A powerful reflection on how family, friends, and mentors shaped a career journey from physiotherapy to data analytics, emphasizing that success is never achieved alone.
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When my mother broke her leg, I rushed home and stayed by her side. As her daughter and physiotherapist, I helped her recover, learning that caregiving means staying present, even when you can't take the pain away.
Yashita Sahu · In Her Own Words
Her Story
About Yashita
About
Yashita Sahu is a Senior Business Data Analyst at Candid, a nonprofit organization, where she has spent the past three years supporting sales, marketing, research, and data teams through analytics, reporting, and data-driven insights.
At Candid, Yashita has contributed to impactful research and strategic initiatives. Her research analyzing more than 50,000 nonprofit organizations found that organizations demonstrating greater transparency received more than 61% higher funding. She also led migration reporting and stakeholder communication for a major product consolidation initiative, partnering closely with the VP of Finance, VP of Growth, Product, and Data teams to support a smooth transition.
Before joining Candid, Yashita worked as a contractor at BMW and held several roles with organizations in India, including Allen Career Institute. Her career reflects a diverse combination of healthcare, business management, education, and data analytics.
Yashita holds a Bachelor's degree in Physiotherapy and a Postgraduate Diploma in Management from India, followed by a Master of Science in Business Analytics from Montclair State University in the United States. Her international education and professional experience have given her a broad cross-cultural perspective and a strong foundation for working with diverse teams and business challenges.
She credits much of her journey to the support of her family and daughter. She values empathy, honesty, continuous learning, and the willingness to embrace new technologies. As analytics continues to evolve with technologies such as generative AI and Agentic AI, she believes professionals especially young women entering the field should stay focused, complete projects from beginning to end to build well-rounded skills, and continuously invest in learning and upskilling.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Yashita
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to my family, especially my parents and my daughter, and to the kindness of the people who have supported me along the way.
My parents have always been incredibly supportive of whatever I chose to pursue. Coming from a culture where divorce is not always easily accepted, making the decision to leave an arranged marriage that was no longer working for me was difficult. My parents stood by me and supported my decision, including helping me financially with my master's education. Their support gave me the confidence to move forward and rebuild my life.
My daughter has also been a tremendous source of motivation. When I was in graduate school, balancing classes, parenting, and everything else was challenging. There were times when friends stepped in to care for my daughter so I could attend classes and continue my education. I will always be grateful for that support.
Looking back, I realize that I didn't get here alone. My family believed in me, my friends helped me when I needed them, and many people showed me kindness at important moments in my life. Their support has shaped who I am and continues to motivate me to keep learning, growing, and creating a better future for my daughter.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would say a couple of things. First, stay focused. The data and technology field is changing very quickly, and it can be easy to get distracted by everything happening around you. If you start something, see it through to completion. Don't just work on something halfway and move on to the next thing. Completing projects from beginning to end is how you develop a complete understanding and build strong, well-rounded skills.
I would also say not to get discouraged by the current job market. It can be challenging to find the right opportunities, but that doesn't mean you should give up. Stay focused on what you want, continue building your skills, and keep up with emerging technologies.
Technology is evolving rapidly, particularly with generative AI and Agentic AI, so continuous learning is more important than ever. Keep upskilling, stay curious, and be patient with yourself. If you remain focused and keep learning, you will eventually find your path and create opportunities for yourself.
03What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
I think the biggest challenge is that technology is evolving so quickly. As a data professional, you have to constantly keep yourself updated. You finish one certification, and then there is already another technology, tool, or skill you need to learn. Keeping up with that pace can be challenging.
At the same time, I see that as a tremendous opportunity. AI is developing rapidly, particularly in areas such as generative AI and Agentic AI. The more we understand these technologies and learn how to apply them to our work, the more we can transform the way we approach data and analytics.
I believe the biggest opportunities are in automation and precision. Many tasks that we currently perform manually can eventually be automated with greater speed and accuracy. For data professionals, learning how to work alongside AI—not just compete with it—will be increasingly important.
So while the pace of change can feel challenging, I also see it as an opportunity to continuously learn, become more efficient, and create greater value through technology.
04What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The values that are most important to me are empathy, honesty, perseverance, and continuous learning.
