We prefer role models
P.MAI is more than a bag brand. We care about furthering the importance of women in leadership. We want to celebrate strong women by sharing their stories, fostering new connections, and inspiring others.
Instead of fashion models for our campaigns, we use role models who contribute to the community in a meaningful way. These P.MAI pioneers are women who take risks and dare to dream big. And we admire them for it. We believe that empowerment is not something that can be given—but rather is found within oneself. When a woman gains the self-confidence to make her own decisions, she becomes a contagious force where anything is possible. We hope that by highlighting these women—our P.MAI pioneers—we can move closer to creating an equal tomorrow. Read more about some of our pioneers on our Journal.
If you would like to nominate someone as a P.MAI Pioneer, feel free to write us at hello@pmaibrand.com.
Aiste Zitnikaite
Founder
Devinto

Aiste Zitnikaite
Founder
Devinto
Hails from: Kaunas, Lithuania
Three words that describe you: Hard-working, Empathetic, and Easy going
Philosophy on life: Make the best of every moment, don't sweat the small stuff and treat others with kindness.
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Tell us about your incredible eco-friendly clothing line. What was the inspiration behind Devinto?I started Devinto when I was spending a winter with my grandmother in Lithuania. I had been working in the fashion industry for several years and was uneasy with the fact that I was working for an industry that is the second largest Earth polluter after the oil industry. The labour practices of many fast fashion brands were also a concern to me and so I new I wanted to strike out on my own and do it differently. Even as a consumer, I was concerned that the clothes I was wearing were not produced with unethical labour practices and harmed the environment. The challenge was finding clothes that fit my aesthetic and my principles.
So I wanted to start a brand that was both stylish and ethical. After I left my industry job, I went to Lithuania to look after my grandmother and started Devinto. It is an homage to my grandmother who always wanted to become a dressmaker but was too poor to afford the apprenticeship. Devinto translated from Lithuanian means "on the ninth”—it is the house number of my grandmother"s home, as well as her birth date. Devinto, at its core, is an eco and ethically conscious brand. I only use eco-friendly and natural textiles such as bamboo, organic cotton and hemp. Everything is made in my studio on Cape Cod, and it is all made to order to avoid waste and overproduction. I consciously design looks that are timeless, simple and elegant so that they do not seam dated after a few years. My goal is to spread the message that it is essential to value the clothes we buy and to create meaningful relationships to the items we consume so that we are less prone to throw them away. -
What has been one of your biggest career challenges? How did you overcome it?I would say the two biggest career challenges in running a startup is limited capital resources and the fact that you have to wear many hats. Essentially, when you are first starting out, you have to be very careful in how you invest your money because you have to stretch your dollar to its maximum potential. Because of that, I had to learn how to do many tasks on my own. Not only am I a designer, I am also the pattern maker, the sample maker, the seamstress, the marketing department, the social media manager, the accountant, the sales person ...etc. For me the lesson has been to learn how to not only accept help but also ask for it.
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What advice would you give to women looking to become entrepreneurs?My advice to women who want to be entrepreneurs is to believe in what you do and never give up. There will be failures and challenges, and you just have to power through it. I truly believe if you keep putting energy and efforts into something, it will eventually gather momentum.
Allie Beckwith
Founder
AKA Decor

Allie Beckwith
Founder
AKA Decor
Hails from: Saint John, New Brunswick Canada
Three words that describe you: Ambitious, Fearless, and No nonsense :)
Philosophy on life: You're in charge.
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What was the inspiration behind AKA DECOR?Art! AKA stands for Art known as. This is where we combine art, photography, poetry, and design into our products. Being an artist, it just seemed fun and the only way to go about decor! Luckily for us, stores love this idea too!
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You started photographing very early on in your career. Where do you go for inspiration? What's currently resonating with you at the moment?I have a few photographers that I love to check in on, stalking their social media, websites & blogs for new work and inspiration. It's not easy staying inspired all the time, it's really hard actually. When I'm feeling stuck I read a lot of poetry and look through some of my past work to try and get my wheels turning, usually an idea hits and clicks, and I need to start at it right away.
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What advice would you give to women looking to become their own boss?Go for it. Don't just talk about it, don't just think about it. Start doing it. I think it's smart to work for someone else while you're in the beginning stages, but that means you need to double your workload and continue working after hours to get ahead. I can't even tell you how many nights I spent glued to my computer while my friends were out on the weekends. It takes dedication and more work than you can imagine. But, it's so so worth it!
Amanda Bradford
Founder & CEO
The League

