Women In Wellness: Whitney DiFoggio of Teeth Talk Girl on the Five Lifestyle Tweaks That Will Help…

Women In Wellness: Whitney DiFoggio of Teeth Talk Girl on the Five Lifestyle Tweaks That Will Help Support People’s Journey Towards Better Wellbeing

An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

Get up and move! A simple walk around the block can really change the vibe of your entire day. I personally have been LOVING daily yoga and stretching for a clear mind.

As a part of my series about the women in wellness, I had the pleasure of interviewing Whitney DiFoggio, a Registered Dental Hygienist and Founder of Youtube Channel, Teeth Talk Girl and TeethTalkGirl.com.

Over the past five years, Whitney has leveraged the web to share information surrounding the importance of oral health worldwide through her social media accounts and website. With over 232K subscribers and over 44 million views, Whitney’s YouTube channel, “Teeth Talk Girl,” helps educate the general public on how to keep up their oral health. In addition to her Youtube Channel, Whitney recently co-founded a company called Happy Teeth where for every item purchased, an oral health kit is donated to someone in need. Whitney graduated from the University of Illinois Chicago with a Bachelor of Science in Biology and attended Prairie State College for Dental Hygiene.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Our readers would love to “get to know you” better. Can you share your “backstory” with us?

Thank you so much for having me! So, I’ve always loved both teeth and acting. It was hard for me to decide if I wanted to study theater or dentistry in college. Long story short, I chose dental hygiene school and did some acting on the side throughout college. After I graduated, I was working full-time as a dental hygienist and loving it, but I started to miss acting and that “on-camera energy” so much. I was unable to audition for most shows and film projects due to my rigorous work schedule, so I thought why not get my “entertainment energy” out on my own by making videos about teeth at home! At first, I truly thought I would just send the videos to my friends and family, but then I posted one onto YouTube and a bunch of people started watching and requesting more! It was super organic how it all came together and my audience has been growing ever since. Combining my passions of both teeth and acting/being on camera simply just makes sense and aligns with my life. Now, 6 years later, my YouTube channel (YouTube.com/TeethTalk) has also expanded into a dental health platform on my website (teethtalkgirl.com) where you can find both articles and videos about countless dental health topics (information about bad breath, oral cancer screenings, bleeding gums, teeth whitening, etc.). I am so proud of my dental health platform (Teeth Talk Girl) which provides free dental health education to the public, and I’m so happy to be sharing my story!

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started your career? What were the main lessons or takeaways from that story?

The most interesting thing that has continually happened to me was stressing out every time something was “the biggest and most important thing I’ve ever done” because I’ve come to realize that the next “big and important thing” will ALWAYS be bigger and more important than the last thing.

For example, when I was taking my dental hygiene board exams, I remember feeling the most stressed and nervous I’ve ever felt, to the point where it made me dizzy and lightheaded. That has happened every time I do something important, such as signing a big contract, creating a big video, etc., ever since.

What I’ve learned is that there is no reason for me to feel like that. I need to understand that when I am prepared to do my best, I need to trust myself to do my best. Trusting myself was one of the hardest lessons to learn (especially because I’m an overthinker), but now that I’m slowly getting better at it, I have SO much less stress in my life.

Can you share a story about the biggest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

I would have to say my biggest mistake was thinking I could do it all. I was working full time chairside (as a clinical dental hygienist) in addition to working full time on my business, which consisted of both my YouTube videos and my oral health website. As I started expanding my business and hiring more help, I thought things would slow down and I could continue to work fulltime chairside (because I love it so much)! But I quickly learned that BURNOUT IS REAL and I could not continually juggle a million things. Trying to work three full time jobs was not healthy for me. Even though I loved it, my body was burning out. So the best thing I learned was that it’s okay to love multiple things, but it’s not okay to overwhelm yourself trying to do them all. Balance is key to a happy and healthy life.

Let’s jump to our main focus. When it comes to health and wellness, how is the work you are doing helping to make a bigger impact in the world?

The goal of my work is to educate EVERYONE about the importance of dental health. Most of us were never properly educated on how to floss, for example! I, myself, didn’t learn how to use proper flossing techniques until I was in dental hygiene school. Everyday I have either my patients at work or the comments on my videos tell me how they didn’t know either. So, with my social media, I’m able to reach a large number of people each day to share awareness about the importance of dental health and proper home care techniques in caring for our mouths.

