superpeer.com/janeintech
