184. Mimi Rocah, Mom, Prosecutor, & Author
The 92 Report
Mimi Rocah lives in Westchester, New York, with her husband David Anders, a fellow lawyer she met while working as a prosecutor in the Southern District of New York. After working for a few years between college and law school, she attended NYU Law School with the intention of becoming a prosecutor. She completed two clerkships, one for the Eastern District of New York and one for the Second Circuit, before starting at the Southern District of New York in February 2001. Mimi spent 17 years at the Southern District of New York, eventually moving into teaching and legal commentary for...
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183. Thomas Norman, Professor & Faculty Founder of the CSUDH Innovation Incubator
The 92 Report
Show Notes Thomas Norman grew up in Duluth, Minnesota, before moving to northwestern Wisconsin. He lobbied to add a class period in high school so he could take four years of foreign language, to ensure he was competitive for universities like Harvard. While at Harvard, he focused on social studies and wrote a thesis regarding the economic forces behind NAFTA which led him to his first job. Transitioning to Business Banking After graduating, Thomas worked for Procter and Gamble in Minnesota before transitioning into business banking. He had to take night classes in accounting to learn how to...
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182. Leo Clark, A Career in the Financial Markets & Some Side Adventures
The 92 Report
Show Notes: Leo Clark participated in the Jean Monnet Program at Ecole Polytechnique in Paris following his graduation from Harvard. The fellowship was a work-study-travel program focused on the European Union that included seminars and internships. He completed an internship within the operations research department at Air France. He talks about connecting with fellow alumni in Paris and developing his French language skills through immersion. Exotics Trading to Sales and Swaps Marketing Leo explains what exotic derivatives trading is and his experience working in that field....
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181. Kath Mertens, Next Chapter: Animal Behavior
The 92 Report
Kath Mertens (Kath Ulman) reflects on her life stage, mentioning her 20-year-old son heading to college, her divorce, and her part-time work. She describes feeling on the cusp of a new life phase, similar to when she graduated from Harvard. Becoming a Veterinarian Kath shares her initial career aspirations of becoming a veterinarian and the challenges she faced due to the lack of a pre-vet focus at Harvard. Kath recounts her first post-Harvard job in Jackson, Wyoming, where she worked as a ski bum and later as a wrangler on a dude ranch. She rediscovered her passion for veterinary medicine...
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180. Kristen Fowler Garland, From Cambridge to Japan to Alaska
The 92 Report
Show Notes: Kristen Fowler Garland majored in East Asian Studies and Japanese at Harvard. She explains her decision to spend five years in Japan after graduation, including two years with the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) program. She describes her experience with the JET program, teaching conversational English in Toyama, and her efforts to learn Japanese. Kristen shares her job search in Japan, landing a position with a foreign subsidiary in Tokyo, where she learned to use Excel in Japanese. Market Research and Field Hockey Kristen recounts her work in market research, tracking the shift...
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179. Clare Scherrer, Investment Banker, CFO, Public Board Director
The 92 Report
Show Notes Clare Scherrer outlines her career journey in three main chapters: 25 years at Goldman Sachs in Investment Banking, a number of years as a public company Chief Financial Officer, and her current role as a director on two public company boards of directors. Clare also shares her life immediately post-graduation, including getting married and completing McKinsey's Business Analyst program in New York City. Love at First Blind Date Clare recounts her initial post Harvard plan to join the Foreign Service and how a blind date led to her getting engaged and pivoting her career path. She...
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178. Mara (Beverwyk) Christine, Librarian, Teacher, Lawyer
The 92 Report
Show Notes: Mara Christine (formerly Mara Beverwyk) describes her circuitous path, starting with a job at the Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) in Berkeley, followed by a role in the Oakland public library system. She pursued a library degree in Michigan and returned to New Mexico, where she worked as a school and research librarian. She transitioned to teaching at a Montessori elementary school, earning her certification, and later went to law school at age 46, becoming a prosecutor. A Career Move to Law Mara explains what drew her to the law, and she cites her midlife crisis and...
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177. Kiki Snyder, Assigned Karen at Birth
The 92 Report
Show Notes: Kiki (formerly Karen) Snyder shares her 35-year journey since her breakdown at Harvard, which landed her in restraints at McLean Hospital during exams in 1991. She discusses being misdiagnosed as severely bipolar, the 32 years she lost to toxic psychiatric medications, and the self she rediscovered. "Karen was full of fear and anger. Karen wanted to speak to the manager. But Kiki's in charge now. I am the manager." Learn more about her transformation on Instagram at and at . From Karen to Kiki Kiki elaborates on her transformation from Karen to Kiki. A massage therapist...
