Plastics & Beyond

00;00;04;04 - 00;00;19;25
Lilian Judy
Welcome to the Plastics and Beyond Podcast, an SPE-sponsored podcast supporting a diverse, equitable and inclusive workforce. I'm your host, Lilian Judy, and I invite you to join me every month for new, diverse conversations.

00;00;23;23 - 00;00;44;27
Lilian Judy
Welcome to another episode of the Plastics and Beyond Podcast. And I'm really excited today for our next guest because she's someone that does a lot in the plastics space, and I feel like she's personally mentored me as I've tried to figure out my way out in the plastics industry. So today we have Lynzie Nebel and welcome Lynzie.

00;00;44;27 - 00;00;45;11
Lynzie Nebel
Hi.

00;00;45;12 - 00;00;46;11
Lilian Judy
How are you doing today?

00;00;46;22 - 00;00;51;14
Lynzie Nebel
I am just lovely. There's a snowstorm coming in, and I am all bundled up.

00;00;51;29 - 00;00;55;21
Lilian Judy
I know. I woke up and there’s snow on my car and I'm trying to figure that out.

00;00;56;16 - 00;00;59;03
Lynzie Nebel
Very disrespectful.

00;00;59;18 - 00;01;11;16
Lilian Judy
So, Lynzie can you tell our listeners and viewers who you are? Maybe they've heard about you, maybe they’ve seen your picture all over, but like, can you tell people, who is Lynzie and what do you do?

00;01;12;25 - 00;01;48;12
Lynzie Nebel
Yeah. So I am Lynzie Nebel. I have been in the industry for about 15 years. I am, currently work at Cytiva. I’m an upstream product quote engineer. I'm pretty sure I messed up the order of those words. And I am also on the executive board for SPE, which also means I sit on the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Board and I am co-host of the other SPE podcast, PlastChicks.

00;01;49;02 - 00;02;08;14
Lilian Judy
So how did you end up in plastics? Like, for me, my story is always I stumbled into plastics engineering. I didn't know it existed. How did you figure out that you wanted to do plastics and how did you even find the program?

00;02;09;10 - 00;02;34;19
Lynzie Nebel
Same. I 100% stumbled into it. I, my high school had a tabletop injection molding machine, which, wild, and very dangerous the way we did it. But that's fine. It was the 2000s. Nobody cared. And so I was talking to my guidance counselor, and he made it sound like I had to take this class. I took this class. It was all about like manufacturing processes.

00;02;35;24 - 00;03;08;05
Lynzie Nebel
And we used the tabletop injection molding machine, which had a little bitty rote, rotational motor, cutest little thing, and maybe a couple other like secondary plastics things, and I thought that was a cool class, nothing you could do with that, put that folder away. And I took some random quiz that was like, what should you be, because I was going to be a music major, but I had injured my wrist and you know, the old fashioned cheerleading accident, and I couldn't play as much.

00;03;08;05 - 00;03;30;16
Lynzie Nebel
So I was trying to think like, what are my other options? And I stumbled into plastic and I'm from just south of Buffalo, New York. And I saw there’s a school in Erie. I did also set up a visit for UMass Lowell, but I was accepted to Penn State before and I was like an hour and a half away from home.

00;03;30;16 - 00;03;31;29
Lilian Judy
It’s closer. Yeah.

00;03;31;29 - 00;03;33;13
Lynzie Nebel
That's a good stop.

00;03;33;25 - 00;03;55;15
Lilian Judy
Yeah. Yeah. So when you were in college, what would you say the...I don't want to say percentage, but what did the classrooms look like? And you can explain it. Gender, race, everything, anything.

00;03;55;15 - 00;04;18;02
Lynzie Nebel
So as I'm sure we've all guessed, my class was very white, 100%. And there were 36 of us and there were four women. So and we actually had one of the largest amounts of women in our class at the time, which, you know.

00;04;18;25 - 00;04;21;00
Lilian Judy
Compared to other engineering?

00;04;21;00 - 00;04;21;20
Lynzie Nebel
Compared to.

