Michael Olsen on Finding Career Direction in Your Thirties

In Chapter 1 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, management consultant Michael Olsen answers "How Are Your Aspirations Changing as Your Experience Grows?" Olsen shares how his aspirations are less about achievement in his 30s than they were in his 20s. They are less about comparing himself against others and more about understanding himself better. He finds returning to graduate school helpful in this regard and uses the time to personalize a career path in line with not his younger aspirations but instead his current aspirations.

Michael Olsen is a management consultant at Accenture. Previous to Accenture, Olsen earned dual MBA and MPH degrees at Emory University in Atlanta. Olsen earned a BA in symbolic systems from Stanford University and spent the next five years founding an IT consulting company, Redwood Strategies. 

Michael Olsen on What Gets Easier and What Gets Harder

In Chapter 2 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, management consultant Michael Olsen answers "What is Getting Easier and What is Getting Harder in Your Life?" Olsen shares how developing daily habits has made his life easier by making him more productive. Specifically, making daily checklists allows Olsen to do things easily that once were hard. As for what is getting harder, he finds making the transition from his 20s into his 30s presents some big challenges, including decisions around committing to a career path and starting a family.

Michael Olsen is a management consultant at Accenture. Previous to Accenture, Olsen earned dual MBA and MPH degrees at Emory University in Atlanta. Olsen earned a BA in symbolic systems from Stanford University and spent the next five years founding an IT consulting company, Redwood Strategies. 

Michael Olsen on Choosing a Career in Health Care Management

In Chapter 3 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, management consultant Michael Olsen answers "When are You at Your Best?" Olsen finds he is at his best when working on something important that directly impacts people he serves. He finds working in health care a more direct way to help people than, for instance, working in finance or insurance, and consequently earns his MPH MBA degree and commits to health care management consulting.

Michael Olsen is a management consultant at Accenture. Previous to Accenture, Olsen earned dual MBA and MPH degrees at Emory University in Atlanta. Olsen earned a BA in symbolic systems from Stanford University and spent the next five years founding an IT consulting company, Redwood Strategies. 

Michael Olsen on 3 Ways Parents Instill Positive Values in Children

In Chapter 4 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, management consultant Michael Olsen answers "What Childhood Experiences Have Been Most Fundamental in Shaping Who You Are Today?" Three childhood experiences shape Olsen's view of the world. First, his parents teach Olsen the importance of travel, culture and inclusiveness. They do this by taking him to Europe as a 9-year old and, every Christmas, inviting people from different cultures to the Olsen family dinner table. Second, his father gets him involved in local Rotary Club events, specifically an annual pancake breakfast fundraiser, which teaches him the value of community service. Third, his parents show him the value of education by not only pushing him to value education but also by constantly learning and leading by example.

Michael Olsen is a management consultant at Accenture. Previous to Accenture, Olsen earned dual MBA and MPH degrees at Emory University in Atlanta. Olsen earned a BA in symbolic systems from Stanford University and spent the next five years founding an IT consulting company, Redwood Strategies. 

Michael Olsen on How Parents Influence Long-Term Career Goals

In Chapter 5 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, management consultant Michael Olsen answers "How Are Your Personal Experiences Shaping Your Professional Aspirations?" Following the lead from his role model parents appreciation for service and travel, Growing up in a stable household, Olsen pushes himself to serve others in need and make that the professional priority in his life. This leads him to work in health care consulting that allows him to travel often and help many different groups of people.

Michael Olsen is a management consultant at Accenture.  Previous to Accenture, Olsen earned dual MBA and MPH degrees at Emory University in Atlanta. Olsen earned a BA in symbolic systems from Stanford University and spent the next five years founding an IT consulting company, Redwood Strategies. 

Michael Olsen on Learning Work Ethic From a Big Brother

In Chapter 6 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, management consultant Michael Olsen answers "Where Did You Learn Your Work Ethic?" Olsen learns work ethic from his big brother, Marc, who leads by example working hard and staying determined to accomplish goals. This shapes Olsen as he develops his own sense of drive and applies it in his own career and life pursuits.

Michael Olsen is a management consultant at Accenture. Previous to Accenture, Olsen earned dual MBA and MPH degrees at Emory University in Atlanta. Olsen earned a BA in symbolic systems from Stanford University and spent the next five years founding an IT consulting company, Redwood Strategies. 

Michael Olsen on Studying in a Dual Degree MBA MPH Masters Program

In Chapter 7 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, management consultant Michael Olsen answers "What Were the Benefits of Studying in a Dual Degree Graduate Program?" Reflecting on his time as a dual graduate degree student in business and public health, Olsen finds two benefits. The first is that he is able to bring project management business skills into the public health work his team does on a Paraguay assignment. The second is that studying public health makes him think beyond MBA student goals of getting that job after school and more about lifetime impact he wants to make in his career.