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176. Maya Browne, The Road Not Taken
The 92 Report
Show Notes: Maya Browne recounts her senior year at Harvard, including writing her thesis "Idealizing Vision" which was about how magazine editors, photographers, and designers had shaped the ideal female form in the 20th century, and additionally another was an article for Essence magazine about eating disorders. It was the first article of its kind that drew data from women of color, and it won an award called the Excellence in Media Merit Award (EMMA). Writing, Modeling, and Playing Violin Maya describes her first job at Details magazine under James Truman, where she handled...
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175. Chana Gable Selmon, Medicine Without Borders
The 92 Report
Show Notes: Chana Gable Selmon explains she joined Harvard as a transfer student in 1990, overlapping two years with the class of 1992. She graduated in 1993 after completing science requirements due to her history concentration. Chana decided to go to medical school at Cornell, followed by an internship in Emergency Medicine at Bellevue NYU and residency at Harvard. Commuting between Jerusalem and New Jersey Chana had her first child in 2000 and continued working as an ER doctor. She describes her experience as a fourth-year resident at Brooklyn Hospital Center during 9/11. She later ...
info_outlineShow Notes:
Kiki (formerly Karen) Snyder shares her 35-year journey since her breakdown at Harvard, which landed her in restraints at McLean Hospital during exams in 1991. She discusses being misdiagnosed as severely bipolar, the 32 years she lost to toxic psychiatric medications, and the self she rediscovered.
"Karen was full of fear and anger. Karen wanted to speak to the manager. But Kiki's in charge now. I am the manager."
Learn more about her transformation on Instagram at @assignedkarenatbirth and at assignedkarenatbirth.com.
From Karen to Kiki
Kiki elaborates on her transformation from Karen to Kiki. A massage therapist specializing in Somatic Experiencing taught Kiki that our brains lie to us, our bodies know the truth. Kiki’s body clearly told her it was finally time to leave the zip code she'd lived in for 50 years. She describes the upheaval of uprooting from Northern Virginia to coastal North Carolina after her mother's passing, and the impact of that change on her emotional well-being.
Facing Pain and Healing from Trauma
Kiki discusses the debilitating effects of the psychiatric medications she was on for 32 years and her work to taper off them. She describes the emotional numbness and exhaustion she experienced while on these medications. Kiki explains how getting off the medications allowed her to process trauma and emotions, leading to a significant personal transformation. She emphasizes the importance of sharing her story to help others who may be going through similar experiences.
A Career in Social Media
Kiki recounts her career in social media, including her role at AOL in the early days of the Internet. She describes her work at VeriSign, where she first discovered Web 2.0, which became social media. Her perseverance in the face of resistance resulted in the founding of VeriSign's social media program. Kiki shares her regret at not even considering the offer to relocate to Silicon Valley when the program she founded was moved there. She now realizes that her fear of not being strong enough was fueled by medications and years of being told she was fragile and sick. She discusses her subsequent role at the Federal Aviation Administration, where she founded their social media program.
Layoffs and Life Changes
Kiki shares her experience of being laid off from her dream job at a big ad agency on the same day she moved to coastal North Carolina in 2024. Her entire division was cut, an early wave of workers displaced by AI. She reflects on the impact of the layoff, leading to a significant life change.
Spirituality and Synchronicity
Kiki talks about her interest in spirituality, metaphysics, and Jung's concept of synchronicities. She talks about sharing her story with the world and the positive responses she has received from others. Kiki discusses her efforts to let go of control, a trait she inherited from her former self, Karen.
A Burner Phone and AI “Therapy”
Kiki shares her tips for beating her phone addiction. She installed the BePresent app, which helps her limit wasted time on social media. She recommends Claude, the AI chatbot she uses as a sounding board and where she worked through the grief and anger of losing three decades. And most importantly, a second phone. Every night the real phone stays in the kitchen and the "burner" comes to the bedroom, holding only music, an alarm, and the chatbot. Her advice to anyone trying to put their phone down: Get another phone!
Harvard Reflections
Kiki reminisces about her favorite classes at Harvard, including Irv DeVore’s human behavioral biology class and Helen Vendler's poetry class. She shares her fascination with language and culture, particularly the unique language of Gen Z. Kiki discusses her plans to create new content by translating Shakespeare's sonnets into Gen Z slang. She expresses her excitement about learning and exploring new topics, including spirituality and metaphysics.
Timestamps:
04:40: Transformation from Karen to Kiki
08:31: Impact of Medications and Emotional Healing
12:43: Career in Social Media and Early Internet
17:07: Significant Moments in Social Media Career
21:23: Learning and Personal Growth
25:40: Current Life and Habits
30:06: Reflections on Harvard and Personal Interests
Links:
Instagram: @assignedkarenatbirth
Website: https://assignedkarenatbirth.com/