00;04;21;20 - 00;05;01;12
Lynzie Nebel
Well, compared to other engineering and compared to other plastics classes. Most classes were carrying 1 to 2 women. Occasionally, you get a class where it’s like six women. Eight women. It's like, holy cow, but we had four. So we were really boosting the numbers and everything. At Penn State Berhend especially at the time was much, I think, the ratio of men to women was like 60% men, actually might’ve been like 65, 70% men and like 30% women.

00;05;01;13 - 00;05;22;18
Lynzie Nebel
Like that was, that's what they called the Behrand ratio. They have added a lot more courses that have drawn a lot more women. And I would like to think that there are a lot more women now, you know, male dominated fields now. But that might not be as much of a case as I would like it to be.

00;05;22;18 - 00;05;47;07
Lilian Judy
Yeah, no. And I think that's relative to my experience as well. We were, I mean we had a bit of diversity. There were a number of Indians in plastics, most of them international students who came from out of the country. But my group, we were I think we started off as four women. One dropped out. I was the only black.

00;05;48;05 - 00;06;21;12
Lilian Judy
The other girl was African American. I was black from Africa. The other girl was African American. And it was just, we basically stuck together. So. Right, right. And so in that time or I mean, you were pretty young then, I would assume during that time, did anything stand out to you regarding how, the lack of diversity in your classes or in this degree?

00;06;21;12 - 00;06;28;17
Lynzie Nebel
Yeah, I mean, I was a pretty shy person coming into college.

00;06;28;17 - 00;06;29;28
Lilian Judy
I find that hard to believe.

00;06;29;28 - 00;07;07;03
Lynzie Nebel
I definitely found a lot of my footing in, by being in engineering. So it was, it was very intimidating. And honestly, there was an actually another woman who was in the plastics, my plastics class with me and she dropped very early on like I thought her and I were going to be like besties. And when she dropped, I felt very alone, very isolated because the other two women I didn't really know.

00;07;07;03 - 00;07;24;20
Lynzie Nebel
And then there was another woman that I knew was like, all right, I think I can think I can bond with her. But like, she knew a lot of the guys from our class because she had gone to school with them in high school with them. So and she was already kind of in, so I felt very intimidated.

00;07;25;19 - 00;07;44;22
Lynzie Nebel
I wasn't sure, I was like, why did I, was this the right call? I'm paying out of state tuition. I'm here by myself, like. And honestly, if it weren't for the fact that my parents were like, Listen, we're not going to get another loan for you to go to a different school. And I was like, I'm just going to stick it out.

00;07;44;23 - 00;07;56;27
Lynzie Nebel
Like, Yeah, I don't have another choice. Like, if I don't do this, I don't go to school, so figure it out. Like you will figure it out. You will find other people. It'll be okay.

00;07;57;05 - 00;08;18;16
Lilian Judy
Yeah. And I think it's really sad to see that it was so bad that you wanted to be out of the program. You know what I mean? For me, it was so bad that I didn't know if I wanted to stay in the program as well, you know, because I couldn't find anyone that looked like me and I couldn't relate.

00;08;18;16 - 00;08;18;28
Lynzie Nebel
Right.

00;08;18;28 - 00;08;43;13
Lilian Judy
As a whole, you know? And I think it's even now, so many years later, I feel like young women are still struggling. Yes, there has been a bit of change and growth and improvement, but I think there's still that. When you look back now, what do you think would have helped you deal with that?

00;08;44;14 - 00;09;04;09
Lynzie Nebel
I think, I think some of it could have been maybe a little bit more formal mentoring from upperclassmen, you know, women reaching out. I think that could have helped a little bit. I was still a little shy, so I don't know how much I would have, like, benefited.

00;09;04;09 - 00;09;04;22
Lilian Judy
Yeah.

00;09;04;22 - 00;09;12;05
Lynzie Nebel
Other than just, you know, being, oh. And I think some of it is stuff you learn along the way.

00;09;12;23 - 00;09;46;12
Lynzie Nebel
I remember really thinking a lot of the guys in my class like, how do they know this already? Like what did they learn in high school that I didn't ? Like I was in the top percentage of my class in high school, always. What did I miss? I mean, these guys are coming in and understanding it, and now I understand that a lot of it was just their attitude, their mentality that like, I mostly got the concept, I'm fine with moving on.