Amanda Bradford
Founder & CEO
The League
Hails from: Fremont, CA; Austin, TX; Chapel Hill, NC
Three words that describe you: Competitive, Outspoken, and Funny
Philosophy on life: If you’re not memorable, you’re forgettable.
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What was your biggest motivation for taking the leap to start your business?I realized how critical mobile dating was becoming to our generation and that there was a huge gap in the market for an app that made people feel human, respected privacy (especially from coworkers/business contacts), where users treated each other with respect, and where you actually met the kind of people that you WISHED you could meet in real life, but just never crossed paths.
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Based on your experience, do you think men and women approach risk taking differently? How so?I do think women on average are more risk averse, but in the same breath you could also say women are smarter and more pragmatic about things. I think women need to force themselves to take risks, because they tend to execute better, and ultimately once they’ve taken the risk, they have the advantage over the guys!
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What advice would you give to new female entrepreneurs?Just go for it. Think of how much money you invest in your education, your apartment, your wardrobe, your family, and your vacations. What if you invested 20 - 40% of that into your own startup? Stop using money or lack of investors as an excuse for why you haven’t started whatever it is you want to start. Have the confidence you can get a job to pay your bills if things don’t work out. Be fearless.
Amber Riedl
Founder
Makerist

Amber Riedl
Founder
Makerist
Hails from: Winnipeg, Canada
Three words that describe you: Creative, Energetic, and Restless
Philosophy on life: Be nice and have fun. (This is the advice I give my kids repeatedly while dropping them off at daycare or school.)
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What was the inspiration behind Makerist? Which came first—the desire to start something or seeing an opportunity that you felt must be created?Both really came together at the same time. I saw from my online wedding site that DIY was totally taking off in Germany, and as a DIY enthusiast myself, saw a real chance to do something I could get behind. I don't think I would have done it alone though; Makerist is really the product of great teamwork from many people, but especially with Axel.
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What has been one of your biggest career challenges? How did you overcome it?For me it was really challenging to find a balance of career and family (spending enough time with my two little ones, 7 and 5. I’ve learned it's all just a process and to not take things too seriously. Also - set boundaries and constantly prioritize!
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What advice would you share with other entrepreneurs who are just starting out?Start with an idea, but back it up with a business model and some fast testing.
Anna Rose
Co-founder & CEO
Videopath

Anna Rose
Co-founder & CEO
Videopath
Hails from: Montreal, Canada
Three words that describe you: Brave, Curious, and Self-aware
Philosophy on life: Experience everything
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What was the inspiration behind Videopath? Which came first—the desire to start something or seeing an opportunity that you felt must be created?I first knew that I wanted to start something, but at the time I didn’t know what the “thing” would be. I only knew that I had consistently worked in the space between tech and media, so I knew this would be where I would be building something new.
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What has been one of your biggest career challenges? How did you overcome it?Earlier in my career, I would too often allow myself to be caught up in the micro details of a job without looking at the larger picture. This had 2 negative effects: 1) I would sweat the small stuff so much, it pushed me towards burnout point more often than was necessary 2) it distracted me from more important things: such as really analyzing what I was learning, looking at how I was developing and checking in on where I was heading. It wasn’t until I was 30 that I fully recognized this pattern and made the changes needed to address it.
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What advice would you share with other entrepreneurs who are just starting out?Enjoy the process.
Annie-Brechje Gondrie
Founder
All-time Favourites

