Translating College into Career Success with Leigh Heyman ’98

Academics

Undergraduate Season 5

Season 5 Capturing Creativity: Exploring Modern Photography with Jasper Soloff '17 The Heart of Libraries and Literature with Elizabeth Delinger ’86 Navigating Climate Solutions and Global Impact with Lindsay Iversen ’04 Advocating for Youth Mental Health and Education with Dr. McKenna Parnes ’15 Fueling Creative Energy in Media and Beyond with Mia Lardiere ’14 Translating College into Career Success with Leigh Heyman ’98

Academic Approach Areas of Study Global Education Combined Degree Programs Pre-Professional Programs Faculty Students & Faculty in Conversation Success After Sarah Lawrence

Leigh Heyman ’98 is joined in conversation by Sarah Lawrence students Eryn Diehl ’25, Molly Healey ’25, Delaney Julianna ’27, Lucille Marten-Risk ’27, Luca Mesiti ’27, and Connor Saul ’27, to expand their knowledge on networking, entrepreneurship, and team-building. Heyman shared the details of his career path, including working under President Obama as the Director of New Media Technologies, and the unique ways in which that path was uniquely and intrinsically influenced by his Sarah Lawrence education. He discusses the multi-hyphenate experience, particularly as a student-athlete, and shares what the Sarah Lawrence mindset looks like beyond higher education. Heyman displays fearlessness and a passion for his career that is indicative of Sarah Lawrence’s influence on student career-readiness and work ethic.

How would you describe the overall theme(s) of this conversation?

The main themes were about embracing non-linear career paths, using technology to solve real-world problems, staying open to feedback, and building resilience through both success and failure. (Alexandra W)

I really enjoyed the way Leigh brought personal experiences to the forefront when in conversation. He shared a lot of personal anecdotes and related those anecdotes back to his main points about adaptability, innovation and success. (Delilah H)

Leigh’s conversation was very inspirational in the way that he continued to show perseverance. A discussion of how to separate tone and constructive criticism fed into how the various careers he had pursued and how his adult life was non-linear only allowed him to learn to maintain motivation. He also touched on the community as something being built based on how people choose to reveal their opinions and if it is based on research. (Hannah D)

I noticed a lot more interdisciplinary connections between the speakers’ life experiences, some anecdotes, and advice speaking to and from athletic, engineering, and political career backgrounds. Much of the advice pertained to communication and how to internalize and deliver feedback, as well as the conditions for supporting a sense of drive in one’s career. I found that the amalgamation of these themes really reflected varied approaches towards an entrepreneurial path that mirrored the variety that the SLC education has to offer. (Tory R.)

What were the strengths of this conversation?

Leigh’s honesty stood out a lot. He shared not just his achievements, but also the challenging aspects of his journey. His advice on curiosity, self-improvement, and not being afraid to reach out for help felt genuinely helpful.(Alexandra W)

A definite strength of Leigh’s was his open-mindedness when speaking to students of disciplines other than this own—he made a point of offering advice that could be applied to many different fields across disciplines (Delilah H)

Leigh gave a lot of personal excerpts and you can tell that he had to learn how to be more well-rounded as he grew in various careers. (Hannah D)

A strength of this conversation with Leigh was that his thoughts are helpful across fields. When he discusses his views of living with past success and of what to look for in building a team, he shares insights that are relatable to most people who are building their career. (Tara B)

I think the strengths really revealed themselves in the conversational and honest tone of the advice and anecdotes. Leigh’s delivery really made the advice seem feasible, and the broad variety of perspectives he had to offer made for a full range of findings. (Tory R.)

I’d recommend it because it made career growth feel less intimidating. Leigh’s story shows that it’s okay not to have everything figured out, as long as you stay curious and open to learning. ( Alexandra W)

I would definitely recommend this WWTL discussion to a friend because of how personable Leigh was. He just seemed like a very pleasant person to speak to (Delilah H).

I’d recommend this conversation because it shows how career paths aren’t always a straight line, and that’s ok. Leigh’s story is a good reminder that skills like problem-solving and being flexible matter a lot more than having everything figured out from the start. (Andrew E)

I would recommend this conversation to someone who is struggling to choose between two interests, I think it helps show that you can have various interests and they can overlap within various fields. (Hannah D)

If I had a friend who sought comfort and reassurance in their non-traditional approaches to career success, I would recommend this conversation. Particularly, if they felt as though their multiple disciplines did not intersect or if they were seeking an entrepreneurial way of unifying them, Leigh’s advice would be beneficial. (Tory R.)

I would recommend this episode because Leigh was very eager and passionate about sharing his experience, and his insights were applicable across fields. (Tara B)