Lindsey E. Murphy is the creator, producer, and host of The Fab Lab with Crazy Aunt Lindsey, YouTube’s #1 kid science web series that takes everyday science concepts and turns them into fabulous DIY projects for kids. Since launching in 2010, the show has garnered partnerships and projects with the likes of Scientific American magazine, the NY Academy of Science, and NASA. As a STEM advocate and science communicator, Lindsey holds a special place in her heart for accessibility and diversity in STEM. In this episode, Lindsey shares how she became, for this generation of school kids, the zany and fun-loving Crazy Aunt Lindsey, America’s favorite scientist. She tells us how she was able to turn her passion project into a sustainable business, and why girls and STEM truly run the world.
Becoming Crazy Aunt Lindsey
As one of ten siblings, Lindsey grew up with many nieces and nephews and became the “free spirit” of her family. As a teen, she earned the moniker “Crazy Aunt Lindsey,” and soon fell in love with the world of fashion. After some internships in the fashion industry, she figured out something very important: she hated fashion because the people weren’t very nice, and there was too much math involved! This discovery put her on the trajectory to work in production, entertainment, business development, and PR.
When babysitting isn’t just babysitting
At a low point in Lindsey’s career, she left a job she didn’t love and became a babysitter. She discovered a love for kids and a knack for helping them with homework and making learning FUN! She loved engaging their curiosity and teaching them new things about the world around them. A parent suggested that she “do some YouTube videos” of her activities with the kids, so she started “Doing Stuff with Crazy Aunt Lindsey.” By 2011, her exploits had evolved into The Fab Lab, and it’s only gotten better since then!
A Passion for Science?
As a self-proclaimed poor student in high school, Lindsey certainly didn’t know that she had a passion for science. What she really loved was turning kids on to their own curiosity and helping them figure out something by exploring. She says it’s a magical experience, this passion of hers, inspiring curiosity in the minds of kids. At first, she used a Flip Cam, which was one of the first handheld HD cameras. She would babysit and have an older sibling hold the camera while she engaged the younger kids in a project. It wasn’t scripted, but they had fun making different things. The production process is more sophisticated now, with a two-person production team, but the projects are still very DIY.
It’s just a hobby
Producing the show was just a hobby while Lindsey always worked another full-time job. She stayed in the business development side in very creative fields, even doing consulting work with Nike and Adidas. Weiden+Kennedy offered her a job and the chance to host travel videos, which she still does today.
How to handle tough times
Lindsey says she never had time to sit and cry when a plan didn’t work out the way she wanted. She has always had to keep going and make her own way. One low point was when she moved to Portland, and for 3-4 years went without a steady income or much support. According to Lindsey, life isn’t always easy, and sometimes you plan something, build it and it still falls down.
Being a “woman of color”
Growing up in Morristown, NJ, Lindsey was the 7th generation in her family to be raised there. In this diverse area, she had friends of every race and ethnicity, and never felt like she was treated differently because of her color. It was at her first job after college when she realized that a white man who worked under her was actually making $2/hour more than she was. She remembers thinking, “Is it because I’m a woman, or because I’m black that he makes more than me?”
Lindsey’s vision
Lindsey has the vision of the baton being passed to her from Bill Nye the Science Guy, and the other white males who have embarked on the journey of teaching kids through science. She wants to be the one to instill a love of science to the next several generations. She is motivated to show what women of color can do in STEM fields. Her dream is to have a national show and turn it into a kid and family lifestyle brand.
Episode Highlights:
•13:36 – Discovering a love for kids after leaving business development behind
•18:36 – The passion for science and “practical math”
•21:38 – Becoming an expert in teaching and explaining
•24:10 – Producing The Fab Lab
•30:16 – How to handle tough moments
•32:28 – Being a woman of color in the science field
•36:48 – Lindsey’s ultimate goal for the show
Resources Mentioned:
- Lindsey on YouTube – find out more about Lindsey’s series about women scientists and inventors in history and her e-book
- Lindsey on Twitter
The Fem Five:
1. Favorite book for women?
2. Favorite self-care hack?
- “Walking into Anthropologie, daydreaming and touching all the clothes”
3. Best piece of advice and who gave it to you?
- From George Cooney (not Clooney!)—“Be a businessman. Know where the money is.”
4. Female CEO or thought leader you’re into right now?
- Mara Zepeda, CEO of Switchboard
5. One piece of advice you’d give your 5 years younger self?
- “It’s gonna be worth it.”
Last Time on The NextFem Podcast
From the C-Suite to the Driver’s Seat – with Maggie Chan Jones
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