Annie-Brechje Gondrie
Founder
All-time Favourites
Hails from: Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Three words that describe you: Positive, Creative, and Determined
Philosophy on life: Good things come to those who wait. Greater things come to those who get off their ass and do anything to make it happen!
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What inspired you to start the brand?Before I started All Time Favourites, I worked as an agent for a number of years launching other brands in the Dutch market. This job required me to interact with stylists on a regular basis, and I was shocked that so many stylists from major fashion magazines would come to my showroom carrying goods in those hideous big blue and yellow IKEA shopping bags. I started to think almost jokingly, “What if I created a stylish IKEA shopper so they could stroll around from the supermarket, to the gym, to the beach to daycare, etc.” So that’s exactly what I did. What started off as a half-joke has now become a serious business, with a complete collection of bags and shoes, agents and distributors throughout Europe and over 350 points of sale.
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What's something surprising that you learned about yourself along the way?Haha, I thought I was a listener but I’m very stubborn.
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What advice would you have for women who want to pursue their career passion as you have?Be honest with yourself. Is the world really waiting for you or the service/product you provide? If yes, go for it and never give up!
Anthula Nunes
Co-founder
Pin & Tucker

Anthula Nunes
Co-founder
Pin & Tucker
Hails from: Toronto, Canada
Three words that describe you: Curious, Intuitive, and Dreamer
Philosophy on life: Do you. Unapologetically.
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Pin & Tucker is a fashion app that lets shoppers get an opinion on their outfit before buying from a community that gives yays or nays on the look. For retaielrs, the app gives a direct marketing path to launch campaigns. What was the inspiration behind the company?There were two ideas that collided when my partner, Tracie and I came up with Pin & Tucker. As a shopper, I want opinions and advice from my friends or people whose opinions I trust and they can't always be with me when I'm shopping. Secondly, as business people and retailers we wanted to harness the power of digital to help retailers stay with shoppers through their entire shopping journey, thus giving them a better chance at converting to a sale. That meant finding a way to get them the information and guidance that they needed when, how and where they wanted it. By allowing retailers to introduce themselves to shoppers nearby through the posting of look books, events, sales, new arrivals, and exclusive deals, Pin & Tucker can be the seamless online and offline experience that shoppers want while at the same time providing the digital solution for retailers that gets people buying in their stores.
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What has been one of your biggest career challenges? How did you overcome it?Embracing change. Learning to flow with it when it happens. Having the courage to make the change when you’re in the driver’s seat. It’s still a challenge. But working on it.
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What advice would you give to women looking to become their own boss?Do it now! First, believe you can do it. You’re going to have to convince employees, investors and customers over and over again. Then move on to the hard work and hustle. Roll up your sleeves it’s going to be a long, hard, and exhilarating ride. Finally, keep your head in the game. Don’t get caught up in what you’re not and what you don’t have. Belief, hard work and focus make a “girlboss”.
Astrid Paramita Mochtarrram
Founder & CEO
twindly

Astrid Paramita Mochtarrram
Founder & CEO
twindly
Hails from: Bandung, Indonesia, and currently in Berlin, Germany
Three words that describe you: Creative, Open-minded, and Nerdy
Philosophy on life: Life is an adventure, so take risks and enjoy the moment!
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Twindly is a fun beauty social network that helps you find your beauty “twin” through reviews and makeup looks. What was the inspiration behind Twindly?There are basically two things that started it. First and foremost, I’m a makeup addict, and I love to play with colors. However, finding the right beauty products were not that easy especially when your skin tone is not the mainstream beauty.
The second part, coming from a computer science / machine learning background, I'm always fascinated by ways to simplify user efforts in finding things and giving a personalized recommendation. With these two things combined, everyone should be able to easily find their favorite products and colors easily regardless of their preferences and skin tones. Twindly is about connecting similar beauty lovers (a.k.a beauty twins) and making it easier for people to find and share beauty products and looks they love. -
What has been one of your biggest career challenges? How did you overcome it?Facing the uncertainties on a daily basis. It’s almost felt like the normal thing when you are building your own startup. No steady paycheck, no steady working hour, and no guarantee of success. How did I overcome it? By constantly learning and bettering myself and my company in what we are doing. To have trust in the process, trust in myself (and this means giving fewer f*cks to other people’s advice), and most importantly to have trust in my team.
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What advice would you give to women looking to become their own boss?Just go for it! If you have that burning idea and passion of something you’d like to do, don’t wait until all the stars are aligned. Start small, start with doing something you’re comfortable in, anything is better than nothing. You don’t have to quit your job and take the big risks in the beginning. Make sure you’re prepared to be in this for the long haul and get into the community of other bosses. I’m all for jumping into the cold deep end, but make sure you at least know the basics of swimming!
Atthena Breitton
Founder
AtthenaYoga

