Caroline O’Keefe

UH 208

Professor Ratliff

27 March 2023

Informational Interview Report

A few weeks ago in class, we were informed that we would be doing an assignment that

involved conducting an interview with a professional about their career path and personal

journey. This seemed daunting at first, however, I decided to really reflect on whom I was going

to select to interview. I wanted to arrange the meeting with a professional I felt would help me

learn more about my passions, my major and minor, and the industry I was interested in going

into. Before selecting someone, I chose to reflect on my personal journey and why the person I

chose to select was a perfect fit. This person really helped me solidify my passions and helped

me realize and shape my plans for the future in my career field.

Entering the University of Alabama, I was an undecided major. I had no clue what I

wanted to do, and everything felt so heavy. However, I was always passionate about health,

wellness, and helping others. After some research, talking to people in the healthcare industry,

and taking some courses, I decided Nursing would be a good track to pursue. I had not declared

this officially, yet this was short-lived as the pandemic came in my freshman spring semester. I

desired something different, and after talking with my parents decided I wanted to try business,

declaring Management Information Systems as my major. I hated this and felt stuck as no other

business majors really interested me. In the Fall of 2021, I met with a career advisor and went

back to my love for health, wellness, and helping others. I thought that because I was not a

nursing major, I couldn’t integrate these passions into a career in business. I felt frustrated as a
junior changing my mind, and really began researching majors within the Culverhouse College

of Business. I went with Marketing as I learned that I really enjoyed learning what people need

and want, and why people buy the things they do. Additionally, I decided to add an International

Business minor to enhance my awareness of different cultures and how they conduct business.

Looking back, I had no idea how I would integrate my passions with these concentrations

but felt confident and finally happy with what I chose. Later in the fall semester of 2021,

something extremely traumatic and personal happened to me. This carried over in the spring and

summer of 2022, and I was at an extremely low point in my life. I felt like academically I was

just going through the motions, and alongside of this upon registration in the spring I was told

that I needed to satisfy my abroad requirement for my minor. I started to panic because I was a

rising senior and had no intention of studying abroad as COVID-19 took that away from me.

Last March, I worked extremely close with my professor and department chair of International

Business, Diana Gomez. Professor Gomez and Study Abroad office helped me pair with a third-

party provider, Global Experiences to satisfy my requirement virtually. Global Experiences

provided me with a life-changing virtual internship that aligned with my passions of healthcare,

wellness, marketing, and international business. I virtually served as a summer intern with Buddy

Ball Band located in Barcelona Spain. I worked directly with the CEO of the company, Ms.

Paula Echeverri. I served as her digital marketing intern creating and developing a digital

strategy in platforms where her company lacked presence. Additionally, I worked and planned

with Paula to hit several targets in the sports and fitness industry, initiating collaborations or

partnerships. Lastly, I offered a young and new perspective to the company to facilitate success

in the creation of virtual wellness retreats, increasing return on investment, and increasing social

media presence on Instagram and Pinterest.

 I chose to conduct my interview with Paula, as I wanted to gain more knowledge about

her career path and personal journey after working with her this past summer. I was inspired by

her, and she was a really great mentor over the summer. Before discussing her, I chose to explain

my personal journey because I may not have realized it at the time, but she really helped me

solidify my professional goals and helped me personally. This internship and everything prior to

and after it was my silver lining to all that I had been through. Reflecting on the hard moments I

faced last year, her career, passions, and journey are something I wanted to learn more about as I

felt she made a huge impact on my life and inspired me.

