Molly Gamble
Episode 154

Narrator: Welcome friends to another episode of The Story & Experience Podcast. Join your host, Japhet De Oliveira with his guest today, and discover the moments that shape us, our families, and communities.

Japhet De Oliveira: Hey, welcome friends to another episode of the Story & Experience Podcast. I'm delighted to be able to connect with our guests over technology, across the country, in another time zone, which is fantastic. They're looking pretty alert, maybe because they rose a little earlier than I did today, so that's a good sign.

If you're brand new to the podcast, we have 100 questions. They become more vulnerable, more open closer to 100. They get to pick a number. I'll ask the first 10, and then, we'll learn about stories and experiences that shaped them into the leader that they are today. So, let's begin. First of all, could you tell us your name, and does anybody ever mispronounce it?

Molly Gamble: Sure. Japhet, it's great to be with you. I'm Molly Gamble, and nobody mispronounces my name. I think it's pretty straightforward. I can't recall any mispronunciations.

Japhet De Oliveira: That's great. That's great. Does anybody ever make any jokes about it?

Molly Gamble: I've got some nicknames. Friends call me MG, Mo, Molo in my family. Some nicknames, Molly McButter when I was a child in ballet class. I was the youngest. They called me Molly McButter. I remember I stood up and let them know my name is Molly Jean Gamble. So, yeah. But, not too bad, nothing too traumatizing.

Japhet De Oliveira: Oh, that's good. So, Molly, what do you do for work?

Molly Gamble: I work for Becker's Healthcare. We are a multimedia company focused on healthcare, and I work closely with the editorial team and department. And so, a lot of different multimedia opportunities, podcasts, writing, interviewing with healthcare leaders and decision-makers.

Japhet De Oliveira: Is it hard to get those healthcare people to respond, to share stories? I mean, just curious.

Molly Gamble: Some are more guarded than others, I think, and some probably have a reason to feel that way. I try to make sure I'm intentional about building trust and trying to help them feel natural and telling different stories and learning more about them. So, yeah, it's a mixed bag. I think some find it easier to connect with journalists than others, and those who don't, I think there's probably, like I said, good reason that you just have to earn their trust.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah. Now, obviously, when people think of the media, they're going to think, I don't know, scoop. They're going to think of like... Is that what you guys are trying to do or what's your-

Molly Gamble: Yeah, we don't really operate-

Japhet De Oliveira: ... your passion?

Molly Gamble: Yeah, the scoops, I love a scoop. We don't really operate that much on scoops. It's more of keeping in mind that C-level executives and leaders are so pressed for time, how can we be destination that does a lot of the work for them and kind of giving them the highlights, the bullet points, the things they need to know to get started in their day. So, that's kind of the work and the service we put forward to our audience.

But, it's interesting though, I think as you talk to people, you'll start to pick up things and learn things that weren't necessarily explicit in their answers. So, it's not necessarily a scoop, I think it's just a better understanding of different parts of healthcare that, maybe, it takes a lot of conversations to come to those understandings.

Japhet De Oliveira: Now, have you been doing this long?

Molly Gamble: I've been with the company since 2010, so this is my 14th year. I started off as a writer and we've just got such a great team. The company has grown. And it's been just the thrill, such a fun ride and a rewarding ride. So, yeah, it's been a great run.

Japhet De Oliveira: Oh, that's great. That's great. So, now, where were you born, Molly?

Molly Gamble: I was born in Downers Grove, Illinois. It's a southwestern suburb of Chicago.

Japhet De Oliveira: Was it cold?

Molly Gamble: It was cold, it was December 12th.

Japhet De Oliveira: Was it windy? It was below 60 degrees.

Molly Gamble: Downers Grove, yeah, it was December 12th, so it was probably pretty cold and chilly.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah, pretty cold.

Molly Gamble: Yeah.

Japhet De Oliveira: That's great. And did you grow up there?

Molly Gamble: I did, yes.

Japhet De Oliveira: Okay. So, when you were a child growing up there, what did you imagine you would grow up to be?

