The Ampersand Manifesto Season 5 Trailer

0:06 Hello, hello. We are so excited to share that The Ampersand Manifesto will be back for Season 5 starting April 15th, 2026. If you're new to the show, welcome. I'm your host Jessica Wan, and I'm an Ampersand. I'm an executive coach who led marketing teams for many years, and I'm an actively performing classical singer and musician. In this podcast, I interview people who have made their mark in multiple fields. We explore how the fields they play in might look totally different on the surface, but share connections upon deeper investigation. Our goal is to amplify, celebrate and normalize these stories.

0:51 And through these interviews, we're Co creating the Ampersand Manifesto principles for leading a multi passionate life. I can't believe we're going into year 4 of this podcast. It has been such a rich journey for me to shine a light on people doing extraordinary things. We now have a treasure trove of 50 interviews with folks who are mastering and connecting multiple worlds like architecture and music, tech startups and theater and business leadership and fiction writing, just to name a few. And we're seeing this movement grow. Just in the last year, articles have popped up in Forbes and Fast Company about how multi hyphenate leaders are the future. Whether you call yourself a multi hyphenate, A polymath, dual careerist, or ampersand, you are in the right place and you are not alone.

1:54 In Season 5, we'll hear from entrepreneurs who have built not just companies, but experiences that people are obsessed with. We'll hear from lifelong learners pushing the boundaries of art and from performers who have graced the largest stages in the world. When I have an idea or if somebody tells me about their idea, I can really see it all the way through to its manifestation. I could sort of see easily how those steps are taken to get the idea to become a thing. And so it doesn't feel maybe not as intimidating to me as I think to some people because I go, oh, yeah. So yeah, you have a space to do thing. But right make the club.

2:38 So I think it's hubris and it's suffering from an I can do that syndrome where I'm like, yeah, what's how hard going to be you start a matzo company? Not only did she start the Matzo company, she was also the voice of Nickelodeon and the world's 10th best female shuffleboard player. I can't wait for you to hear this interview. On this show, we not only go into what people have done, but how they're approaching it. Beginner's mindset and not saying from OK, now I'm playing solo. This is completely different then you have completely different kind of concentration that you listen to the others and if you're the first to play, what does it do with the others or if someone else plays? So, so that's an interesting 1 and it gives for me also the not knowing.

3:25 So you know, if you work in different situations and different roles, I always like it, the not knowing. The not knowing applies both to improvisation on saxophones and teaching business classes. And of course we delve into the practical nature of being an ampersand when sometimes things are full on in both worlds. I would start my day at 8:00 and then I would work until I had to go to the Opera House. So I would have musical rehearsals usually between 3:00 and 5:00 PM. And then from 5:00 to 6:30 we have our dinner break. So I would hop on my laptop and do more UCSF work while eating my dinner.

4:08 And then we would have more rehearsals from 6:30 to 9:30 that would sometimes go until 11. So it's like go home, get ready for bed and hurry up and sleep and hope you can fall asleep quickly. Sorry, there were very long days. But as I explained to my nephew who said to me one time, Auntie Nicole, how do you work so much? And I said, the end of my day is like dessert. It's work. It's not easy and I'm just hanging out. But it's when, when it's something that feeds your soul, it's really easy, easy to keep going. We'll be dropping episodes every Wednesday, and the best way to know about them is to hit the follow or Subscribe button in your podcast app so you'll see when new episodes release.

4:55 Learning to live like this is the future, you know, learning to have a dual career. I was just on the phone with a woman who said we are ripe for a brain renaissance. And I was like, that's what we are trying to do. Like there's this research that I believe in at the core of the cohort, which is the most innovative. Nobel laureates are people who have actively cultivated dual careers and an innovative meaning. Their research has been cited the most times that they both have a scientific career and they have a creative career, and that they focus on both of them with an equal amount of dedication of professionalism. And that they believe that it is the intersection of the creative career with the less creative or the sort of more traditional career that drives innovation.

5:46 If you've been listening to our show for a while now and haven't yet had the chance to leave a review, now is your chance. Go to the show page in your podcast app and leave a rating and review. It really helps other people find the show. And if you have a friend who you think will enjoy these stories, share the show with them. In the meantime, catch up on episodes you missed from previous seasons and let me know which one's your favorite. See you on Wednesday, April 15th for the first episode of Season 5 of The Ampersand Manifesto.