Sophie Miller: Learning to say yes

When Sophie Miller joined the very first Innovative Young Minds (IYM) programme in 2017, she didn’t have a clear plan for her future. What she did have was an interest in science, a willingness to give things a go, and, as it turned out, the perfect opportunity to step outside her comfort zone.

Sophie Miller

At school in Wellington, Sophie gravitated towards STEMM subjects like physics, chemistry, calculus and economics. “I was taking them because I was good at them,” she says, “but I didn’t really know what I wanted to do yet.” Like many students, she knew she enjoyed science, but had little idea how that might translate into a career.

IYM helped change that.

“It really taught me to say ‘yes’,” Sophie says. “Yes to opportunities, and yes to things I probably wouldn’t have done otherwise.”

One of those opportunities was an IYM trip to Silicon Valley. Travelling overseas with a group of girls she barely knew pushed Sophie well beyond her comfort zone, but it also inspired her.

After returning home, she organised a STEMM Day at her school, bringing together workshops and panel speakers to show students the wide range of careers available beyond the classroom.

“That confidence definitely came from IYM,” she says.

After leaving school, Sophie went on to study a Bachelor of Building Science at Victoria University, a decision she made without a long-term plan, but one that turned out to be exactly right. Today, she works as a quantity surveyor for a Wellington-based construction company, in an industry that remains heavily male-dominated.

“I don’t think I would’ve had the confidence to get my job without IYM,” Sophie says. “I literally went door knocking. That networking confidence - just talking to people - is huge.”

Now 24, Sophie is one of three IYM alumnae serving on the organisation’s Alumnae Council. She says she wanted to give back so other young women can access the same opportunities she did, particularly the chance to build networks early.

“Those connections matter so much,” she says. “If girls can start building them while they’re still figuring things out, it makes such a difference.”

If Sophie could offer one piece of advice to a 15 or 16-year-old girl unsure about her future, it would be simple: say yes.

“IYM shows you what’s out there,” she says. “It opens doors, but you have to be willing to walk through them.”

And as Sophie’s journey shows, sometimes saying yes is the first step to discovering just how capable you really are.