Molly Gamble: Oh, I feel like a lot of different things. I really was eager to work as a kid. I think like a movie star at one point. I think a nurse at one point. I was very enchanted by ER, the sitcom,

Japhet De Oliveira: The TV show, yeah.

Molly Gamble: A spy. And then-

Japhet De Oliveira: Uh-huh.

Molly Gamble: I really wanted to get to work. And I remember having like a toy cash register. There was something very alluring as a child about just working. And so, I kind of went through some different iterations. It was also a time with the nursing piece. I think this has changed, fortunately, for kids today, but it was a lot of messaging about you're not good at math. And that kind of fixed mindset about a certain skill that, ultimately, I went into writing. So I don't regret anything, but I think my route there was probably a little different than it might be for other students and kids today, hopefully.

Japhet De Oliveira: But now you've merged all those visions, like nursing, healthcare, spying into journalism.

Molly Gamble: Yes. Yeah, you're right, Japhet, there's a bit of everything there.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's actually really good. All right, hey, that's great. That's great. Personality, Molly, would people describe you as an introvert or an extrovert and would you agree?

Molly Gamble: Oh, I think an extrovert. I think an extrovert, yeah. I think I have a rich inner life, but I also find so much energy in connecting with people. So, when I go a few days with more solitary time or by myself, I do find my energy levels really low. So, I think I am an extrovert.

Japhet De Oliveira: Okay. All right. And are you an early riser or a late night owl?

Molly Gamble: I'm an early riser.

Japhet De Oliveira: And what's early?

Molly Gamble: It ranges. I would say usually 5:30 AM to 6:15-ish.

Japhet De Oliveira: All right.

Molly Gamble: Yeah, a well-trained early riser.

Japhet De Oliveira: Well-trained, all right. So now, when you get up in the morning, first drink of the day, coffee, water, liquid green smoothie? Where'd you go?

Molly Gamble: It's drip coffee all day.

Japhet De Oliveira: Drip coffee all day, all right.

Molly Gamble: Yeah.

Japhet De Oliveira: You have a routine down?

Molly Gamble: I do have a routine. I set up the night before. It's just a good old fashion drip coffee maker. Yeah.

Japhet De Oliveira: Oh, really? Oh, this-

Molly Gamble: Yeah.

Japhet De Oliveira: Okay.

Molly Gamble: And then, if I'm out and about, our office is closed to a Dunkin' Donuts, I'll get a iced coffee, but usually it's pretty simple drip, cream only, extra ice if it's iced.

Japhet De Oliveira: So do you have like a coffee shrine?

Molly Gamble: I don't. No.

Japhet De Oliveira: I was just curious. You say you set it up, I was like, "Wow, okay."

Molly Gamble: I'm pretty utilitarian about it.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah. Yeah. Hey, that's good. This morning when you woke up 5:36 AM, what was the first thought that went through your mind?

Molly Gamble: What time am I going to be getting into the office today?

Japhet De Oliveira: Oh, okay.

Molly Gamble: So we're in the office a couple of days a week at Becker's. And it's just trying to cover some news and some things early on in writing with my head down. And then also then, commuting in, which, it's a short commute for me, it's about 30 minutes on the L train, but trying to get the timing right so I'm in the right place at the right time.

Japhet De Oliveira: That's great. Did you hear that everybody? She's on the L train, which is like, you only know what that means if you've seen Batman, so yeah. Okay. All right. Or any Chicago based movie.

Molly Gamble: Right.

Japhet De Oliveira: Hey, leadership question here. Could you tell us, are you a backseat driver?

Molly Gamble: At work, I really try hard not to be. I do try to pop my head up just enough so people feel my presence and support. I say things like, "I trust you. I leave this to your judgment. Let me know if you have any questions."

There's probably some moments where I really wrestle with that and I think there needs to be more hands on the steering wheel, not necessarily just mine, but maybe I'll be a bit more assertive about it.

Personally, I mean, Japhet, it's embarrassing, we had to go back to the rental car company on my last vacation and add me to be a driver because I was such... So I really do try. Personally, I was. Professionally, I really do try to be a supportive presence more than anything.

