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Alexandra Sloves, Strategic Communication & Marketing at Ventech
Learning Inspiration 🌈 #9
This week’s learning inspiration is Alexandra Sloves. Alexandra joined Ventech in early 2019 to be in charge of Strategic Communication & Marketing. Ventech is a Global VC fund investing in Tech-Driven Early-Stage companies (Series A & Seed) and with a clear focus on Europe and China. Before moving to Paris, Alexandra was based in Los Angeles where she was working for “Bank of America Merrill Lynch” as Chief of Staff.
Who is your main source of inspiration 👩?
Apologies for a sideways and long-winded answer to this straightforward question, but the common thread behind my sources of inspiration is subtlety and rawness. For example, visually, the interplay of light with color and texture to create depth.
In individuals, those unapologetically themselves and manage to insert their (often deeply controversial) opinions in an entirely un-inflammatory fashion.
In societies, the unspoken codes that transcend language.
How do you keep learning on a daily basis?
In three words: curiosity, intentionality & awareness.
What this means for me in everyday life, (1) listen more, talk less, (2) daily discovery by taking life by foot, (3) take notes, and (4) always ask why.
I believe that the foundation of a learning routine is knowing yourself and what works for you.
For me, that’s creating an environment that resonates. I’m highly auditory and visual. If I want to dial into whatever I’m learning, I find complementary cross-format sources to reinforce the bottom line messaging. More than anything, I have to make subjects tangible. I need to understand the “so what” of what I’m learning for it to sink in.
Some of my favorite learning moments have been accidental discoveries that I still remember today.
What are your favorite books 📚?
Anything that makes me stop and challenges me or my way of thinking. Some favorites:
– Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
– The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
– La Sel de la Vie 🇫🇷 by Francoise Héritier
– East of Eden by John Steinbeck
– The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
– Merci qui ? Merci Mon Chien by Jean-Louis Fournier
– The Lion, the Witch, & The Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
Also, as I’m obsessed with understanding what drives people to make decisions. I love biographies and autobiographies. They’re windows into the minds of some of the world’s best.
The book that’s influenced me most is The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein. It’s a children’s book that, at first glance, is a parable for generosity and self-sacrifice, but I think the more profound message is one on the danger of pouring from an empty cup.
I think I read it for the first time at five or six years old, but I’ve returned to over the years to learn lessons about healthy relationships, self-care, love languages, and the power of giving to nurture or destroy.
What is your favorite podcast 🎧?
I love podcasts that quickly become deep and intimate under the guise of a much lighter topic, for example:
– The Faubourg of Dreams by Hermès
– Bouffons 🇫🇷
– Chaud! 🇫🇷
– Expanded Podcast by Lacy Phillips
– Le Goût de M 🇫🇷
If you were to stay alone on an island and would only be allowed to bring one item, what would it be ?
My dog 🙂
If there is anything else you would like to share?
Despite my long winded-ness, I genuinely believe that less is more. To me, mastering the art of unlearning is just as essential to master as learning itself. I find that as I grow, so does my ‘un to-do’ list of the things, behaviors, and values that no longer resonate with me that I’m working on letting go.
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