Elizabeth Isaly

I think a few things have contributed to my success. I'm pretty competitive, so I think that helps. I love to learn and constantly want to be in a position where I am learning and can be a sponge, and I think that has really helped me too. Another thing is just humility and flexibility. I think that's huge. You might not always be doing a task or something that you want to do, but it's best for the team, and I think having humility in that is important. At the end of the day, we're all people, and we're all working with people, and I think it's just important to remember that. You never know what other people are doing or going through, and so I think being a team player has also been a huge part of it for me too.

I don't know if it's the best career advice that I've ever received, but something that I've been told that I try to live by is to never think there's a question that's silly. Always ask good questions. I think that, especially whenever you're in an industry like consulting and you're kind of just figuring it out as a junior professional, you should always ask questions. Especially as I'm transitioning into my role working at a startup, there's going to be ambiguity, and I think I'm going to have to bring that into my next role too. No question is silly. I think it makes you smarter and sharper, and so that's just something that I always live by. It's good to be inquisitive.

I would say, for women in general, it's good to be fearless and be confident in yourself and know what you bring to the table. I think as women, it's really important that we are confident in ourselves, know our abilities, know what we're capable of, and are not afraid to let that show. We don't want to diminish or try to fit into a certain box. We bring so much to the table, and I think it's so important to not shy away from that and not be afraid to be yourself, not be afraid to speak up. That is what I would say.

Broadly, in healthcare, it's imperfect. I think nobody has it figured out in any way, and so I think that there is so much opportunity to just improve the larger system no matter where we are. There are really interesting, difficult problems to think through because it's not easy. I think it's one of the most complex industries out there. Having the opportunity to get to think through these challenges and ultimately drive towards a place where we can improve our healthcare system in the U.S. is both the challenge and an opportunity.

In work, integrity is a huge one. I think having a positive, optimistic view on everything is important. Being relentless is also something that's good, and being always geared toward growth. In personal life, I am definitely a person of faith, and so my personal values definitely skew that way. I think it's always good to have faith and grace for people. You never know what anyone is going through, and so I think that's extremely important. Integrity, trust, all of those good things are important to me.