Shows
The Florida Writer PodcastWrite the Novel! Letting Go of the Inner Critic with Fiction Author Cooper Levey-BakerWe all have ideas for stories, but if our inner critic has a say, our stories might stay trapped forever. In this edition of the Florida Writer Podcast, host Alison Nissen chats with Cooper Levey-Baker, author of the new dystopian book Dead Fish Wind about how he turned a 3-minute free-writing exercise into a novel...after he calmed his inner critic. Cooper Levey-Baker is a writer and journalist. His fiction has appeared in the Sierra Nevada Review and Burrow Press's Fantastic Floridas series, and his journalism has won multiple awards from the Florida Magazine Association and the Flo...2022-02-1322 minFlorida Writer PodcastWrite the Novel! Letting Go of the Inner Critic with Fiction Author Cooper Levey-BakerWe all have ideas for stories, but if our inner critic has a say, our stories might stay trapped forever. In this edition of the Florida Writer Podcast, host Alison Nissen chats with Cooper Levey-Baker, author of the new dystopian book Dead Fish Wind about how he turned a 3-minute free-writing exercise into a novel...after he calmed his inner critic. Cooper Levey-Baker is a writer and journalist. His fiction has appeared in the Sierra Nevada Review and Burrow Press's Fantastic Floridas series, and his journalism has won multiple awards from the Florida Magazine Association and the Flo...2022-02-1322 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyA Minute on Mental Health with Genie, Jake & DillonMay is Mental Health Awareness Month. At some point or another in our collective histories, I have had at least one conversation with each of my podcast guests about their mental health. Life is hard on our mental health and college, because it's full of so many firsts happening so far away from the support structures we've built to date, can be very hard on our mental health. Today I pull excerpts from my conversations with Genie Deez, Jake Bebar, and Dillon Bailey where they opened up about their challenges in college. This is certainly not a male only...2021-05-1825 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyHalfway Highlighter EditionThis is episode 26, which is the halfway point of Year One for this podcast, and I have some thoughts. How many of us have sat in a meeting or watched a terrible movie and thought, "there's two hours I'll never get back?" I'm going to guess all of us in one fashion or another. So I'm taking ten minutes this week to share how my view of the content has changed a bit, why the episodes have gotten a bit longer and, most importantly, why I think this podcast is such a valuable investment of your time. P...2021-05-1109 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveySofia Daboub: It's Always an Option to Play to Your StrengthsSofia likes the road less travelled. She's not one for the predetermined path no matter how attractive it might seem to others. That little bit of the rebel within led her to choose a major in Marketing which she felt gave her wide ranging options and didn't pin her down too early. But one chance meeting of the Marketing Club led to an enthusiastic pursuit of employment with Nielsen where she's learned a great deal about consumer behavior, measurement analytics, problem solving, and herself. Despite being a fan of the Myers Briggs and StrengthFinders assessments (mentioned on the pod b...2021-05-0445 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyJuan José Daboub: Negotiating a Balance Between Finance, Family & FulfillmentJuan José Daboub wanted nothing more as a sophomore at ND than to major in finance and become a successful investment banker. By the time he was a senior, that wish list had altered slightly but he spent two exciting years at Goldman Sachs before transitioning to BCG as a strategy consultant. A true extrovert, Juan José built relationships everywhere he went and credits active participation in a variety of corporate sponsored case competitions with giving him connections. insights, and new skills -- not to mention a little bit of extra pocket cash, which every college student appreciates. There was...2021-04-2749 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyLauren Longo: Cracking the Code on Business Analytics and ConsultingBusiness Analytics (BAN) was a brand new option when Lauren transferred into Mendoza at the start of her sophomore year. There were no upperclassmen to ask about the coursework or job prospects so it was a bit of a leap of faith. Still, Lauren liked the BAN pitch, and felt it would give her a breadth of knowledge and skills that included bits of all the majors and played to her strengths. And, having spent her first year in the College of Arts & Letters, it was a no-brainer to combine her new business curriculum with more of the Psychology...2021-04-2048 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyGenie Deez: Creative Energy in Perpetual MotionWhere to begin? When I met Eugene Staples, I knew immediately that he was a high energy, highly entertaining