Can you share your top five “lifestyle tweaks” that you believe will help support people’s journey towards better wellbeing? Please give an example or story for each.

1. Make sure to take time out of the day to care for yourself: whether it be a bubble bath, listening to music, or even 5 minutes of silence while you lay in bed. Self-care is really important and I would say it’s critical for a healthy life.

2. Don’t let brushing and flossing your teeth feel like a chore. My whole message on my social media is how such simple things that take less than 2 minutes can change your overall life. Gum disease is related to many conditions, such as diabetes and heart conditions. So brushing and flossing is not just for “fresh breath”: it can actually prevent gum disease, which contributes to better wellbeing.

3. Connecting with your loved ones is the most important thing in my life! Even if you are unable to physically see the people you love, scheduling a virtual hangout such as a phone call, zoom, or texting can be an immediate mood booster.

4. Get up and move! A simple walk around the block can really change the vibe of your entire day. I personally have been LOVING daily yoga and stretching for a clear mind.

5. Volunteer! Honestly, sometimes we are just “doing the motions” in life: working, eating, sleeping, repeat. However, when you add volunteering into your life, it gives you an opportunity to both serve and grow.

If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of wellness to the most amount of people, what would that be?

I think if a clear message about how dental health directly relates to your overall health went mainstream (not just on social media) then more people would know and understand this concept! So many people tell me that they had NO IDEA that gum disease directly relates to heart disease, for example. And oftentimes, when patients learn this information, they end up working harder and putting more effort into their dental home care. So, the movement would be making more mainstream media content regarding dental health (even if it were to be something like a comedy television show about a dental office) to help gain awareness and help the public start thinking more about the importance of healthy teeth.

What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started” and why?

1. “Stop caring SO MUCH about what you look like.”

I used to spend so much time making sure I looked super-camera-ready for my videos until I realized it’s way more important to spend that extra time on other, more important, things. Time is important and use it wisely.

2. “You can’t do it all…even if you think you can.”

I’ve always been a so-called “busy girl” who tries to juggle it all, but I’ve come to the point of burnout due to working full-time clinically as a traditional dental hygienist and full-time creating “Teeth Talk Girl” dental health YouTube videos and oral health website. Now that I work part-time clinically and have help with my videos and website, I now also have time to breathe!

3. “Breathe.”

I never realized how important meditation and yoga could be until I started reading a bunch of motivational books and “boss girl” type books. Every single author in these books seems to mention something about daily yoga or meditation or even practicing some type of faith. Whichever you choose, I would suggest adding it into your daily routine.

4. “Stop perfecting everything.”

I think most dental hygienists tend to be detail-oriented and borderline perfectionists due to the type of job we do. However, when it comes to YouTube, social media, and building a brand, you have to just keep moving and be okay with things not being “perfect” at the start.

5. “Companies aren’t always nice.”

It was a huge wake up call when I realized that some companies care more about money than helping people. I’d never dealt with anything like that before so it was really hard to take in. I’ve always been lucky to work with people who all morally feel the same way I do, so going from my small private dental office group to the big corporate world of dentistry was definitely different and scary. Being mentally prepared for uncomfortable business situations is something to always keep in mind.

Sustainability, veganism, mental health and environmental changes are big topics at the moment. Which one of these causes is dearest to you, and why?

Mental health! Dental anxiety is a real thing. So many patients have past childhood trauma and/or fear of the dentist. Knowing that so many patients are nervous about visiting the dental office, I’m determined to help educate and care for all patients so they can comfortably receive dental care.

What is the best way our readers can follow you online?

My YouTube channel is YouTube.com/TeethTalk and my Instagram is @teethtalkgirl. In addition, my website is teethtalkgirl.com and I also have a facebook page (@teethtalkgirl) where I post my YouTube videos and website articles as well!

Thank you for these fantastic insights!

Women In Wellness: Whitney DiFoggio of Teeth Talk Girl on the Five Lifestyle Tweaks That Will Help… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Women In Wellness: Debbie Rosas of Nia on the Five Lifestyle Tweaks That Will Help Support People’s…

Women In Wellness: Debbie Rosas of Nia on the Five Lifestyle Tweaks That Will Help Support People’s Journey Towards Better Wellbeing

An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

Live skin to skin. Being touched by the world and touching the world in return is our most intimate and pervasive sense. The skin is our largest organ and is constantly touching and being touched. But connecting that to pleasure, we can experience deep wellness throughout our body and inner being. My feet are the hands that touch the earth, and have 7,000 nerve endings. When those nerves can receive sensation from the ground up, we can feel the pulse of the world around us resonate within. Sense the fabric on your body, touch the bark of the tree you walk past, embrace the water that you swim in. These are amazing experiences when done intentionally.

