Category: Featured

Female Founders: Ratchel Pinlac of Pinsy Shapewear On The Five Things You Need To Thrive and Succeed as a Woman Founder

An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

The brand will be your life and consume your brain for a long time. Establishing healthy boundaries between work and personal life is critical in the beginning or else you will spend all day and night working.

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

Pinsy’s mission is to create Shapewear that can be worn as Outerwear. Women CAN have it all: Style, Comfort, Support and Function. The brand’s goal is to empower women to love their bodies and ditch the idea that shapewear has to be hidden and embarrassing. Pinsy’s goal is to create beautiful, innovative and size-inclusive shapewear to enhance all bodies — without the sacrifice of comfort and versatility.

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 am a daughter of Filipino immigrants (middle child of 3 sisters) and grew up in an Asian household on the small island of Oahu, Hawaii. For as far back as I can remember, I’ve dieted for what feels like all my life (as early as 10 years old) and was constantly told I was fat. It is common in Asian culture that your relatives have no shame in commenting on one’s weight — their generation still believes that weight and physical appearance impacts your ability to find a husband, which in turn impacts your financial stability.

I recall wearing my mom’s uncomfortable high waisted underwear girdles in the 6th grade and the stigma of wearing girdles stuck with me. I absolutely hated shapewear — it was ugly, uncomfortable and embarrassing.

Fast forward to my twenties, I started a career in E-Commerce in 2011 — During my college years, I had an extremely strong gut feeling that E-Commerce, particularly Amazon, was going to explode. I spent 10 years building my career with Amazon Corporate and gained exposure to a wide range of brands and categories.

During a lunch break I ventured to a department store to find an outfit for a party I was going to that weekend and found myself looking in the shapewear section. The sudden flash backs of wearing shapewear as a pre-teen came rushing back. Everything was flesh colored and looked exactly what my mother wore back when I used to borrow her shapewear! There was zero style innovation within the shapewear category and the lightbulb moment hit when I could not find anything that was remotely visually appealing, stylish and youthful. I also hated that shopping for shapewear felt like a chore, shouldn’t it be FUN?

From there I set out a plan to build the next generation of Shapewear — to inspire body acceptance, breathe style into the shapewear market, and to leverage the skills I gained from my time at Amazon.

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

It was 2020 and I was about to launch our now best-selling lace shapewear bodysuits. I had no marketing plan other than to post it on Instagram to our 2k or so followers (half of which were my friends and family). I randomly hopped on TikTok “just to do it”, filmed a 4 second video with the bodysuit draped over a bench where I said, “You will never believe this is shapewear.” 30 minutes later, I realized the TikTok went viral with over a million views, and we gained thousands of followers (had about 10 or so followers at the beginning of the day), built up a waitlist of thousands of girls, and sold the product out on the day it launched. It’s crazy what can happen when you’re willing to just “try anything and everything!”

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?

We produced size XS in one of our shapewear styles which ended up being a children’s size! A girl that was actually an XS could barely get the body up one of her legs! We learned very quickly that we must always fit sizes (especially when going smaller than our small) on ALL sizes before moving into production!

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?

It sounds cliche but my parents instilled the right mindset in me. The mindset of “if they can do it, so can you, and there’s no excuse as to why them over you” stuck with me throughout elementary school and beyond. In school, it was not acceptable to receive worse grades than my peers — we have access to the same teachers, same textbooks, etc. The abundance and growth mindset are absolutely critical to success in business. Everything is able to be figured out! If you do not believe that to be true, it will be difficult to succeed as a Founder because all roadblocks and hurdles will feel like brick walls.

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 aside from the social expectations and pressures that are put on women that hold them back — such as having children by a certain age and having to dedicate time to raising a family. I feel women are holding themselves back because there is still a disproportionate number of female-founded companies compared to male-founded. People are motivated by examples and role models and while there are female-founder role models, there is still a disproportionate amount compared to men. I’m confident that over time, the more women are exposed to other women who have excelled at founding companies and creating legacies, the more women will recognize entrepreneurship as a “normal” and “achievable” career path to consider. I’m certain the next generations after us will have a much more even distribution of female and male entrepreneurs.

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 think society needs to feature more women who came from meager upbringings and started successful businesses. People are motivated by role models and the more women hear about other women succeeding despite not being born into privilege, connections or the help of a male, the more women will feel confident in starting companies. Society being able to feature women in a way that allows them to break down exactly “how they did it” will inspire other women to realize their own potential.

On the government side of things, while there exists Female Business Loans and other funding type of assistance, there isn’t a prominent resource for “How to Start a Business.” Having a starting point for women will help overcome barriers to entry.

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 have an incredible knack for being detail oriented, organized, and able to react with both intellect and emotion. Many studies have shown that women are also excellent multi-taskers compared to men, which is extremely critical to business success. Also, to my earlier point, having more female-founded companies will eventually snowball adjusting the ratio between female and male-founded businesses.

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

MYTH: Being a Founder means coming up with a great idea: Being a founder does not always mean coming up with a great product or idea. If you build it, people will not come — especially online. More often than not, a great product or idea is simply just a product and won’t sell itself. You must have the drive to creatively market your product, relentlessly pursue success, learn about what works/doesn’t work, hire/fire, test, test again, fail, succeed, fail again, and keep pushing.

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?

Technically everyone is cut out to start something, but not everyone is cut out to scale and grow a company in a big way. Being able to scale and grow a company takes an extremely high amount of dedication, focus, energy, financial strain, and the wearing of many hats. Not many people are willing to put in the high amount of work for an outcome that is not certain — and that’s OK. As a founder, especially in the beginning, you not only have to wear many hats and do “almost everything” until you can afford to hire, but you also have to learn how to make the right hires and be thorough enough to know what you positions you need in the first place. Finding, managing, and retaining high impact employees, while continuing to innovate and stay relevant as a brand, on top of ensuring company profitability, are key focuses of a Founder.

Not everyone is cut out to handle the demands and pressure of being a founder. Some people thrive with a singular focus and straightforward working hours — those are the people that should seek jobs as an employee.

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.)

1. When hiring and selecting people to bring into your company, prioritize working-style and chemistry over skill. Of course, skill is important, but not at the expense of company fit and chemistry. I’ve made a few bad hires in the beginning because I hired solely on skill and what company they previously worked for and backburnered their personality and working style. Trust and chemistry amongst employees are key to the growth and success of the company. When possible, always meet them in person to assess whether you will get along with them in a working environment. I hired a bad Creative Director in the beginning who really made the creative experience of the brand very painful — we fought many times and it impacted the momentum and creativity of the brand. I also hired a Fashion Designer along the way where we didn’t see eye to eye — this cost the company tens of thousands of dollars because she made a change to the fit of the product that was not approved by me.
2. Be prepared to have at least 2–3 years of savings. The first few years will be financially grueling, especially in a product-based business that is quickly scaling up inventory production to meet customer demand. With Pinsy, even though we had thousands on the waitlist and sold out of product various times, all revenues had to go straight back into purchasing even larger bulks of inventory. Feeling broke for a few years was not fun, but it’s part of the journey.
3. The brand will be your life and consume your brain for a long time. Establishing healthy boundaries between work and personal life is critical in the beginning or else you will spend all day and night working
4. Prioritizing your health and wellness (taking time off, making time for yourself, etc) is just as important, if not more important, as focusing and working on your business. You cannot pour from an empty cup and keeping your cup full is key. I burned myself out in the beginning because there was always so much to get done — however there comes a point to where your efforts result in diminishing returns because you cannot be as effective and impactful at what you’re doing when your mind is drained.

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

I think Pinsy is making the world a better place because we enable women to embrace their bodies as they are. Shapewear has been this garment that was embarrassing or used to make women feel like they need a “solution” to fix their “less than ideal” bodies. We don’t push a standard image of beauty, and we take the shame out of wearing shapewear by producing shapewear made to be seen. From day one we’ve been committed to body positivity and acceptance. I think that has impacted women in such a great way.

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 would love to inspire a body acceptance movement around the world where body image and standards are completely erased.

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.

Oprah Winfrey. Specifically, lunch at her Montecito home because it is #GOALS.

She is a large influence in my life because of her mindset. Accomplishments aside, Oprah has done a ton of inner work and has a mindset of growth and abundance. It would be life changing to pick her brain on her inner work journey as I am always constantly trying to improve in that area.

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

Thank you! Please follow Pinsy at @pinsyshapewear.

Female Founders: Ratchel Pinlac of Pinsy Shapewear 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.

Women In Wellness: Annabell Catania Of SIMPURE On The Five Lifestyle Tweaks That Will Help Support People’s Journey Towards Better Wellbeing

An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

Being an entrepreneur means you are working 24/7, it never stops if you are truly passionate about making your company successful. No one will ever work as hard as you for your company. Never accept less than exactly what you wanted for your brand or you’ll regret it. Trust your gut, if it’s warning you, it’s probably right. Make something you are PROUD of and share it with the world. Giving product away is the best marketing money you will ever spend.

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

Annabell was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer at 26 and was in shock when she realized it was connected to her antiperspirant deodorant. After 5 surgeries and 6 rounds of chemo, Annabell was determined to Limit Her Toxic Load and make her own body products, starting with an effective Natural Deodorant. Over 10 years of perfecting SPORT MAX deodorant it is now loved by thousands around the world. She started SIMPURE (formally Auntie & Me) and now they have over 50 Clean, Cruelty-Free, Fair Trade and Sustainable products that are not only effective but SMELL Amazing too.

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?

Well, my story started when I was 26 years old, and I was stopped in my tracks by stage 3 breast cancer. Living what I believed was a “clean” lifestyle and exercising regularly, I would have never imagined that using my antiperspirant would lead to sickness and almost my death. I spent 3 years fighting to live and thinking that if I made it through this Cancer that I would start using my own creations, so I didn’t have to worry about I put on my body anymore. Right away I started formulating my natural deodorant, it’s been over 10 years now. I started at the local Farmer’s Markets in San Diego and was shocked by the amount of people that LOVED it too. Next, I created my Natural Bug Repellent (which works amazing, plus it smells good!) Now we have over 50 clean, cruelty free, fair trade and sustainable products!

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?

