Bookpleasures.com welcomes as our guest, Jacquelyn H. Berry, Ph.D. Jacquelyn is a writer, cognitive scientist, and tech entrepreneur devoted to the study and practice of expertise.

An advocate for augmented learning and a founding member of Artificial Intelligence for Africa, she has spoken before the United Nations. 

She recently traveled to Egypt as a Fulbright Scholar where, in addition to her research on human-computer interaction among Arabic-English bilinguals, she taught a class about achieving outstanding goals, which led her to write FIND YOUR CARROT.

She is also an also an avid Tetris player, golfer, and birder, as well as a mother and beauty pageant competitor, currently holding the title of Mrs. Dutchess County, New York. 

Norm: Good day Jacquelyn and thanks for taking part in our interview.

Your bio mentions that you are a cognitive scientist. Please explain to our readers what is a cognitive scientist? How does one become one? As a follow up, could you tell us about people or books you have read that have inspired you to embark on your own career?  

Jacquelyn: Thanks so much and good day to you as well. I am happy to be here!

A cognitive scientist is interested in how the brain processes information. Whether that’s through attention, visual perception, or language, people are constantly bombarded with outside information which their minds must sort and make sense of. Cognitive psychology is concerned with how this all happens in the brain, and one would become a cognitive scientist by enrolling in one of the many doctoral programs meant to train young scientists in the study of the human mind.

I embarked on my career purely due to curiosity. One book that stands out to me, however, is The Road Less Travelled by M. Scott Peck.

Norm; If you could relive a moment in your life, which moment would you choose and why?

Jacquelyn: I like the moment I’m in, thank you, and I hope I’m meeting it well!

Norm: How many times in your career have you experienced rejection? How did they shape you?  

Jacquelyn: Countless. Countless times me or my work has been told no. Now I just recognize it as part of the process.

Norm: What has been your greatest challenge (professionally) that you’ve overcome in getting to where you’re at today? 

Jacquelyn: Getting my Ph.D. was difficult, as I explain in the book. I was already married and a grown up with a young family. I lived a long way from campus. Budgeting time for everything was hard and I also was distracted by other interests. My advisors were not a fan of my style and rejected me as I got towards the end. In the end I had to stretch to make it happen.

Norm: How did you become involved with the subject of FIND YOUR CARROT?

Jacquelyn: I chase my dreams. I gave my students in Egypt the opportunity to do so as well, for course credit, and they blossomed as a result. I think it’s a choice to live that way as much as possible.

Norm: What were your goals and intentions in this book, and how well do you feel you achieved them? 

Jacquelyn: I intended to be a conduit for the message to pursue one’s dreams as a way of life, and I can’t wait for the readers to tell me what they think!

Norm: Can you share some stories about people you met while researching this book?  What are some of the references that you used while researching this book? 

Jacquelyn: I think the concept of grit is super important. Identified by Tammy Duckworth it’s the ability to stay with tough, long term goals for the long haul.

In my book I refer to discipline as grit incarnate, in other words all of that will and resolve manifesting as the discipline needed to carry out the day-to-day activities that will get us closer to our goals, or resist the ones that will hurt us. I spent a lot of time talking about individuals who are champions in their given field, people like Serena Williams, Tiger Woods but also people who have chosen something obscure or done something popular in a unique way, such as <the guy who sang Hamilton>>.

One of my students took on the challenge of becoming a triathlete and she met Omar Samra, the first Egyptian to reach the top of mount Everest. 

Norm: What is the most important thing that people DON'T know about the subject of your book that they need to know?  

Jacquelyn: One topic that could have used more detail is the concept of currency. I define currency as our own personal gifts that we must express and use to help others in exchange for the things we want in life. I will be covering that topic in depth in my next book, Find Your Currency, so stay tuned!

Norm: Did you learn anything from writing your book and what was it? 

Jacquelyn: That you have to be vulnerable to be authentic.

Norm: Why do you think this is an important book at this time?  

Jacquelyn: Two reasons that are closely tied to recent events. First, COVID has made so many things up in the air. For one thing, many people are stuck at home and looking for the next journey they should take which could look very different from the old journey or from a traditional journey.

It’s hard to judge someone for taking a different path when it’s all people can do these days to stay healthy and employed. Second, the social justice movement reminded everybody, poignantly, that not everyone is treated the same. The Harvard educated bird-watcher who had the police called on him for asking a woman to leash her dog, and so many other examples.

Marginalized people may have to take a different path to find success if their talents and gifts are ignored when following the standard pathways. Find Your Carrot can help with that, suggesting that doing what you love, and not what looks good on paper, is the path to a better, more fulfilling life.

Norm: What makes your book stand out from the crowd? 

Jacquelyn: I don’t spend a lot of time on personal stories, though there are some, because my life is just one perspective. There’s enough science to support my statements but it will not read so densely as to alienate the reader.

Finally, my talk is real, I take responsibility for “being the one to tell you” that maybe your way isn’t working. I am matter-of-fact but loving in what I say and how I say it.

Norm: Where can our readers find out more about you and FIND YOUR CARROT?

Jacquelyn: Go to my WEBSITE  I am also on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok under the handle @jacquelynhberry. I love people! Come visit! Stay awhile!

Norm: What is next for Jacquelyn H. Berry?

Jacquelyn: My next book, Find Your Currency, is in the works as we speak. I am continuing my academic work as a scientist as well and I am running for the title of Mrs. New York this summer.

Norm: As this interview draws to a close what one question would you have liked me to ask you? Please share your answer. 

Jacquelyn: The question I would have liked would have been why did you write the book to which I would have answered, because of that one muse who poked me in the chest and said write this story.

Norm: Thank you so much for taking the time to answer my questions. It's been an absolute pleasure to meet with you and read your work. Good luck with FIND YOUR CARROT.

Jacquelyn: Thank you. Be well and stay healthy!

FOLLOW HERE TO READ NORM'S REVIEW OF  FIND YOUR CARROT