My dad set a box in front of me and asked me to count the sides. As a young child, I counted six sides, not forgetting about the top and bottom. He smiled and told me to count again. I counted six once more. He saw my confusion and told me to look inside the box. There were six more sides to count. 

That lesson has never left me. Questioning, seeking and being curious about what’s inside (not just the surface or appearance of things) has driven me to understandings and experiences that I wouldn’t have received any other way.

This curiosity has led me to the core belief that difficult things are possible to achieve. When I was a sophomore in college, I wanted to spend my summer across the country interning in Washington DC. I didn’t have any professional contacts there (and this was back in the day when LinkedIn didn’t exist). I nervously called by phone and asked various organizations if I could mail them my resume for consideration. Two months later I was working for Intellectual Capital, a non-partisan think tank with the mission of equally disseminating political information to foster collaboration. I followed with two additional internships through my college experience, also while working and paying for my own education. 

When I graduated with a degree in Journalism from the University of Oregon, I wanted to work for a creative advertising agency. The design industry is extremely competitive to enter and I knew my chances were slim, yet I got to work figuring it out. I landed a great position with an up and coming firm a few months after graduation in the beautiful Utah mountains of Salt Lake City. My clients were primarily high tech companies that proved to be challenging. I remember flying to Boise, Idaho to tour the Micron Semiconductor facilities as part of my learning curve. Seeing the clean rooms and watching the microchips get manufactured blew my mind. I thought this was incredible stuff. I had the same feeling years later when I toured NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory for the first time. 

Throughout my career, I’ve worked for creative agencies and I’ve started three businesses. I kicked off Eighth Rule (8R) in 2014 when I noticed the agency I was working for wasn’t focused nearly enough on technology. When my attempts at pushing the agency towards innovation failed, I knew I had something to create. My first project out of the gate was developing the website for Facebook’s App Links, a product they announced at F8, which we successfully completed on time and under budget. 

In the six years I’ve run 8R, I’ve hit obstacles and challenges that I never would have experienced otherwise. Solving these problems sometimes required a quick wit; other times an enormous amount of patience. Building brands and developing software isn't easy. From stakeholder engagement to requirements gathering, testing and deployment, there's a lot of needed communication and expectation setting. 

I’ve learned there are no heroes, but teams that make great things happen. Having the right people work alongside with a culture that provides openness and flexibility is key to creating high quality workmanship. 

My curiosity keeps me up at night. 

​

In my spare time, my curiosity gets the best of me. I stay up late watching documentaries on quantum physics and deep space missions. While driving, I listen to science podcasts and industry thought leaders. And I’ve taken online courses on brain science, engineering and space science. Recently, I started a Facebook group called “Women Talk Space” to encourage women from all backgrounds to get inspired by space exploration. I also volunteer at OMSI designing their state-wide communications strategy for space science. 

My father’s simple lesson about a box has ultimately taught me to push for more. There is usually a deeper understanding, a better way or more than what meets the eye. It’s what you find inside that pushes you forward.

Feel free to reach out any time: jen@eighthrule.com