Strange Customs With Sasha Sagan podcast

Strange Customs with Sasha Sagan

26:18

How do you know when it’s time to make your next big career move? With International Women’s Day around the corner, we are excited to feature Avni Patel Thompson, Founder and CEO of Milo. Avni is building technology that directly supports the often overlooked emotional and logistical labor that falls on parents—especially women. Milo is an AI assistant designed to help families manage that invisible load more efficiently. In this episode, Avni shares her journey from studying chemistry to holding leadership roles at global brands like Adidas and Starbucks, to launching her own ventures. She discusses how she approaches career transitions, the importance of unpleasant experiences, and why she’s focused on making everyday life easier for parents. [01:26] Avni's University Days and Early Career [04:36] Non-Linear Career Paths [05:16] Pursuing Steep Learning Curves [11:51] Entrepreneurship and Safety Nets [15:22] Lived Experiences and Milo [19:55] Avni’s In Her Ellement Moment [20:03] Reflections Links: Avni Patel Thompson on LinkedIn Suchi Srinivasan on LinkedIn Kamila Rakhimova on LinkedIn Ipsos report on the future of parenting About In Her Ellement: In Her Ellement highlights the women and allies leading the charge in digital, business, and technology innovation. Through engaging conversations, the podcast explores their journeys—celebrating successes and acknowledging the balance between work and family. Most importantly, it asks: when was the moment you realized you hadn’t just arrived—you were truly in your element? About The Hosts: Suchi Srinivasan is an expert in AI and digital transformation. Originally from India, her career includes roles at trailblazing organizations like Bell Labs and Microsoft. In 2011, she co-founded the Cleanweb Hackathon, a global initiative driving IT-powered climate solutions with over 10,000 members across 25+ countries. She also advises Women in Cloud, aiming to create $1B in economic opportunities for women entrepreneurs by 2030. Kamila Rakhimova is a fintech leader whose journey took her from Tajikistan to the U.S., where she built a career on her own terms. Leveraging her English proficiency and international relations expertise, she discovered the power of microfinance and moved to the U.S., eventually leading Amazon's Alexa Fund to support underrepresented founders. Subscribe to In Her Ellement on your podcast app of choice to hear meaningful conversations with women in digital, business, and technology.…

Strange Customs with Sasha Sagan

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Why do we do things the way we do them? We take on customs from our ancestors, then teach them to the next generation, often without thinking. But when we take a step back, they can seem bizarre, arbitrary...and sometimes, profoundly beautiful. Join Sasha Sagan, author of "For Small Creatures Such as We," as she talks to smart, funny, interesting celebrities and scholars, uncovering just how weirdly wonderful we Earthlings can be.

15 episodes

15 subscribers

updated 2 years ago

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15 episodes

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Strange Customs with Sasha Sagan

1
Dario Robleto—The Special 1:07:05

2 years ago1:07:05

1:07:05

The season 1 finale of Strange Customs brings Sasha Sagan to an extraordinary Chicago exhibition for a conversation with the artist, Dario Robleto. Situated at the intersection of art and science, the show also has its inspiration and roots in Sasha's own family. We'll also hear from Harvard art historian Dr. Jennifer Roberts about the ways art and science share a mission to extend our vision beyond the horizon.…

Strange Customs with Sasha Sagan

1
Kiley Reid—The Care 52:59

2 years ago52:59

52:59

Host Sasha Sagan talks to NYT best-selling novelist KILEY REID ( Such a Fun Age ) about a tradition that has evolved out of necessity from family and community participation to an economic arrangement with strangers. We'll also hear from sociologist DR. TAMARA MOSE about the roots of the tradition that still echo in unfair practices today.…

Strange Customs with Sasha Sagan

1
Lily Rabe—The Exchange 54:52

2 years ago54:52

54:52

Sasha Sagan talks with actor-director LILY RABE about a supposedly heartwarming tradition that strikes terror and shame in both their hearts. We'll also hear from DR. ANDREA VOYER , a sociologist and historian of social norms at Stockholm University, about her research using etiquette as a lens on changing societies.…

Strange Customs with Sasha Sagan

1
Bill Nye—The Rhythm 58:08

2 years ago58:08

58:08

Sasha is joined by science communicator BILL NYE and historian of technology DAVID ROONEY to discuss a concept that measures, slices, defines, and controls our lives more than any other. Bill Nye photo by Neil Grabowsky / Montclair Film under CC-BY 2.0