When I first started my company and was only selling at a few farmer’s markets I didn’t have the capital just yet to commit to a large professional label purchase, so I printed my own labels and was using a recycled kraft paper type label that was NOT waterproof. I was in North Park, in San Diego for the Wednesday market and a HUGE storm came in and took my 10’ x 10’ canopy away with the wind and it started to downpour. I had over 80 products nicely displayed, and all of my labels were destroyed, my canopy was ruined and I was standing there in shock and realized I needed to improve my packaging or this just couldn’t work. I quickly researched that night another company that sells blank, waterproof labels by the sheet and until we could afford professionally printed labels, we didn’t have to worry about losing anymore labels while selling outside and the possibility of another rainstorm. Time is money and so going forward I weighed out all possibilities when I needed to make a decision that involved spending money to improve my packaging, brand, equipment, etc. Lesson learned.

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 think getting excited about every event we were invited too without researching the person/company that was hosting it and their marketing efforts and spending lots of time and money to attend and it was a total flop. I quickly learned that not everyone is as passionate and dedicated to doing the BEST job they can and so I needed to really test out markets and events before committing. Especially when I hired staff to help at the events because they needed the sales as well.

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?

We here at SIMPURE care about the fair-trade ingredients we use, the eco-friendly packaging we source and the customer experience more than anything. After producing over 30, 000 deodorants in a tiny lab we have made a dent in the Natural Deodorant market, sharing a chemical-free alternative that actually works. We also have a full, clean skincare line and Aromatherapy Sprays to replace fragrances you use on your body and in your home. We wanted to show people that they can throw away their toxic deodorant and feel confident that they will stay smelling fresh and be able to have a bathroom spray that won’t inflame allergies or cause Endocrine disruption in the body, which can affect your hormones. We source genuine Zechstein Magnesium flakes from the Netherland Seabeds for our Joint Care Spray that Naturally relieves inflammation and pain instead of cheap synthetic Magnesium that most companies use. SIMPURE is exactly as it sounds, Simple and Pure.

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.) Switch your deodorant! No need to use chemicals to stay fresh and 1 jar of Sport Max deodorant will last you up to 3 months. 2.) Ditch the fragrances; perfumes, body washes, body creams, and some skincare products containing synthetic fragrance, that is not only bad for you, but not necessary. Make the switch to essential oil-fragranced products. Our Aromatherapy sprays double as a body spray, room and linen spray! *Tranquility being our TOP Seller as well as the Vitality for the Shower! We also have Body washes/Creams/Rollers and of course a full skincare line that smell AMAZING without the chemicals. 3.) Unplug those air fresheners- switch to using Aromatherapy sprays and Diffusers that you use essential oils instead. 4.) Detox the body with Bath Salts, it will relax you and reduce inflammation. Next, try our Underarm Cleansing Kit to help pull toxins from your sweat glands that have been building up for years. 5.) Switch your skincare to clean products, your skin is your BIGGEST ORGAN, stop abusing it with chemicals and then wonder why your skin is sensitive, or your allergies keep acting up. Apply clean products, derived from natural ingredients, and see in the difference! Do this for your kids too. Start gifting people products you can believe in and help the businesses that care about you and your family. SIMPURE is definitely one of those companies. Just read our reviews 😊 ShopSImpure.com

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

Banning antiperspirants around the world. Switzerland banned them in 2016, why hasn’t the world noticed, why haven’t we stood up and said we care more about our health than pleasing large corporations that create these products. Natural deodorant works and there are different varieties for everyone. Try our SPORT MAX deodorant and see why thousands of people love it. It’s gender neutral and loved from teenagers to grandparents.

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

Being an entrepreneur means you are working 24/7, it never stops if you are truly passionate about making your company successful. No one will ever work as hard as you for your company. Never accept less than exactly what you wanted for your brand or you’ll regret it. Trust your gut, if it’s warning you, it’s probably right. Make something you are PROUD of and share it with the world. Giving product away is the best marketing money you will ever spend.

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

That’s hard as they are all important to me, but Sustainability is something I can control and choose for my life as well as my company and make the choices that are best for the environment over price. Sometimes being conscience of these things costs more, but it will be rewarded later. For example, we decided to switch our packaging to recycled glass and plastic and source sustainably grown and manufactured real Bamboo wood caps for our rebrand and since we have invested in this eco-friendly packaging we are reducing our carbon footprint and aligning with more platforms with the same ethics.

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

Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and our website! @simpureskincare

www.shopsimpure.com

Thank you for these fantastic insights!

Women In Wellness: Annabell Catania Of SIMPURE On The Five Lifestyle Tweaks That Will Help Support… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

Learn how to read people. In the nonprofit sector, most people want to help…but there are some bad apples who come around with agendas and ulterior motives. Learn how to read people, and trust your gut if a person doesn’t feel right or has displayed behaviors that are questionable.

As part of my series about “individuals and organizations making an important social impact,” I had the pleasure of interviewing Tania Haigh.

Tania Haigh is a leader in the nonprofit sector taking on one of the toughest epidemics in the U.S. — child sexual abuse. She co-founded Parents Against Child Sex Abuse (PAXA®) in 2017 and launched the KIDS TOO Movement in 2021. Considering her nonprofit leadership as well as her proven track record in business and entrepreneurship supporting some of the largest global brands, Tania’s work and advocacy initiatives have been featured in a wide range of media outlets.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?

My career path has been rooted in business with a focus on marketing for more than 20 years. However, I have always been involved with nonprofit organizations as a hands-on volunteer or committee member, or through my corporate roles executing cause-related marketing plans. When I became an entrepreneur after 15 years in corporate America, I found more freedom to make even larger civic contributions. One big chapter was bringing the TEDx platform to my community in Oak Park, Illinois, as founder of TEDxOakParkWomen. It was through that work that I was launched into fully entering the nonprofit sector to lead Parents Against Child Sex Abuse and the KIDS TOO Movement.

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

As you can imagine, taking on one of the most taboo topics in our culture is not for the faint of heart. But this work is all about having heart and compassion to prioritize the health and wellbeing of children. One of my most interesting experiences was executing a grassroots campaign for the HBO film The Tale in 2019. We hosted film screenings in the Chicagoland area and had the opportunity to do press with the filmmaker, Jennifer Fox. (She is portrayed by actress Laura Dern in the film.) The movie is the story of Fox’s childhood, and we learned about her journey of living through her experiences and her survivor pain, deciding to write about it, and then eventually making it into a film that debuted at Sundance Film Festival.

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?

While PAXA has been in existence for five years now, the more recent launch of the KIDS TOO Movement has plenty of stories that go with it! Some may think working for a nonprofit organization is slow, but for the cause we’ve taken on, it moves at a very fast pace. KIDS TOO launched in November 2021 in response to the dangers that social media platforms have created for our kids. We decided to pull off a grassroots stunt by going to the Today Show Plaza with our #KIDSTOO signs. And it worked! We got to be on national TV and got our photo with Hoda. My funny mistake: I got no sleep on my short trip to New York City, and I learned that I can’t do that at this stage in my life!

Can you describe how you or your organization is making a significant social impact?

We’ve been told that we won’t ever truly know how many people we’ve reached through our work. What we do know is that parents around the country are in crisis when it comes to protecting their children from predators, and we know that our contributions through PAXA and the KIDS TOO Movement are reaching parents around the country with our message — and they are contacting us for help. Bottom line: For the last five years through these two organizations, we have been empowering parents with tools and resources to protect their children from sexual abuse and other dangers.

Can you tell us a story about a particular individual who was impacted or helped by your cause?

We had the opportunity to work alongside a child sexual abuse survivor on a law in Illinois — Faith’s Law — that passed in 2021. That was such a beautiful opportunity to support and empower a young woman whose work aligned with ours as an organization.

Are there three things the community/society/politicians can do to help you address the root of the problem you are trying to solve?

Yes, it takes all of us as a society to protect our most vulnerable. Our organization wants to empower parents to elevate their voices in child protection. We can do this by:

• #1 Being Aware: More parents and caretakers need to be aware of the problem so they can be on the lookout for predators that surround our children every day.
• #2 Getting Educated: There are scores of nonprofit organizations doing the heavy lifting of working to protect kids every day. We encourage parents to take advantage of the tools and resources that are available so they can be “in the know” about predatory red flags as well as how to keep their kids safe on social media platforms.
• #3 Taking Action: Whether it’s in schools or extracurricular activities, there continue to be gaps in safety for our kids. We want parents to have the courage to speak up and say something when adults put the institutions they represent before the wellbeing of kids. We want parents to write to lawmakers asking for effective laws to protect children.

How do you define “Leadership”? Can you explain what you mean or give an example?

Leadership can be exemplified in a range of ways depending on the attributes of the person. For me, leadership means setting the vision, knowing how to execute, building teams, and nurturing relationships. It also means that, in being a leader, one is clear that measurement is real — as is taking radical responsibility for outcomes.

What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why. Please share a story or example for each.

I love these questions because I come from a place of always wanting to pay it forward. Here are some of my favorites:

• It’s going to be a marathon, not a race. My husband told me this when we co-founded PAXA in 2017. He was right — and we needed to earn every opportunity to become the credible nonprofit organization that we are today.
• Nonprofits are messy. Having come from a business background and entrepreneurship, I was confident that I could learn quickly how to develop a nonprofit with staying power. Then I learned that every nonprofit organization (whether it’s new or it’s been around a long time) has its own set of challenges. I got this down by listening to Joan Garry’s podcast, Nonprofits Are Messy.
• Clean financials are everything. This one is easy to want to avoid, but getting into the numbers is crucial for the long-term success of an organization. While we have resources that support us in this area, I don’t mind if I have to get into the weeds in QuickBooks.
• Learn how to read people. In the nonprofit sector, most people want to help…but there are some bad apples who come around with agendas and ulterior motives. Learn how to read people, and trust your gut if a person doesn’t feel right or has displayed behaviors that are questionable.
• Get rest. As the daughter of immigrant parents, I have “work hard” in my DNA. I am known for my work ethic. But these days, my motto is “work smarter not harder.” I also suggest that folks in the nonprofit sector learn to have work/life balance to avoid burning out while trying to make an impact in an area they’re passionate about.