Japhet De Oliveira: That's great. That's great. Good story. All right, hey, the floors open, Molly, so, where do you want to go?

Molly Gamble: Let's see. I'm curious. I've listened to a couple episodes, I think people tend to go in ascending order, right? I was going to do-

Japhet De Oliveira: They do. They go up and down?

Molly Gamble: Yeah. Okay. They do up and down.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah, you can go back and forth. Yeah. Yeah.

Molly Gamble: All right. So, it's 100 questions.

Japhet De Oliveira: But you-

Molly Gamble: Let's see.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah.

Molly Gamble: How about we go with 50, and then, I'll go back down, and then, back up.

Japhet De Oliveira: Sure, sure. No, that's great. All right, 50. Oh, share about who's influenced you professionally.

Molly Gamble: Oh wow.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah. Yeah.

Molly Gamble: So, many people. I think one of the outsized influences is probably one of my earliest, and that's my father. He worked in newspapers for a long, long time when I was growing up. So, there's a lot there.

Japhet De Oliveira: A lot of legacy. Yeah.

Molly Gamble: Yes, a lot of legacy. I would say though, we share a real paper trail, the two of us. So, anything that's been of great importance to me, my dad has edited in some way, so term papers, a graduation speech, my job application, cover letters. And so, I think, in those modes of communication that we shared, it was interesting because he would really treat me as a writer and he was my editor, so feedback would usually be like, "Not bad," or this is always such a great one like, "This doesn't sound like you," like for an editor who knows your voice and can tell you when you've strayed. I would always have to leave the room, Japhet, like if he was editing something of mine, I just didn't want to be around.

Japhet De Oliveira: It's too much. It's too much. Yeah.

Molly Gamble: Yeah. And then, I would come back, it would be red ink on the paper. And so, I think it was really helpful. It helped me understand how to deliver feedback, and then also, as a writer, how to really receive it and what it means for someone who really is taking care of your work and trying to get the best of it.

Japhet De Oliveira: That's great. That's great. I like how you clarify there's a difference between receiving feedback and giving feedback.

Molly Gamble: Yes. Yeah.

Japhet De Oliveira: And some people are really good at receiving and some people are really good at giving, but it's a skill to do both, right?

Molly Gamble: Very much so. Very much so.

Japhet De Oliveira: So you cultivated both with your dad?

Molly Gamble: I think unknowingly at the time, yeah. I think sometimes I would get frustrated and say, "Well, I meant this." And then, he'll say, "Well, you have to say that then." I think there was a lot of helping me understand that implicit communication isn't always clear. And then, just helping me with some of the... I remember one time the word trouper and trooper, there's like two different forms, I got them mixed up. And he would help me understand like, "Hey, nice try, but this is wrong." So it was a lot of humility, Japhet.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Molly Gamble: And so, he doesn't read as much as he maybe once did, but still, I'm sure if there were an occasion where something felt significant to me, I think he would be among the first set of eyes on it.

Japhet De Oliveira: That's amazing. So, he knows this, that he shaped you professionally?

Molly Gamble: Yes. Yeah.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Molly Gamble: He does. He does.

Japhet De Oliveira: That's really great.

Molly Gamble: Yeah.

Japhet De Oliveira: That is really great. Good. Good. All right, that was 50, where would you like to go next?

Molly Gamble: Let's go to four.

Japhet De Oliveira: Four? Actually, you know what? The first 10 I did.

Molly Gamble: Oh, we did. Okay. That's right.

Japhet De Oliveira: So, you get to go from 11.

Molly Gamble: Let's see.

Japhet De Oliveira: I know one it's one to 100.

Molly Gamble: How about-

Japhet De Oliveira: I did the first 10.

Molly Gamble: How about 14?

Japhet De Oliveira: 14? Okay. Oh, tell us about what you enjoy doing outside of work.

Molly Gamble: Enjoy outside of work, okay. Oh, let's see. I live in Lincoln Park in Chicago, so it's a great neighborhood, not far from the lake. I really enjoy going for walks along the lake. I'm a big walker, I think the pandemic helped to really cement that. My family is nearby, so it's always great to connect with them. I have a lot of extended family in the area. I love trying new restaurants. I love live music. I love also a good bookstore. When I travel, I leave room in my suitcase for bookstore visits, and I try to go to the independent ones. Big reader. And cooking. I love to cook.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah.