As a part of my series about the women in wellness, I had the pleasure of interviewing Debbie Rosas.

Debbie Rosas is the founder and co-creator of the Nia® Technique. Dedicated lifelong to self-healing and self-mastery, Debbie has been a pioneer in the body-mind fitness industry since 1976. Credited with establishing the mind-body fitness category, she is a leading fitness innovator, teacher, author, choreographer, performer, healer and artist whose work greatly influences the lives of thousands worldwide. After nearly 40 years, Debbie continues to offer classes, workshops and trainings online and in-person around the world.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Our readers would love to “get to know you” better. Can you share your “backstory” with us?

It’s interesting, because I feel like people today know me as someone who cherishes the body and mind connection. For quite some time now, I’ve been heavily involved in the fitness/wellness community, and my passion has been to help people uncover and understand the relationship between and within their internal selves and the external world around them.

But I wasn’t always Debbie Rosas, founder of Nia — once upon a time, I was disconnected from and unaware of the beautiful relationship that could exist between my mind and body. I grew up with multiple learning disabilities and somatosensory illnesses — I struggled with hearing and seeing, reading and directionality, and my body didn’t feel like a safe place for me to be within. I experienced a deep lack of confidence when it came to both my internal self and my external relationship with the world around me.

As I grew older, I began to dive deeper within my body and speak to it. I started to uncover my inner Voice, a way for me to communicate not only with my physical self but also with my spirit and soul. That was when I began to feel a true sense of safety from within.

From that point on, I began to approach life as an artist, bringing with me a deep curiosity not only of the world around me, but also of the incredible being that was me — my body, my mind, my soul and my spirit.

As a stay-at-home mother, I had a nagging feeling that I needed to do something. I began by becoming a commercial artist. After I had my second child, I experienced a deep depression. At the time, postpartum depression wasn’t a term people used or understood, so I wasn’t able to label these feelings, but I knew within me that there was something incredibly off balance. Near my house, there was a gym for women. One day, I decided to try it out, see if losing weight and feeling better about my appearance would make me feel better about my internal self, too.

Something incredible happened that day. After doing a quick exercise, I stepped off the machine, and felt as though an emotional weight had been lifted from me. I was perplexed — how could I move my leg, and feel something else, deep inside? A short while later, a friend brought me to an aerobics class. Once again, I felt the same sensational transformation within my spirit.

Walking out of that class, that same Voice within me that had guided me all my life said, “You’re going to create a movement program that uses the body. No machines — make a program of what you know.” And that’s what I did — I created my first fitness program, called the Bod Squad. Not only did we offer aerobics, but we also included a focus on awareness and meditation and offered education about health, wellness and diet. This wasn’t common at the time, and I knew we were onto something, but I couldn’t quite place my finger on it.

A few years went by, and I wanted to find a way to honor and celebrate the growth our students were showing. A martial artist invited me to his dojo to learn about the belt ranking system. When I took my shoes off, I found the missing piece to what I had been trying to accomplish at Bod Squad. I thought to myself, “How have I been teaching people to move without sensation? How have I been telling people to move the body, but not sense the body?”

That’s when I set out to create something new — Nia. While the name comes from Non Impact Aerobics, the program is so much more. Nia helps people uncover the sensation of feeling connected to themselves, which is something many people don’t even realize they’re missing. We offer people the opportunity to look within and become the conscious leader of their own body and life.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started your career? What were the main lessons or takeaways from that story?

With Nia’s creation came the never-ending question — can you get a cardiovascular workout without jumping up and down? While I certainly knew the answer was a resounding yes, I knew that we had to dig deeper to defend the brand we had worked so hard to build. So, we invited a doctor from St. Francis Sports Medicine Clinic to come and run a test: could Nia as a program provide cardiovascular conditioning?

The results were clear — not only could Nia offer cardiovascular conditioning, but the program had a number of other incredible benefits. We could prevent many of the muscular injuries that occured during traditional, high-impact aerobics, and people of all shapes, sizes and fitness levels could take part at their own individual paces and intensities.