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

At this very moment I am, indeed, living a movement: the KIDS TOO Movement. Even after launching brands, businesses, and nonprofits, I never really saw myself as a movement leader — but now I do see it all connecting for me and the audience that I’m seeking to reach. For others, I encourage a movement that has more people asking “How can I help?”

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

My goodness, I love life lessons quotes! This one is tough to choose, but I will go with the one I have on my personal website. It’s from Michael Jordan: “Some people want it to happen, some wish it would happen, others make it happen.” This quote is very relevant to me because for my entire life, when I’ve set out to do something, I have done it. It’s always taken a lot of work, but I’ve done it!

Is there a person in the world (or in the US) with whom you would like to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. 🙂

Well, I’m going for it…Oprah! She’s done so much to educate her audience about child sexual abuse, especially during The Oprah Winfrey Show years — AND I also choose her because one of my biggest regrets in life is passing up a free ticket to attend her show in my hometown and hers, Chicago, during the last season. For inspiration, I still catch some of the OG show that streams her network, OWN.

How can our readers follow you on social media?

We’d love a like or follow! Readers can find me on Twitter or Instagram. For the KIDS TOO Movement, check out Instagram; and for PAXA, check out YouTube.

This was very meaningful. Thank you so much. We wish you only continued success on your great work!

Social Impact Heroes: Why & How Tania Haigh of ‘Kids Too’ Is Helping To Change Our World was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

“You are how you treat the people who can’t do anything for you.” What that means to me is to be kind to everyone, not just the boss. People are always watching how you treat others. I want to see how you treat the crew, the intern and the parking attendant. I was an intern. Still to this day, I remember those who treated me kindly and those who barked orders for me to get them an Egg McMuffin (no joke!). Be kind and treat everyone with respect.

As a part of our series about women who are shaking things up in their industry, I had the pleasure of interviewing Erin Coscarelli.

Erin Coscarelli is one of the most sought-after female broadcasters on television today. She currently pulls double duty hosting for the Las Vegas Raiders as well as Tennis Channel. She recently served as a correspondent for “The Ultimate Surfer” on ABC working alongside surf legend Kelly Slater, hosted “The Fantasy Zone” for DirecTV as well as a morning show on NFL Network, and has over the course of her career covered the Super Bowl, Professional Bull Riding, and everything in between, including Summer X Games, the World Series of Poker, Major League Baseball and Motocross working for networks like NBC Sports, ESPN and Fox Sports.

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 grew up a tomboy with two older brothers and I played every sport I could cram into a season — volleyball, basketball, soccer, softball, track and field. My poor parents drove me all over town. I think the joy of playing such a wide variety of sports gave me insight into the mindset of an athlete. I loved playing sports but what drew me into a career in sports broadcasting was the depth of telling the story beyond just the athlete’s jersey. I always gravitated to the human element over the stats and accolades. Who was this athlete underneath the helmet? Sure, we want to root for the team we have the allegiance to, but I think the fan also yearns to understand the players on a deeper level. What drives them? How do they get through the slumps and struggles of being an athlete? The game is so mental…it transcends sports and hits deep into our own personal lives. I think the fan at home wants to understand that better. I know I do.

Can you tell our readers what it is about the work you’re doing that’s disruptive?

Questioning the norm. Looking at how we’ve “always done things.” Asking questions like, “Is this really the best way to do it for EVERYONE?” And if not, can we work together to confront it, speak up for ourselves and seek change for the betterment of the collective? I think any time we can peel back a layer in any industry and introduce more awareness to someone’s personal experience with truth and vulnerability, we begin to invite more transparency, openness and understanding. For me, being a woman in the sports broadcasting industry is exhilarating, stress-inducing, and passion-filled — and I wouldn’t change a thing about the home runs and strikeouts I’ve had along the way. If my story makes a female in my industry feel less alone…then I’ve succeeded. That’s my work. Being more vulnerable about my own struggles, because at the end of the day we all deserve to feel like we’re not alone.

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?

When I first started out, I was needing to get “reps.” An amazing opportunity came to me to cover Pro Bull Riding for NBC Sports. Growing up as an LA native, I was a fish out of water for this, but boy, what a cool sport — and even cooler athletes to get to report on as I was learning the ropes of broadcasting. There was this one show in particular that taught me a valuable lesson during a live hit. As I got up close and personal to a bull that was about to be released from the chute, my producer began counting down “5… 4… 3… 2…” and as he counted to 1, the bull bucked with a flying smattering of poop landing right on my sweater. Needless to say, I learned the show must go on, even with bull crap all over you. I still laugh about it to this day. Shit happens. What can you do? Just keep going.

We all need a little help along the journey. Who have been some of your mentors? Can you share a story about how they made an impact?

Growing up, I wish I had more female mentors. I had a lot of really impactful male mentors help guide me. One in particular very early in my career was Mike Colangelo from ESPN. Max Casanova is another name that sticks out because both gentlemen really believed in me. They gave me chances even when I, myself, felt I didn’t deserve them. I think a great mentor and producer is encouraging, supportive, and understands the difference between a lack of experience and a lack of potential. I’m thankful I was given the chance to keep taking those reps and gaining that experience.

In today’s parlance, being disruptive is usually a positive adjective. But is disrupting always good? When do we say the converse, that a system or structure has ‘withstood the test of time’? Can you articulate to our readers when disrupting an industry is positive, and when disrupting an industry is ‘not so positive’? Can you share some examples of what you mean?

I think it’s so helpful to reanalyze “what is” with the hopes of making things better by taking a deeper look at how things are. For instance, in the sports industry you are seeing so many more women on TV. The audience wants representation on their screen. It’s boring when it’s a panel of all men…we want diversity, we want inclusivity, we want someone who looks like us to allow for a deeper, more meaningful conversation that we can connect with. Disrupting the norm is great if there is real authenticity and passion behind it. To disrupt just to disrupt feels targeted with no real interest in “moving the ball forward,” if you will. To want to make things better, to genuinely want to see growth in a space that feels outdated or antiquated, I think that’s when it’s positive. When you can say, “Yes, maybe there is an opportunity for improvement.”

Can you share 3 of the best words of advice you’ve gotten along your journey? Please give a story or example for each.

“You are how you treat the people who can’t do anything for you.” What that means to me is to be kind to everyone, not just the boss. People are always watching how you treat others. I want to see how you treat the crew, the intern and the parking attendant. I was an intern. Still to this day, I remember those who treated me kindly and those who barked orders for me to get them an Egg McMuffin (no joke!). Be kind and treat everyone with respect.

Another is to “prioritize you.” This industry is always about making everyone else around you comfortable. I didn’t speak up in the early days of my career. I said “yes” way too often out of fear. I understand you need to start your career with jobs that probably pay less, work crummy hours, and work weekends, holidays and overnight shifts. I think that’s an opportunity to put in the extra elbow grease so that you can learn more about the ins and outs of the biz. That way you get to decide if this is a job you even want to sacrifice those weekends for.

We are sure you aren’t done. How are you going to shake things up next?

I’m nowhere near being done. My plan is to continue to inspire other women (and men) and convince them that they’re not alone as we’ve all been navigating a very challenging time in our lives. Everyone has a story to tell and I’m ready to listen.

In your opinion, what are the biggest challenges faced by ‘women disruptors’ that aren’t typically faced by their male counterparts?

Women are often initially judged by our appearance, well before anything comes out of our mouth. If I mispronounce an athlete’s name or get a stat incorrect, popular thought will think I don’t know what I’m talking about, whereas my male counterpart is “forgiven” more easily. I think we are judged differently when we ask for a pay increase or just simply speak up about a boundary. In the past I was terrified of speaking up for myself or even just confronting conflict and I am beginning to see that it was just me trying to conform to societal norms. Even if we disagree, being open to civil and honest conversation is not only necessary, but our younger generation is also watching and learning from us. If you can’t do it for yourself, do it for your niece or nephew, or for your kids. I know I’m in a safe and mature working environment when I’m invited to speak up. When my voice and opinions are prioritized. I’m grateful to the men who mandate that in a work environment.

Do you have a book/podcast/talk that’s had a deep impact on your thinking? Can you share a story with us?

Historically, women have been afraid to disrupt. We’re afraid to be considered “difficult” or high maintenance. I think that is starting to become old news now. We are progressing forward as we prioritize the comfort of everyone in the workplace. It takes more women like myself, Joy Taylor, Alex Curry — just to name a few — that aren’t afraid to speak up and ask for awareness around the workplace. I’m constantly inspired by the women in my industry. A win for her is a win for us.

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

My goal for this year was to find inner peace. I think the way to do that is by being more comfortable in your own skin. Authenticity cannot be overlooked. The thing that scares you the most (for me it was the fear of being disliked) should be the very thing you need to work on. Listen, I love my job, I love connecting with people. I love telling and hearing inspiring stories…but the biggest quest will always be: Why are you doing all of this? Who are you working so hard for? Are you doing it because you love it or to prove something to others? Once I surrendered the need to be liked (and btw, I’m still a work-in-progress), I started to become WAY more confident with who I wanted to work with, whose energy I wanted around me. I can’t tell you how much more enjoyable work and life started to become. You begin attracting a new attitude of people in your life. This idea of exclusion, mean-girl B.S., that’s such a tired and boring narrative.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

My dad used to say, “It could always be worse.” I appreciate that quote still to this day. When we can be in control of our own perspective, we control the energy and time we give to things. If we’re constantly the “victim,” we can’t take ownership or be accountable to make things better. Our reaction to things is the only control we have in this life. The mind can contrive funny stories we want to believe about ourselves. We can choose to view crappy situations as opportunities to grow and amazing things as moments to celebrate. At least this is what I’m trying to work on. Like I said, I’m a work in progress and I’m okay with that these days.

How can our readers follow you online?

Follow me on social media at @erincoscarelli.

This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for joining us!

Female Disruptors: TV Anchor Erin Coscarelli On The Three Things You Need To Shake Up Your Industry was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Female Founders: Sabrina Noorani of
ClearForMe On The Five Things You Need To Thrive and Succeed as a Woman Founder

An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

No one has it all figured out. I recently talked to a mentor of mine who just hit Unicorn status. I figured they would feel like they’re on top of the world but even being at different places, we connected on the fact that we don’t have it all figured out but that doesn’t mean anything. It’s just a given for everyone, so let go of the idea that you need to know it all.

