An Interview With Candice Georgiadis
It’s insanely lonely — When talking about starting my own business to friends and family before making the leap, I was met with nothing but encouragement. A couple of months in I realized quickly that very few could relate. They did not understand what it was like to craft a vision, set up a sales funnel, or write copy that would convert. Sure, they may have done some of these tasks for others, but they never had their entire heart and soul exposed for the world to see. It’s like standing in a crowded room and you’re the only one naked.
As part of our series called “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Began Leading My Company” I had the pleasure of interviewing Brittney Canter-Barbe of PowHER.
Brittney was the woman who climbed to the top of her field, despite overwhelming imposter syndrome and self-doubt. She constantly battled against feelings that she was not good enough, smart enough, or deserving enough for the role she had achieved. Sitting in boardrooms and being asked to take notes, she was told time and again that she should be hidden in back of house operations because she looked the part and of course, was told she was too aggressive. But none of this stopped her from reaching the mountaintop. Brittney left her cushy, half million+ career to launch PowHER and discovered that so many women are looking for guidance on how to claim their power in the workplace, at home and throughout every aspect of their lives. She realized that she could help these women by sharing her own story and teachings. In this episode, she shares:What led her out of Corporate America and into an entrepreneurial calling to do more, be more, have more and change more.How she works to teach women and corporations to “build a better table”.Her take on why women are leaving the corporate world and betting on themselves.Tactical steps for those who are uncomfortable negotiating on their own behalf in order to get the best possible offer.Her experience with Imposter Syndrome earlier in her career.The powerful lessons she has learned through failure.Why pouring into others is something that reaps benefits for the giver and the receiverThe advice she would give her younger self.This was such a great episode as Brittney went deep on her story and how she has navigated all that has come at her in her life. Make sure to check out her website for executive consulting and coaching needs as well as her social media for great content and tips-links below.WebsiteTikTokLinkedInYouTubeInstagram
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Before we dive in, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your ‘backstory’ and how you got started?
After spending 16 years in Corporate America across multiple industries, I knew the call to do more, be more, have more, and change more wasn’t going away.
In my early 30s, I had managed to climb the corporate ladder becoming the only woman in the executive c-suite. I had increased my compensation package by 13x in five short years and was in a position of PowHER where I could influence policy, drive cultural change throughout a global organization and build a team where employees felt like they belonged. Life was fast-paced, fulfilling, and full of possibilities. I did this without an ivy league education, white-collar family backing, and no security net to catch me when I fell.
The climb was beyond any challenge I could have imagined. I constantly battled imposter syndrome. I woke up daily thinking, “I’m not smart enough! I’m not good enough! I do not deserve this role!” I sat in boardrooms and was asked to take notes, was told I should not be hidden in back-of-the-house operations because I had the premium-brand look and of course, was told I was too aggressive, too bold, and too driven. I was excluded from the boy’s club and was even gaslighted by a trusted mentor.
I learned first-hand exactly what it takes to land positions of PowHER, negotiate executive compensation packages, build a personal brand at work that ensures success, and overall, how women can thrive in positions of PowHER. I coached hundreds of women on how to implement my hard-learned lessons to ensure their careers could also catapult.
I never realized my career journey was about PowHER. After all, I was always told as a woman that wants more PowHER was a bad thing. What I realized is that without more women in PowHER, we will never have workplaces that are inclusive, policies that enable women to thrive at work, or the ability to take control of our own lives.
Can you tell us a story about the hard times that you faced when you first started your journey?
Honestly, I underestimated the pressure it would take going from work in Corporate to becoming the CEO of my own company. No matter what is going on: if we lose a top-paying client, if a vendor refuses to produce the services we paid for or if someone knocks off one of our programs — it’s all on me. There is no advisory Board, VC funding, or team of experts on staff to guide us. In Corporate, I always felt immense pressure but in a much different way than when starting the business. In Corporate, there was always a security net when life happened. There is not only any security net now, and the parachute can be a little wonky.
So, how are things going today? How did grit and resilience lead to your eventual success?
Even with all the immense pressure, there is also immense freedom! For the first time in my career, I no longer have anyone telling me what I should and should not do. If I wake up and want to try a new marketing campaign, I do it! If I want to completely scrap the business altogether and build something totally different, I could do it. Without someone telling us who we should or should not be, it is like a waterfall of creativity. Your brain will take you to many places you never even knew existed.