Atthena Breitton
Founder
AtthenaYoga
Hails from: Mount Laurel, New Jersey
Three words that describe you: Passionate, Loving, and Authentic
Philosophy on life: Find your passion, find your purpose, have faith and don’t let anything stop you.
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What was the inspiration behind AtthenaYoga?I found yoga when I was an investment banker. It was the only activity that provided any sort of stress relief for me. I would consider myself a pretty active person, and no amount of kickboxing, spinning, running, could help calm my mind like yoga did. When I found that my purpose lied within yoga, I looked back at my life and saw an unmet need and opportunity. Coming from the finance world, I know that A) it can be a little cold and extremely competitive, B) you are working long hours, and C) your stress levels are sky high. So AtthenaYoga was created to address all of that. We are focused on creating a community where people can find support and seek advice from others who may be going through similar situations and challenges. Designed with de-stressing and relaxation in mind, our classes are held later at night to accommodate the longer working schedules of these professionals. We even have classes that target insomnia and help you focus better at work.
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How did you decide to quit your finance career to start your own business? How did you prepare?My path was a little unconventional, and I tell many people that every person’s path is different. If you just think about the billions of people in this world and the billions of people who lived before us, there is not one single person who lives the same exact life. And with that, there is not one single path or only one way to be successful. I say this because despite how most people would approach it and contrary to how most people with my background are taught to think, I jumped two feet in from the moment I knew that I was meant to pursue yoga. For almost my entire adult life I desperately yearned for what I was meant to do, and when that finally became clear, I didn’t wait long to quit my corporate job cold turkey. My journey has been mostly on intuition. While it’s scary and may boggle the minds of those who like to plan everything out to a “T,” I follow the cues from the divine and act and react to what is presented to me. I’m not saying everyone should do this, but because I am deeply spiritual, I let that guide me and have faith and wait for the miracles to unfold.
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What advice would you share with folks who have busy work schedules, but want to take time for more health and wellness?I would say two things: 1) Everyone has time. How you decide to spend it is a reflection of your priorities and values. If carving out time for your health and wellness is a goal, you’ll have to make it higher on your priority list. Once you make it a priority, you’ll find ways to incorporate it into your life. 2) Improving your health and wellness doesn’t have to be a huge overhaul of your current life. If you start out by taking baby steps, you’ll be wildly more successful in letting those changes stick. Then you can expand and incorporate more into your life.
Christy Liu
Founder
Skirt the Ceiling

Christy Liu
Founder
Skirt the Ceiling
Hails from: Houston, TX
Three words that describe you: Passionate, Clever, and Motivated
Philosophy on life: Take time to figure out what actually makes you happy, and then spend your resources on those things.
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What was the inspiration for starting Skirt The Ceiling?It all started with my mom; she's a single mom and such a strong woman that she's always inspired me to do more for women. In college I competed on the Speech Team, and we had to wear professional suits and give 10 minute memorized speeches. That was where I first learned that people will judge your credibility by how you present yourself, including how you dress. I also noticed that my choice to dress well flipped a mental switch that helped me become more confident when I spoke in front of an audience of thousands. At work, I realized how lucky I was to have that experience. A lot of women don't know how to dress professionally for work, and first impressions can hurt your reputation, especially for women. So I started STC to help educate women, help give women inspiration, and also provide them with a superior shopping experience.
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What's something surprising that you learned about yourself along the way?I've worked at large companies for most of my career, and never thought that I could be “entrepreneurial” or “scrappy”. Turns out you don't have to have the right work experience to have the work ethic required to start something. Half of the battle is how to keep yourself motivated, and for me that's remembering the goal of Skirt The Ceiling and surrounding myself with an amazing team.
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What advice would you have for women who want to pursue their career passion as you have?Ask, ask, ask for help. All great things worth doing aren't easy, and they certainly aren't worth doing alone. People don't achieve success by themselves, and people are always willing to pay it forward and help you out. It can be intimidating and make you feel like a failure to ask for help, but that's temporary. The learning and motivation you get from asking for help lasts much longer than that.
Disha Shidham
CEO & Founder
Savy