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

A former NYSE trader, Sabrina founded ClearForMe, a Ingredient Cloud-Based SaaS solution, after developing a debilitating skin allergy. Feeling frustrated that she couldn’t understand the ingredient labels, she knew there must be others out there that feel the same. With this powerful tool, she hopes to encourage clear beauty education and change how products with ingredient labels are presented to consumers today.

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 was born and raised in Tanzania, moved to Miami with my family when I was 8 years old and then left the nest when I was 17 to build my life in NYC. After business school at NYU, I became an options floor trader on the NYSE and later moved to build a new team at Citadel, a hedge fund. During my time there, my skin around my lips started to tighten, puff up, and peel so much, I began to get staph infections every other week. From this acute skin problem I launched a quest to understand what ingredients were causing these reactions. I quickly learned how overwhelming it is to navigate products’ ingredient lists. It was far too complex and confusing for me as a data analyst, much less for the average consumer. ClearForMe is my answer to clearing up ingredient confusion for the beauty industry and thirst for confident, personalized product choices.

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

There are so many but this one, I’m choosing to share because it’s also the most meaningful. I was sensing that I might just win my first deal but I hadn’t built the product yet. I called my advisor in a bit of a panic. He told me to reach out to an intern he had worked with who was super smart and back at business school, his name was Ali. Ali was not only smart, but incredibly kind. He could sense that I was in over my head and he said, I will help you get this contract over the finish line. For 6 weeks, we went from being complete strangers to working side by side every day. After my final pitch, I learned I closed the deal and before even saying anything, Ali told me he would work with me to get it to launch. This is all while he was in his last year at business school, studying for finals, and going on job interviews. After we launched, ahead of our delivery date, we both took a breath and recognized what was happening between us is working and the rest is history.

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?

I have this saying I learned — when you make mistakes, your brain grows. So, needless to say, I’m cool with Team Mistakes. It happens, and as long as you are growing and not repeating them, then you’re learning. When I was first starting I was actively talking to two potential partners at the same time. I built a personalized business case for each and I accidentally swapped them when I emailed them to the two potential partners. I was embarrassed and felt like it was the end of the world but I owned up to it immediately, admitted to my mistake, and corrected it with the right document. Both partners shrugged it off, and moved on. The lesson here is to take immediate accountability when things go wrong. It’s always appreciated and respected even if it means you lose the business.

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?

The night before a big RFPmy team and I were working on was due, I happened to be in LA for a workshop I was attending and was staying with my best friend. A request for proposal is basically a pitch that I was submitting to win business. There were hundreds of questions to answer and it was my first time doing it. That night, another mutual friend happened to be in town for a meeting and was also staying with us. I kind of hijacked the whole night and instead of everyone catching up, everyone at the home rolled up their sleeves and got into the trenches with me to help. It was an all-night thing, and friends who could have easily gone to bed stayed up with me to support as I needed. It ended up being one of the most memorable sales processes I’ve ever been a part of and winning that business felt so sweet because so much love and support went into that. That contract kicked ClearForMe into high gear and we haven’t looked back since. I will always appreciate my ride or die friends and how they stood up with me even though they each had a million other important things to take care of.

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?

The bias investors hold. A study by DocSend last year showed VC funds spend 18% more time on all male founder teams than female founder teams, which resulted in men raising 70% more than females in 2020. This was up from 50% in 2019. The playing field is rigged before one can even start. You can’t win a game if you can’t get on the field.

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?

As individuals it’s important we identify the bias and keep it top of mind. Hoping something is not there, won’t make it go away. Admitting means we can address the problem.

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?

An old axiom comes to mind, “Give a man a fish and he eats for a day. Teach a man to fish and he eats for a lifetime.” But teach a woman to fish, and everyone eats for a lifetime. Women are bad a**, plain and simple.

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

That success happens overnight, that it will be only hard until you get your first customer or first check. It’s all a journey, and once you solve one problem, another one pops up, but that’s the beauty of it. That’s when you expand, grow, and have real opportunities for scale. Embrace the bumpiness.

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?

Not everyone wants to be a founder and that’s ok. The specific trait that increases likelihood is willingness to fail. The better you fail, learn and iterate than build for perfection, which doesn’t exist.

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.)

No one has it all figured out. I recently talked to a mentor of mine who just hit Unicorn status. I figured they would feel like they’re on top of the world but even being at different places, we connected on the fact that we don’t have it all figured out but that doesn’t mean anything. It’s just a given for everyone, so let go of the idea that you need to know it all.

Share your problems (don’t hide them). Without fail, everytime I share what my roadblocks and current problems are, even if it’s to a stranger, something shifts and answers come. Maybe not in a linear way, but the answers I didn’t even think I was looking for fall into my lap when I share.

Build habits to nurture your confidence. I end my day listing 3 positive things I did that day, why they are positive, their impact and next steps. It helps me close my day with a positive focus which builds my confidence.

Be curious. Instead of saying no, ‘I don’t like that’ or writing someone off, lead with curiosity, learn, and ask questions. It’s easy to say no, but then you miss out on sparking creativity and nurturing collaboration.

Lift others up. Invest in your teams’ development and success. It’s the most gratifying part of being a leader. Filling up their buckets, fills yours up the same plus more.

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

I leverage my success in many different ways. One of the ways that meant the most to me last year was for the BIPOC community, one that I belong to. The BIPOC community makes up 80% of the population yet, resources don’t nearly match that representation. We launched a campaign last year, offering BIPOC founders 80% off of our services so they, too, can offer unique experiences rooted in education to their customers. Personally, I also believe in paying it forward. When I meet other founders, mentees, and students, I’m an open book and share resources, knowledge, and my network contacts, when it’s helpful.

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.

If I could inspire a movement it would be to create an environment where all kids learn that they are each heroes on their own journey. If we can model to each child that they are capable, emotional, and creative beings who benefit from mistakes, failure, and disappointment, the sky’s the limit. I want kids to feel safe expressing and feeling their emotions so they can experience the world self aware and self accepting. Imagine a generation taught this during their development years as opposed to in their 30s or 40s?

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.

Serena Williams. She was labeled by others as not the chosen one or the most skilled, and shattered that by a millionfold. The barriers she breaks not only in tennis but as an outspoken representative of women, moms, entrepreneurs — I want to learn more about her story and the levers she uses to show up strong, authentic, and empathetic.

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

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

Women In Wellness: Emily Ruth On The Five Lifestyle Tweaks That Will Help Support People’s Journey Towards Better Wellbeing

An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

Being financially dependent on your spouse will be a challenge for both of you. Leaving the hospital to start my coaching business was something we talked about but didn’t understand the implications of. It led to a lot of stress and drama that could have been avoided if we had realized it would be “a think.”

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

Emily Ruth is a Holistic Health Coach who harnesses the internal power to heal bodies outside of traditional medicine. She uses her degrees in radiologic sciences and coaching to teach physiology, while providing programs designed to help her clients discover the root causes of issues, creating a well-rounded picture of health, as opposed to just treating symptoms. Emily’s clients learn to trust their inner voice, strengthen the intuitive connection with their body, and develop proven habits that build a lifetime of happiness and wellbeing.

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?

As soon as I finished x-ray school, I knew imaging and the Western model of medicine wasn’t actually what I was meant to be doing. I wanted to help people actually get well so they could stay out of the hospital and minimize doctor’s visits.

I evaluated PA school and family medicine.

I took an introductory course to Public Health.

I decided to finish what I had started, do it well, and continue searching along the way.

But I kept listening, learning, observing. Collecting ideas and information.

I had some health issues arise that had me seeing my OBGYN every month for nearly 6 months. She finally switched me from the Nuva Ring to an oral contraceptive. I got a little bit better, but not much. Between frustration with my doctor’s lack of solutions and support, and my own intuition, I knew I needed to get off the pharmaceuticals completely. But, I also needed an answer to contraception.

A colleague and soon to be husband’s cousin recommended tracking my fertility. I was blown away, because in all my years of studying the human body, including working in women’s imaging, I had never heard of this concept.

I didn’t have any other options at that point, so I dove in. I was shocked to learn that the science and fertility doctors have understood women’s fertility since the 1970’s! I felt so betrayed by our culture and the Western medical model. I had found a piece of my “life mission puzzle.”

As a Radiologist Assistant and x-ray tech, I had been trained that patients have the right to understand their medical exams, the risks, alternatives, and the right to refuse. I’ve always believed that understanding how our bodies work is fundamental to creating good health. I got really good at explaining how the body works in a simple way that resonated with the patient in front of me so that they could make the best decision for themselves about the current exam.

When I finally found health coaching in 2017, I knew that this was the answer to helping people find their motivation for change as well as understand their thinking and emotions.

I now combine a deep understanding of how the body works with life coaching to help my clients heal themselves.

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?

I mentioned that learning about charting my fertility was an important part of my back story. When I first got started, everyone told me I needed a niche. Since I am passionate about women understanding their bodies, I was focusing on women’s hormones. It was really difficult for me to explain succinctly early on. A lot of people aren’t comfortable talking about periods in public yet. It made for an awkward transition into our new home when I started talking about periods at the bar!

Lessons learned. Well, I’ve broadened my niche out to all things health, but I still work with women on their hormones. And I have found that opening with “I help eliminate PMS” leads to a more engaging conversation. Women and men want to talk about solving problems that plague them or their loved ones, but most people don’t want to start out talking about periods. Even if that’s where the conversation leads.

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?

The biggest mistake that comes to mind is not making it clear to a client that it is their responsibility to reach out to me when they need support.

I am always available to my clients between calls, but as a coach, it’s not my role to initiate contact. In some ways, working with a coach is a lot like working with a therapist or doctor. If you need something, we’re here, but you need to make the call.

The two lessons I take from this confusion with a client are to dive into the uncomfortable conversations and make expectations clear on the first coaching session.

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?

Helping one person take care of themselves impacts everyone they know. Not only do they feel better and stronger, they develop more self-compassion and patience. As our compassion and patience for ourselves improves, we are able to be more compassionate, empathetic, and patient with those around us. This ripples out into my client’s families and everyone around them. Slowly, bringing a happier and more peaceful world!