young man with many talents, ideas and dreams. I did not imagine that he'd pursue degrees in Marketing, Film, and Religion and create his own brand, Genie Deez, that is both a person and a multi-media company. And all before his 30th birthday. We talk about early struggles and why he's drawn to constant learning in both structured and organic ways every day. He explains the crazy work ethic that he credits to four years on the drumline with the N...2021-04-1354 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyMadison Boyle: Just Keep Swimming...It was her roommate's positive engineering internship and an invite to a great tailgate that put GE Healthcare on Madison's radar. But it was her curiosity and enthusiasm that got her in front of the right person to be considered for the Financial Management Program (FMP) and gave her two years rotating through a wide variety of options in the world of corporate finance at the start of her career. As a strong student who was still a bit unsure what exactly she wanted to do in the vast expanse of "finance," Madison sought out rotational programs that would s...2021-04-0651 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyMarch Highlighter EditionToday we are talking about the benefit of the deep dive...but maybe not in the way you think.Please check out the pod's sponsors, Fire Stationery and Velvet & Vine, for all your smart stationery and cute clothing needs. Find more on Alison @ https://linktr.ee/alisonlevey and please send any compliments, criticisms, suggestions or observations to me at openbooktestpodcast@gmail.com. If you've got good things to say, it'd be even better if you wrote those in an Apple review. 😉Thank you!!Support the show2021-03-3010 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyTony Michuda: Reverse Engineering the JourneyWhen he graduated from Notre Dame with a degree in Management Consulting, Tony didn't envision a journey through real estate to healthcare and, ultimately, his own start-up. But his natural inclination to jump at opportunities has put him in some interesting spaces and places. And whether he's standing in a NY high rise or a church parking lot in full PPE administering Covid tests, Tony feels well prepared to tackle the challenges thanks to a solid grounding in business and a strong EQ. His start-up, InHealth, has been literally on the front lines of the fight against Covid, first...2021-03-2346 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyJamie Dykstra: A Good Coach Changes the GameJamie's athletic side has always been a big part of her life whether she was playing, coaching or caring for athletes as a sports trainer. So maybe it shouldn't have surprised any of us when Jamie decided junior year to switch everything up so she could coach and teach back at her old high school. It was not an easy transition but training to be a teacher taught her at least as much about herself as it did about math and teaching methods. That created a second "AHA" moment and another shift to a career in banking that is...2021-03-1639 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyDemetrius Murphy: Life and Business in ContextPrior to starting grad school, Demetrius Murphy looked like he'd followed a fairly traditional path from a Management Consulting major to Advisory Services at PwC. But at no point was his path conventional. Rather, the right word might be contextual. Demetrius always viewed his dreams and options through the context of his whole life, not just his school or work life. And, as is often the case, the threads for where he is now were woven throughout his story right from the beginning. As a sociology PhD student now, he's still very interested in business, but his...2021-03-0948 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyAnnie Plachta: A Harvard MBA candidate makes her case.Annie is happily eating her words from college when she swore she'd never get an MBA, although she did add a quick caveat for HBS, which is where she happily landed in the fall of 2019. A 2015 Mendoza grad with a degree in Finance, Annie considered a variety of finance and consulting roles before landing at HBSC and then Golub Capital. She's back on the job market with another graduation this May, but she's focused on a variety of different factors as she carefully chooses her next step this time. Along the way she's learned that, while important, her job d...2021-03-0250 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyFebruary Highlighter EditionRaise your hand if a well-meaning adult has ever told you that the secret to success was simply to follow your passion. I talk in this episode about why that's my least favorite piece of advice. It's really not all that helpful since it's decidedly not specific and often, it only serves to create additional anxiety. And if you don't believe me, I love what Liz Gilbert (author of Eat, Pray, Love and City of Girls) has to say on the subject. In this first clip, she explains that there are two kinds of people, jackhammers & hummingbirds, and the wo...2021-02-2612 min
