Meet Marissa Pang

We recently connected with Marissa Pang and have shared our conversation below.

Marissa, thank you so much for making time for us today. We can’t wait to dive into your story and the lessons you’ve learned along the way, but maybe we can start with something foundational to your success. How have you gone about developing your ability to communicate effectively?

Structured communication and enunciation were not things that came naturally to me. When I first moved to America, communicating in English was an even bigger challenge. I felt it negatively impact me the most when I started college, and had a hard time with interviews. Somehow, I struggled to even give coherent answers to basic questions like “tell me about yourself” and end up stammering, shaky, and generally unconfident. I did not make it past the first round of any of my first 10-20 interviews.

These days (roughly 10 years from when I had my first job interview), I believe I am a good communicator, at least in businessΩ contexts. I believe that others also valued the communication skills that I’ve developed over time, because I was frequently tasked to present content and lead the bigger inter-department meetings.

I got better at communicating through *a lot* of time and effort. I was also lucky to have great friends and colleagues who coached me. When I first discovered that my interview skills were weak, I spent about 3 hours a day for several weeks writing out answers to common interview questions, and rehearsing them so many times such that a) I memorized them, and b) when I said them I can add in pauses such that they sounded natural. One of my friends a year above me meet with me almost every day to do mock interviews and share feedback. I also recorded and then critiqued myself.

I quickly got better at interviewing, but I continued to do a lot of practice with leading meetings and presentations, and continued to record and critique myself. My first job out of college had a lot of client-facing work, and through that I got a lot of practice, and a lot of valuable advice from my colleagues.

I still am constantly working on my communication skills. These days, I focus a bit more on how to best set expectations, negotiate, inspire confidence, and navigate emotional situations. I am always reading about new communication frameworks, negotiation tactics and what not; then, I test them out at work. I still occasionally record my sales calls, and I always do mutual feedback with my coworkers to consistently improve our communication

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

I run a window soundproofing company that makes window inserts that effectively block out noise while requiring little to no construction work.

I started the company because I was personally struggling to get a good night’s sleep after moving next to a fire station on a busy avenue block in NYC. I tried every possible solution — from sound dampening curtains to ear plugs to full-on head covers, but they either didn’t work too well or were quite uncomfortable to me. I eventually started calling up window and construction companies eventually, but quickly realized that there were really no option that didn’t involve pretty heavy work that were unrealistic for a renter to do.

Our window panels are designed with a focus to minimize construction work, so that they can be a good fit for homeowners and renters alike. Our products come in no-drill and light-drilling configurations, and can be easily removed if needed.

Aesthetics and accessibility are important to us as well. Our product comes in various minimalist looks that can fit well with both historic wood windows and modern floor-to-ceiling windows. Our products also come in multiple grades and service models, so that they could try to fit every budget and need.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

Confidence and resilience. During my journey to start my own company, I’ve encountered far more failures, challenges, and naysaying than any corporate environment I’ve worked in. Yes, having a good idea, having good execution, being smart, being lucky — that stuff is all important too, but for me the most important is definitely to have the tenacity to view each setback as a learning opportunity.

I think a lot of people equate things like resilience with pure mental grit, or the ability to “just push through”. But for me, what has helped me the most is to manage my work life balance and take care of my body and mind. What helps me to be at the top of my game, to not let failures get to me, and to make good strategic decisions is to get enough sleep, exercise, and time with loved ones, so that is something I prioritize.

Okay, so before we go we always love to ask if you are looking for folks to partner or collaborate with?

I would love to collaborate more with general contractors and event/commercial space managers . Our window panels are generally a lot more effective at temperature insulation and soundproofing than window replacements, and comes at a fraction of the price of window replacements.

Our products are installed quickly with minimal construction work, and we are able to work with hotels and event spaces without any interruption in their regular service. We also have a product line that is almost unnoticeable after installation, which is a great fit for event spaces that wants to preserve its aesthetics.

With all our GC partners or commercial customers, we do one window for free as a demo!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://whisperwindows.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whisperwindows
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@WhisperWindow