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. Take just 5 minutes each morning to be still in silence. Feel what you feel and notice what you notice. This is where I started and where I begin with many of my clients. Many of us wake up and hit the ground thinking about all the things we have to do and the people we need to take care of. Just 5 minutes at the beginning of the day, tuning into ourselves, goes a long way in knowing what we need and where we want to go.
2. Talk to your cells! It sounds crazy, but talking to your body out loud in a loving way helps you increase your self-love and primes you to make better choices throughout the day. Something like: Listen up cells of my body. I love you, work together with love and compassion and I will lead you with love and compassion. A bonus for taking a moment to send that love and compassion out to the world, wherever it is needed.
3. Take a walk outside in the morning light as soon as you can. If you have a dog, you probably already do this. Fresh air, morning sunlight, and movement is a great way to activate your body’s internal clock and influence the hormones that help you stay awake and energized during the day. We all spend so much time indoors and exposed to unnatural lights, it’s no wonder we feel sleepy all day and can’t fall asleep at night.
4. Eat your meals on real dishes and at a table. Take some deep belly breaths and give thanks. We digest our food better and get more nourishment from it when we are relaxed. We also tend to eat less when we take the time to make meals an event, instead of eating in the car or in front of a screen.
5. Drink more water between meals and less during your meal. Water is important for hydration. Too much just before eating dilutes stomach acid, leading to indigestion and less digested food. About four ounces with a meal is ok, just try not to flood your stomach 30 minutes before or an hour after you eat.

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

Cultivating self-love. So many of us seem to hate ourselves. We don’t care for ourselves or talk to ourselves the way we would a best friend. Like I said earlier, when we have compassion for ourselves, we have more empathy and patience for others. I’m not a mathematician, but I’m guessing it would have an exponential effect toward worldwide wellness, peace, and collaboration to solve our problems in the most beneficial ways.

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

1. Being financially dependent on your spouse will be a challenge for both of you. Leaving the hospital to start my coaching business was something we talked about but didn’t understand the implications of. It led to a lot of stress and drama that could have been avoided if we had realized it would be “a think.”
2. Ignore the internet and interview several business coaches. Pick one and stick with them. I chased all the shiny objects that show up online when you start thinking about entrepreneurship. I made some terrible investments. Wasted a lot of time and energy on programs that weren’t aligned with who I am and operating from generosity and compassion.
3. You have to actively practice your new self-concept with strangers. When you’re new to something, you’re unsure. It’s normal. But as adults, we frequently forget. As an x-ray student, I was totally terrified to do exams on real people. The process is so built in from book learning, to practicing in lab, to watching an older x-ray tech, to doing one with supervision, to teaching someone else. It wasn’t until my current business coach explained this that I realized I had practiced “being” an x-ray tech for so long before I was working as a “real” x-ray tech and could confidently walk a patient through their exam. There is no formal format like this for entrepreneurship, so you have to create that structure yourself. And be patient enough to allow it all to “just be.”
4. Everything you’ve done in life up until now is applicable to what you’re doing now, you just have to look for it. If you’ve been keeping yourself alive, making money, and paying taxes, you’ve already figured out a lot of stuff about how to live in the world. Combine that with all the relationships you’ve cultivated and professional experience, you’ve got experiences and knowledge that can translate into so much of what’s coming. Just because you change into a career that seems totally different or you start a business doesn’t mean you don’t know anything. Looking for proof of what you have already done well builds your confidence in charting your own path.
5. “Charging your worth” is nonsense. Pick the price you have the least amount of drama over and start selling your services. Even if others tell you it’s too cheap, at least you’re making money. If you’re good at what you do and your customers are happy, they’ll be so excited about you that they’ll want to tell everyone. Once you run out of availability and people are still asking to work with you, then you can think about raising your prices. You’ll get so much more experience so much faster this way, impact more people, and make more money in the long run.

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. We don’t have the bandwidth to live sustainably or work on animal welfare issues unless we are mentally healthy and well cared for.

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

My website: www.EmilyRuth.Health where you can sign up for my weekly newsletter.

I’m also on Facebook sometimes, my pages are: @EmilyRuthHealth and Emy Crinklaw-Bunch

Thank you for these fantastic insights!

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

An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

Empathize to innovate. It’s important to honor every individual’s journey (from our colleagues to our customers), and engage, explore, and seek a deeper understanding to make our products and processes better.

As a part of our series about women who are shaking things up in their industry, I had the pleasure of interviewing Sascha Mayer.

Sascha Mayer is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and co-founder of Mamava, the creator of freestanding lactation spaces for breastfeeding on the go. Sascha is a recognized expert on lactation space design, family-friendly workplace policies, and social entrepreneurial leadership.

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 studied sociology and gender studies at the University of Vermont, and got my first job out of school working for then-Congressman Bernie Sanders. I believed in the power of progressive policy to create more equity, but the convolutions of government and the pace of change felt excruciatingly slow. After a couple of years, I found a job at a local design studio. There I grew into the role of brand strategist and learned how positioning and good design could be a far more efficient path to influencing people and creating change. If government was about creating language to guide the law to affect lives, design was about creating experiences and environments that could change minds and affect lives almost immediately. As a breastfeeding mother who needed to travel a lot for business, I found there was no dignified place designed for using a breast pump. My co-founder, Christine Dodson, and I were able to incubate Mamava at the design studio while still working our day jobs.

Can you tell our readers what it is about the work you’re doing that’s disruptive?

At Mamava, we design and manufacture freestanding lactation spaces for worksites and public places. We’re disrupting the status quo of built environments — especially workplaces — that have been primarily designed for men by designing products specifically suited for breastfeeding and pumping parents. We’re bringing a more inclusive approach to the concept of “human-design” with our freestanding moveable lactation pods so that breastfeeding people have private spaces to pump. (When breastfeeding parents are away from their babies, they need to express milk every three hours or so to continue making milk.) Our designs are helping solve the perennial problem breastfeeding mothers and other lactating parents face when they work outside the home.

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?

I wouldn’t say this is that funny, and it’s more about starting again versus first starting, but at the beginning of the pandemic my executive team and I spent countless hours discussing what the future of work at Mamava should be — remote, hybrid, flexible hours, etc. After two months, however, it became clear that no one was going back to an office any time soon, and expectations around work and working environments would be radically changed. Now we know that these changes, like greater flexibility and reduced commuting, are better for everyone, but especially for working parents. The lesson we all learned during the pandemic is that control is an illusion and change is inevitable.

We all need a little help along the journey. Who have been some of your mentors? Can you share a story about how they made an impact?

Michael Jager is the creative director and owner of Solidarity of Unbridled Labour, the design studio where Christine and I incubated Mamava. He’s also a board member at Mamava and continues to be a trusted advisor. My greatest lesson from Michael is just the resilience and perseverance you need as an entrepreneur. He has always been there to remind us how important our mission is, how far we have come, and to keep going.

In today’s parlance, being disruptive is usually a positive adjective. But is disrupting always good? When do we say the converse, that a system or structure has ‘withstood the test of time’? Can you articulate to our readers when disrupting an industry is positive, and when disrupting an industry is ‘not so positive’? Can you share some examples of what you mean?

Progressive social change in this country has often been considered a disruption — consider the women’s suffrage movement, the civil rights demonstrations of the 190s and today, equal marriage rights for LGBTQ people — as the change is a challenge to the status quo. Yet none of these important milestones that secure rights for more people would have happened without massive disruption. (And, as evidenced by new laws limiting reproductive rights, voter registration, and access to gender-affirming care, clearly there are many in this country who continue to not only resent but resist these changes.) Structures that are inherently unequal or built on systemic oppression deserve to be disrupted and changed. It’s hard to think of an industry that has not benefited from disruption of some kind because the history of human innovation is about solving problems and change, and hopefully achieving greater social justice. All industries benefit from being open to new ways of being, doing, and thinking. Consider our imminent climate crisis — everything will need to be disrupted to adapt and survive.

Can you share 3 of the best words of advice you’ve gotten along your journey? Please give a story or example for each.

Progress over perfection. With every product we’ve launched we’ve made changes. It has been more important to bring something into the world — and to learn from the feedback — than to get it perfect the first time.

We each have different gifts for the revolution. This is an expression taught to me by our colleague Janet Stambolian when we were first starting out. She and I were working at my kitchen table and I wondered out loud if I had what it took to figure out the business. Her words have stayed with me ever since and became one of our company values. Our diverse backgrounds, experiences, talents, and styles make us stronger. At Mamava, we celebrate our differences.

Empathize to innovate. It’s important to honor every individual’s journey (from our colleagues to our customers), and engage, explore, and seek a deeper understanding to make our products and processes better.

We are sure you aren’t done. How are you going to shake things up next?

We are about to launch a new product designed for the everyday, multiple-times-a-day user. With a low-profile exterior (that fits better into work environments) and an interior to surprise and delight, it’s specifically designed for multi-tasking while pumping in comfort and privacy. So while our first units disrupted from the outside by being bold billboards for breastfeeding, this unit disrupts from the inside (in a good way).

In your opinion, what are the biggest challenges faced by ‘women disruptors’ that aren’t typically faced by their male counterparts?

American culture is still reckoning with outdated gendered stereotypes that don’t serve women well. Speaking up and making change can be seen as rocking the boat. And women, especially in older generations, were raised not to make waves. So we all carry the weight of inherited cultural expectations and inherent biases and these are present for women leaders every time they enter a boardroom or join a speaking panel. Even though it’s 2022, I read articles every day about the persistently low percentages of women CEOs. Women are still woefully under-represented in leadership positions in every industry — especially BIPOC women. In my lifetime, it’s beginning to change, but there’s more work to do to ensure a level playing field of access and opportunities.

Do you have a book/podcast/talk that’s had a deep impact on your thinking? Can you share a story with us?

I’m currently reading The Extended Mind by Annie Murphy Paul. As we emerge from the pandemic, it’s a good reminder of the limits of our individual minds and of the importance of collaboration with others. We can extend our mind through empathy, experimentation, and even the environments we inhabit.