00;09;46;19 - 00;10;16;13
Lynzie Nebel
Whereas like to me as a perfectionist, I really wanted to know the full concept. I wanted to be like, I wanted to learn a concept and to be able to teach it immediately. And when I couldn't do that, because plastics is a whole new ballgame from what you’re taught, you know, like I remember one time we were learning about slides in injection molds and I just could not wrap my head around that, like, could not.

00;10;16;13 - 00;10;42;06
Lynzie Nebel
And finally, I got the nerve up to ask one of my professors. Is said, hey, can I go in the lab. and get slides. Like, I just I'm not getting it. And he was like, okay. And so he announces to the class, I'm going down to the lab, I'm going to show you what a slide looks like. And I remember like 14 people came down and I was like, wow, you guys don’t get it either.

00;10;42;06 - 00;10;42;18
Lilian Judy
Wow.

00;10;42;21 - 00;10;49;08
Lynzie Nebel
It just it felt like it was just me and it wasn't -- it was it was so many more people.

00;10;49;08 - 00;10;49;22
Lilian Judy
Yeah.

00;10;49;22 - 00;11;06;13
Lynzie Nebel
And I think if I had known going in like you are on the same page as everyone else, nobody else has the advantage. I mean it was the occasional someone worked in a plastics factory since they were four, but you know, overall you’re pretty much on the same page like.

00;11;06;13 - 00;11;07;15
Lilian Judy
Yeah.

00;11;07;15 - 00;11;18;17
Lynzie Nebel
I didn't have the foresight to see that. I thought I was the only one behind and that added to the isolation.

00;11;19;02 - 00;12;05;13
Lilian Judy
Yeah. And I think it's a confidence issue as well because I also lacked a lot of confidence, and I remember vividly we had this exam, I really don't remember. It was probably fluid flow and it was, it was one of those classes where like if you had the previous year’s exams, like it was pretty similar. So it's good to study with, you know, the papers from the year before and all that. We were all in the library studying and I saw that the guys had gathered around like, you know, working through a paper. And I realized that they got that information from their dorms.

00;12;05;13 - 00;12;27;24
Lilian Judy
Right. And the girls, because there aren't a lot of girls, like, we like, where we get in that from. So my friend and I had to literally push ourselves into the guys’ conversation and say, Oh, what are you guys looking at? Can we join? And they were receptive, but we had to be confident enough to step up to them and, you know, do that.

00;12;27;24 - 00;12;51;23
Lilian Judy
And literally the exam was literally like a replica of it. Yeah. So I was like, this is what we are missing out on. Yeah, there's no, we're not confident enough in ourselves, but then there's also so many resources out there that we may not even be aware of, you know, and that's even just on a college level, right?

00;12;51;23 - 00;12;52;27
Lynzie Nebel
Right.

00;12;52;27 - 00;12;54;16
Lilian Judy
When you. Mm.

00;12;55;03 - 00;13;15;27
Lynzie Nebel
I mean that's, you know, I, I know we were just talking, I spent the week the past two days at Women Breaking the Mold. And a lot of what we were talking was how this, like this access to the next level or this access to information or, you know, to the higher ups or to the people making the decisions.

00;13;16;07 - 00;13;48;18
Lynzie Nebel
It's always, not always, is typically passed down to people that are friends or friendly or like minded or like each other or, oh, you know, you went to this college, you were in this fraternity? Here, let's pass that down, because you're my brother and it's like it cuts off such a big portion of people and it gives us no in-routes for access unless we force our way in.

00;13;49;05 - 00;14;16;05
Lilian Judy
Exactly. And I think in that case, so when I was coming up in college, I thought I needed to have a female mentor. Right. And it wasn't until after I graduated, that's when I realized that in reality, with the industry that I find myself in, I most likely would benefit from having a white male mentor. Right.

00;14;16;05 - 00;14;45;25
Lilian Judy
And that's inside that, that's these are the specifics of it. But that's really what it is. And I say that you have truly mentored me because when I came for ANTEC this year, 2022, you literally were like, I I'm shy as well. You wouldn't believe it, but I had to come see you. And, you know, like because I feel confident and safe enough to be able to talk to you.

00;14;46;02 - 00;15;09;08
Lilian Judy
And so I came to you on multiple occasions, like, oh, I want to meet people like I don't know anyone. And you held my hand and introduced me to some of the most amazing people, amazing men that I have met with so much knowledge who are willing to help, willing to support. And imagine someone who doesn't have access to you, who has the access now, right?

00;15;09;26 - 00;15;37;01
Lilian Judy
Well, in my opinion, what does that person do? You know, so cutting off the access is very real and very true. But I want to pivot to...Okay, now, you graduated from college. You're working. How was your, how was your interviewing process like when you were working regarding like confidence, being confident in yourself and interviewing within rooms with all these guys.

00;15;37;01 - 00;15;45;04
Lilian Judy
And, you know, just maybe if you are like me, you probably felt small in some of the rooms. How was that entire experience for you?

00;15;46;08 - 00;16;27;24
Lynzie Nebel
So, you know, I, I feel like I had a probably less than typical interviewing experience because I graduated at the height of the recession or like, oh, right as it was ramping up. So my class was really just trying to survive. And it was, if somebody offered you a position, you take it. And I had previously taken an internship at a company in Butler called Pittsburgh Plastics, and it was it was a fun company to work for.

00;16;28;13 - 00;16;55;16
Lynzie Nebel
It just wasn't injection molding, which is what I wanted to do. And, and I will say, gave me a lot of experience with like two-part thermosets, you know. So it was, it was a good, interesting adventure, but it wasn't, you know, I wanted to come out and I wanted to be on the custom injection molding floor and watching the molds get built and run and all that stuff.

00;16;56;07 - 00;17;19;14
Lynzie Nebel
So I will say the interview process for me was fairly simple, but it’s because there were only, I only interviewed for two places because there were so few offers on the table, like just all around. I think everyone in my class got a job, but it was it was one of those situations where it was like, whew we are in.

00;17;19;14 - 00;17;55;12
Lynzie Nebel
And then had I taken the other offer I had, I would have been laid off within three months. So the other position went right away. So it was it was not ideal. But you know, I, I stayed there for a year and a half like that. And then there was an offer for a job that was injection molding back in Erie, kind of like what I wanted.

00;17;56;02 - 00;18;21;01
Lynzie Nebel
And I have been very fortunate that I have had people that have been allies for me. And I know this is something to talk about. You know, ally is different than a, you know, a mentor and all that stuff. An ally is someone who well, I guess you I’m probably mixing up the words, but you know, someone who will say your name when you're not around.

00;18;21;07 - 00;18;50;22
Lynzie Nebel
Yeah. And I had, I was very fortunate that in this job, a friend of mine had said, I know someone that I think would be really great for this position. And he mentioned my name and thankfully I was able to interview with a small injection molding company. It was a little intimidating, especially because, you know, your friend is putting your name up, you don't want to let him down.

00;18;52;21 - 00;19;14;25
Lynzie Nebel
But thankfully, I think it was a fairly straightforward interview. So I didn't, you know, the more interviews you do. I'm your classic millennial job hopper -- the more you can kind of build up that experience, that confidence and kind of be like, Well, you're talking to me, so I must have something to offer you.

00;19;15;05 - 00;19;44;24
Lilian Judy
Exactly. Yeah. So, yeah, I love that you threw the word ally out there because that's where I want us to go next. In the professional field now, you've been working for a number of years. How do you identify these allies? Like how do you position yourself to be connected to someone who can mention your name in rooms you can never find yourself in?

00;19;45;12 - 00;20;20;21
Lynzie Nebel
So I think, you know, I know a lot of women don't like to brag about themselves. I don't. I am also in that category, but I think I am a hell of a matchmaker. Well, I feel like one of my strengths is being able to meet people and be where, and not that they can benefit me, that sounds a little selfish, but you know, I do a lot for SPE, I do a lot for the (SPE) Foundation.