Thriving as a woman in general is hard enough. Tack on the fact that I worked solely in male-dominated fields before starting my own business, was childless, could drink scotch with the best of them, and felt cursing in an art form, I met my fair share of adversity. I was always told I was too bold, too driven, and just way TOO damn much. Having the courage to constantly reject what society wanted me to be and embrace who I was authentically and then empower what made me different took an incredible amount of resilience. Did I wake up daily battling the demons in my head? Absolutely, but I knew there was no one in this world that would have my back the way I would so I kept pushing.
What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?
At PowHER, we are unmasking all the dirty little secrets that society has taught Corporate women for decades and exploiting them for what they are — just another way to keep women small. There are countless coaching organizations to choose from but what sets us apart is we’re not out here selling something we haven’t actually lived, survived, and thrived in ourselves. We’re also not watering any of it down because women have been longing for a place that can bring the raw, the messy, and the authentic. We give them just that and teach them how they can empower everything that makes them different in the man’s Corporate world.
Which tips would you recommend to your colleagues in your industry to help them to thrive and not “burn out”?
If you are not deeply convicted about the mission of your organization — sell it off, outsource it, or do whatever you need to get away from it because it will not sustain the energy needed to be a CEO. I have an unpopular belief that “burnout” isn’t always walking out Jerry McQuire style. For many of us, burnout can be something as simplistic as being stressed out about a new launch, new service line, or new product. Burnout is something that will always be present for any CEO working in America because as a country, we are addicted to work and success. Knowing how to keep burnout at bay is the secret. Trying to eliminate it altogether will only make you miserable, unhappy, and unhealthy.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful for who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story?
How many characters do I get for this response because it could easily be a novel! I believe there is no such thing as self-made. Somewhere along the way, someone or something about how you are helped you achieve success. For me, this was so many people and my privilege.
I was fortunate enough to grow up in a traditional, heterosexual, white home where we were never treated differently because of how we looked. While we were in poverty, I never remember going terribly hungry. I was also raised by two people that had GRIT and resilience for days. Both had survived incredibly difficult childhoods and had their fair share of trauma they carried with them daily. I was also the oldest of three siblings and took on a parenting role very early in life. Which, for better or worse, did give me an incredible desire to accomplish the impossible and ensure others could do the same. And my two younger sisters are all masters or doctorate educated, financially independent, and run our own businesses.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me before I started leading my company” and why? Please share a story or example for each.
1. It’s insanely lonely — When talking about starting my own business to friends and family before making the leap, I was met with nothing but encouragement. A couple of months in I realized quickly that very few could relate. They did not understand what it was like to craft a vision, set up a sales funnel, or write copy that would convert. Sure, they may have done some of these tasks for others, but they never had their entire heart and soul exposed for the world to see. It’s like standing in a crowded room and you’re the only one naked.
2. The energy it takes is immense — in my coaching programs, clients are paying us thousands of dollars to be present for them. The energy they are expecting and paid for, is through the roof and requires you as a service provider to ensure your mind, body, and soul are in the game. I spend more time now than I ever did on self-care. I expected the opposite once I finally got to do something for a living that I loved. It turns out, it takes less energy to stay in a job you hate.
3. Patience — of course, I knew it would take time to build brand authority but I underestimated how much time it would take. Building a business takes more patience than a type-A, overachieving, get-shit-done person like me was comfortable with. I still struggle with this daily.
4. The transformation of self — I started this business in my late 30s so I felt fairly confident I knew exactly who I was. Uh….I DID NOT! Building business forces you to do so many things that scare the shit out of you. With that, comes growth and transformation, unlike anything I expected. I feel this transformation continue every day and now that I’m aware of it, I embrace it and look forward to meeting myself over and over in the years to come.
5. Be prepared for what you don’t know — I remember running my first launch and I had spent thousands on advertising. I kept watching the analytics daily and zero movements. I knew the copy and message were on point but was beyond frustrated that those dollars were not turning into clients. I realized a couple of weeks into it that there was one tiny setting in the social media platform that wasn’t clicked “on.” This simple button caused me to question everything about my business and left me stressed out for weeks! Those tiny little details that you don’t know simply because you’ve never done it before always seem to creep in.
Thank you so much for this. This was very inspirational, and we wish you only continued success!
Brittney Canter-Barbe of PowHER: 5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Began Leading My Company was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.