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

The movement I’m most passionate about right now is making sure that all parents have access to the infrastructure and support they need to breastfeed as long as they choose. Too many parents stop breastfeeding before they want to because their workplaces lack adequate lactation support. Breastfeeding isn’t just a women’s issue or a family issue — it’s a public health issue — so improving lactation support is a win for babies, parents, communities, and improved health outcomes.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

I was a serious athlete in high school and went on to play two years of college field hockey. Whenever things felt too hard, or I wanted to quit, my mother would say to me, “If you have brass buttons, you have to polish them.” The idea is that you shouldn’t squander your natural gifts, AND it takes hard work to make something of them. I think it applies pretty well to entrepreneurship too.

How can our readers follow you online?

I’m on LinkedIn.

Thank you so much for joining us. This was very inspirational.

Female Disruptors: Sascha Mayer of Mamava On The Three Things You Need To Shake Up Your Industry was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Female Founders: Caitlin Copple Masingill Of Full Swing Public Relations On The Five Things You Need To Thrive and Succeed as a Woman Founder

An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

It’s actually not that hard to start a business. People less qualified than you do it all the time. I launched Full Swing in a weekend. Starting an LLC took about 15 minutes on the Secretary of State’s website. I had the network in place to start with a couple of clients, and an initial business model that is not at all what the company does now, but it got us started.

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

Caitlin Copple Masingill is the founding partner at Full Swing Public Relations, a PR and digital marketing firm that helps women leaders be seen and sought after so they can reclaim their power and rewrite the human story. Fed up with the dismal statistic that 30% of media sources are women (and most of those, white women), Caitlin has grown Full Swing PR to a seven-person remote agency that has placed clients in Fast Company, Forbes, TIME, and The New York Times, among others. In 2019, she was named among Idaho’s Accomplished Under 40 by the Idaho Business Review, and in 2021, she was honored among the Idaho Women of the Year. Caitlin holds an M.A. in journalism from the University of Montana and was the first LGBTQ person elected to the Missoula, MT City Council in 2011.

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 started Full Swing PR in early 2019 after leaving a job at a national branding agency where I was the PR Director. Before that, I worked on the communications side of a top DC public affairs firm. What inspired me to go out on my own, believe it or not, was turning 35. It felt like one day I looked around the room and realized that I wasn’t the youngest person there anymore. I’d worked for enough men to see that they didn’t have any qualities that made them inherently better leaders or business owners than I could be. I also never felt fully “seen” at work. My ambition and drive were not always considered an asset. At some point the year I turned 25, I had enough experience and credibility to become “the boss,” versus feeling like I needed the validation of the people around me to garner respect. I also wanted to create a life that supported being a mother. My son was 2 when I started Full Swing.

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

Deciding to scale the business was not something I initially planned on. I wanted to be able to provide a decent salary for myself, but my goal was really just to make what I made at my last agency job. I hit that number in less than six months. A good friend and longtime client, Luke Malek who is an owner of the law firm Smith + Malek, encouraged me to keep growing my business. I learned a lot about the statistics around women-owned businesses plateauing from my business coach, Rachel Rodgers. It’s beyond depressing that only 2% of women-owned businesses hit seven figures, so I made it my mission to do my part to change the stats.

I brought on my first full-time team member, Holly Conti, just one month before the world was turned upside down by COVID-19. I felt a lot of uncertainty at the time about how to scale my business and how to deal with all of the external factors brought on by the pandemic. But, by the summer of 2020, we had tripled Full Swing’s revenue from the year before and were on our way to being an S Corp and growing our team.

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?

I don’t know how funny it is, but when I started out, I only hired contractors, not full-time W2 employees, and most of them were my friends. I’ve always been a person who integrates work and personal life, so it seemed natural to lean on people in my personal network. That worked wonderfully well sometimes, as evidenced by my now-business-partner and forever work wife Holly Conti, but in other cases, hiring our friends majorly backfired. The HR part of business can be really overwhelming when you are just starting out. It’s important to have a fair, transparent process for hiring and letting people go when they aren’t a fit for the organization’s vision and needs.

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?

I always tell entrepreneurs to invest in themselves through executive coaching, even when you feel like you can’t afford it. You can’t afford not to. I had a coach from day one, and since 2020, I’ve been part of Hello 7, Rachel Rodger’s company, as well as her mastermind for business owners at our revenue level. It’s a huge help to surround yourself with people who are going through the same challenges you are and to have a squad to support your success.

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?

Opportunities for women entrepreneurs are on the rise, but most of these opportunities still go to white women. I’m interested in hiring BIPOC and LGBTQ employees, as well as supporting businesses that are committed to anti-racism. To me, that’s the fastest way to change the statistics and who holds leadership and power and controls the narrative in our society.

More women leaders need to embrace the power of their influence, and that starts by owning their stories. So often, we are told we are too fat, too queer, too melanated, etc. to go after what we want. My approach to PR and personal branding centers on leaning into what makes you unique because that’s often where our superpowers lie.

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?

At a basic level, vote. If you’re in a position to run for office, do that too. If you can donate to female, BIPOC, and LGBTQ+ candidates, that’s huge.

Surround yourself with people who are different from you. If 90% of your LinkedIn network is white, you’ll have a hard time hiring people who aren’t also white. Invest in DEI training, even when it feels like you can’t afford it. Hire BIPOC people and pay them well. If you hire a BIPOC contractor, don’t negotiate on price.

If you’re a parent, consider the books you read to your children, and whose stories are represented. Do they have BIPOC teachers? Do you have BIPOC friends, doctors, CPAs, etc? Living again in my home state of Idaho, I’m acutely aware of the impact of white supremacy here, and try to model for my child how we can do our part in dismantling its legacy in our community.

And, every chance you get, take steps toward reclaiming your power and owning your story. Full Swing’s mission is to help people own their stories because we believe that the more business owners and marginalized leaders share their individual stories, the closer we’ll be to having a more authentic and representative global story. Though we deliver PR and marketing services to our clients, we focus first and foremost on helping the leaders shape their experiences into stories that will resonate with the audiences they want to share them with. By teaching these skills, we are able to help change the perception of what a leader looks like and increase the number of women and BIPOC leaders seen as industry experts.

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?

There’s no wage gap when you’re the boss, for starters. If you’re unhappy with how you’ve been treated by your employer or don’t like the policies in place, striking out on your own is a way to change the status quo. When women, particularly women of color, gain power and are at the proverbial decision-making table, we all win because we’ll have better governments, businesses, and communities.

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

That it is “so hard” to start a business. Starting and growing Full Swing is not necessarily easy, but it’s not nearly as hard as what we are taught. I never went to business school or even took a business class in college. There are values-aligned coaches and programs to help you hone your vision, own your story, and build the kind of company you dream about. Even for a queer kid who grew up in Idaho, like I did.

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?

Entrepreneurs need to be comfortable with some amount of risk so they can bet on themselves and their team to do big things. They need to be adaptable to change. Most importantly, you need to be willing to work on yourself so you can be the best leader and embrace and model vulnerability and self-awareness for your team.

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.)

1. It’s actually not that hard to start a business. People less qualified than you do it all the time. I launched Full Swing in a weekend. Starting an LLC took about 15 minutes on the Secretary of State’s website. I had the network in place to start with a couple of clients, and an initial business model that is not at all what the company does now, but it got us started.
2. Embrace your values. Full Swing PR has invested in DEI training from the beginning, and we are an aspiring anti-racist organization. We offer healthcare on day one and eight weeks paid parental leave, regardless of how long you’ve worked with us. We pay our interns $20 an hour to start. Just because business is done one way by most people doesn’t mean you need to copy that outdated and unjust model.
3. Invest in yourself. Even if you feel like you can’t afford it, hire a coach. The Hello 7 Club is a great place to start building the community you need to scale your business. It’s also an incredible marketplace when it comes to hiring like-minded people to help you grow.
4. Hire out what you’re bad at. You aren’t good at everything, and you don’t need to be. I’ve always felt insecure about my financial know-how, so we’ve enlisted a bookkeeper since the early days of the business. It’s huge to have someone who can back up your vision with numbers and give you the confidence you need to make decisions.
5. Lift up others. When I moved back to Boise in 2016, I started a group called Boise Women Who Get Sh*t Done because I wanted to find like-minded women friends who were committed to changing the good ol’ boy business culture of our state and community. I found some of my closest friends that way. We don’t need to compete with each other as women-owned businesses. I’m interested in ways I can use whatever success I’ve had to lift up BIPOC and LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs.

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

I spent my 20s working for nonprofits and advocacy organizations, driving change in domestic violence prevention, early education, protection of public lands, and LGBTQ equality in deep-red states. With Full Swing, I want to change the statistics around whose story gets told in the media and empower more women leaders to own their stories and build the platforms they need to leave a positive legacy for their families, communities, and the country.

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.

Electing more women and people of color to public office. Our democracy is struggling, and we desperately need more people in power who reflect the diversity of America.

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

Female Founders: Caitlin Copple Masingill Of Full Swing Public Relations On The Five Things You… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Genevieve Dolan of Vieve’s Leaves: 5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started Leading a Cannabis or CBD Business

An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

They say you’re only as good as the people you surround yourself with. While I learned this in my event planning career, it resonates more when it’s your own business at stake. I go back to the importance of due diligence and plugging in the numbers to know what you’re up against.

As part of my series about “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started Leading a Cannabis Business” I had the pleasure of interviewing Genevieve Dolan.

Genevieve Dolan is the founder and CEO of Vieve’s Leaves, a scientifically backed wellness company designed for health-conscious individuals seeking natural remedies for the wear and tear of everyday life. Burdened by body aches, insomnia and anxiety, Genevieve was determined to combat any negativity that clouded her space — which led to her discovering the magic of CBD. With Vieve’s Leaves, Genevieve hopes to help others achieve internal and external balance through products designed to soothe both the skin and psyche.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you share with us the story about what brought you to this specific career path?

I was introduced to CBD at the recommendation of a nutritionist to naturally treat anxiety and insomnia. After doing my own research, I found that CBD wasn’t just a better alternative to pharmaceuticals, it could also help people who were experiencing mental health struggles like anxiety, depression and addiction — something that resonated personally with people close to me. It was on this journey of CBD discovery that I learned many of the internal benefits of cannabinoids can also be experienced when used externally.