Molly Gamble: Some people are more into baking or cooking, I do enjoy cooking, trying new recipes. So, yeah.

Japhet De Oliveira: That's great.

Molly Gamble: Some mix of those things.

Japhet De Oliveira: Do you experiment in cooking or do you follow the recipes scientifically?

Molly Gamble: I like to improvise. I like to-

Japhet De Oliveira: Oh, okay. All right.

Molly Gamble: I follow the advice to read it in full, and then, I kind of put it down. I'll check it every now and then, but also, I'm not afraid to kind of add a little bit extra of this and that.

Japhet De Oliveira: Say, "Gordon Ramsay, you don't know what you're doing."

Molly Gamble: Yeah, I have great respect. I'm sure Ina Garten would not be happy with my response, but I try to have fun with it.

Japhet De Oliveira: That's good. That's good.

Molly Gamble: Yeah.

Japhet De Oliveira: Good. Good. All right. That was 14, where next?

Molly Gamble: How about 35?

Japhet De Oliveira: 35, all right. Ooh, share about a special interest, unique talent that you have. "Molly has this." Ooh, yeah.

Molly Gamble: Tricky.

Japhet De Oliveira: Tricky, okay.

Molly Gamble: Unique talent? I've been told my handwriting looks like a font, so I'm often asked to do name tags or the name cards at weddings, different things where writing will be visible. And let's see. This is like a very niche one, but I had the privilege of marrying two friends several years ago.

Japhet De Oliveira: Nice.

Molly Gamble: I would say it was a talent, I don't know, I haven't done it quite enough, but I so enjoyed writing the ceremony and really personalizing it and helping to tell their story in the position I was in. So, that was really fun. I like to think I can be a good DJ if I'm ever the passenger-

Japhet De Oliveira: A DJ, okay.

Molly Gamble: ... on a road trip

Japhet De Oliveira: All right. All right.

Molly Gamble: Finding the right songs for the right move.

Japhet De Oliveira: It's not in a club like upfront-

Molly Gamble: No.

Japhet De Oliveira: ... with some decks? Oh, okay. Right.

Molly Gamble: I don't know if it's the DJ side hustle yet, Japhet, but-

Japhet De Oliveira: Okay. Yet, all right.

Molly Gamble: Yeah.

Japhet De Oliveira: But you can change a track?

Molly Gamble: Yes. I like to think I can read the room and try to find the song or the music that would fit.

Japhet De Oliveira: That's great. That's great. You can do this wedding and you can actually help them with the after party. That's great.

Molly Gamble: Yes.

Japhet De Oliveira: All right.

Molly Gamble: Yeah.

Japhet De Oliveira: Good. All right. Where next?

Molly Gamble: Let's see. How about we do 18?

Japhet De Oliveira: 18, all right. If you had to eat just one meal for a month, what would you choose? Yeah.

Molly Gamble: Oh, wow.

Japhet De Oliveira: The same meal three times a day.

Molly Gamble: All right. I think I have it. I enjoy...

Japhet De Oliveira: Okay. Okay.

Molly Gamble: So, I'm not a eater, I like to think it's one of my better traits. I am fortunate I don't have food allergies. I am about as adventurous as an Irish woman from the Midwest can get. I think though, there's something about a classic roast chicken with a green salad and a good loaf of bread that I just think it's so satisfying. So, I think I might pick that. I usually make that on Sundays. It's like such a great meal to end the weekend and start the week.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Molly Gamble: And I find its simplicity is kind of its beauty, right? It's like you can put different twists on a roast chicken, but when it really works, it's hard to stay too far from it. So, I might go with that, Japhet.

Japhet De Oliveira: Okay. All right. That's great. I like it. I like it. Good. All right, where next?

Molly Gamble: How about we go to 47?

Japhet De Oliveira: 47? All right. Oh, you just met someone, what do you want them to know about you and why?