The main takeaway for me, though, was something much deeper. After hearing a scientist say all these proven benefits of Nia, I felt an immense wave of confidence, and I realized I had to validate every single piece of the Nia process. I had to find specific answers to each step: why was participating barefoot important? Why did we encourage people to ebb and flow out of different levels? Why did we practice on three planes of the body? I began looking more intentionally at the form and function of the human body, rather than just what made me feel good. And by using the science of the human body as a litmus test, paired with the innate focus on our inner minds and wellness, we’ve been able to turn Nia into something incredible.

Can you share a story about the biggest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

My biggest mistake was thinking everyone would immediately see the same extraordinary benefits of Nia that I do. When I realized that you could get fit without punishing yourself, I imagined everyone else would immediately leap at the opportunity as well. That’s not what happened, though. Early on, I remember explaining to someone the incredible experience behind Nia — that we were getting people to move with pleasure. That person immediately responded, “People don’t care about pleasure when they’re exercising — they need to feel the pain to know it’s working.” That’s when I realized that I had to change an entire thought consciousness within our society, and show people that “No pain, no gain” isn’t the only possible mentality when it comes to getting fit.

Now, I’ve realized that people will come to Nia when the time is right for them. And once they arrive, they’ll experience the sensation of working in a relationship with their body, rather than forcing it into an uncomfortable position or tension.

Let’s jump to our main focus. When it comes to health and wellness, how is the work you are doing helping to make a bigger impact in the world?

Ultimately, Nia isn’t just about “fitness.” Instead, our program is designed to help people find healing and comfort within themselves. We work with a lot of people living with short and long term illnesses. Often, when people are diagnosed with something like cancer or Parkinson’s, they feel disempowered, like there’s no solutions or actions they can take upon themselves to better their lives. But making decisions about your own movement and truly listening to your body are things that anyone can do, even when dealing with a horrific prognosis. It makes me proud that these people can come to Nia and experience agency in their own bodies. I think it has an incredible impact both on them and their loved ones.

The same is true with mental burdens. Especially amidst the darkest days of the COVID-19 pandemic, we saw a large number of people dealing with depression and stress. Through our Zoom and on-demand classes, we were able to give people the opportunity to bring their emotional spirit to the dancefloor and relieve their bodies, minds and spirits of some of the tension they were carrying.

We had been offering online classes before the pandemic, but the past few years have been the times where we’ve really seen the impact that our Zoom classes can have. Taking part in the Nia experience within your own home is freeing in it’s own way. We realized that when people are in front of others in person, there can be a bit of “stage fright.” But when they’re in their own space, people are able to move like nobody’s watching. They can use their own voice and feel less inhibition.

Can you share your top five “lifestyle tweaks” that you believe will help support people’s journey towards better wellbeing? Please give an example or story for each.

  1. Live skin to skin. Being touched by the world and touching the world in return is our most intimate and pervasive sense. The skin is our largest organ and is constantly touching and being touched. But connecting that to pleasure, we can experience deep wellness throughout our body and inner being. My feet are the hands that touch the earth, and have 7,000 nerve endings. When those nerves can receive sensation from the ground up, we can feel the pulse of the world around us resonate within. Sense the fabric on your body, touch the bark of the tree you walk past, embrace the water that you swim in. These are amazing experiences when done intentionally.
  2. Use your voice. Especially if you’re living alone or working in a home office, you may not be exercising the tongue and the mouth much. Keep them coordinated by speaking out loud. Read a book out loud, talk to a news anchor and exhale, using your loud breath. Blending your body and breath can grow your connection to your inner Voice and align you from the inside out.
  3. Activate the mindset of RAW. — The practice of RAW (Relaxed body, Alert mind, Waiting) infuses the body with the listening sensation. Particularly in times with stress in our relationships, RAW can help us listen and allow others to find their own engagement without us feeling pressure to fix or change them.
  4. Feed the body with five sensations:
  • Flexibility. Experience the sensation of energy moving out and along your bones. Lengthen yourself through the crown of your head and give the body what it wants — volume and space.
  • Strength. We use strength in everything we do. Packing energy in your bones and squeezing to align yourself allows us to execute movements with ease and grace. This is an art — it’s finding the perfect balance between squeeze and release to create a comfortable awareness and tension within our bodies.
  • Mobility. Mobility is the sensation of energy and constant motion. These sensations are happening within our body — our lungs are intaking air, our hearts are pumping our blood, our stomachs are creating energy from the food we eat. By becoming more aware of our inner mobility, we can become one with our bodies and souls.
  • Agility. Agility is the starting and stopping of our movement. Our breathing starts and stops, our mind starts and stops as we move from one topic to another. We use our agility when we drive a car, or when we move across the room.
  • Stability. When we bring these senses into a workout or everyday activity, we have to have stability. Your life and wellbeing relies on your stability and inner balance. And, when you enter into a workout, your body must stay in a place of resting, readiness and action. We need support from underneath and behind us. Balancing the stimulation that our body experiences allows us to stay healthy and well.