When COVID-19 forced me to pause my (super fun, yet stressful) career in event planning, I decided to dive headfirst into learning about how else I could incorporate CBD into my lifestyle and what that could mean for others. As a late 20-something who struggled with adult acne and sensitive, aging skin, skincare was the next step in expanding my use of CBD to live a more balanced, natural lifestyle.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

Once I had the idea for Vieve’s Leaves, I focused all my efforts on creating the best possible product. I knew nothing about running a business or the science behind creating skincare, so I surrounded myself with partners who could complement my skills and bring my vision to life.

I still had to learn everything there was to know about operating a business in the cannabis world — which was intimidating. It took a long year of personal growth — trusting who I am as a person and believing in myself — to build something that I didn’t even realize I had been dreaming about.

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?

Building a brand from nothing has taught me so many lessons; and, while we’ve had our funny moments, they didn’t seem funny at the time. I think the most impactful lessons thus far have been the beauty of patience and the importance of diligently researching everyone and everything that comes in contact with your ideas and plans.

While it might seem like simple things to ‘know’ how to do when starting up, it’s easy to get blinded by the excitement, creative pieces and potential success of the journey. I’ve embraced learning how to understand the time it takes and give myself the space to pause and embrace the rollercoaster.

Are you working on any exciting projects now? How do you think that will help people?

Right now, our focus for Vieve’s Leaves is generating buzz for our flagship products and teaching consumers about the benefits of CBD-enhanced skincare. I think people hear CBD and immediately think it’s going to get you stoned or that it’s illegal; but it’s a perfectly safe and effective alternative to the chemical-laden products on the market.

I also have a new team in place that is helping drive our marketing and public relations strategy. It’s a refreshing change of pace to work alongside individuals who are just as passionate about the brand as I am.

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?

If it weren’t for my family’s support, Vieve’s Leaves would not exist! Everyone from my dad for believing in me and investing in our business to my brother for helping with sales and operations. Not to mention my sisters, mom and younger brother cheering me on, whether it’s on social media or just sending me a text to see how I’m doing that day. They’ve witnessed the intensity of the rollercoaster and have never failed to be by my side when I needed them most.

Of course, a huge shout out to all my friends, who not only religiously use the products, but believe in the brand and in me. I’m incredibly lucky to have such an encouraging support system surrounding me!

This industry is young dynamic and creative. Do you use any clever and innovative marketing strategies that you think large legacy companies should consider adopting?

Our marketing strategy has primarily been to connect with our customers through organic social media. I think what we do that larger companies could learn from is lead with vulnerability and honesty — both from the perspective of a consumer who struggles with skin issues and wants to feel like the brands they’re using care about them, and for other entrepreneurs to know that it’s a challenging industry with a lot of ups and downs.

We have an advantage because I personally deal with skin issues that many others also suffer from; so, I truly do care about my consumers and their reactions to our products. At the same time, this is a small business in an incredibly saturated industry with a lot of challenges. So much of what is shown in skincare marketing is perfect, pore-less glossy skin, or doctored before-and-after images; with Vieve’s Leaves we use unedited photos and are transparent about everything in our products, so our users know exactly what they’re getting and what to expect.

Can you share 3 things that most excite you about the Cannabis industry? Can you share 3 things that most concern you?

The three things that excite me:

1. Industry growth — specifically to mainstream consumers
2. Health and wellness innovations
3. Environmental benefits

The three things that concern me:

1. The potential oversaturation of the cannabis market
2. Lack of information and bias — specifically among the medical professional community
3. The number of synthetic versions of cannabis coming from overseas

Can you share your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started Leading a Cannabis Business”? Please share a story or example for each.

1. You can’t sell CBD products on social media or Amazon, so we’ve created a strong e-commerce platform and are being aggressive with our PR and marketing strategy to drive brand awareness.
2. Doctors can be super skeptical; however, I’ve been able to talk with more who are giving me great perspective and insight on their knowledge around the industry. We are both teaching each other — which is exciting!
3. There’s a lot of ambiguity surrounding CBD, hemp and cannabis products. Some consumers are more hesitant than you’d think. We’ve gone to great lengths to research the benefits and potential side effects of our ingredients to ensure we provide honest information to educate our community.
4. Like not being able to sell on Amazon and social media, there are some platforms that continuously flag CBD-related content, so we are incredibly mindful with the content we create. We want our customers to know that we have their best interests in mind and try to be as transparent as possible.
5. They say you’re only as good as the people you surround yourself with. While I learned this in my event planning career, it resonates more when it’s your own business at stake. I go back to the importance of due diligence and plugging in the numbers to know what you’re up against.

What advice would you give to other CEOs or founders to help their employees to thrive?

As a founder, I always try to lead with empathy and strive to make our workplace an environment where everyone’s ideas are heard. I love learning from other people! While it’s rewarding when people agree with you, I also love when I’m challenged, and a new perspective is brought to light.

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

I would love for there to be continued research and education around natural alternatives to pharmaceuticals, specifically as it relates to mental health and wellness.

What is the best way our readers can follow you on social media?

You can follow us on Instagram @vievesleaves

This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for joining us!

Genevieve Dolan of Vieve’s Leaves: 5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started Leading a… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Eileen Wiediger of Steep Road: Five Things We Can Do To Develop Serenity And Support Each Other During These Anxious Times

An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

Calm is Contagious: Anxiety can be contagious; if someone around you is experiencing a high level of anxiety, that can cause you to feel anxious. What’s interesting is the converse of this is also true. Suppose you are mindful and present in the moment. In that case, your own sense of calm and focus can decrease the level of anxiety others are experiencing.

As a part of my series about the things we can do to develop serenity and support each other during anxious times, I had the pleasure of interviewing Eileen Wiediger.

Whether creating high-impact learning experiences, facilitating engaging workshops, or coaching clients to new places of possibility, the heart of Eileen’s work is about growth and discovery. For over 20 years, she designed solutions for maximizing organizational potential and performance in the public sector. She is now leveraging her extensive toolset and experience to support others in creating their solutions for living to their fullest potential. Drawing upon her studies and experience in mindfulness, creativity, and self-actualization, Eileen developed a coaching methodology, Solveation™. The Solveation™ method facilitates solutions to move past limiting beliefs and live the biggest and best life possible.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you share with us the backstory about what brought you to your specific career path?

My interest in continuous improvement and learning started with my love of music and the piano. As a toddler, I perched on the piano bench, alternately smashing my fingers down on the keyboard to make a racket or more gently exploring notes one by one. Music and being able to create music were sources of endless fascination. When I began taking piano lessons and learned how to read music, a door opened to a new world of possibilities. I often practiced for up to six hours a day, which instilled the value of learning, applying that learning, and increasing my expertise. So it’s not surprising that my professional orientation leaned heavily toward working in areas like training, education, and strategic organizational development as an adult. The pandemic offered an unexpected opportunity for me to leave the corporate setting and become a solopreneur, allowing me to focus on working with individuals rather than just organizations.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started your career?

So many unexpectedly interesting things have happened since becoming a solopreneur. However, I always find most intriguing the experiences that reaffirm I made the right choice and am on the right path. The Universe recently made sure I received that message loud and clear! I hit a patch where nothing was moving as quickly as I wanted it to, and, for me, when things slow down, I fill up the space with worry and often get stuck in a scarcity spiral. And then, like magic, an easy and safe opportunity I’d turned down once popped back onto the radar. The temptation to jump to safety and certainty was strong. Still, I decided to sleep on it before finalizing my commitment. The following day, I awoke not with a sense of relief but of panic. I realized everything I would give up — however ambiguous and uncertain — if I were to take this very safe and very comfortable opportunity. I realized then that going back to my comfort zone wasn’t an option. And as soon as I recognized that, I noticed new opportunities popping up all over. It’s almost as if the Universe was asking me to reaffirm my path, and once I did, it responded in kind.

What advice would you give to other leaders about how to create a fantastic work culture?

I believe two of the essential elements of a fantastic work culture are creating psychological safety and supporting autonomy and self-direction at work. Psychological safety is a term that gets thrown about frequently, but it is not as often implemented well in organizations. Psychological safety creates a work environment where individuals know they can safely engage, raise issues, and share ideas without fear of reprisal or shame. Where psychological safety exists, collaboration and open communication can thrive. The pandemic has upended much of the how and where of work. Research shows individuals want to have more autonomy and self-direction at work. They want to have a voice in choosing where they work, when they work, what they work on, and with whom they work. Even accommodating only one or two choices goes a long way to developing a more positive and rewarding work environment.

Is there a particular book that made a significant impact on you? Can you share a story or explain why it resonated with you so much?

I could not put down Scott Barry Kaufman’s book “Transcend: The New Science of Self-Actualization.” Self-actualization is my jam, and this book gave me a whole new way of looking at Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. It also re-inspired and re-energized my commitment to doing the work necessary to living up to my fullest potential and helping others do the same. I’ve stuffed my book copy with sticky notes, neon highlights, and marginalia. Yet, each time I open it, I find fresh insights and perspectives. “Transcend” resonated deeply with me and articulates why I believe it is vitally important for us to become the best and fullest expressions of who we are.

Ok, thank you for all that. Now let’s move to the main focus of our interview. From your experience or research, how would you define and describe the state of being mindful?

One of the myths about mindfulness is that it requires clearing the mind of thoughts. It’s what I believed initially and why I was so reluctant to engage with mindfulness before I began studying and practicing it over a decade ago. But mindfulness is not about having a clear, calm mind that is empty of thoughts. Instead, mindfulness is about creating space between yourself and those thoughts to create greater awareness of the here and now. Many of my thoughts are either ruminating about the past or worrying about the future. Eckhart Tolle, a spiritual teacher and author, wrote that we experience pain when we resist what we cannot change.

Given that we can change neither the past nor the future focusing on one or both bring us pain. To become mindful is to get ourselves into the present moment. In that way, we can begin to change our relationship with that pain.

“When you make the present moment, instead of past and future, the focal point of your life, your ability to enjoy what you do and with it the quality of your life increases dramatically.”

-Eckhart Tolle

This might be intuitive to you, but it will be instructive to spell this out. Can you share with our readers a few of the physical, mental, and emotional benefits of becoming mindful?