Molly Gamble: I think depending on what the context is, sometimes it's hard to say this explicitly without someone... it might be too much information, but I think I really strive to have direct conversations and candid conversations.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah. Yeah.

Molly Gamble: And I find, sometimes, when you first meet someone, you can spend a lot of time kind of in this limbo where you're both kind of trying to get a feel for one another. And I would love to, if I could, find a way to kind of drive quickly past that and start to get to what's really on our minds. I really do crave that a lot. So, I don't know how I would phrase that necessarily, but maybe, "I like to think of myself as a straight shooter, I hope you'll feel the same with me. I think if there's ever a misunderstanding, I would want to work it out with you."

I think trying to move past some of the trying to feel each other out, which can be really important, I don't want to move past it too quickly, but I also think, sometimes, just get right into things. It just feels so good in conversation. Kind of similar to what we're doing today-

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah. Yeah. Exactly.

Molly Gamble: ... it's really nice to be able to connect like that without talking about the weather or local sports teams or some of the other small talk pieces that may come up.

Japhet De Oliveira: For people who don't know Molly, I've had the privilege to be able to work with you over the last few years, and I think I've felt that professionally with you that you are a person of integrity and a person who's a straight shooter when it comes to stories, and you honor timelines or confidentiality or, "I can't say this. I can say this." And that kind of stuff. And I think it speaks volumes into who you are and your character. So, it's great. It's good. It's good.

Molly Gamble: Oh, thank you.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah.

Molly Gamble: That's very kind.

Japhet De Oliveira: Appreciate that. All right, where next?

Molly Gamble: Let's go to 64.

Japhet De Oliveira: 64, right. When you look back at your life, tell us about a, "What was I thinking?" moment.

Molly Gamble: What was I thinking moment?

Japhet De Oliveira: Oh yeah, yeah.

Molly Gamble: Oh, geez.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah, just one of those.

Molly Gamble: Just one.

Japhet De Oliveira: We all have lots.

Molly Gamble: Yes. Yeah.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah.

Molly Gamble: Okay. Well, it was probably pretty tricky when I was in college, I was a journalism major, and this was right on the heels of the Great Recession. And so, not an easy time for newspapers, not an easy time for the economy in general and job hunting. And I remember trying to keep this thought at bay, but I couldn't help but have it cross my mind a few times of like working hard in college at the college newspaper and just kind of having this like, "What was I thinking going into this field?"

Because I was all in, there was no backup plan, I didn't want to do anything else. I tried PR for a spell and I could see how that might one day be a trajectory, but I don't think, at the time, I was ready for that. So, I had that thought cross my mind a few times. And then, fortunately, there was some work in between when I graduated, and then, when I found Becker's. But for a while there, it was starting to get to a point where I was like, "I might need to think up a plan B and C." So, this was 2010 is when I graduated.

Japhet De Oliveira: That's good.

Molly Gamble: Yeah.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah. Yeah. That's great. Hey, that's good. That's good. All right then, where next off then?

Molly Gamble: Let's do 53.

Japhet De Oliveira: 53. All right. Ooh, could you tell us about at least one important person in your life?

Molly Gamble: Mm-hmm.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah.

Molly Gamble: Yeah. I think my sister is very important to me. My sister is two years younger than me. She is the quintessential little sister, and I mean, that in the best way. I reluctantly will say she's a lot cooler than me, she's very wickedly funny, has her own sense of self, but is a great confidant, is someone who I find to be, whatever the challenge is, whether it's professionally, personally, whatever realm of life, non-judgmental, will just really listen. She's a writer, so the way she speaks, she has such economy of words. Like she'll kind of pack a punch by saying very little. I don't know if you know people like that, Japhet.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Molly Gamble: I'm always impressed. Like sometimes, I'll be hashing something out, I'm taking my time, and then, it turns around to her and she'll kind of spit back 12 words at me that just sums up the bottom line. So, she's fantastic.

Japhet De Oliveira: That's brilliant.

Molly Gamble: We're extremely close. And I find her to be inspiring, comforting, and also, just very loyal. So, she's immensely important to me.

