Episode 015: Sandhya Espitia

Introduction: Today we have with us none other than the ground breaking Sandhya Espitia, who for the last year and a half has been busy moving mountains as the senior VP of brokerage services for the Real Estate Board of New York. Prior to her role with REBNY, Sandhya spent the previous decade, first at Harvard University in program development, and thereafter with the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), as VP of industry education and certification. In line with her mantra of unlocking the status quo, Sandhya thankfully is a way bigger fan of the Red Hot Chili Peppers song "Power of Equality" when it comes to acquiring and passing along knowledge to REBNY and its members, than she is of the lyrics "We don't need no education" by rock n' roll hall of famers Pink Floyd. And just as importantly, in doing so, she accomplishes this in line with another one of her mantras, namely that of "Wherever you are, smile."   Episode Notes: At 2:52, Sandhya Espitia describes her first job working for a developer who specialized in buying distressed assets. At 4:26, Sandhya shares her energy, work ethic, hustle, and hands on involvement in every single project. At 5:45, she notes her love for technology and the benefit of being connected. At 7:03, Sandhya points out that she is very big on trust, and chats about the advice she received from her former boss at Harvard University that has stuck with her. At 8:15, she informs us of her "Oh my!" moment (namely helping create a start-up within Harvard University, and thereafter partnering with the Dominican Republic to improve their education system). At 10:55, Sandhya said, "Any intention or any aspiration for change requires learning." At 12:47, she discusses being a culprit and victim of "phubbing." At 13:47, Sandhya shares her passion for change management, and her dislike of the status quo. At 14:41, she notes the need to change old practices within the industry, and adopt new ways of thinking. At 16:12, Sandhya believes in the power of the collective, multidisciplinary teams, experimentation and being ok with failure. At 17:37, she shares how she invests in herself, her enjoyment of being busy, and having worked on 5 different continents. At 18:54, Sandhya dives into giving back, and in particular, coaching friends and co-workers. At 21:14, she touches upon gender biases in real estate, and creating access and exposure for women. At 25:09, Sandhya mentions that life is all about purpose - and waking up with a plan. At 26:35, she highlights her attraction in solving complex issues and real problems within organizations. At 28:15, Sandhya dishes on coaching, human interaction, and why it is so critical to treat people starting with a baseline of competence and intelligence (until proven otherwise). At 29:43, she shares lessons learned from her mother and father. At 32:15, Sandhya talks about change of attitude and self-investment. At 33:21, she enlightens us on her dream of going to space in her lifetime. At 34:06, Sandhya informs us on how she finds the balance through exercise, going on walks and spending time with her 3-year-old daughter. At 35:06, Espitia concludes the podcast with a statement on how she is proud to be someone who's always thinking with the future in mind.