Some of the benefits of mindfulness (also validated by scientific research) are:

Emotional Regulation: Emotional regulation is awareness and understanding of emotions, recognizing their impact on behavior, and managing those emotions positively. When experiencing strong emotions, we often get entangled with them through ruminative thinking — constantly replaying looping thoughts in our minds, which heightens their impact. Mindfulness decreases rumination, which can reduce our feelings of distress, stress, and anxiety.

Decreased Reactivity: Like emotional regulation, decreased reactivity means we can respond more thoughtfully to and recover more rapidly from negative situations. Mindfulness practice creates space for our responses to become less visceral and more objective instead of experiencing a “knee-jerk” reaction to something stressful. Decreased reactivity also helps focus attention, better handle distractions, and increase flexible thinking.

Decreased Stress and Anxiety: Studies have shown that individuals who regularly participated in mindfulness meditation experienced lower levels of depression and anxiety and less fatigue and anger. Mindfulness practice can help foster increased emotional intelligence and social connection, which can also lower feelings of stress.

Enhanced Brain Function: Research shows that mindfulness may enhance brain functions that afford greater self-awareness, modulate fear response, and increase intuition. After establishing a regular mindfulness practice, the brain’s physical structure changes, with thickening in the areas of the brain associated with attention and how we process sensory input. These changes may enable us to process information more quickly and focus our attention more easily.

Improved Well-Being: Mindfulness, particularly mindfulness meditation, has many health benefits. It can improve our sense of well-being, increase immune system function, promote more restful sleep, and make chronic pain more manageable.

Increased Empathy and Compassion: Mindfulness increases empathy and compassion by increasing our capacity to be present to the experiences of others, to be able to take on their perspectives. Mindfulness also promotes attitudes of nonjudgment and nonreaction, both of which are critical components of compassion for others and self-compassion.

Ok. Here is the main question of our discussion. The past 5 years have been filled with upheaval and political uncertainty. Many people have become anxious from the dramatic jolts of the news cycle. From your experience or research, what are five steps that each of us can take to develop mindfulness during such uncertain times? Can you please share a story or example for each.

One of the most powerful aspects of mindfulness is the simplicity of its practices. No special equipment or location is required to practice mindfulness. Instead, it is accessible to anyone at any time.

Breathing Practice: We all breathe, yet we are not always aware and tuned into breathing. Just noticing and focusing on the breath is a great way to bring yourself into the present moment.

If you feel particularly anxious or stressed, you can also change your breath to find a greater sense of calm. Different types of breathing can activate that part of the nervous system tasked with calming the body, the parasympathetic nervous system. One of the simplest ways to do this is to make your exhale longer than your inhale. First, inhale to a count of your choosing; then, you can add to or even double that count when you exhale. Choose a count that feels comfortable for you.

Body Scan Meditation: During a body scan meditation, you mentally touch on each part of your body, from toes to head, and focus on the sensations you notice. You might notice sensations such as warmth, itching, throbbing, or tingling; you might also notice an absence of sensation. Often, physical sensations felt in the body are tied to emotions, and we may not even be aware of these connections. This practice increases your awareness of these sensations and connections to emotions while also training your mind to be present with and accept sensory experiences — even those you don’t like. Ultimately, practicing body scan meditation increases your ability to focus and be more present in each moment. Click here to access a body scan meditation I recently recorded.

Five Senses Exercise: This exercise is beneficial when a more formal mindfulness practice like the body scan meditation isn’t practical.

1. Notice five things you can see. Then, cast your gaze around you, paying close attention to something you wouldn’t ordinarily notice, such as a shadow or a stain on a wall.
2. Notice four things that you can feel. Feel the texture of something you are wearing or an object nearby; notice the air temperature around you or on the surface where your hands rest.
3. Notice three things that you can hear. First, tune in to the sounds of your surroundings, noticing even the slightest sounds. For example, you might become aware of the hum from your computer’s fan or the chirping of birds outside your window.
4. Notice two things you can smell. Unless something smells particularly pleasant or obnoxious, we often don’t notice it. Focus on picking up even the slightest scent in the air around you. Perhaps it’s the scent of cut grass through an open window or the smell of coffee in the cup on your desk.
5. Notice one thing you can taste. Focus on one thing you can taste right now. For example, if you have a piece of chocolate or candy, take a bite and savor it, noticing its flavor’s complexity. Or you can take a sip of a beverage, taking time to pay close attention to how it tastes.

Video: Five Senses Mindfulness Exercise

Notice and Name: Mindfulness is about gaining space from thoughts so we don’t get entangled in them and lose awareness of the present moment. Worries, fears, and other thoughts can often turn into continuously running loops and sap our energy and attention. One way to stop the loop is to notice and name. Start by noticing the thoughts, then as you notice each thought, name it “thought.” As each new thought arises, notice and name — in your mind, you may find that at first, the thoughts come fast and furious: “thought — thought — thought- thought.” After a minute or two, though, you will notice the loop slowing and find some space between those thoughts. This practice brings attention out of the thought loop and back to the present moment. It also reinforces that we are not our thoughts and that we can observe them, then let them go.

Start the Day With Intention: Mindfulness focuses and pays specific attention to the present moment and is driven by the slower, conscious mind present in the higher brain centers. When we are not mindful, I call it going on auto-pilot. On auto-pilot, we are driven by our faster subconscious (or unconscious) mind in the lower centers of the brain. These lower centers drive much of our behaviors and decision-making. Have you ever gotten into the car to go someplace and realized you don’t remember how you got there when you arrived? If you have, then you have experienced being on auto-pilot! Starting your day with an intention that has an emotional component (such as reward, safety, connection, purpose, and values) may strengthen the relationship between these higher and lower centers. When these centers are aligned, you can experience more mindfulness throughout the day.

1. When you wake up, find a comfortable place to sit in a relaxed posture. Close your eyes and notice the sensations in your body.
2. Take three deep breaths, inhaling through the nose, exhaling out through the mouth. Then, allow your breath to go back to its normal rhythm and be aware of the breath.
3. Set your intention for the day. Factor in what you will be doing, who you might be interacting with, and what challenges you might be facing. Consider how you want to show up and how you want to feel today. Allow your thoughts to settle on a positive intention. The intention should be in the present tense as though it is already happening. It should also have an emotional component. It could be like: “I go through this day with ease and calm.”
4. Repeat this intention to yourself, either silently or aloud, at least three times.
5. Take three final deep breaths and open your eyes.
6. Throughout the day, remind yourself of the intention you set. Then, notice any changes or shifts that occur.

From your experience or research, what are five steps that each of us can take to effectively offer support to those around us who are feeling anxious? Can you explain?

Calm is Contagious: Anxiety can be contagious; if someone around you is experiencing a high level of anxiety, that can cause you to feel anxious. What’s interesting is the converse of this is also true. Suppose you are mindful and present in the moment. In that case, your own sense of calm and focus can decrease the level of anxiety others are experiencing.

Powerful Pause: Take a break and encourage them to find a quiet place to sit comfortably and breathe. You could encourage them to focus on their breath. You could also share one breathing practice that calms the parasympathetic nervous system. Alternatively, you might encourage them to focus on something repetitive, such as counting aloud, to bring their attention back to the present moment.

Mindful Listening: Encourage them to talk about what they’re experiencing and, listen deeply and mindfully to them, fully present to what they share with you. Understanding how they experience anxiety can also help you better empathize with what they are going through.

Be Kind, Be Present: Show up for them and do so by being kind and present. Let them know you are there to support them in whatever way they need. Validate their feelings and also remind them that they will pass.

Encourage Curiosity: It is challenging to be both anxious and curious simultaneously, so when someone is experiencing anxiety, encourage them to get curious about it. You might share some thought prompts they can consider, such as: What was happening when the feeling of anxiety started? What makes it worse? What makes it better?

What are the best resources you would suggest for someone to learn how to be more mindful and serene in their everyday life?

I started my mindfulness practice with a phone app called Calm. I loved Calm’s simplicity and how it made meditating feel so much less intimidating by giving me lots of options. By starting with 5-minute meditations, I was able to build my confidence. Then, as I started seeing some benefits from the practice, I gradually increased my meditation time. Calm is a paid app, although they offer a 7-day free trial. Some great free apps are Insight Timer, Smiling Mind, and MyLife Meditation.

For those who love to read, two of my favorite mindfulness books are Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness by Jon Kabat-Zinn and Just One Thing: Developing a Buddha Brain One Simple Practice at a Time by Rick Hanson. Kabat-Zinn is the founder of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), and his book is a comprehensive resource on mindfulness. It offers a balanced mix of conceptual information, theory, and practical applications. Hanson (a neuropsychologist) shares over fifty simple practices designed to re-train your brain and increase mindfulness and well-being in Just One Thing.

I’m a big fan of the Greater Good Magazine and Mindful online publications. Both offer insightful articles and news about current mindfulness research. They also include many resources to add to your mindfulness practice, such as online meditations, writing prompts, and guidance for creating an at-home meditation retreat.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Do you have a story about how that was relevant in your life?

My intentions are the best, but my methods not so much when it comes to saving inspirational quotes. When something resonates with me, I think, “I will never forget that,” yet inevitably, I do. The quotes that stick, though, tend to be the ones I most need at the time. Right now, the stickiest of them all is: “There is no failure, only feedback.”

I consider failure to be the true F-bomb because fear of failure continues to blow up even my best-laid plans. Regardless of how well I’ve set myself up for success, that fear alone is enough to send me scurrying back to safety and certainty. However, changing my perspective to think of failure as feedback has unlocked my inner scientist. Now I approach doing something new and different from an experimenter’s perspective instead of a binary success or failure mentality. Without getting hyperbolic, I also don’t want to understate how important this inspiration has been in shifting my limiting beliefs.

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

Rather than start a movement, I want to be part of the ongoing movement for increased awareness and practice of mindfulness. Mindfulness benefits the mind and body; it contributes to inner peace and well-being; it increases our resilience. So who would say no to advocating for more of that?

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

All latest information on events, workshops, and details about coaching can be found on my website. I’m currently offering virtual meditation sessions on the Amava platform. And folks can follow me on LinkedIn and Instagram.

Thank you for these fantastic insights. We wish you only continued success in your great work!

Eileen Wiediger of Steep Road: Five Things We Can Do To Develop Serenity And Support Each Other… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.