5. Return to the body’s playground. When learning to walk, every able-bodied human goes through five key movements to stand up and walk. By returning to these stages, we can experience inner healing and begin to redevelop our flexibility, strength, mobility, agility and stability in just minutes.

  • Embryonic. With your spine on the floor, move like a fish in water. Toss and turn, move from your back to your belly and twist your spine. When we’re on the ground, our body knows we can’t fall, so we experience higher levels of relaxation and relief.
  • Creeping. Rest on the floor belly down and begin to move in a lizard-like pattern. Allow the left and right sides of your body to begin organizing themselves into cohesive units.
  • Squatting. The squatting portion of this stage can be difficult for some adults, but with time and practice you can regain your inner child’s strength. Enter into a squatting position, similar to a monkey. Feel the parts of your body that have lost resiliency. Shift your body weight and begin reclaiming the flexibility you once held in your hips and legs.
  • Standing. Press your feet down into the ground and stand. You’ll experience a blast of inspiration that comes from this sense of balance between gravity and electricity. You’ve freed and aligned the energy systems that go into your body, and can now engage with the world around you in a more thoughtful, balanced way.

What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started” and why?

  • Trust your gut. Some people call it your second brain, I call it your first.
  • Follow your heart. We’re always guided by meaning and purpose. We should ask ourselves, “How did I end up here? Why am I doing this?”
  • Don’t settle for the status quo. Daily, feed your body with new information. Always think: “What else?” Curiosity is one of our greatest gifts.
  • Observe the path you’re on. Check the choices and decisions you’re making against their intentions. If my purpose is to inspire people to feel and heal, then I need to ask myself if that intention was accomplished after every workout or piece of writing.
  • See everyone in life as unique and sacred. Rather than thinking you have to compete with someone, recognize and welcome the difference between you and them.

Sustainability, veganism, mental health and environmental changes are big topics at the moment. Which one of these causes is dearest to you, and why?

I’m incredibly passionate about sustainability of the human heart and the conscious being. I believe that we have lost sight of what it means to be a conscious human: of what it means to be conscious and compassionate. One of our biggest abilities for connection is through our bodies, and yet so many people are unwilling to look each other in the eyes or touch and connect. I hear often that people feel as though they have to protect themselves, but that is how we lose connection with each other. We all have that inner child inside of us. I think it’s incredibly important that we all cherish and nurture that inner child with the space and opportunity to connect. If we don’t start waking up and understanding that we need to touch and connect, we will face the loss of a part of the collective human heart that we won’t be able to get back.

What is the best way our readers can follow you online?

To keep up with Debbie and all things Nia visit,

Website: https://nianow.com/

Nia TV: https://www.niatv.fit/

Instagram: @niatechnique

Twitter: @niatechnique

Facebook: @NiaTechnique

YouTube: @NiaTechnique

Thank you for these fantastic insights!

Women In Wellness: Debbie Rosas of Nia on the Five Lifestyle Tweaks That Will Help Support People’s… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Female Founders: Brittany Lammon of The Chub Rub Patch On The Five Things You Need To Thrive and…

Female Founders: Brittany Lammon of The Chub Rub Patch On The Five Things You Need To Thrive and Succeed as a Woman Founder

An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

Developing relationships & talking with many people that may or may not be beneficial for your company is key to creating your own success. Always have an open mind. I have created countless new relationships through my own journey. I have also had to sacrifice some relationships that were not beneficial to my vision. This can be hard, but you have to believe in yourself and your product or service and you have to know what is best for your own success. -You have to be comfortable with seeing your own weaknesses and being able to identify areas of opportunity. This goes back to the mistakes I first made when starting this business. I had to be able to see where I was falling short and I had to become comfortable with hiring out to help me with things I wasn’t good at, or things that needed an expert’s touch.

As a part of our series about “Why We Need More Women Founders”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Brittany Lammon.