All Else EqualEpisode 21: To be (an economics major) or not to be w/Alison LeveyAlison is an alum of and former associate director of advising services in the Mendoza College of Business at Notre Dame. Currently, she splits her time authoring children's books, like "Ready Regan?", and hosting the podcast "The Open Book Test", where she talks to recent Notre Dame grads to discuss why they made the decisions they did as to major, career path etc. and together they reflect on how that all worked out. Music sampled from Nas - The World is Yours2021-02-2333 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyJake Bebar: You decide what is EPIC for you.Like so many of our guests, Jake Bebar didn't know what he wanted to major in when he started college. He actively tried a lot of different things, including jumping out of business at one point, before realizing that business can be a true force for good. He chose Management Consulting as a major and landed, almost by accident, in the healthcare industry, despite no healthcare background, specific knowledge, or, frankly, intrinsic interest. But he loves the shared sense of purpose and the matrix model of management and, at Epic, he's grown into the kind of...2021-02-2346 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveySteven Feczko: A Finance Major Takes Stock of His CareerAs he entered college, Steven was looking for a major that would both challenge him and set him on a path toward a fruitful career. He interned in corporate finance and as an equity research analyst before determining that consulting was the collaborative, team based environment in which he would thrive. He learned that succeeding isn’t the same as thriving, however, and was always taking stock of where he was and, more importantly, where else he might go. Inertia is often what keeps us in a perfectly good place instead of seeking out the next great thing. Ultimately, he...2021-02-1639 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyColleen Wade Spelder: Passion PersonifiedColleen Spelder came to ND for all the reasons that matter most but with no firm idea where to put her considerable energy in terms of an actual major. She ultimately picked Information Technology Management (ITM) and took those hard skills, upon graduation in 2015, into a rotational development program at Abbott. The company slogan is Life. To the Fullest. and that could be Colleen's personal motto as well. Those first two years as a working professional gave her marvelously rich and diverse experiences and set the stage for everything that followed. Along the way she also dove d...2021-02-0943 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyCam Kormylo: Teachable moments from a series of (un)fortunate events!Notre Dame was Cam's first choice for college but, in a trend that would continue, the choice was somewhat made for him due to a lack of other options. So, although his path was often defined by NOT getting exactly what he thought he wanted, he ultimately found something that kept his attention and curiosity so much that he decide to pursue it all the way to a PhD in Business Information Technology. This is not something a lot of business students consider but can be a very attractive option for all the reasons Cam shares. We also talk...2021-02-0241 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyJanuary Highlighter EditionA recurring theme from the January episodes is the idea of understanding your "why." This month's guests would agree that they didn't have a clear picture of their whole future, but they understood why they were making the choices they did at the time. So today, I share a little bit more of my background and how it led me to this place where I feel passionately about helping the next gen figure it out - at least better than I did. I'm a bit of a cautionary tale but I don't think my story is so different from...2021-01-2913 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyBrittany Sanok: Plot Twist - she didn't major in business!Brittany Sanok graduated from Notre Dame in 2016 with majors in English and Economics — so what is she doing on a business focused podcast? Turns out, students from all majors end up working in, wait for it, businesses. She just took one of the many and varied paths into a career, with Huron Consulting in her case. Brittany actually started as a business major, but made a shift sophomore year when the curriculum didn’t really speak to her. A bit of exposure gave her a few valuable skills and, most importantly, the confidence to suit up and attend the caree...2021-01-2637 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyKristina Hamilton: Food for thought on finance, curiosity, and authenticity.Kristina chose the very popular Finance major but then surprised everyone with a career path that was anything but typical when she graduated in 2013 and went into sales at General Mills. A self-described people person who bubbles over with genuine curiosity, Kristina asked a lot of questions of everyone she met and really listened to the answers. Her