Disha Shidham
CEO & Founder
Savy
Hails from: Columbus, Ohio (home of the Buckeyes!)
Three words that describe you: Curious, Resilient, and Scrappy
Philosophy on life: I have the quote “and now that you don’t have to be perfect, you can be good” by John Steinbeck tattooed across my ribs. I always aim for “good” in anything I do—never “perfect”. The word “perfect” carries far too many expectations.
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What was the inspiration behind Savy? Which came first—the desire to start something or seeing an opportunity that you felt must be created?The inspiration behind Savy presented itself one day during my junior year when I was sitting in my AP European History class and saw a classmate shopping online. I noticed, every so often, she would pull up a Google Doc and copy and paste links from different retailers' sites into it. When I caught up with her after class and asked what she was doing, she told me she was manually price tracking those items! She would go back and check up on them to see if they had dropped to something that was more in line with her budget. I realized then that window shoppers and customers (i.e. people coming to a store with an intent to buy) have two different mindsets when it comes to online shopping - and that this difference in mindset created the opportunity for Savy!
Honestly, both the desire the to start something of my own and noticing a business opportunity to pursue coincided almost simultaneously. I was going through an existential crisis during my junior year of high school when I realized school was becoming toxic for me; the expectations I had of myself, that I believed my teachers, peers and parents had of me, were stifling my very existence. School was all I’d ever known. I had always been an incredibly high achiever, taking upperclassmen classes and piling on extracurriculars - but the pressure I put on myself almost broke me.
My summer at MIT Launch was timed perfectly - I was able to throw myself into something that wasn’t remotely school related, rather entrepreneurship was the opposite of what school was to me at the time, it was a safe haven during a time of havoc, of not knowing who I was. -
What has been one of your biggest career challenges? How did you overcome it? Do you have any advice for other entrepreneurs just starting out?Early last year I decided to pivot Savy to the business that it is today. I had to let go of my entire team in order to sustain the changes. That was difficult. To say goodbye to friends who seemed to be “ride or die” and suddenly be on your own? I spent quite a bit of time wondering why in the world I’d taken the path that I had.
I have a weird way of overcoming emotional turmoil. I guess I distract myself by pursuing a new intellectual endeavor - during my junior year it was entrepreneurship. This time it was coding. I spent a chunk of last year learning frontend and backend development languages - HTML, CSS, Node JS, MongoDB, etc - and built Savy from scratch. The whole experience of going from never having written a single line of code to building a scalable web app was incredibly empowering and gave me renewed faith in myself.
As for advice for others, your customer is your number one priority. Delight them. If your customers love you and your business - if you’re truly adding value to their lives - you will succeed. No matter who you are or where you come from - whether you’re old or young, or a girl or boy or someone in between - trust in yourself, you’re bound accomplish your dreams! -
What essentials do you always carry in your bag?- 2 bullet casings (I went shooting at a gun range for the first time with one of my best friends. It was absolutely terrifying. But I got through it - and realized that if I make myself comfortable and trust in my ability to remain in control, I will have a confident response in panic inducing situations)
- A key that I forgot to return to one of my best friends
- A Moldovan dollar given to me by one of my best friends
- A picture of my mom and dad on their honeymoon to Kashmir
- A note one of the girls from MIT Launch wrote to me
- Two napkins that have drawings on them (a few of my friends and I went out to dinner and played a game where each one of us added to the picture)
- A ticket stub to a play I attended at UChicago
- My headphones
- My phone
Emily Horne
Head of Global Policy Comms.