Brittany Lammon, inventor and CEO of her company The Chub Rub Patch, is a makeup and hairstylist to the stars. She currently works with the biggest entertainment industry in the world, the WWE. She travels around the country and the world making the Superstars of the WWE look fabulous with her hair and makeup expertise.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your “backstory”? What led you to this particular career path?

I have been a hairstylist for the past 19 years, and my passion for inventing really started when I invented a tool for hairstylists that helped open bobby pins. I have always been creative and also very passionate about helping women feel more beautiful.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company?

I would have to say the most interesting story would have to be how I went viral on TikTok multiple times. This is really how my company became a success. We made some fun little videos and seeing the amount of views and the amount of times the video was shared was exciting. The outreach of TikTok is incredible. The comments from women all over the world about how this product was exactly what they were looking for or how much it has helped them was amazing. We are now selling in 10 countries because of TikTok.

Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

Starting your own business is hard and I have made many mistakes since the beginning. When I first started on this journey I really thought I could do it all on my own and I was afraid to ask for help. I think this is a common theme with women no matter what they may undertake. A new mother is afraid to ask for advice because she may be seen as not good enough. A new female director may be afraid to ask for help because she may be seen as not up to the challenge. I learned through countless failures that there are people out there who can give me great advice, and there are people I need to be able to count on to help me. Don’t be afraid to go to those who may have been down this road and ask them to help you.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

My sister Megan is really the person who keeps me organized and on top of everything that comes along with running your own business and I am so incredibly grateful to have her by my side through all of this. She definitely is the organized one out of us two. She has the patience of an angel when dealing with me and she runs my day to day operations when I am on the road. She has always been that person that has never questioned any of my endeavors; she only questions what she can do to help me. Megan has always been my biggest fan. She also remembers all of my passwords as well which is a great help.

Ok, thank you for that. Let’s now jump to the primary focus of our interview. According to this EY report, only about 20 percent of funded companies have women founders. This reflects great historical progress, but it also shows that more work still has to be done to empower women to create companies. In your opinion and experience what is currently holding back women from founding companies?

I think what is holding back women from founding companies is that we are too scared to fail so we never try it at ALL. When you are passionate about something you just need to start somewhere, even if you fail and have to try again a hundred times. We want to be great at everything we do and all the roles we as women take on- being a mother, wife, friend. We are so worried about what people will think of us if the company isn’t a success that we never try at all. A lot of great ideas are lost that way

Can you help articulate a few things that can be done as individuals, as a society, or by the government, to help overcome those obstacles?

I believe that as a society we could uplift and support other women’s companies by promoting or advertising one another’s brands/products. I also believe we can come together as a community of women- maybe in group settings or open forums and discuss these issues together. We can help each other find solutions for obstacles that we may share in common. Maybe there is another powerful female founder out there who has been where you are and they can provide help or some sort of mentoring to get you over that obstacle. Companies are predominantly founded by men, and I believe we should not be afraid to ask for advice and professional guidance from successful company founders that are men. That being said I also think women who are brave enough and passionate enough to found a company need to be given the respect and professional courtesy they deserve. Most importantly, my individual belief is that we are all human and we all share a common goal in succeeding as an Entrepreneur. We as a human race regardless of gender need to show support for one another and champion behind anyone who strikes out to start a new company.

This might be intuitive to you as a woman founder but I think it will be helpful to spell this out. Can you share a few reasons why more women should become founders?

Women as a whole put passion behind anything they put their mind to. If women believe in something enough to put their whole heart into it they always achieve it. I am not saying men don’t do the same, but from my experience women pour their passion into everything they truly believe in. What holds a lot of women back is the fear of the unknown, but you will never know what you can succeed in if you don’t try! There is nothing wrong with failing, actually you learn just as much from failing as you do in succeeding. The most important thing is that you can say you did it! If more women could overcome that initial fear of trying (and the fear of failing!) it would increase the percentage of businesses that are founded by women. Celebrating the courage and success of women founders could help inspire other women to do the same!

What are the “myths” that you would like to dispel about being a founder? Can you explain what you mean?

There are a couple myths I would like to address in being a founder of my own company. People may think having your own company is an overnight success, but what many are actually seeing is the end result of years of trying, failing and trying again. They do not see the endless hours that are put into the process. Achieving success in business can be at times what feels like an endless loop of trial and error before the desired final product or service is reached. Some may perceive that success is easy and it just comes to those who try fairly quickly. That unfortunately isn’t the case. You have to develop a work ethic like never before because this is your vision and no one else sees what you see in the end. Working for myself may be the most difficult thing I have ever done. I am in control of my own destiny and I have to make sure I am focused and dedicated because I know no one else is going to force me to finish or is going to tell me how many hours I need to work on this. I am my own boss and my successes and failures fall right back to me.

