Podcast

Julia Arnott-Neenee (Sāmoan, Chinese & British) has been told she is “too much”. Too loud, too bright, too young, too brown, too white. Far from letting these comments hold her back, Julia has chosen to grow into her “too much” as she has built her wide-ranging career across strategy, marketing and technology.

Julia talks about:

- Putting her flame up and pursuing opportunities without fear of rejection

- Choosing a values-driven career

- Facing the system and refusing to be punished for other people’s behaviour

Julia’s career has spanned across Aotearoa, Australia, the UK and the USA. She has recently been appointed National Manager of Transformation at the country’s largest NGO, Emerge Aotearoa, whose mission is to strengthen whānau so that communities thrive.

Julia is driven by social justice, people, and futures. In line with this, she is also a member of the Digital Council for Aotearoa New Zealand, member of the World Economic Forum Global Futures Council on AI and Humanity (Inclusion), Trustee of Hi-Tech Board, Board Member at Middlemore Foundation and Mentor at First Foundation. Julia has also co-founded the social enterprise PeopleforPeople, a youth-led Pacific organisation on a mission to ensure that everyone confidently participates in the Digital World of today and tomorrow.

🎙 “Keep on growing and growing, continue to grow into whatever that “too much” may be for you. Don’t let that seem to be an insecurity or inferiority to you. Because you never know, that could be your special source, your absolute strength, and that’s someone else’s insecurities they’re projecting on to you.”

You can listen for free to Julia sharing her career journey here on The Female Career website, on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you like to listen to your podcasts.