How Doubling Down Paid Off

Friday, May 12, 2017

Uppi's profile
Written by Uppi Doshi (BMath '06)

In the summer of 2015, I decided to double down and bet on myself – I believed the odds were in my favour. Fast forward to almost two years later and I have to admit it’s one of the best decisions I’ve ever made and it feels great to be right.

I had wanted to shift gears in my career while leveraging my skills and what I had learned so far in order to make a positive impact in the world. In order to do this, I willingly resigned from a job I was very comfortable in to awaken that fire within and make it happen.

How I made it happen


Prior to resigning from my job, I made a plan on how I was going to reach my goal: build a story around who I am and what I’m looking to do, network (attending events, meeting with friends of friends, completely cold-calling people on LinkedIn that I found fascinating and asking them to meet me for coffee), and read lots of books, blogs, and news relevant to the industries I was interested in. I was fortunate to meet some brilliant and very helpful people on my journey.

Within four weeks of resigning from my role and following my plan, I had two consulting job offers – one at a medical device company and another at a healthcare software company. Three months after that, I had two other healthcare consulting opportunities come my way and before I knew it, I had four part time consulting gigs. My priority during these consulting gigs was to learn. Learn about the key players, healthcare technology and innovation, and navigating the healthcare industry in Canada from within. Consulting for me was a stepping stone. That stepping stone paid off and led me to my next stepping stones.

What I do now

  1. Sustainable growth through partnerships, acquisitions and clinic and patient engagement at TELUS Health specifically for Electronic Medical Record (EMR) solutions. TELUS Health is committed to collaboration, enhancing patient outcomes and providing access to critical patient data anywhere, anytime.
  1. Co-founder of a Canadian start-up, Kippis.ca; a platform that provides interactive personal chef dining experiences at the home of the diner. Keeping on my motto of giving back, I am proud to say that Kippis.ca is committed to giving back to the community. For every diner that dines through Kippis.ca, the equivalent of one meal is donated to Food Banks Canada in order to help feed those in need.
     
  2. Board of Directors for Learning Disabilities Association (LDATD). LDATD is a not-for-profit charity committed to creating a society in which people with learning disabilities are able to achieve the full expression of their intellect and abilities, and are enabled to contribute in the workplace to their fullest.

My advice to anyone looking to make a change in their career:

  1. Dare to dream and believe in yourself
  2. Ignore the naysayers
  3. Come up with an agile plan to make it happen and GO GET IT! (but remember to be patient, Rome wasn’t built in a day)

Uppi with an apple on her head