Michael Olsen is a management consultant at Accenture. Previous to Accenture, Olsen earned dual MBA and MPH degrees at Emory University in Atlanta. Olsen earned a BA in symbolic systems from Stanford University and spent the next five years founding an IT consulting company, Redwood Strategies. 

Michael Olsen on Job Skills You Learn Studying Public Health

In Chapter 8 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, management consultant Michael Olsen answers "What Skills Did You Learn Studying Public Health That You Hope to Use in Your Career?" Studying in a dual degree business and public health masters program, Olsen shares how public health studies taught him to understand scientific evidence and use structure to improve problem solving. Additionally, he finds studying public health helps him better understand how he can make a difference in the world, in particular in developing regions. He sees firsthand how global health disease states such as child mortality, HIV and malaria are dropping and it inspires him to be part of that movement as a global health professional.

Michael Olsen is a management consultant at Accenture. Previous to Accenture, Olsen earned dual MBA and MPH degrees at Emory University in Atlanta. Olsen earned a BA in symbolic systems from Stanford University and spent the next five years founding an IT consulting company, Redwood Strategies. 

How to Research Career Options While in Graduate School

In Chapter 9 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, management consultant Michael Olsen answers "How Did You Research Career Options While Attending Graduate School?" While doing a joint business school and public health graduate program, Olsen finds each school treats career planning very differently. Business school career planning is more structured around personality test analysis to identify fit for career paths. Olsen finds public health school career planning more open-ended. In both programs, Olsen focuses on meeting the experts invited to speak at the schools. There he gets advice that in order to build a long-term career in social entrepreneurship, a good place to start is working a corporate job before transitioning into social enterprise.

Michael Olsen is a management consultant at Accenture. Previous to Accenture, Olsen earned dual MBA and MPH degrees at Emory University in Atlanta. Olsen earned a BA in symbolic systems from Stanford University and spent the next five years founding an IT consulting company, Redwood Strategies. 

Michael Olsen on Using an Interdisciplinary Education in a Job

In Chapter 11 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, management consultant Michael Olsen answers "How Has Your Interdisciplinary Education Proven Valuable in Your Development?" Olsen shares how his interdisciplinary education gives him and others a fresh perspective when doing business and researching. He also finds that interdisciplinary learning has helped him apply different processes to solve problems and communicate more effectively.

Michael Olsen is a management consultant at Accenture. Previous to Accenture, Olsen earned dual MBA and MPH degrees at Emory University in Atlanta. Olsen earned a BA in symbolic systems from Stanford University and spent the next five years founding an IT consulting company, Redwood Strategies. 

Michael Olsen on Finding Ways to Be More Accepting of Change

In Chapter 16 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, management consultant Michael Olsen answers "What is Your Comfort Zone and What Do You Do to Break Free of Living in It?" Olsen shares how he is his father's son in that he tends to resist change in his life. He looks for fun ways to change up his routine, including moving to new cities and using phone apps to create systems that help him mix things up.

Michael Olsen is a management consultant at Accenture. Previous to Accenture, Olsen earned dual MBA and MPH degrees at Emory University in Atlanta. Olsen earned a BA in symbolic systems from Stanford University and spent the next five years founding an IT consulting company, Redwood Strategies. 

Michael Olsen on How Reflection Informs Personal Growth

In Chapter 17 of 20 in his 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, management consultant Michael Olsen answers "What Role Has Reflection Played in Shaping Your Personal Growth?" Olsen shares measuring personal growth is dependent on being able to successfully reflect. He notes how he prefers structured reflection over unstructured reflection to learn from his past to plan his future.

Michael Olsen is a management consultant at Accenture. Previous to Accenture, Olsen earned dual MBA and MPH degrees at Emory University in Atlanta. Olsen earned a BA in symbolic systems from Stanford University and spent the next five years founding an IT consulting company, Redwood Strategies. 

Rachel Lehmann-Haupt on Finding Balance as a Working Mom

In Chapter 1 of 17 in her 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, author and small business owner Rachel Lehmann-Haupt answers "When Are You at Your Best?" Lehmann-Haupt shares how she achieves personal best by finding flexible job opportunities that allow her to be present to her child as a mother and engaged at work as a working mom. She follows guidance from filmmaker Tiffany Shlain to "own your own time", set expectations with colleagues, and lean in both at home and at work.

Rachel Lehmann-Haupt is a writer, editor and multimedia content strategist. She is the owner of StoryMade, a storytelling studio that creates new media content solutions for businesses. Previously, she was a founding editor and multimedia producer at TED Books, designing TED Talk content for tablet computers. She is the author of "In Her Own Sweet Time", published in 2009. Lehmann-Haupt earned a BA from Kenyon College and a Masters in Journalism from UC-Berkeley. 