00;20;20;21 - 00;20;59;00
Lynzie Nebel
I try and keep these people in mind for when an opportunity could come up that they would be great for. You know, there's been several times where I've helped Eve Vitale you know, the chair of the Foundation, brainstorm names for people that could, you know , fit on different committees or have connections. And I think the way that my mind kind of works is when I meet someone, I mean, I like meeting people.

00;20;59;00 - 00;21;29;05
Lynzie Nebel
I'm like, I am I'm one of those introvert extroverts. So like I always have a certain level of energy then I melt. But I do like meeting people and seeing what their strengths are and seeing what they can, what they have to offer or where we can work together. And, you know, some people are just really fun.

00;21;30;00 - 00;21;47;25
Lynzie Nebel
I just met a woman at the conference yesterday and it was Quiana Kee, and she works for Continental Tire . She’s in rubber, but she was one of the best speakers I have ever seen in my entire life.

00;21;47;25 - 00;21;48;23
Lilian Judy
Wow.

00;21;48;23 - 00;22;08;12
Lynzie Nebel
So like, in my mind, like, I have her name on like a short list of like, what can I do to reconnect with her or, you know, put her name forward or something else like, you know, and not to say she's going to take these things, maybe she’s got a full plate, but she was just so inspiring.

00;22;08;14 - 00;22;39;23
Lynzie Nebel
I want to be able to meet up with her again or be in the same room as her again. And I think I'm always kind of keeping lists of where can these people go? And so I guess the other end of that, if you're the person looking to be mentioned or to be put up for something, it's really about meeting people and highlighting what your interests are, not even your strengths necessarily.

00;22;39;23 - 00;22;58;02
Lynzie Nebel
I mean, if you got great strengths, then you throw them out there, you know, like, hey, by the way, I'm really good at like video editing. You know, someone might be like, Oh, that might actually be something I could use, you know? But if there's passion, find the people that are doing that and just mention it to them.

00;22;58;05 - 00;23;31;28
Lynzie Nebel
It doesn't mean they'll have room for you on a committee right away or whatever, but we're always looking for people. We're always keeping people in mind, always want new, fresh ideas. And so it's as much as like the introduction part. It to me is always overwhelming. Like I feel like I’m terrible at networking events, but it's is about just making yourself at least seen or you know, you can reach out on LinkedIn, it doesn't have to be in person, it can be virtual.

00;23;31;28 - 00;23;54;08
Lynzie Nebel
That does take a lot of the edge off, you know and it and it doesn't, like that's another thing. Like when I do see these people, I try and connect with them and just try and shoot them a message you and if I'm really interested in like keeping them on like or a foundation or whatever, I shoot them a message to say, Hey, how have you been, like or I saw this article that you were in.

00;23;54;08 - 00;24;02;08
Lynzie Nebel
It was awesome. Good job. You know, just, you know, shout out. So let them know you're thinking of them. It keeps your name on their mind and vice versa.

00;24;02;08 - 00;24;43;11
Lilian Judy
And vice versa. Yeah. Okay. So I think you've kind of answered my next question already, but I was going to say, what are some tips or suggestions that you can give to young women graduating from college or already in the industry, but trying to do more and trying to connect with the right people? I would say being connected with SPE has really helped me a lot with that and I don't know how early you were connected to SPE because you do a lot, a lot of, you’re unlike a lot of conference attendees, like I'm, I didn't want to try to introduce you.

00;24;43;25 - 00;24;44;04
Lynzie Nebel
Ha ha.

00;24;44;04 - 00;25;05;26
Lilian Judy
Because I didn't want to leave one out. But you do inspire honestly because you're also a mom, you're also a wife. And I feel like being able to do all these things, having all these extra titles, it's like, it's really impressive. One last thing. Or before I move forward. Do you actually have something to add to that?

00;25;07;13 - 00;25;32;18
Lynzie Nebel
I mean, I think being an SPE is a big part of what does drive what I do. So I think some people look at SPE and are like, I don't know what that does for me. And for me, it has done everything. And a lot of it is that networking that like knowing people and people knowing about me.

00;25;33;24 - 00;25;55;24
Lynzie Nebel
And so even if you're young, professional, trying to get into the industry and you don't see the value yet, first of all, your first two years are free. So just do it. And I have been a member since I was a student, but that was because we got bonus points on tests.

00;25;55;24 - 00;25;56;14
Lilian Judy
Oh, God.

00;25;57;03 - 00;25;59;28
Lynzie Nebel
I’m a sucker for a bonus point.

00;25;59;28 - 00;26;31;03
Lilian Judy
Yeah. No. So networking, I guess that's the big one. Yeah. Okay, so as a mom, right. And as a working professional in the industry, do you have concerns about there not being enough opportunities for moms to, how do I word this, for mothers in general? And what do you think can be done with that?

00;26;31;03 - 00;27;04;14
Lynzie Nebel
Yeah, I think it's really, it's really hard because there is that that perception sometimes that like if you're a mom, you're going to be distracted. If you're distracted, you're not going to be a good employee. If you're not a good employee, you’re not going to stay, you know, and it's that whole chain. But for me and I think probably a lot of moms, what drives me is like, you know, I have three little boys expecting a fourth mystery baby.

00;27;05;14 - 00;27;44;04
Lynzie Nebel
And I, I want my boys to see me as someone who really commits to what I say I'm going to commit to. I want them to see me as someone who is trying to work outside themselves. I mean, I may be a very selfish person, but I do try to do these things. And, you know, there's a lot of studies where moms with young boys, if the moms work outside the home, the boys become better husbands, better fathers.

00;27;44;11 - 00;28;26;20
Lynzie Nebel
And I want that for my boys. I want them to be kind. And, you know, they are going to be white men someday. I want them to be kind, respectful, always looking to help the next person out. I don't want them to go down the negative trope. So I think it would be, you know, and so I feel like it's my job to make sure that they see me trying to do everything I can and see my struggles and see where I am left out of the conversation or where I'm, you know, I have to force my way in or where I am just not considered.

00;28;27;12 - 00;28;48;16
Lynzie Nebel
There are, there have been times where because I do a lot, you know, people have said if I, if I'm looking for another opportunity or I'm trying to do something else, people have said to me, you know, like, well, you probably won't be interested because you've got so much going on. It's like, yes, I do have a lot going on, but let me manage my schedule.

00;28;48;18 - 00;28;57;21
Lynzie Nebel
Yeah, I will be responsible for my schedule, not you. If I can't do it, I will let you know.

00;28;57;21 - 00;28;58;00
Lilian Judy
Let you know.

00;28;58;00 - 00;29;25;29
Lynzie Nebel
And like even, you know, I've had this coming up with my fourth kid. I've had four different jobs during my kids, so I've had four different types of maternity leave. Some have been paid, some have not been paid. This company I'm at now, Cytiva, I will say, has been by far the best company I've worked for.

00;29;25;29 - 00;29;59;19
Lynzie Nebel
They are very progressive in their approach. I remember even when I interviewed, we were walking in the engineering department, not my interview, when I came out for like one of my first visits. We’re walking through the engineering department and they're like, Oh, I think so-and-so is out on maternity leave. And there are like, Oh, I think something like it was just so nice to hear that there were multiple women and multiple women that either just had a baby or like, I wouldn't be the exception and I’ve always been the exception.

00;29;59;19 - 00;30;28;20
Lynzie Nebel
And even sitting on the Executive Board, you know, I've had maternity leaves and I said, okay, guys, like I have done a lot. I am now taking my maternity leave. Only if it's an emergency, otherwise I'm going to be like healing and growing here. And it's not that they haven't been supportive of it, but it's, I think it was like, oh, yeah, I guess, I guess you do have to do it.

00;30;28;20 - 00;30;58;07
Lynzie Nebel
Like I was the first person to take a maternity leave on the Executive Board. So, you know, I don't, I think some people probably do look upon that negatively. I think I, I don't know how much swearing you want on this podcast, but I think I bust my ass enough to prove my worth and do a lot and set things up so that when I'm gone on maternity leave, there are still things moving.

00;30;58;07 - 00;31;17;05
Lynzie Nebel
There are still projects going. You know, I don't think I'm leaving and just going into a black hole. I might not physically be there because of, you know. Above everything else, I will prioritize my family. I love the plastics industry, but I will burn it all down for my family.

00;31;17;05 - 00;31;40;25
Lilian Judy
Yeah, no thank you for the transparency because for me, I'm not yet a mom and I aspire to be one one day. And that's been I thought like in my head for the past couple of years is like, am I, how am I going to handle this? Like I hope I don't find myself in a situation where I don't want to have to choose like.

00;31;40;25 - 00;31;41;00
Lynzie Nebel
Right.

00;31;41;02 - 00;32;09;22
Lilian Judy
I don't want it to have to be a decision, you know, I want it to be okay. Like it should be part of the rules and regulations or whatever that. Okay, she's on maternity leave. We will pick up when she comes back. You know, she can pick up where she left off, you know, and not have to make a decision like, oh, you should do A, B, C, D, E, and so it's inspiring to hear you say you've had four different experiences.

00;32;09;22 - 00;32;43;24
Lilian Judy
And thankfully now this where you are now has or is showing signs of more forward thinking. I hope this serves as some kind of motivation for anyone else, any other woman who was or has been worrying, like myself, being an engineer in the industry as well, when it comes to maternity leave. But Lynzie, I can talk to you for days, but I have so many more questions I want to ask you.

00;32;44;07 - 00;33;08;06
Lilian Judy
But we're running out of time. And before we leave, I want us to end up with this question. What does diversity mean to you? We’ve talked about different aspects of it, in my opinion. You've touched on so many important points, important topics, being a woman in the industry, being a minority, all these different things, what would you say diversity means to you?

00;33;09;14 - 00;33;51;25
Lynzie Nebel
I think to me, diversity means just I think I think a bit more on the equity and inclusion end of things. You know, I think it just means not feeling like you're alone or feeling like you have to change something about yourself in order to do something you want to do. I think it means you've come to a place where you actually can say, Oh, they respected my opinion because I'm smart as hell.

00;33;52;24 - 00;34;54;08
Lilian Judy
Yeah. You know, and I think and not have, because there are times where that is the case. It's just because you're smart as hell. And sometimes it's, there are other factors and those little voices saying like, well, it's just because you're a woman or it's just because I didn't want to make you mad, or it's just because, you know, and I think by embracing diversity, equity and inclusion and all of that, I think you start to peel off those little voices and we can all just...it to me, diversity seems like a more relaxing place to be, you know and I'm all about being relaxed and not, you know, just taking away some of that tension and that anxiety and just that, those frustrations. I think. Yeah.

00;34;54;27 - 00;35;16;02
Lilian Judy
You know, that's, I've never heard it from that angle before, but it's a, it's relatable, if I can say that. For me, I always struggle to put diversity into words, honestly. So maybe this was kind of like a trick question. Who knows?

00;35;16;14 - 00;35;17;21
Lynzie Nebel
A good trick question.

00;35;19;07 - 00;35;42;16
Lilian Judy
But it's hard to, you know, there's so many facets to it and so I think I find that people define it based on where they are in their life at that point. Right. And maybe some experiences that they have just experienced like recently. And so I appreciate you sharing that with us. I appreciate you coming on the podcast.

00;35;42;16 - 00;35;45;06
Lilian Judy
So I look forward to coming onto PlastChicks.

00;35;45;16 - 00;35;51;04
Lynzie Nebel
Yes. Once we get our act together.

00;35;51;04 - 00;36;03;20
Lilian Judy
No, this has been really, really refreshing and thank you so much. Once again, congratulations on your fourth child. And we look for it to having you back next season. Thank you.

00;36;04;00 - 00;36;04;20
Lynzie Nebel
Thank you.

00;36;04;23 - 00;36;15;05
Lilian Judy
Well, I hope you learned a thing or two from this episode. And I will definitely see you all on the next episode of The Plastics and Beyond podcast.