I believe empathy is important both personally and professionally. Everyone has their own challenges and experiences, and taking the time to understand different perspectives helps build stronger relationships and better teams.
Honesty is another value I try to carry into everything I do. Whether I'm working with data, collaborating with stakeholders, or making decisions, I believe in being transparent and doing the right thing.
Perseverance has also played a very important role in my life. There have been challenging moments in my personal and professional journey, but I have learned that staying focused and continuing to move forward can make a tremendous difference.
Finally, I value continuous learning. In the data and technology field, you cannot stop learning because the industry is constantly changing. I try to carry that mindset into my personal life as well remaining curious, learning from others, and being open to new experiences.
For me, these values are not just professional principles; they are part of how I try to live my life.
Her Content Hub
Articles by Yashita
The Village That Helped Me Build My Career
How the support of family, friends, and mentors shaped my path from physiotherapy to data analytics.
The Village That Helped Me Build My Career
When people look at my career today, they may see a Senior Business Data Analyst, years of experience, a master's degree, and a professional journey in the United States. What they may not see is the village of people who helped me get here.
My career journey has not been a straight line. I began my professional life in physiotherapy, later moved into management, and eventually found my path in data and analytics. Along the way, I moved from India to the United States, returned to university, built a new career, and became a mother while navigating significant changes in my personal life.
There were moments when rebuilding my life felt overwhelming. But I was fortunate to have people around me who reminded me that I did not have to do everything alone.
I come from a culture where marriage carries significant importance, and I had an arranged marriage. When I eventually realized that my marriage was not working for me, making the decision to move forward was difficult. It required courage, but it also required support.
My parents were that support.
They stood by me when I chose to rebuild my life and continue my education. They supported my decision to pursue my master's degree in the United States and helped me financially with my tuition. More importantly, they gave me something that was even more valuable: the confidence that I could start again.
Their support taught me that sometimes the people who believe in you before you believe in yourself become the foundation for everything you accomplish later.
Then there was my daughter.
Being a mother while pursuing higher education and building a career brought an entirely different set of challenges. There were classes to attend, assignments to complete, exams to prepare for, and a child who needed me.
I remember those years vividly.
There were times when I couldn't simply leave my daughter with someone and go to class. My friends stepped in. They babysat her so that I could attend my classes and continue my education.
Those moments may have seemed small to them, but they were enormous to me.
Every time someone watched my daughter so I could attend class, every time my parents encouraged me to continue, and every time a friend reminded me that I could handle one more difficult day, they were helping me build the future I was working toward.
That is why I don't think of my career as something I built alone.
I built it with a village.
Today, as I work in business data analytics, I carry those experiences with me. My professional journey has taught me the importance of adaptability, but my personal journey has taught me something even more important: success is rarely an individual achievement.
Behind many successful women are people whose contributions may never appear on a résumé.
Parents who make sacrifices.
Friends who show up when you need them.
Teachers and mentors who open doors.
Children who become a source of motivation.
And communities that remind us that asking for help is not a weakness.
My daughter has been one of my greatest motivations. I wanted her to see that life does not always follow the path we imagine, and that changing direction does not mean failing.
Sometimes, starting over is an act of strength.
My own career is an example of that. I moved from physiotherapy to management and eventually into data analytics. I had to learn new skills, adapt to new environments, and continually prove to myself that I could succeed in a field different from where I started.
And I am still learning.
Technology continues to change rapidly, particularly with generative AI and Agentic AI. As professionals, we have to keep learning and adapting. But the qualities that helped me navigate the biggest changes in my life—curiosity, empathy, honesty, perseverance, and the willingness to keep moving forward—are just as important in my career today.
If there is one lesson I would share with another woman who is facing a major transition, it is this:
You don't have to have your entire life figured out before you take the next step.
Take the next step.
Find your people.
Accept the help.
Keep learning.
And don't underestimate the example you are setting for the people who are watching you—especially your children.
I often think about the people who helped me during those difficult years. They may not realize how much their kindness changed my life.
My parents supporting my education. My friends caring for my daughter while I was in class. My daughter giving me another reason to keep going.
These people are part of my story.
So when I look at my career today, I don't see just my accomplishments.
I see a village.
And I am deeply grateful for every person who helped me build it.
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