Rachel Lehmann-Haupt on Aspiring to Be a Happy Mother

In Chapter 2 of 17 in her 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, author and small business owner Rachel Lehmann-Haupt answers "To What Do You Aspire as a Mother?" Lehmann-Haupt aspires for her child to happy and finds the best way to achieve this is for her to be happy and share that energy with her son. As a single mother aspiring for happiness, she focuses on creating balanced influences in and out of work that provide her 18-month old boy with a strong foundation for growth.

Rachel Lehmann-Haupt is a writer, editor and multimedia content strategist. She is the owner of StoryMade, a storytelling studio that creates new media content solutions for businesses. Previously, she was a founding editor and multimedia producer at TED Books, designing TED Talk content for tablet computers. She is the author of "In Her Own Sweet Time", published in 2009. Lehmann-Haupt earned a BA from Kenyon College and a Masters in Journalism from UC-Berkeley. 

Rachel Lehmann-Haupt on How Motherhood Changes You

In Chapter 3 of 17 in her 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, author and small business owner Rachel Lehmann-Haupt answers "How Has Becoming a Mother Put Your Life in a New Perspective?" Lehmann-Haupt shares how becoming a mother has motivated her to reorganize her life and has made her more ambitious in her career. Motherhood pushes Lehmann-Haupt to be more responsible and shift life focus from herself to her child.

Rachel Lehmann-Haupt is a writer, editor and multimedia content strategist. She is the owner of StoryMade, a storytelling studio that creates new media content solutions for businesses. Previously, she was a founding editor and multimedia producer at TED Books, designing TED Talk content for tablet computers. She is the author of "In Her Own Sweet Time", published in 2009. Lehmann-Haupt earned a BA from Kenyon College and a Masters in Journalism from UC-Berkeley. 

Rachel Lehmann-Haupt on Moving From New York to San Francisco

In Chapter 5 of 17 in her 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, author and small business owner Rachel Lehmann-Haupt answers "How Has Moving to a New City Created Positive Change in Your Life?" Working in media and publishing, Lehmann-Haupt finds New York City to be, as her mentor Clay Felker puts it, "about power and who's up and who's down." Upon arriving in the San Francisco, she finds the Bay Area culture to be more about ideas and experimentation and open-mindedness to new possibilities. Lehmann-Haupt connects with the culture, joins TED Books to work on the future of digital media publishing and ultimately launches her own firm, StoryMade.

Rachel Lehmann-Haupt is a writer, editor and multimedia content strategist. She is the owner of StoryMade, a storytelling studio that creates new media content solutions for businesses. Previously, she was a founding editor and multimedia producer at TED Books, designing TED Talk content for tablet computers. She is the author of "In Her Own Sweet Time", published in 2009. Lehmann-Haupt earned a BA from Kenyon College and a Masters in Journalism from UC-Berkeley. 

How to Create Space for Weekly Reflection

In Chapter 6 of 17 in her 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, author and small business owner Rachel Lehmann-Haupt answers "What Role Has Reflection Played in Shaping Your Personal Growth?" Lehmann-Haupt shares how she creates space in her week to reflect across all aspects of her life. She finds it helpful to block out time for reflection and to create weekly rituals, such as reflective dinner party conversations with friends, to learn from experience and find ways to improve herself in all aspects of her life.

Rachel Lehmann-Haupt is a writer, editor and multimedia content strategist. She is the owner of StoryMade, a storytelling studio that creates new media content solutions for businesses. Previously, she was a founding editor and multimedia producer at TED Books, designing TED Talk content for tablet computers. She is the author of "In Her Own Sweet Time", published in 2009. Lehmann-Haupt earned a BA from Kenyon College and a Masters in Journalism from UC-Berkeley. 

How to Build Trust by Being Real

In Chapter 14 of 17 in her 2014 Capture Your Flag interview, author and small business owner Rachel Lehmann-Haupt answers "How Do You Establish Trust When Building Relationships?" Lehmann-Haupt finds you build trust by being real. By being transparent with her clients, she is able to then progressively build trust through a discovery process she learned doing interviews as a journalist. The process creates security in the relationship and the resulting safe environment creates trusting bonds between Lehmann-Haupt and her clients.

Rachel Lehmann-Haupt is a writer, editor and multimedia content strategist. She is the owner of StoryMade, a storytelling studio that creates new media content solutions for businesses. Previously, she was a founding editor and multimedia producer at TED Books, designing TED Talk content for tablet computers. She is the author of "In Her Own Sweet Time", published in 2009. Lehmann-Haupt earned a BA from Kenyon College and a Masters in Journalism from UC-Berkeley.