The 24 Year Overnight Success – Lisa Gelobter on Delayed Degrees and Disrupting Systems

Silicon Valley loves the story of a College Dropout Founder – the genius who was just too brilliant for school. The implication of these stories is that of course they could graduate if they wanted to… it just wouldn’t be worth their time. But for every one of those, there are countless others who leave not because they want to, but because they have to.

Computer scientist, Technologist, and tEQuitable Founder, Lisa Gelobter was one of them. And while finances played a big part, so did her deep struggle with something intrinsic to college coursework. Writing. Math and code came easy, but writing a paper was like being forced to write in perfect script with your left hand… despite being right-handed. The vision was there, but the execution felt impossible.

In this episode, Lisa opens up about the 24-year long road to her college degree – a commitment she made to herself while doing groundbreaking work on the invention of Shockwave and holding leadership roles at Hulu, BET, and even the Obama Administration.

Plus, Lisa chats with Brenda about the sources of her confidence, the power of perseverance and how to accept your limitations – without ever letting them limit you.

/lisagelobter

And Find out more about tEQuitable on the web – .tequitable.com

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At AnitaB.org, our mission is to enable and equip women technologists with the tools, resources, and knowledge they need to thrive. Through innovative programs and initiatives, we empower women to chart new paths, better prepared to lead, advance, and achieve equitable compensation. Because when women succeed, they uplift their communities and redefine success on their terms, both professionally and personally.

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Our guests contribute to this podcast in their personal capacity. The views expressed in this interview are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology or its employees (“AnitaB.org”). AnitaB.org is not responsible for and does not verify the accuracy of the information provided in the podcast series. The primary purpose of this podcast is to educate and inform. This podcast series does not constitute legal or other professional advice or services.

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B The Way Forward Is…

Hosted and Executive Produced by Brenda Darden Wilkerson.

Produced by Avi Glijansky

Associate Produced by Kelli Kyle

Sound design and editing by Ryan Hammond 

Mixing and mastering by Julian Kwasneski 

Additional Producing help from Faith Krogulecki

Operations Coordination for AnitaB.org by Quinton Sprull.

Creative Director for AnitaB.org is Deandra Coleman

Executive Produced by Dominique Ferrari, Stacey Book, and Avi Glijansky for Frequency Machine 

Photo of Brenda Darden Wilkerson by Mandisa Media Productions

For more ways to be the way forward, visit AnitaB.org