Workshop Abstract: The IEEE SSCS Women in Circuits (WiC) Retreat is a virtual event designed to inspire, empower, and connect researchers within the circuits community. This retreat offers a unique opportunity to pause, recharge, and balance both professional development and personal well-being. It features interactive workshops and moments for meaningful reflection, allowing participants to gain practical tools that will help them maintain fulfilling careers, build resilience, and lead with confidence. Join us to learn more about the SSCS WiC mission, explore our activities, celebrate our progress, create and build connections, and spark greater engagement and participation.
Agenda:
| Time | SSCS Women in Circuits 2025 Retreat | Presenter |
|---|---|---|
| 9 AM to 10:30 AM | Introduction and Networking | WiC Committee |
| 10:45 AM to 12:00 PM | Workshop 1 – Career Sustainability: Tools & Skills to Ensure a Long & Successful Career as a Woman in Engineering | Lyla Cookson |
| 12:15 PM to 1:30 PM | Workshop 2 – The Human Circuit Board: Engineering Your Resilient Life | Punam Nagpal |
Workshop 1: Career Sustainability: Tools & Skills to Ensure a Long & Successful Career as a Woman in Engineering
Abstract: Many women leave engineering within the first 10 years—not because of ability, but because of burnout, stress, and systemic challenges. This interactive session offers practical tools to help women sustain long, thriving, and fulfilling careers in a male-dominated field.
Grounded in neuroscience and mindfulness, participants will learn how to:
- Manage stress and prevent burnout with quick, science-based practices
- Identify and shift self-limiting beliefs and “saboteur” thought patterns
- Activate positive mindset “sage powers” such as empathy, curiosity, and innovation
- Build resilience and confidence to navigate challenges and bias effectively
Through guided exercises, reflection, and group discussion, attendees will leave with a personal toolkit to support both immediate well-being and long-term career sustainability.
This session empowers women engineers not only to stay in the field, but to thrive—creating careers that are impactful, balanced, and deeply fulfilling.
Speaker: Lyla Cookson
Bio: Lyla Cookson is an experienced engineer and mindset coach, dedicated to empowering women in engineering to unlock their full potential. She holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Boston University and spent five years in Japan at Sanyo Electric, where she designed advanced semiconductor circuits. Her engineering career inspired a deep interest in the power of mindset and its pivotal role in achieving career and personal success. Driven by her belief in a strong mental foundation, Lyla transitioned to coaching, gaining coaching certifications and training, and now equips women engineers with the tools to overcome mindset barriers and remove limits to the ways and degrees they can succeed. Her signature program focuses on building mental resilience, innovation, and focus–keys to thriving in high-pressure environments. Lyla’s expertise, combined with her holistic coaching approach, makes her a sought-after mentor and speaker in the STEM community.
Workshop 2: The Human Circuit Board: Engineering Your Resilient Life
Abstract: Discover how to engineer a life of resilience and balance with Punam, a dedicated advocate for mindful living. Through her transformative workshop, “The Human Circuit Board: Engineering Your Resilient Life,” Punam empowers participants to take control of their personal schematics. Drawing on the wisdom from her personal journey and her IEEE-published autobiography, she will guide you in mastering the art of designing, debugging, and optimizing the core components of your Human Circuit Board – your Mind, Body, and Soul – and connecting with crucial “network components” to achieve peak performance, holistic well-being, and a truly thriving existence.
Speaker: Punam NagpalBio: Punam Nagpal, a 25-year hi-tech veteran at Cisco, enhances security customer experience while championing mindfulness, resilience, and work-life balance. She also shares her journey through an IEEE-published autobiography.