Meet Abigail Kinnear, RDN, a dietitian who works with over 1,200 other dietitians nationwide. Learn how she gets to travel for her job and connect with fun nutrition and health professionals. – Sarah

What attracted you to the field of nutrition and dietetics? I spent most of my childhood growing up in restaurants (my parents owned three of them in Noosa, Australia) and I’ve always had an interest in the food industry. When I realized the field of dietetics combined areas of nutrition and food, it seemed like a natural fit (and a great segway out of being pre-med, which I was at the time).

Your Job Title and Company you are with now? Registered Dietitian, Marketing Associate at siggi’s dairy

Website:
Siggi’s website: siggisdairy.com
Personal: travelerstuckshop.com

Social Media:
Instagram: @nutritiontraveler

Describe a typical (or not so typical) day-in-the-work-life for you? As the only dietitian at siggi’s, each day is never the same as the last. I spend much of my day emailing with any of our 1,200+ siggi’s RD ambassadors, finding ways to work with them and assisting them with their nutrition activities. A lot of my time also goes into planning nutrition events and conferences, and this year I’m visiting 15+ cities across the U.S. to talk about siggi’s with our founder, Siggi Hilmarsson. I also assist with supermarket dietitian relations, finding ways we can partner with retailers to introduce consumers to our products.

How did you get your current job in dietetics? I was familiar with siggi’s from a previous connection, and when the opportunity came up it seemed like a great fit for both of our needs.

What skills were you born with and what skills have you learned along the way? I have always found myself to be very open-minded, aided by the fact that I grew up with parents who placed a large emphasis on traveling the world as a form of education. Being open to new cultures, ideas, and ways of life has helped me in my current job, where I am working with people across the U.S. with different backgrounds and needs. When combined with my desire to achieve outstanding results (I can thank Cornell undergrad for this), this mindset has been invaluable in my role as a successful nutrition communicator.

What advice do you have for others wanting to be just as successful and fulfilled as you? I always encourage people to get as much work experience in their field of interest as possible (even if it’s not paid!). In college I knew dietetics was a highly competitive job market, so I was constantly juggling two to four jobs at any one time. Even though it made for a packed schedule, the amount of work experience I had by the time I graduated put me one step ahead of many other applicants when applying for “real world” jobs.

If you could be paid for your job with something other than a paycheck, what would it be? Airline miles!

Sarah Koszyk is founder of Family. Food. Fiesta. A family-based wellness program and blog focusing on recipes, family health tips, and videos with kids cooking in the kitchen. She is a Registered Dietitian and Nutrition Coach specializing in sports nutrition and adult and pediatric weight management. Connect with her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, or LinkedIn.