Interview: Prasha Dutra, TEDx Speaker, Award-Winning Podcaster & Women in STEM Coach

By Angela Tai

When did you first become interested in engineering?

That’s a good question. As far as I can remember, I was always interested. I grew up in India and we have a pretty vast train system there so I was constantly traveling by train as a child. I remember being fascinated by the engine in the front and I asked my dad to explain to me how an engine works. We didn’t have a printer at the time so my dad printed it out for me at his work. I don’t even know if I understood how it all worked but I just remember being up all night because I was so interested. We used to watch a lot of “How It’s Made” on Discovery Channel so I was always very curious about how things worked. Discovery Channel definitely played a huge role in our lives, we watched it all the time. The beauty around us is created through so many complex processes. Metals are so hard to form into different shapes and sizes - that always interested me. Ever since I can remember, I’ve wanted to be an engineer. My dad was very invested in my career and I did well at school and I was very good at Math so that did help. 

In your mind, what are some of the biggest misconceptions people have about engineers? 

Yeah. I think one of the biggest ones is that it is boring and it’s not! I think it’s so exciting and filled with different possibilities, people just don’t have an appreciation for engineering in general. Tech is becoming such a big part of our lives but I think the basic engineering fields are what have brought us to this point. If it wasn’t for power distribution, basic infrastructure, electricity or product distribution, we wouldn’t be talking about everything else today. These are basic engineering fields so it’s the lack of appreciation for all the stuff that engineers do for the world not just in tech but in a very cross-functional manner. I feel sad that people don’t appreciate that. I think it’s a misconception that engineering is all either tech or all boring. It’s actually really cool and interesting. 

On your Instagram, you’re an advocate of helping women believe in their brilliance and in turn take action in their careers. Research has shown that one of the main reasons women do not enter the STEM field is due to a lack of representation and confidence. What is your view on this? Do you have any personal experience where you feel like an outlier in your industry?

I think retention is definitely a big problem; the barrier to entry is one of these problems because if you go into those interview rooms and don’t see yourself working with the people who are interviewing you and if you can sense the bias then it’s really hard. If you don’t see women or minorities in the field, it’s difficult to feel accepted. My personal experience has been a bit different. I grew up in a household with two cops and my mom was one of the first lady officers in her department so she had to fight for her position. She was one amongst 100 men who joined the program in the early 1980s so she was a badass. I grew up in a confident household and always felt very secure and confident with myself. I don’t even think I knew what the real issue was. It just wasn’t in my mindset; I didn’t consider myself to be an outlier. I didn’t see myself as a woman and person of color, I didn’t have those tags in mind because I was doing what I really enjoyed and I was very confident in it. I obviously have to recognize my privilege from a lot of standpoints, the first one being education which automatically gives you a bit of a different reality than if you don’t have an education. On top of it, being southeast Asian in STEM fields, we do carry a good stereotype and that protects us from a lot of other stereotypes that might not be favorable to other people of color or other minorities. Were there issues? Absolutely. I didn’t have my parents or family or any money here so it wasn’t without its challenges but I always felt welcomed. But I looked at it as maybe I can help women so that they can have similar experiences. Changing the world isn’t easy, there are so many biases that have to be taken care of but we will continue to make more progress. I’m trying to translate my upbringing into real life here. How can I give women whatever I have and whatever I’ve learned so that they won’t feel like an outlier? I want every woman to get to the point where they’re telling themselves, “I’m more than enough, and I belong here and nothing’s going to stop me from speaking my mind.”

You host Her STEM Story, a weekly podcast that helps women in STEM excel in their STEM careers and beyond. In an age where people are absorbing so much content, what went into your thought process when you were thinking of ways to make your podcast stand out?

That’s a great question and I think it can be overwhelming at first because there’s so much content. Whenever I’m starting a creative venture or project, I always like to reflect back on how I did it for previous creative projects. There’s no need to do a ton of research. I started Her STEM Story as a creative outlet; for me, it was just like if one person hears this, that would be great. I started from scratch and with no pressure, I wanted to create something sustainable and fun. I just wanted people to get value from this and you have to evolve quickly. You can’t get stuck, you can’t say “this is the logo” and that’s it. You should always continue to try new things, my podcast has really evolved and it’s more about figuring out what works and not being too attached when you haven’t even started. It’s important to be attached to the idea so that you can create content for the long-run which is what will ultimately contribute to the success of your project. 

Growing up in India, did you feel like women in the STEM field were treated differently than let’s say in America?

Yep, I think it’s a positive thing for India in this case. When I look at it from a community standpoint, I’ve been in this space for long enough to understand that these are systemic issues in the US. In India, there’s a lot of bias surrounding remote work, especially if it relates to women having to be taken care of or taking care of the household. But there are many India’s within India, my experience is very specific to Delhi, India. My experience definitely isn’t that of entire India and I remember traveling to different parts of India and my mom was like, “we don’t even know this India.” What I do remember very clearly is that if you were good at your studies, there were no cultural barriers to you pursuing whatever you wanted to. Then, your family decides what’s next - arranged marriage or whatever else that may be. Basic education in India means a bachelor’s degree and furthering your education means a master’s degree but I think that’s encouraged in bigger middle-class families. We had to get through entrance exams and it was very competitive. I just never heard, “because you’re a girl you can’t be an engineer” or “you shouldn’t go into tech because you’re a girl.” I heard it in college when there were only about four girls in my class. In India, women are usually very into the sciences and most of our teachers were women. Almost all of our classmates ended up becoming doctors and gender was never once considered a barrier to entry. In America, the first comment I ever got, which was so bizarre for me, came from a man that I had just met. I asked him what he did for a living and he said that I wouldn’t understand. He later went on to say that he makes barcode printing machines and he said that girls don’t understand all of that complicated stuff. You don’t need to be an engineer to know what barcode scanning is, I’ve seen much more of a progressive mindset in India and being an engineer is not a big deal over there. Of course, it depends on your social circle and where you’re from in India. I thought India was better in that sense because nobody says that just because you’re a girl, you shouldn’t do this or that. 

You talked about women often leaving the STEM field during your TEDx talk. A lot of people, men, and women are pushing for more women and POC in STEM. But with that, employers have the responsibility to harbor an environment that retains and encourages women and POC to thrive, whether it’s having representation from the top down or have communities and mentorship programs which you spoke about during your talk. Can you elaborate more on that? 

Oh, for sure. I think employers have a huge task at hand and I think aside from the diversity, it’s going to quickly turn into a financial problem. There are so many open positions and there are millions of jobs being listed every day but they’re not being filled and it’s only a matter of time until companies put two and two together and this becomes a big issue. We have this huge problem that has been brewing for a long time and BLM did a great job of capturing the attention of large corporations. I think the focus should be on getting girls in STEM fields, girls are very smart and if you look at the numbers, we’re getting very close to a 50% rate for women who are pursuing an engineering degree. Women do get more degrees than men but they’re still the primary caretakers so they’re not getting to those rooms where they can make decisions or get promoted while men do. I put the responsibility on myself since I think that’s one thing I can control. I’m actually in one of the diversity meetings at work after this call, industries have a responsibility and they need to work on it. Mentorship is important and I say relatable role models, which are people like you and me, and maybe we can see each other grow that way. Instagram has been great for me, I have seen real women on the platform doing these amazing things. If I see these women doing incredible things, I feel so inspired and want to help women get to that room much faster. I knew so many amazing women and that’s part of why I started my podcast, we were all mechanical engineers from different parts of the world and I think we need to start talking about those people and learn from them. It’s important to talk about what STEM needs to do differently and we need to learn how companies are retaining the best talent. Minorities don’t care enough about diversity in order to push it and they think it sounds more like a charity cause. There’s so much more that we can do and that’s one of the reasons why we started the show. One way we’ve been doing this is by finding people that are two to three steps ahead of us and then following them on any of these platforms, including Clubhouse, which I’m still learning to use. I think people talk so much about achievement and we really forget that struggles are what connect us and it can be a great conversation starter and can really benefit the person who’s trying to learn something. Learning about someone’s struggles can really make you feel connected to them and they’ll start opening up as soon as you ask a deeper question. You can even ask these questions in the initial conversation, these are really easy questions to ask. I think knowing small details about people is key. I always ask what someone’s favorite book is and that also opens up a conversation to talk about something else. I think the older generation completely loses their minds and they’ll love it because you care enough to ask about these little details. These VP’s and CEO’s - yes they’re so great but you can humanize them too. 

Reflecting back on your life. What were your expectations prior to moving to the U.S. and how did your expectations compare to the reality you faced once you landed here?