Emily Horne
Head of Global Policy Comms.
Hails from: Born and raised in Ann Arbor MI. Now a proud DC resident
Three words that describe you: Driven, Curious, and Caffeinated
Philosophy on life: Be kind, ask questions, and always clarify the ground rules before you start talking.
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Before joining Twitter, you were the assistant press secretary for the NSC (cough, badass). How have your previous experiences prepared you for this role?President Obama has said that public service is both a calling and a privilege, and I couldn’t agree more. I deeply believe in the importance of public service, and working on national security issues for over a decade was an incredible privilege and responsibility, never more so than when I was representing the United States overseas. I always joke that working in public affairs is the most fun job because you have carte blanche to call up any expert in your organization and ask them any question you want - but there’s some truth there! But you have to walk before you can run, and I’m thankful that I had supportive environments early in my career in which I could safely learn basic but vital skills like writing a solid press release in under five minutes, running a meeting when you’re the youngest person in the room, and to never walk into your boss’ office without a notebook and pen.
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What has been one of your biggest career challenges? How did you overcome it?My tenure at the NSC included the 2016 election and transition, which was obviously a very intense experience for everyone involved, regardless of their political leanings. Even though I was a career civil servant and could have gone back to the State Department, I decided it was a good time to take a long break and then try out the private sector for the first time in my career. And while I was very lucky to get some good rest and time with family and friends after an intense couple of years, I went overnight from working in the White House to being unemployed, unsure of what I wanted to do next. I watched a lot of mediocre TV in my yoga pants. I learned definitively that I am not meant to be a stay-at-home parent. And ultimately, I wound up at Twitter in large part thanks to my community of former colleagues and friends who had undertaken their own transitions, shared their experiences, and generously offered their advice, support, and networks. The lesson from all of this: no person is an island. We all rely on our communities and our people, and we in turn are obliged to help our people when they need it.
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What does women empowerment mean to you? How can we further it in our communities?This is such a huge question, and so dependent on context! That’s actually good place to begin - start with asking women in a particular community or group what they need. What are the barriers, explicit or unspoken, that keep these women from achieving their full potential? And what in my own background and experience can I use to help make progress on these issues? This is a totally different mindset from a prescriptive, one-size-fits all approach to empowering women, and from the false dichotomy of “having it all” that sets everyone, not just women, up to fail at something.
I try to be particularly mindful of the *unspoken* rules, norms, and codes that hold women and minorities back. I have a toddler son, and my husband and I think a lot about how we can raise him to be aware of both the privileges and the attendant responsibilities he will likely have as a socioeconomically-fortunate white American male. I want him to be a natural ally and advocate for people who our culture has held back from their full potential.
Jessica Greenwalt
Founder
BritePeak

Jessica Greenwalt
Founder
BritePeak
Hails from: Seattle, Washington
Three words that describe you: Decisive, Persevering, and Candid
Philosophy on life: Hope for the best, but prepare for the worst.
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What was the inspiration for starting BritePeak?I believe honest, constructive feedback is the key to personal development and improving the way we interact with each other. People often seek feedback from colleagues in work environments, but when it comes to life outside of work, I've observed that few people are comfortable giving and receiving direct feedback—many people have not even considered asking for feedback on their behavior from their friends and family. It's unfortunate that people withhold helpful feedback from those closest to them, especially when their feedback could help the people they care about shape their behavior for the better. In families or other close relationships, I've seen people with the most disruptive behaviors have feedback withheld from them until their actions become worse. Then, only after the disruptive behavior leads to a destructive event, is feedback provided—an intervention.
If we are more open with each other, we can curb our non-productive behaviors before they become destructive to our lives and the lives of those we care about. I'm working to make the acts of giving and receiving feedback more prevalent by building a tool that gets people anonymous feedback from the people they respect. -
What's something surprising that you learned about yourself along the way?Most people perceive me as being more outgoing than I feel I am. I have this idea of who I am, which is built on top of years of being an introverted geek, but this perspective of my identity apparently does not match up with how many people (or at least those willing say so) see me. Throughout this process, I've learned that my assumptions about how others interpret my behavior are heavily influenced by my longstanding feelings about my identity.
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What advice would you have for women who want to pursue their career passion as you have?My stepdad gave me a great piece of advice when I was in high school: do what is right for you, because a company will always do what is right for it. I get the impression that many women are told to do the exact opposite, to put the needs of everyone and anything else before their own. Because of this they work themselves to exhaustion for people and organizations that don't reward their hard work. I recommend assessing the work situation you are currently in. Ask yourself if you like the way you are being treated and if what you are doing now is contributing to your life goals. If the answer to either of these questions is "no", then don't feel guilty about going out and creating (or getting) a job that gets you to answer "yes".
Jutta Steiner
Co-founder & COO
Parity