Japhet De Oliveira: She will love listening to this episode. That's really nice. Good. All right. All right. Where next?

Molly Gamble: Let's do 74.

Japhet De Oliveira: 74?

Molly Gamble: Yeah.

Japhet De Oliveira: Ooh, this is great for you. What gives you hope?

Molly Gamble: Gives me hope?

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah.

Molly Gamble: I think a sense of community gives me a lot of hope. And sometimes, when I hear that term, I think about my local neighborhood, but I think you can find that in so many other places. And it's a sense of people coming together around something bigger than themselves. And so, sometimes, it's not always explicit either, it doesn't hit you until afterward that that was the case when a group of people come together. But it's so rewarding. I think it's very inspiring. When it happens in less structured environments or less formal environments, I almost find it more hope-inspiring that this wasn't asked of us, but this is how we're coming together, whether it's around a cause or a job or a concern. So, sense of community is a big, big one that leaves me feeling hopeful more often than not.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah.

Molly Gamble: Yeah.

Japhet De Oliveira: That's good. An encouraging word for everybody else as well, community is essential. Yeah. Don't do life by yourself. Yeah.

Molly Gamble: Yeah.

Japhet De Oliveira: All right, good. That was 74, so, up or down?

Molly Gamble: Okay, let's go up. Let's keep going up a little bit. Let's go to 87, my birth year.

Japhet De Oliveira: 87? Ooh, when you are under incredible stress, what kind of grounds you?

Molly Gamble: I'm a big music lover, so, one artist in particular who has a lot of meaning is Bruce Springsteen. We go way back.

Japhet De Oliveira: You go back. Okay.

Molly Gamble: A lot of different memories in my life have a Bruce song attached to them, but the spirit of his music, the soulfulness of his music, the wisdom in his lyrics, I find that that music is particularly comforting and grounding. There's other artists too, but I think Bruce is probably at the forefront, his music will be the first to play.

Japhet De Oliveira: I'm glad you guys are on first name basis. This is good. This is good. Hey, that's really cool. All right, brilliant. That was 87, so, where next?

Molly Gamble: Let's go to 92.

Japhet De Oliveira: 92. Ooh, Molly, how would you like to be remembered?

Molly Gamble: Oh, wow. I think the word, I've always found this word, it's a memorable one, is magnanimous. So, I think someone who is generous, someone who tries to show up for people without making a show of it, it's just there, it's a given. People feel my support, they feel my love. I think magnanimous. And also, the big thing is doing those things without anything expected in return.

Japhet De Oliveira: Ooh, yeah.

Molly Gamble: So, I would hope that-

Japhet De Oliveira: Selfless.

Molly Gamble: Yes. And I hope that people feel that generosity of spirit. And I try to live up to that. I think I'm far from perfect, but whenever my life comes to an end or whenever people stop their relationship with me or don't know me anymore, if I'm remembered that way, that would be a huge accomplishment. So, that would be the goal.

Japhet De Oliveira: I've never had anybody ever interpret the end as just somebody not having a relationship with me, but always like as the end the end. I like the perspective. It was good.

Molly Gamble: Yeah. Yeah.

Japhet De Oliveira: It was good. Where did that love and that desire to be that kind of person come from? By the way, that's question number 92A.

Molly Gamble: 92A. I'll take it. I'll take it.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Molly Gamble: Let's see. I think it's a big part of my family. I think growing up, I have terrific parents who a big part of how they raised my sister and I was to do the right thing. You're not going to get a pat on the back or a congratulations or applause. And showing up for people, sometimes, you just need to step up and do that and help them in ways that maybe they can't even voice, but they just need to know you're there. So, I think there was a level of self-congratulation is not going to be part of the picture. And the sooner you're accepting of that...

I think, it feels good to give too. So, often we think about those things in terms of what you're receiving or what you're doing for others, but if you've got a lot of love, to be able to express that and show that to people, that's a gift for you too.

Japhet De Oliveira: That is the gift that returns.

Molly Gamble: Exactly.

Japhet De Oliveira: Without expecting anything as you said earlier. That's great. Wonderful. All right, Molly, I can't believe it, we have time for two more.

