“Up until my hysterectomy, I would push myself into a burnout cycle before I would change anything. But the hysterectomy forced me to take a lot of stuff off my plate because I knew my focus had to be on healing for four to six weeks. And a lot of what I took off my plate, did not come back on. Because I saw team members handling it better than I ever could. That’s not to say my plate is empty, but it is ‘joyfully full’ with things I really want to do. Either because they bring me joy or they’re things only I can do, given the role I have within my companies, and time in life for my kids,” said Hitha Palepu, Pharmaceutical Leader, Author, Speaker, and Entrepreneur.
Although women are gaining traction in STEM fields they’re still underrepresented in traditional industries like pharma. Despite its outsized influence on women’s health, few women rise into the C-Suite and the numbers for women of color are even worse. Yet Hitha successfully combines leadership, in an exacting field, with a portfolio of creative pursuits. She explained, “If I’m going to do this really big job, in this particular field, then I need to balance it with something very artistic on the other side.”
Last year when Hitha needed a hysterectomy, she reassessed everything she was doing. Including her professional interests, schedule, support systems, and priorities. Although she admits, still needing a “finer filter” to protect her time, she’s mastered the art of managing her varied professional endeavors with grace and intentionality.
Honor What Fuels You
Hitha explained, “I choose to spend my time in a myriad of different ways and call myself a multi-hyphenate. Because I refuse to shrink into society’s predetermined boxes. Right now, I lead a pharmaceutical company developing injectable aspirin for hospital use. And I also care very much about cultivating really thoughtful content.”
Most of us internalize society’s hidden rules about what we can and can’t do, especially after having kids. But when you diversify your professional brand, it can lead to greater freedom and flexibility. So, how can you design and build your own beautiful path”
Follow the Serendipity
Hitha started writing to curate and share discoveries, news, and observations, around the same time she began her pharma career. “I traveled so much for my pharmaceutical job that it gave me an opportunity to talk about packing and travel from a very authentic perspective. At the time, other people were creating the, ‘quit your job and sell your possessions’ type of content. But no one was really creating content for how most people traveled, which is a few business trips and vacations. So, when I stumbled upon that niche, I decided I was going to go ‘all in’ and it grew into a book deal.”
And Define Your Career, Your Way
Hitha loved writing the book but wanted to cover a broader range of topics. She explained, “I never wanted to be pigeonholed into any one thing. And I had specific experiences that nudged me closer to defining myself as a multi-hyphenate. I chose to stop blogging, despite having an incredibly popular blog at the time, because I needed to focus on my pharmaceutical career. I was also expecting my second son so, I knew something had to give. And that was the choice I made to manage my bandwidth.”
Focus Your Energy
Hitha has learned to dial commitments up or down, based on her overall goals, which change over time. “I took a break from writing the blog because my job was very demanding.” The discipline of writing the blog, however, gave her the structure to write her first book on how to pack. After a while, she decided to archive the blog and focus on other channels.
She added, “It helps to know what you can handle at any given time. My content is mostly focused on Instagram and my newsletter because I don’t have capacity to do anything beyond that right now"
Align Your Priorities with Your Values
When combining career growth and parenting, it’s common to face values conflicts and tradeoffs at each stage. But having clear priorities, helps you decide what to say ‘yes’ to. Hitha said, “As children get older, they need you in very different ways, and that is very apparent to me right now. My 8-year-old doesn’t need me to give him a bath anymore, brush his teeth or even read him a book, but he needs time with me every single day to talk about his day. So, I’ve started saying no to evening activities a lot more.”
Set Limits on Your Time
Finding the right formula to manage your time and energy, tends to be iterative. Especially when you’re multi-passionate. Hitha said, “I still need to say no more often, it’s a work in progress. We’ve maintained weekends as family time without any external commitments. And now, I try to limit evening events to only two per week.”
Although Moms tend to drown in guilt when we?re away from our kids, part of that is social conditioning. So, find what works for your family based on the ages, independence, personalities, and health, of your children.
Build Your Ideal Care Team
Hitha said, “There are times it feels important for me to show up for certain friends’ birthdays or events. But it’s done at a time where my kids are with a grandparent or caregiver, they have a great relationship with. So, it feels like a fun outing for them. When I’m not with them, I make sure they’re getting full attention and love from someone who really cares about them.”
Childcare continues to be a challenge for many families. Although the crisis isn’t new, it worsened during the pandemic. But whether it’s your nanny, daycare, afterschool program or grandparent-care, having childcare you feel good about makes everything from work commitments to self-care, easier. So, it’s worth finding what suits your needs.
Make Time for Meaningful Connection ?
Hitha explained, “My husband and I have retooled our schedules to be able to pick up the kids from school as much as we possibly can. Because if we’re able to have that walk home and snack time with them, even on the rare nights we might have to go out after, then I’ve given them the time and attention. And having that afternoon touch point, not just the morning touch point to reconnect, is something they need and I need.”
Honor Changes to Your Health
Although hysterectomies are incredibly common, they’re rarely discussed. And Hitha felt strongly about sharing her story to make it easier for other women and enlist support during her recovery. She admits, it’s still challenging to say no to great opportunities. We discussed the added complexity many women of color feel.
“It?s the fear that if we say ‘no’ to an opportunity, that opportunity is not going to come back to us or someone who looks like us. So, I used to beat myself up and I’m still trying to unlearn this narrative and write a new one based on what I know to be true. That what is meant for me won’t miss me.” Beautiful!
Many thanks to the talented Hitha Palepu!
Check out HItha’s amazing newsletter, #5SmartReads and follow her great adventure on Instagram. She is also the author of two delightful books, How to Pack: Travel Smart for Any Trip and We’re Speaking: The Life Lessons of Kamala Harris: How to Use Your Voice, Be Assertive and Own Your Story.
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About Hitha:
Hitha Palepu is a consummate multi-hyphenate. She is an entrepreneur, author, and speaker. She is the CEO of Rhoshan Pharmaceuticals, whose lead product was acquired by Hyloris Pharmaceuticals. She is the author of We?re Speaking: The Life Lessons of Kamala Harris (Little, Brown Spark) and How To Pack: Travel Smart for Any Trip (Clarkson Potter). Hitha lives in NYC with her husband and two sons.