on campus jobs with the Career Center and as a campus ambassador for General Mills gave her more than pocket money. She discovered opportunities that might not otherwise have hit her radar and found clarity around what was going to be...2021-01-1945 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyMatt Lynch: The ABC's of Success (Accounting, Basketball & Communication)Matt majored in accounting in the classroom but got an education from Bookstore Basketball, and sports in general, from the sidelines. He spent five years at ND, graduating with a Masters of Science in Accountancy (MSA) in 2014, before joining Deloitte’s Audit team full-time in his hometown of St. Louis. So yes, he went from Mendoza to Deloitte, one of the Big 4 Accounting firms, which is a fairly common path for an Accounting major but, as he explains, the experience doesn’t have to be common - there’s lots of room for growth, variety, and new challenges. He says t...2021-01-1245 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyCate Hefele:The Story at the Heart of the JourneyCate's love of story and storytelling led her to a major in Marketing at Notre Dame but has also been the thread that she's actively sought out through a variety of roles in her career. One big, bold, very public pitch (followed by one audacious answer) led to a seven year, multi-role stint with the NFL. From there, she moved to McKinsey & Co., proving that you don't have to be on a particular path from the very beginning and can make career shifts as long as you're willing to put in the work (and tempt fate by inviting your...2021-01-0539 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyDecember Highlighter EditionHere's a new feature of the podcast. Each month we'll have a HIGHLIGHTER EDITION where I expand on a couple of the key themes that have come up in that month’s conversations. It's just a quick way for me to reinforce some really important concepts and advice while offering a few more resources and insights into the college experience as seen through the lens of an advisor who has met with thousands of students. But let me be clear, this is meant to be "in addition to" not "instead of" listening to the weekly conversations with my awesome gue...2020-12-2922 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyTaylor Osicek: Be proud of those pivots!Once upon a time, in a letter nominating Taylor for a significant leadership award (which she got btw), I wrote “if we could harness her energy, we could light a city.” And that hasn’t changed. Taylor’s enthusiasm is contagious and her students are incredibly lucky to have her leading, guiding, and growing right along side them. She’s a born teacher, but that career decision was a surprise pivot during her sophomore year as she was choosing a major in Management Consulting. And before you go thinking that a high school teacher can't teach you a lot about how bes...2020-12-2243 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyLuke Vandertie: Make it your business to learn about analytics!Luke Vandertie is a member of Mendoza's first graduating class with a major in Business Analytics (2019). Luke and I got to know each other, however, because he didn't start at ND in the College of Business so he had to fit a lot in to meet his 4-year graduation goal. At every juncture, Luke has been diligent in pursuit of his goals and has definitely done his homework. But he admits that sometimes there are blindspots and opportunities that just weren't on his radar so it's important to ask the right questions and continue to evaluate whether you're on...2020-12-1531 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyDillon Bailey: Leap and the net will appearThis week's guest is Dillon Bailey. Dillon graduated in 2011 with a major in Information Technology Management (ITM) and is now Director and Founder of his own web design firm, Honest Fox. Dillon's college journey started out traditionally enough with deep family connections to and love for Notre Dame that made it a no-brainer to say yes when he was accepted. A long-standing curiosity around computers made ITM an easy choice and a good fit. But life is what happens when we are busy making other plans and sometimes you just have to follow your gut even when the path i...2020-12-0837 minThe Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyIntroducing The Open Book Test Podcast w/Alison LeveyAlison takes ten minutes to introduce herself and explain her why behind launching this podcast. She also answers these burning questions: WHO should listen? WHAT will you hear? and WHY should you listen to EVERY episode regardless of your future plans? And as an added fun fact, she tells you all about her favorite Japanese concept of Ikigai. That's worth a couple minutes all on it's own. Find more on Alison @ https://linktr.ee/alisonlevey.Support the show2020-12-0111 min
The Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyHeather Eaton: Frankly, I think soft skills are underrated.My first interview is with 2014 grad, Heather Eaton, whose current day job is Co-Founder & CEO at Frankly. Majoring in Management Consulting gave her the skills to land a great job with Deloitte Consulting fresh out of ND, but also served her well as she pivoted into grad school and then as she built and launched her first startup. Heather is naturally driven, but shares that the drivers have shifted a bit over time as she's learned from her own experience and honed in on what motivates and intrigues her. She's a keen observer and all about helping you manage e...2020-12-0134 minThe Open Book Test Podcast with Alison LeveyThe Open Book Test is happening on December 1st!So many great conversations happened in my office when I was an academic advisor at Notre Dame. Lots of aha moments, laughter and the occasional tear, if I'm honest. Now you can be a fly on the wall and learn from those who are just a few years ahead of you. It's just a conversation, and it's open book, so no pressure and no stress. Join us on December 1st and every week after that to learn about resources and ideas you didn't even know you didn't even know. Support the show2020-11-1601 minAll Else EqualEpisode 5: The Ethics of College Football and Amateurism w/ Brian LeveyBrian Levey joined the Mendoza faculty in 2007 after a twenty-year legal career, most recently focused on building corporate ethics and compliance programs. He currently teaches the introductory undergraduate business law course, as well as several ethics classes in the undergraduate, graduate and executive programs. Levey is a recipient of the Rev. Edmund P. Joyce, C.S.C., Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, as well as the Master of Science in Accountancy Dincolo Outstanding Professor Award. In 2016, he was named a faculty fellow at Notre Dame's Kaneb Center for Teaching and Learning.Prior to joining the college...2020-09-1132 min
The Daily GardenerJuly 10, 2020 The Berries Migratory Birds Prefer, Favorite Garden Blogs, Asa Gray, Melville Thurston Cook, Elvin McDonald, Spiranthes parksii, Roy Lancaster, Summer Poetry, The Flower-Powered Garden by Andy Vernon, and Peruvian Black Rose SicknessToday we celebrate the man who established the science of botany in America. We'll also learn about the botanist who survived a plane crash in the Alaskan wilderness - an incredible story. We celebrate a presentation from 1977 that encouraged, "Take a pill if you will; I say take a plant to cope with everyday stress." We also learn about the little orchid that halted road construction in Louisiana and the British Plant Explorer that uncovered the orchid black market. Today's poetry features poems about summer. We Grow That Garden Library™ with a book about infusing your garden with more co...2020-07-1033 minThe Daily GardenerJanuary 30, 2020 Good Garden Decisions, African Violets, George Ehret, Adelbert von Chamisso, Yerba Buena, Louise Beebe Wilder, Ann Taylor, The Seed Underground by Janisse Ray, Garden Cloche, and Elizabeth WirtToday we celebrate the botanical illustrator who was wrongfully fired from his first job and the French botanist who spent a month in California with a boatful of Russians. We'll learn about the botanical name of the city where people leave their hearts, and we’ll fall in love with a classic garden writer from Bronxville, New York. Today’s Unearthed Words feature an English poet who loved gardens and wrote many poems about them. We Grow That Garden Library™ with a book that talks about the revolution that will save our food. I'll talk about a garden item that I...2020-01-3034 min
Infertile AF: Infertility and Modern Family BuildingSarah Today, Ali talks to Sarah Larson Levey, the founder and CEO of Y7 Studio. After talking about how Y7 yoga was a huge part of Ali's infertility story, they talk about Sarah's two devastating miscarriages, "being a complete hysterical fucking mess," the toll it took on her relationship, and how she managed this heavy emotional and physical stuff while building one of America's fastest-growing companies. Also: Sarah talks about how, even though she's five months pregnant now, it's still hard to fully relax.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/infertile-af/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: ht...2020-01-2258 minThe Daily GardenerDecember 10, 2019 Wild about Weeds, Botany at the Bar, Sweet Potatoes, Emily Dickinson, Howard Scott Gentry, Joseph Dalton Hooker, Carl English, A Year in Our Gardens by Nancy Goodwin and Allen Lacy, Herb Drier, and The Ungrateful GardenToday we celebrate the gardener poet known for writing “hope is the thing with feathers”, and the man who became the world authority on agaves. We'll learn about the Victorian botanist who was the first to speak in favor of Darwin’s theory and the man who created the Ballard Lock Garden in Seattle. We'll hear a December poem from the man known during the 20th century as the People's Poet. We Grow That Garden Library with a book of letters between two gardeners during the year between 1998 and 1999. I'll talk about an architectural element for your kitchen that makes...2019-12-1021 min