Strange Customs with Sasha Sagan

1
Greg Epstein—The Transformation 57:47

2 years ago57:47

57:47

Sasha Sagan talks with humanist rabbi GREG EPSTEIN about an ancient tradition they both participate in each year, with themes and messages they find both inspiring and abhorrent. How can a thoughtful person engage a tradition shot through with such contradictions? We'll also hear from historian of religion DR. CAROLE CUSACK about how this tradition and others like it connect with the deep cycles of the earth and its creatures.…

Strange Customs with Sasha Sagan

1
Kirsten Dunst—The Trick 44:10

2 years ago44:10

44:10

Actor KIRSTEN DUNST tells Sasha about the big lie she told her husband, the constant lies that bond her to her son—and why it's all good. We'll also hear from folklorist DR. JEANA JORGENSEN about the cross-cultural history of messing with each other.

Strange Customs with Sasha Sagan

1
Sarafina El-Badry Nance—The Grasp 57:21

2 years ago57:21

57:21

Sasha Sagan talks to astrophysicist SARAFINA EL-BADRY NANCE about the way we bring the world into our awareness and keep it there. We'll also hear from USC neuroscience researcher MARY HELEN IMMORDINO-YANG about the unexpected ways we achieve this everyday process.

Strange Customs with Sasha Sagan

1
Troian Bellisario—The Portal 59:32

2 years ago59:32

59:32

Sasha Sagan talks to actor TROIAN BELLISARIO ( Pretty Little Liars, Life on Mars) about a tradition older than our species, and the unusual (and slightly terrifying) way Troian once experienced it. We'll also hear from professor and author RANDI HUTTER EPSTEIN ( Get Me Out: A History of Childbirth from the Garden of Eden to the Sperm Bank ) about the often strange and disturbing history of the tradition.…

Strange Customs with Sasha Sagan

1
Amanda Montell—The Code 53:37

2 years ago53:37

53:37

Sasha Sagan talks to author and linguist AMANDA MONTELL about our strange habit of communicating with patterns of vibrations emanating from our faces. We’ll also hear from linguist DR. SONJA LANEHART about how these patterns vary, spread, and change—and how they help define who and what we are.

Strange Customs with Sasha Sagan

1
Katie Lowes and Adam Shapiro—The Rock 51:53

2 years ago51:53

51:53

Sasha Sagan sits down with actors KATIE LOWES and ADAM SHAPIRO to explore a common custom that seems rooted in antiquity but is younger than Cher. We’ll also hear from author RACHAEL LENNON about the surprising origins of the custom and how we might coax it away from its problematic features and into the 21st century.…

Strange Customs with Sasha Sagan

1
Andrew Seidel—The Lines 45:32

2 years ago45:32

45:32

Sasha Sagan talks to constitutional attorney ANDREW SEIDEL and professor of criminology DR. MEREDITH ROSSNER about an area of life that we don't usually think of as being full of ritual. But it's saturated with it—for better and worse.

Strange Customs with Sasha Sagan

1
Nicole Richie—The Conspiracy 39:10

2 years ago39:10

39:10

Sasha Sagan talks to NICOLE RICHIE about her long, happy relationship with a very common, very strange custom. We'll also hear from experimental psychologist DR. ROHAN KAPITANY , a specialist in rituals and supernatural beliefs, about this and other lesser deities who populate the minds of our children—usually because we put them there ourselves.…

Strange Customs with Sasha Sagan

1
Jedidiah Jenkins—The Surface 51:02

2 years ago51:02

51:02

Sasha sits down with author and adventurer JEDIDIAH JENKINS to explore a human custom that can be fun and games—or life and death. We’ll also hear from historian JORDAN GIRARDIN about the surprising origins of the custom and the ways we're still not getting it quite right.

Strange Customs with Sasha Sagan

1
Brandon Kyle Goodman—The Paper 41:45

2 years ago41:45

41:45

Why do we do things the way we do them? Sasha Sagan kicks off Strange Customs with actor, author, and activist BRANDON KYLE GOODMAN in a thoughtful and hilarious conversation about an ancient custom that is a major part of Brandon’s life—but one they couldn’t have participated in even a few years ago. We’ll also hear from historian STEPHANIE COONTZ about how changeable and varied this “traditional” custom has actually been over the centuries.…

Strange Customs with Sasha Sagan

1
Welcome to Strange Customs with Sasha Sagan 2:09

2 years ago2:09