Kris Liacopoulos - Perseverance and Resilience are Difference Makers

Today we have the honor to chat with Kris Liacopoulos, who
obtained both her undergraduate and graduate degrees from the
University of Utah's David Eccles School of Business. She has
since retired from her role as General Manager of Fidelity
Investments.


Her involvement in the community reflects her passions around
democracy, equality, and education and has included co-founding
the Salt Lake Film Society and participating on the Advisory
Board at the Eccles school, the Film Society, and Equality Utah.


In this episode, Kris shares her early life growing up in a Greek
immigrant family, the struggles of being a first-gen student, and
what inspired her to take that leap to pursue higher education.


Finally, she opens up about the biggest obstacles in her life and
how perseverance and resilience helped her conquer them all.
Episode Quotes: 

The importance of building relationships and maintaining
them:


“Being a first-time college-goer, I always thought you have to do
it all on your own, and that's how you're successful. But, don't
get me wrong; it is so much about both your commitment to just
getting through it as well as your commitment to excellence.


I have been a hard worker, but I finally figured out this is the
way the world works; you create relationships. You don't get
there on your own, alone. You get there because of circles of
people and connections that are willing to help you.”


Kris' piece of advice to first-generation
students:


“I would say try really hard to build your vision of why you want
to be at college. 


So for me, I knew that financial independence was really what I
was striving for, ultimately. And I valued education, but I knew
that I wouldn't be able to achieve that long-term goal without
the actual degree. And so, the degree was an achievement.
Absolutely. And it was something that made everybody proud. But
keeping a focus on why I was there to keep me through the tough
times was really important.”


One of the strongest mindsets you could ever
have:


“It's particularly great when you are going through a hard patch,
to remember, this too shall pass. And often, even that grounding
helps you understand, Oh, and what's one step that I could take
right now just to make it a little better? Cause I'm also a big
believer in that. How do you get to the top of the mountain? One
step at a time. You can't get there any other way.”


On persevering in the face of difficulties:


“I would wake up and think I'm alive. And my heart is beating.
And most importantly, I'm not doing a thing to control that. Your
heart beats outside of your control; your heart most often stops
beating outside of your control. That's not what you have control
over. What you have control over is, oh, I've awakened, I'm
alive. And my heart is beating. And now my choice starts, my
decision-making starts. How will this day help me or hinder me in
terms of my long-term aspiration of where I'm going and who I
want to be, and the type of person I aspire to be.”


On feeling like you didn't belong:


“I like to remind people - you belong. A lot of times, it feels
like you may not belong, right? Because you find yourself in this
wilderness, you find yourself doing things that no one has done
before you. You find yourself being the minority person in the
room, whatever that means. But believe in serendipity for lack of
a better term. You are there for a reason. And so that says in
and of itself, you belong there. So take some advantage of that.
Don't shrink; step into it.”
Show Links:

The Journey by Mary Oliver 

Rising Strong by Brené Brown

Dare to Lead by Brené Brown

Untamed by Glennon Doyle

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig