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Interview published by El País
The CEO of the educational company is a science fiction fan and a member of a book club.
American Sarah Harmon (57), Managing Director of the educational platform ODILO and former head of LinkedIn, has been based in Spain for 23 years. She is in love with the country, she says, “because it has made me a better person.” This is her second time here, as she met her husband here in 1993: “I thought it was going to be an adventure in Madrid, but we’ll be celebrating our 30th anniversary in May,” she admits. The executive studied journalism and maintains that communication is the most important skill she has developed in her career. She has two children and says that her family is super techy.
Question. Are you more into teaching or learning?
Answer. Learning. I love teaching; in fact, when I was little, my favorite game was teaching my sisters. But I’m a sponge for information. I’m constantly reading, listening to podcasts, and watching videos. The books I read are very science and science fiction. I love learning. I’m a hyper-curious person.
Q. What’s the last thing you learned?
A. How to make a good prompt to use generative artificial intelligence tools. It didn’t happen overnight; I’ve been using them every day for a year. And another thing I’ve learned is cognitive tactics to deal with ADHD, which I was diagnosed with three years ago. They’re tools for maintaining attention. For example, if I notice I’m not focused on what I have to do, or it’s a task I don’t like, I go for a walk first to clear my head. Or when the task seems too big, or you’re afraid to start, first do it for a minute, get up and tackle something else. Then come back and continue for five minutes.
Q. What are your hobbies?
A. I love walking, hiking, yoga (another way of dealing with ADHD), and reading. I have lots of books on my bedside table, in my office, in the kitchen, in the living room… I also love cooking, but I don’t do it as much as I’d like due to a lack of time. Furthermore, I cook on weekends.
Q. And what is your signature dish?
A. I make a million-dollar roast beef. It’s an expensive dish, but you can get many meals out of it.
Q. And what are you reading now?
A. I’m reading a book called Co-intelligence by Ethan Mollick, a very influential professor in artificial intelligence. I just read The Anomaly by Hervé Le Tellier, a science fiction novel. I’m rereading Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë. Likewise, I don’t know why, but lately I’ve been rereading the Brontë sisters, Jane Austen… I’m also rereading The Object. I’m revisiting many books that are references for me, such as Change the Course! On leadership and Creativity, Inc. in the Pixar community, which is very relevant today in the age of artificial intelligence.
Q. How is AI most useful to you in your day-to-day life?
A. I use it mainly to edit my work to correct mistakes; for that blank page syndrome, if I have trouble starting an email or a presentation, I do brainstorming with ChatGPT. I use it a lot for research, and I’m experimenting with what’s called vibe coding: making your own applications. I also use it to organize notes and for recipes. It’s fascinating; you tell it what you have in the fridge, and it tells you what recipe you can make, and it’s always right.
Q. What else do you like?
A. I’ve been in a book club for 22 or 23 years. There are nine of us, all international women, and every month we read a book each of us chooses. We take it very seriously; we have rules, a schedule, and a moderator. We discuss the books and rate them.
Q. Do you like to travel?
A. I love it. I used to travel for work every week, but since COVID, I’ve been traveling once or twice a month. I’m trying to limit it. For pleasure, I travel one weekend a month. We love Asturias and Mallorca, where we lived for two years, and which is paradise. But my husband and I are doing a lot of sightseeing in Madrid. Cultural visits with guides to places we don’t know. And we go to Toledo quite a bit. We love going to the countryside; we enjoy nature above all else.
Q. You said you love to cook, but what about restaurants?
A. Too much. I exercise a lot so I can enjoy them. In fact, I’ve lost quite a bit of weight in the last year because I enjoy food and wine too much. I love Spanish wine.
Q. And what restaurant and wine would you recommend?
A. A Rioja wine: Martelo. As for restaurants, I don’t have a favorite. I like to try new places and experiment.
Q. How often do you go to the United States?
A. My parents are still there. I go at least once or twice a year. It’s difficult because they live in Oklahoma, and you have to take two flights. Furthermore, my son lives in Colorado, and I’m going to be a grandmother in March. I will have a broken heart. How are we going to manage between Oklahoma and Colorado? Luckily, my parents really like coming to Spain. The whole family loves Spain. It’s also influenced by what’s happening in my country, which my parents don’t recognize.
Q. And how do you see it from here?
A. I’m in mourning because it’s not going to be what it was. The world changes, and you have to be resilient without sacrificing your values if you don’t like it. There are many people, especially in Silicon Valley, whom I have admired all my life, and my great disappointment has been that I feel they are sacrificing their principles for money. I hope that common sense will return.
Q. Do you miss LinkedIn?
A. Yes, LinkedIn was one of my favorite jobs because I learned so much. It’s a great company with deeply held values, and it has managed to escape the toxicity of the other social networks.
Q. Do you use social media?
A. Very little. I love Instagram, but my feed is for recipes, cooking, travel, exercises for women my age, learning to manage ADHD… I had an account on X, but I deleted it, and I still use LinkedIn because it suits me.
Q. Any dreams you want to fulfill?
A. To play the piano again. I played when I was a child, and I was talented. I love music, everything except reggaeton, although I’m fascinated by Bad Bunny. Likewise, I love rock, classical music, singer-songwriters… If I had to choose a period, it would be 70s rock.
Q. And if you had to play a piece on the piano, which one would you pick?
A. Probably one by Bach because my uncle was an organist and Bach was his favorite composer. Every time I hear him, he reminds me of my uncle, who was a fascinating man.
Q. Are you going to stay in Spain forever?
A. Yes. I fell in love with Spain many years ago. It’s not a perfect country, like any other, but it has made me a better person. I used to be a very ambitious person, too much of a perfectionist, demanding, and bossy. I’m still bossy. (Laughs). But Spain has softened me, opened my eyes to the truth that perfection is the enemy of good, and taught me not to take myself so seriously, to laugh again. Spanish culture is beautiful.