Show Notes

Episode 73: RENAISSANCE with Sandra Chu, Executive Search Consultant, Former NCAA Rowing Coach, and All-Ivy League Student-Athlete

About the Guest

Sandra Chu is a former collegiate rowing coach turned higher education consultant with a storied and multi-faceted career trajectory. With over 22 years of coaching experience and notable achievements, including National, Regional, and League Coach of the Year honors, Sandra transitioned into her current role at WittKieffer, seeking more alignment with her skills and the broader mission of higher education. She holds an impressive academic background with a master’s from NYU and a BA from Princeton, where she was an All-Ivy League student-athlete.

Summary

In this episode of “Becoming UnDone,” host Toby Brooks sits down with Sandra Chu, whose journey exemplifies the essence of transformation from a deeply invested athletic coach to a driven higher education consultant. Sandra shares her personal and professional evolution, revealing how critical life choices led her to reevaluate her identity, values, and career.

Sandra’s story is nothing short of inspiring. Starting with her bold step into the world of collegiate rowing at Princeton, to her significant contributions as a rowing coach, and eventual transition into executive search, Sandra has continuously pivoted towards growth and fulfillment. This episode plunges into the narrative of someone who, despite considerable success and recognition, dared to redirect her professional compass amidst the onset of COVID-19 and personal introspection.

Key Takeaways

• Sandra Chu reflects on her decision to leave collegiate coaching to focus on family and explore her potential in higher education consultancy.
• COVID-19 played a significant role in Sandra’s career transition, providing her a time of reflection and re-evaluation of her professional identity.
• The episode highlights the importance of self-advocacy and the power to overcome imposter syndrome, a common barrier Sandra assists candidates with in her current role.
• Sandra shares her perspective on the ability to view beyond job titles and recognize the worth of skills in varying contexts, drawing parallels with her own career shift.
• Mentorship and seeing potential in others, a theme pervasive in Sandra’s coaching career, remains an integral part of her approach as a consultant.

Quotes

• “What did we learn during COVID? We learned what was important to us. And what I learned was that there were many things that I did as a coach, which at the time when that ended and I was unemployed, felt like, oh shoot, I made this terrible mistake, and this was a big part of my identity. And Covid helped me understand that the identity was the skill.”
• “I like to think of myself as someone who sees possibilities, unearths or surfaces those for the folks that I work with and intersect with, whether that was students that I mentored as athletes or with clients and candidates that I work with today.”

Contact

• Sandra Chu on LinkedIn
• Sandra at WittKieffer