Bollywood sells like no tomorrow, every hero is in America and everything in our media in India is very western-oriented so I really expected all Bollywood music to go off as soon as I landed in America but jokes aside, I think my initial expectation was nothing at all. I think being a first-gen immigrant, you really don’t have expectations, you’re very stressed that this has to work. You get a one-way ticket and you commit to changing your life, you’re so in the moment all the time. My husband is American and we think about all the things he has done and he has had so much privilege in the sense that if he did something wrong, he’d get another chance. But that wasn’t the case for me, I think you have to be careful every step of the way and the goal is just to make it one step at a time and then to get a job. I was so focused that I got a job before graduating so I had no expectations coming in. America has just delivered above and beyond what I expected. People in America have opened up their homes for me and I’ve had dinner at an Amish restaurant in Pennsylvania and BBQ in Texas. People have been super nice to me and I think we always need to give the benefit of the doubt and shed our biases. I think I’m open to someone being human and not judging their choices. I’m always grateful I came to this country eight years ago with no expectations. 

You were named one of the “Lip Gloss Heroes” of 2020 and recognized as an inspirational figure. It’s truly evident that people appreciate all that you do and all during your limited spare time. What advice would you give to other female leaders and mentors to help their team to thrive?

I think mentorship is a skill that’s going to continuously become more valuable for leaders across industries. Mentorship will continue to become more and more important, I think we definitely need to open up time to sit with people and have a conversation. Giving them that 30 minutes of time and allowing them to talk about anything they want is so important. I think mentorship for leaders isn’t an option, you have to embrace it. A lot of people put emphasis on mentorship; we can’t shy away from our responsibility to give back, we need to accept it and learn how to do that. Getting a coach has been super valuable for me, it has created so many possibilities. When you’re in learning mode, you can teach the men about trying to support the cause of closing the minority gap whether it’s through reading books, doing a book club at work or recommending a podcast to your employees. I think we should always continue to support one another and share our knowledge with one another. I remember I went to an MBA class after work one day and I sat down and literally shared everything that I had learned with this man and I think that in itself is very very valuable. Start paying it forward and help people feel supported in these organizations, I was happy when one of the mentees they gave me was an American white guy because I only coach women but he was really great and we have a really good relationship. I have learned just as much as he has from our friendship. You should create forums. It doesn’t have to be formal, just reach out and let someone know that you’re there for them. This 65-year-old white guy I worked with was really into teaching me and mentoring me; I just don’t know if we’ll have trouble carrying that forward into different generations, we should have open calendars and open-door policies. 

On your Instagram, you posted a little reminder about how we as human beings don’t need to do it all. You actually admit that while it may seem like you do it all, the truth is that you don’t do it all and you’re constantly reminding yourself that you don’t need to do it all. How can we learn to embrace our imperfections when we’re juggling so many different things all at once? 

I don’t think you need to do it all, there’s a lot of personal work that goes into building a life that you want but if it becomes forced and becomes like a chore, you have to look inwards and do some reflection. You’ll realize you don’t have to do what I do - you don’t have to read 200 books but if you do just one thing every day that challenges your current status quo, you will be doing yourself a favor. You definitely don’t need to do it all and having a non-judgmental attitude is also key. If you judge yourself, chances are you will judge others. I don’t work an entire Saturday, I’m completely disconnected but you can set these boundaries and plan those times for yourself before you plan your life. It’s important to find time to rest and decompress, you find happiness when you’re in that destressing mode and I think you need to schedule your rest time before your work. I just strive for my goals from a place of joy or happiness even if I get disappointed or something doesn’t go according to plan. You just have to keep moving forward. I don’t teach people how to start a business or get promoted; I don’t teach you how to build a life with what you have today. I think there’s a lot of external pressure for instant gratification but I think that’s how I accepted myself, I have spent lots of time with myself. 

What is a lesson from 2020 that you’re holding onto as you continue your journey in 2021?

Oh, it was such a power-packed year for me! It was probably my biggest year ever from all fronts, I would say I think the biggest lesson is there is more value in stillness than action. It’s important for me to stay still and to stay still more often so that I can choose the best course of action so that I’m not always in busy mode. I think doing less will be important in 2021, people might interpret that the wrong way but I was able to achieve a lot of my goals and at the end of the day, no goal can satisfy you ever unless you find ways to do that yourself with things like meditating, sleeping more, etc.