Paula Echeverri was originally born in Colombia, and later spent her time in Silicon

Valley in California, before moving to Barcelona Spain. Paula wears many hats as a CEO, writer,

speaker, entrepreneur, mentor, mom to two girls, and so much more. Her journey began by

getting her bachelor’s in advertising back in Colombia. In Silicon Valley, she worked as an Event

Planning Consultant planning logistics and events for major brands and celebrities like Phil

Mickelson and clients like Toyota and Windows. She then desired to be an entrepreneur, starting

as the CEO of High Horse Designs, a store in the San Francisco mall selling fashion accessories

at high-end price points. After this, she was the CEO of SelfieMark, a unique collaboration

technology that helps buyers overcome the hurdle of seeking social approval before purchasing

products from retail stores and websites. Currently, she still consults with leading companies and

e-commerce in the San Francisco Bay Area. On top of this, she serves as the CEO of Buddy Ball

Band, and CEO of NeuroMomCEO.

Paula’s inspiration and interest to work in this industry stemmed from wanting to work in

areas that make people’s lives better. I felt we aligned very closely on this. She wanted to help in

any way to contribute to helping people and solving any problem a person might have. She
highlighted in the interview why she began her fitness startup, Buddy Ball Band. This was the

company I worked for the past summer, and Paula describes she saw a problem with people

using the Pilates ball in many exercises. She created a solution for a need in the market with her

main product, Buddy Ball. This product attaches the ball to your body and stays in place,

allowing you to focus on your core strength, control movements, and get strong. Meanwhile, she

decided to study Neuroscience because of a sudden loss of her hearing. Paula was led into a

journey of discovery and started to learn how the brain and emotions work as she was facing

these problems. She reflects on how she was constantly anxious, and having panic attacks, so

learning how to handle her emotions was key. Being the CEO of NeuroMomCEO, she works to

help people discover their potential and learn about the power of their brains. A typical day in her

job entails first prioritizing self-care. She always goes to the gym in the morning when she can,

then later looks at her emails. Paula makes a list of important things and not important things that

she needs to do throughout the day and makes sure she finishes the important ones. These

important things may be meetings, mentoring, tending to her companies, and so much more. At

the end of the day, she enjoys spending time with her girls, having a nighttime ritual of self-care

again, and meditation.

Paula feels that some accomplishments that set her apart in this popular industry are her

certifications and writing books throughout her journey, with the goal of helping others manage

their emotions better and lead a more fulfilled life as she did. She has several certifications in

neuroscience, leadership, emotional intelligence, neurological fitness, and as a lifestyle coach.

She has developed many new skills since leading a more fulfilled life, wearing many different

roles she describes her skills and self as a work in progress each day. She cares a lot about being

selective about what she puts in her mind each day and her family too. She has learned lots of
emotional intelligence and useful skills from that, helping her with clients and her children too.

Paula details her three best qualities are that she is driven, compassionate and that she does not

give up easily. While her three worst are too impulsive sometimes, and she does not let things go

easily.

Within the healthcare industry, Paula believes that studying and developing these skills

and qualities every day is what can set you apart. Additionally, she believes that some of the

most in-demand skills for this industry of health and wellness are not giving up, seeing different

angles of a problem, and being resilient. She connects her personal experience and knowledge

together, which gives her an advantage she details. With this advantage and passion, her favorite

thing about her job is to see people happy when helping them, and seeing the knowledge she

provides really helps change lives. Her least favorite thing about being a CEO is sometimes

working on her own you are always working, and it is hard to separate things. However, she

reflects on mentors and highlights her ex-husband as mentoring her and helping her understand

many things about having her own business and learning to separate things.

Learning to separate things facilitated talking about work/life balance with Paula in the

field. She mentions it is one of the hardest things to deal with, but she makes sure she gives

quality time to her little girls and takes time for herself alone or with friends. It is important to

her to set boundaries with people. She admits she is not perfect but is a work in progress and

adjusts each day—trial and error.

I took away many things from this interview on a personal and professional level. One of

the most important things was the most vital steps someone like me should take to prepare for a

role in healthcare and the industry. This was that knowledge gives you power, so to study and

prepare around all areas, yet knowing that you cannot do everything, and delegation is important
for your health and a business. Another thing I learned was that we are a constant work in

progress. Lastly, I think Paula really helped me realize that my passion of health and wellness

can be tailored to my major in Marketing and International Business with a career.