Welcome to my Substack where I share a weekly recap all about my life. Think of this as a virtual catch-up session between friends. So grab a cup of tea 🍵 (or your beverage of choice) and let's get started ☕️
Highlights of the week
Friends, it’s been a jam-packed two weeks since we last spoke. SO MUCH HAS HAPPENED; it feels like 24 hours here at school is a week because of the amount of change that happens in a short period of time.
🍵 Solidified summer internship plans!!! I received grant funding from Stanford to work on my own startup idea for 8 weeks. Then I’ll be on a matcha farm in Japan for 4 weeks, also through a GSB sponsored program. I’m not kidding. A freaking matcha farm 🥳 More updates on summer plans to come…
🧘🏻♀️ I took an enneagram personality test and learned I am a 2W3. My strengths: optimistic world-view and upbeat attitude, building deep, personal connections, being adaptable in stressful situations. Weaknesses: overly competitive or obsessive, not acknowledging own needs, taking criticism personally, criticizing themselves and others when under pressure. These are pretty accurate.
⏰ I spoke with and interviewed Congressman Ro Khanna (excuse me, what??)
🌮 I ate at the “Most Beautiful Taco Bell in the World” in Pacifica
💅🏻 ICYMI: What I posted on IG Reels This Week
🎓 Stanford chose me for startup summer grant funding!
✍🏻 Interview with Congressman Ro Khanna
📚 MBA classmate deep dive: Jeremy (military background)
💫 MBA classmate deep dive: Tega (international background)
👾 Are MBA programs worth it???
Advice from Jen Hyman Founder & CEO, Rent the Runway
“Closets are historical museums of the past. They show who you were. What if you had the freedom to express how you feel today and who you want to be today?” -Jennifer Hyman
Y’all know I’m into fashion; I loved hearing Jen’s origin story of RTR and how she got the company off the ground. Here are my takeaways:
Make your own luck. Jen wanted to see if there was product-market-fit with fashion brands— would they even want to rent out their clothes? On a Saturday night she decided she wanted to go straight to the top and needed to chat with fashion designer, Diane Von Furstenberg. Jen didn’t have DVF’s contact information so she tried 20 different permutations of dvf@dvf.com emails to see if any of them worked. She eventually got in contact with one of the emails she tried and by Tuesday, Jen was in a room pitching DVF.
The best ideas may not be too far away. Jen’s origin story starts with a conversation with her sister. They were talking about how their closets felt “dead to them” because they already wore their dresses to fancy events and didn’t want to be photographed in the same thing yet another time… but what if you could borrow clothes for special events instead of spending a bunch of $$ on items you would only wear once (think prom and bridesmaid dresses). Et voila. The best ideas can come from your own personal experiences.
Scrappy strategy can be a winning strategy. Jen knew she needed press for RTR in the early days, but she didn’t know reporters who would cover her startup idea. She strategically reached out to a newer NYT reporter from the tech section to discuss the female tech founder angle of the story. The reporter needed the work and Jen needed her company to get discovered — it would be a win-win for the both of them. When the NYT reporter and photographer showed up for the interview, Jen and her cofounder scrambled to put on dresses and pose for photos inside their clothing warehouse. This got way more attention than just an average interview. It made the front page of the New York Times and led to 100,000 subscribers. Werk. 👏🏻
What I’m consuming: Call Her Daddy Podcast.
Ok, now I see what the hype is about. Alex Cooper’s content feels like casual girl talk. In case you didn’t know… Alex signed an exclusive contract with Spotify for $60 million dollars in 2021 for her podcast. Get 👏🏻that👏🏻 bag, Alex 👏🏻… that is daddy energyyyyyy. We love to see it 💥 I like when she brings in psychologists, doctors, and academics to talk about practical ways to deal with issues in friendship, relationships, and self-esteem. I’m very selective about my content consumption and some episodes are better than others.
Episode I recommend 1: How to Stop Self-Sabotage. After listening to this episode, I learned that I am VERY good at self-sabotage. My takeaways: when you start to spiral (I tend to have spiraling thoughts when I get into my own head), try saying “yes, but” to slow the spiral and see a potential positive side of a situation. This simple phrase catches you and can stop you from going to the worst possible outcome you’ve imagined lol. it me. okay, second thing you can do is say “I’m having the thought that” to put some space between you and your thought. It makes your thought less absolute and just that… only a *passing* thought 😮💨
Episode I recommend 2: My Friends Make Me Feel Like Shit. My takeaway: you don’t need to rely on a single person to fulfill ALL of your emotional needs. In fact, if you do, you’ll probably set yourself up for disappointment in the future. Friendships evolve over time and there are some friends you go to for those deep life conversations and there can be other folks who you hang out with for those party nights. They may be the same person in both scenarios, but they don’t need to be.
What I’m perplexed by
2015 Cherie vs. 2023 Cherie
I vision boarded with my classmates this weekend. All you need is to go through magazines and pull images or words that speak to you. It can be flowers, diamonds, phrases, scenery, anything that inspires you and what you want to manifest in the next year, judgement free. When you’re done, hang the board up in a place you can see it everyday. Seeing is believing, babies💓
Usually I do this exercise as a form of “New Year’s resolutions” but hey, better late than never. I keep my old boards because it’s fun to see how my visions evolve throughout the years. Happy vision boarding 😘
My newest purchase - not sponsored
*Sigh* ok Abercrombie, here’s my credit card 🙄 I’m literally going to wear this outfit again and again this summer. It’s just too good.
Oversized Linen-Blend Shirt $60 (I got for $51 on sale last week). Cute but if I could thrift this shirt for $10 elsewhere, I would. It makes the lewk complete but it’s not special by any means. Just being real here.
Essential Scoopneck Tank $25 (I got it for $21 on sale last week). It scoops a bit lower for me than I would like, but it’s a simple, white tank.
High Rise 90s Cutoff Short $60 (I got them for $51 on sale last week). I’m happiest with this purchase. They’re everything I need in a short this summer— it will be a staple in my closet for the next 4 months for sure.
Meme Reminder
we ball!!!!!! then full develop brain 👍🏻
XO Cherie
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