Molly Gamble: Two more.

Japhet De Oliveira: Last two.

Molly Gamble: Okay.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah, last two. So, where would you like to go?

Molly Gamble: Let's see.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah.

Molly Gamble: Let's go with 18.

Japhet De Oliveira: 18? Okay.

Molly Gamble: And then, I'll go high for my last one.

Japhet De Oliveira: Okay. All right. All right. 18, actually, we did that one. It was the meal one.

Molly Gamble: The meal, okay.

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah, which we did the chicken and salad.

Molly Gamble: How about we go 19?

Japhet De Oliveira: 19? Right. Ooh, what's your exercise routine?

Molly Gamble: Exercise routine? So, big walker, I love walking around outside. DePaul is in my neighborhood, DePaul University, so, I belong to their gym, which is great because it's like a big community center, it's like a big Y. So, I'll go in there when it's chillier, the weather's not so great, and I'll work out. A little bit of weights, elliptical, treadmill, nothing too crazy or intensive. It's toned down. In my 20s, I was really big on those really rigorous, demanding exercises, and now, I find that the gentle workouts are great. That's kind the routine.

Japhet De Oliveira: That's great.

Molly Gamble: Yeah.

Japhet De Oliveira: All right, that's good. All right. Final number then?

Molly Gamble: 97.

Japhet De Oliveira: 97? Ooh, this is great for you. This is fantastic for you. Tell us about a time when you did the right thing.

Molly Gamble: Did the right thing?

Japhet De Oliveira: Yeah.

Molly Gamble: I think about this a lot with work and like we were talking about at the beginning of a conversation with the media, and being a digital media company especially, there's so much pressure because the news cycle just never stops. And everyone knows this, it's not like it once was where you had a start time and an end time to when you could go to press, and it's been that way for a long time.

But I think, every now and then, I'll kind of come up against a decision where say there's a story or a piece of news and there's some urgency to have it live, to have it go out, to be in newsletters, and there's just something that just doesn't sit right. We don't have all the information yet. We haven't given someone enough chance to comment. Something about it I know if I need to defend it, I would fall short in some way.

And so, I think, when I listen to those instincts, which you do have to sometimes quiet down the environment to really hear them because there is a lot of pressure to be first, to be early to break things.

Japhet De Oliveira: Sure.

Molly Gamble: And I've never regretted that. I think I've tried to help our team operate from a sense of you'd rather be late and have a better story or have taken more care, than first and have some things that are amiss or were not done well.

And then, I think the other thing too I try to help them remember and think through is that you rarely regret something you didn't do. When it comes to media and the press, I think there's a lot of regrets of things that people rushed with or they were premature with. If I had to think, maybe there are some things I can point to that I didn't do that I do regret, but I really don't feel that way. I think I find sometimes time and more care can do a better service to the reader and the audience.

So, I don't have one example, there's a lot of those, but I think there's moments. It's usually in the morning, it's usually a newsletter's about to go out. I'm kind of the last say, "I have the last read on something," and to go back to the writer and say, "Hey, this isn't ready," or, "Hey, we can't go with this today." Temporary discomfort for something, I think, in the long run, is much more important.

Japhet De Oliveira: That's fantastic. Thank you so much for sharing.

Molly Gamble: Thank you, Japhet.

Japhet De Oliveira: That's great. That's great.

Hey, I want to encourage people to do the same thing that Molly and I just did right now, which is meet somebody, ask them good questions. We learn from each other. I really believe this, that we are transformed by stories from other people and we all grow, we grow better for it. So, thank you Molly for taking the time to share. The ability to be able to pause, sometimes, and listen to the voice inside us and do the right thing is actually really important, so that's a good thing.

Molly Gamble: Thank you so much, Japhet, for having me as your guest.

Japhet De Oliveira: Absolutely. Absolutely. All right. God bless everybody. And we will connect again soon. Thank you for being with us.

Narrator: Thank you for joining us for The Story & Experience Podcast. We invite you to read, watch, and submit your story and experience@adventisthealth.org/story. The Story & Experience Podcast was brought to you by Adventist Health through the Office of Culture.