Is everyone cut out to be a founder? In your opinion, which specific traits increase the likelihood that a person will be a successful founder and what type of person should perhaps seek a “regular job” as an employee? Can you explain what you mean?

I don’t believe everyone is cut out to be a founder of their own company, and that is totally ok. It is the work ethic that is most important. You have to be able to have a clear vision of what you want and know that it will take countless hours, unwavering dedication and the ability to overcome failure. Being a founder takes discipline, dedication, an endless drive to succeed, and the ability to work through obstacles that will throw you off track. Some people are complacent with a 9 to 5 corporate job where they know exactly what they are doing on a day to day basis. Founding your own company means taking on a lot of unknowns and not always having a manager to tell you how to do something or what resources to check out when you have questions or need assistance. Being your own boss and having control of your own destiny is a scary thing, but in the end the taste of success is the sweetest victory ever! But it doesn’t stop once you have achieved the desired outcome; you have to keep being dedicated and have a passion for work each and every day. Continued success means continued passion for what you are doing. It means changing the way you are doing things to meet the needs of the present, while anticipating the needs of the future so you can stay on that road to success.

Ok super. Here is the main question of our interview. What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started” and why? (Please share a story or example for each.)

-The investment is going to be more than you ever expected. You may need to find avenues to help you with that and that can be tough.

-The amount of hours are endless. This is not a 9–5 job. The projection time for release date or opening may be pushed back later than expected as well. I started this company while still working full time as a hair stylist and makeup artist and traveling much of the time I am doing that. This means I am spending my “off time” still working, and that takes a lot of discipline. You have to be truly invested in your passion to make it work. -You always have to keep evolving. Always staying up with the latest trends, taking courses, and reading new material to keep your business at the top of its game. I am constantly watching Tik Tok, perusing social media and talking to my friends and family to make sure I am providing what people need now

-Developing relationships & talking with many people that may or may not be beneficial for your company is key to creating your own success. Always have an open mind. I have created countless new relationships through my own journey. I have also had to sacrifice some relationships that were not beneficial to my vision. This can be hard, but you have to believe in yourself and your product or service and you have to know what is best for your own success. -You have to be comfortable with seeing your own weaknesses and being able to identify areas of opportunity. This goes back to the mistakes I first made when starting this business. I had to be able to see where I was falling short and I had to become comfortable with hiring out to help me with things I wasn’t good at, or things that needed an expert’s touch.

How have you used your success to make the world a better place?

I try to use my company/product to spread confidence in women every single day! Body shaming is a major issue in today’s society. We don’t talk about how many different body sizes or shapes there are, and if you do not fit into the cookie cutter mold of what is considered beautiful you can be made to feel bad about that. Every woman is beautiful! I want women to be confident in what they wear and how they feel. There is no better feeling in this world than being comfortable in your own skin and feeling beautiful and I truly mean that. My number one goal is to be able to have women be confident and comfortable every single day. No woman should ever feel like they can’t wear a certain style because it brings them discomfort, or their body is not a traditional shape or size. Celebrate the beauty of your own body.

You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good for the greatest number of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.

I am a huge advocate for women empowerment and I think that is one of the biggest movements in today’s society. WE CAN & WE WILL do anything we put our minds to! We need to be confident and comfortable in everything we do and what better way to do that with women always uplifting women! There is no greater cheerleader than a woman who can celebrate the successes of another woman. Instead of gossiping about how someone looks, give them the empowerment of being able to celebrate their beauty and feel comfortable in their own skin. Cheer your fellow women on, inspire them to achieve the greatness that is inside all of us. Instead of “I told you so” when you see someone failing, say to them “I know you can do this!” Encourage each other to keep trying.

We are very blessed that some very prominent names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them.

Someone who I truly think is the biggest innovator in the world is Elon Musk. He is driving society to places that are unheard of and making the unknown possible. He has passion and drive even when people can’t see his vision like he does. I would love to see his mindset and be able to pick his brain on actually what has been his best advice given to him.

Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this.

Female Founders: Brittany Lammon of The Chub Rub Patch On The Five Things You Need To Thrive and… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.