An Interview With Candice Georgiadis
Unlike men, women are constantly underestimated at their ability to be effective leaders. When a man is a strong leader he is praised and never questioned but when a woman is a strong leader she is continuously questioned on how she is doing it and if she can continue to do it. Many of the most successful companies in the world are run by women — yet only 15 percent of Fortune 500 companies are run by women.
As a part of our series about women who are shaking things up in their industry, I had the pleasure of interviewing Rebecca Lock.
Rebecca Lock is the CEO and founder of Kidcaboo, a children’s transportation solution that transforms lives by providing children with a ride that parents can trust and ensuring that parenthood and professional life can successfully coexist. She previously worked in the reality television industry for more than 15 years before leaving to start Kidcaboo after personally struggling to find transportation for her children while she was at work. She received a B.A. in communications and Chinese from Wake Forest University and a M.A. in modern Chinese history and Mandarin language from Columbia University.
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 worked in the reality television industry for more than 15 years. As a working mother I encountered a problem many working mothers are far too familiar with — I was in the midst of advancing my career but could not find anyone to drive my children to their given activities and had to turn down a career changing opportunity. I felt frustrated and disappointed with the unfortunate reality of the situation. I started to speak with other working parents across the country and began to research exactly why this was a problem for so many families.
Alternative solutions were not practical — a full time Nanny was extremely costly and unrealistic for myself and many families. Constantly relying on friends or carpools was unreliable. I knew an innovative solution was needed and time was of the essence — I conducted 800 test rides, often with my three and six-year-old children in tow. I realized not only how extensive the demand was for my service but also the tremendous positive impact it was having on the families I was working with.
Just a few months after being forced to turn down my game-changing career opportunity, I realized it was the best thing that could have ever happened. I founded Kidcaboo, a modern transportation solution that enables working parents to schedule rides immediately or in advance for their school-aged children that are safe and reliable. Today, Kidcaboo is changing the lives of families in North Carolina, Texas, and Arizona while quickly expanding to other states nationwide.
Can you tell our readers what it is about the work you’re doing that’s disruptive?
Once children start school, they begin forming their own lives and schedules — which all require some form of mobility. This creates a potentially costly and time consuming dilemma for working parents and their children. Kidcaboo is a modern transportation solution for school-aged children that transforms lives by providing children with a ride that parents can trust and ensuring that parenthood and professional life can successfully coexist.
One third of the U.S. workforce has a child under 14 and roughly one-in-five working parents have turned down a promotion due to conflicting child care responsibilities. In particular, working mothers bear the majority of the home responsibilities. Studies show, 70% of full time working women do all or the majority of child caregiving within their home. Existing solutions to transporting school-aged children are insufficient. School-provided transportation options, when available, often require children to spend significantly more time than necessary in transport, and lack flexibility and reliability. Traditional rideshare apps lack sufficient safety protocols and are not designed to care for minors. Kidcaboo is the safe, reliable and affordable solution working parents have long awaited.
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 Kidcaboo I had important papers all over my desk — investors letters, legal documents, marketing materials, etc. I always thought my papers were in a safe spot but with two young children, I should have known better. One day I looked over and found my son coloring all over my investor presentation deck that I had printed out! I quickly learned to never underestimate a toddler’s ability to get their hands on your important documents.
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?
When I first started Kidcaboo I conducted 800 test rides myself, often with my two toddlers in tow, the families I met during these test rides taught me invaluable lessons through sharing stories about their personal and professional lives. These families inspired me to create Kidcaboo and the impact they had on me is always at the core of what we do at Kidcaboo everyday — transform lives by empowering and supporting parents and their children.
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 do not see value in trying to fix something that isn’t broken, just for the sake of being “disruptive.” Thoughtful innovation saves time and money in the long run — if done properly. In Kidcaboo’s industry, children’s transportation, absolute disruption is needed.
Decades ago, most moms stayed at home every day and around 90% of school-age children in the U.S. used school buses to get to and from school. Over time, women increasingly began working outside of the home. Today, the American school day often creates serious conflicting schedules for working parents. The percentage of students who use or have access to buses has plummeted — COVID has further exacerbated school bus driver shortages. A band aid solution here is alternative school transportation.
In America today, children have busier schedules than ever before and school-related transportation is only a fraction of the transportation needs kids have. With no transportation system to handle non-school-related needs, parents have to step in — for working parents, that is a big problem that can often result in costly financial implications. Transportation designed for school-age children in America no longer works — that’s when, I feel, you have to say, okay, this industry needs to change and that is what we are doing at Kidcaboo.
Can you share 3 of the best words of advice you’ve gotten along your journey? Please give a story or example for each.
Good advice can make all the difference in business and in life — some of the best advice I have received is to remind yourself you are much more capable than you think and that everything is “figureoutable.” However, I often credit one piece of advice I received for Kidcaboo’s existence. I started Kidcaboo after producing reality television for 15 years — building a business was not something I planned to do or knew anything about. I was told, flat out, I could not build this business by friends, family, colleagues,etc. However, when I told a particular friend about my plan, she said to just put one foot in front of the next — and I started doing just that. Sometimes, one step would take twice as long as anticipated, but after eight months, it hit me that the foundation of the business was built and I hadn’t even realized it because all I had done was put one front in front of the other.
We are sure you aren’t done. How are you going to shake things up next?
Kidcaboo is on a mission to build a transportation mode that improves the lives of families across the country. We are currently operating in Texas, Arizona, and North Carolina and our dream is to make Kidcaboo accessible in all 50 states — it’s a big task but our team is up for the challenge.
In your opinion, what are the biggest challenges faced by ‘women disruptors’ that aren’t typically faced by their male counterparts?
Unlike men, women are constantly underestimated at their ability to be effective leaders. When a man is a strong leader he is praised and never questioned but when a woman is a strong leader she is continuously questioned on how she is doing it and if she can continue to do it. Many of the most successful companies in the world are run by women — yet only 15 percent of Fortune 500 companies are run by women.
Do you have a book/podcast/talk that’s had a deep impact on your thinking? Can you share a story with us?
I can’t point to any specific podcast or book because I like to listen or read relevant parts as much as necessary until I feel I understood what I need to know to continue moving forward. I own almost every business for dummies book, follow hundreds of business, leadership and communication podcasts. Hearing the experiences of other entrepreneurs, particularly women keeps me going. I really admire Sara Blakely and always tune in when she is being interviewed.
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 like to inspire people to take chances in business and in life — taking risks can be scary but more often than not they are necessary!
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
There are many, but one that I hope will inspire others is, “Believe in yourself and your abilities even when others don’t!”
How can our readers follow you online?
facebook.com/kidcaboo
Kidcaboo.com
https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-lock-kidcaboo/
This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for joining us!
Female Disruptors: Rebecca Lock of Kidcaboo 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.