Jutta Steiner
Co-founder & COO
Parity
Hails from: Berlin, Germany
Three words that describe you: Usually quite zen, a bit of a geek, and as we say in German a "Stehaufmännchen."
Philosophy on life: Churchill said a bunch of nice things with which I agree like: “Never, never, never give up.”
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In layman's terms, what exactly is Ethereum? Do you see it as superior to Bitcoin for faster payments? What are the security implications?Ethereum is a native service and internet protocol that allows people to transact with each other without any intermediary in between. Think of sending money without a bank or PayPal in between, rent out your apartment without Airbnb being able to leverage network effects and take a massive cut, or the coffee you just bought today that in the future will come with a digital certificate shadowing the product that you can inspect on your smart phone. It will also help to make the internet more secure and let people manage their data and identity in a much more self-sovereign way.
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Can you tell us the inspiration behind your company Ethcore?We founded the company to have a vehicle under which we could develop this amazing groundbreaking technology. That would allow us to gather a group of passionate people with a mission to change the way how we transact online. A start up gives you a great vehicle to work with people on a common goal!
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What advice would you give to aspiring female entrepreneurs, particularly those interested in your field?Go to meet ups or conferences. I've met so many amazing people in this community from whom I've learned so much. Just find some project that interests you and get your hands dirty!
Kelly Sayre
Founder
The Diamond Arrow Group
Kelly Sayre
Founder
The Diamond Arrow Group
Hails from: St. Cloud, MN
Three words that describe you: Bold, Curious, and Kind
Philosophy on life: Why not? Why not live your best life? Why not take a chance on doing something outside your comfort zone that you’ve always wanted to do? Why not try?
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Tell us about The Diamond Arrow Group. What inspired you to start it?An arrow through a diamond signifies “courage moving forward”. I started The Diamond Arrow Group because there are simple things women can start doing to be more aware of their surroundings and see potential threats before they happen. Living in fear of the unknown (What if a shooter walks in to the grocery store while I’m there? What if someone starts following me while I’m walking down the street?) and NOT doing the things you want to do is no way to live. There are plenty of physical self-defense classes available, but what if you could prevent yourself from being in a physical fight in the first place? The vast majority of violent attacks on women are from men. Men are genetically stronger than women so doing everything we can to prevent a physical altercation is imperative to our personal safety.
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Can you share a behavioral technique most women should do in terms of situational awareness, but often don't?Trust your intuition. Don’t disregard or downplay it. Things happen so fast that our cognitive thought process can’t keep up, but our senses are communicating with our subconsciousness all the time. When we start getting those messengers of intuition, it’s important to pay attention and take action. Intuition is always in response to something and always has our best interest in mind. Traditionally, women are raised to be kind, to not be judgmental and to be caregivers. Those are all wonderful traits and help balance out the negatives in our world. Unfortunately, the bad guys know they can manipulate those traits to get past our boundaries and take what they want. Ted Bundy often faked an arm injury to gain sympathy from his victims so he could lure them to his vehicle.
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What is the best advice you’ve ever received?Starting your own business is challenging and staying positive and realistic is a delicate balance. Keeping negativity (from others and even our own mind!) is important. I keep this quote in my binder as a reminder to myself, “Most of the things worth doing in the world had been declared impossible before they were done.” –Louis D. Brandeis
Kristel De Groot
Co-founder
Your Superfoods

Kristel De Groot
Co-founder
Your Superfoods
Hails from: Amsterdam, Netherlands
Three words that describe you: Caring, Different, and Warrior
Philosophy on life: Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you are right either way.
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Your company, Your Superfoods, is a great way to mix superfoods into your daily meals. What was the inspiration behind Your Superfoods?I discovered the impact healthy food choices have on becoming the best version of yourself and I want to spread this health & happiness with as many people as possible!
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What has been one of your biggest career challenges? How did you overcome it?Figuring out what I actually wanted to do. By trying out different things and listening to myself instead of others I found my true passion
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What advice would you give to women looking to become their own boss?Just do it!
Lemia Bodden
Filmmaker & Photographer
Quelquefois

Lemia Bodden
Filmmaker & Photographer
Quelquefois
Hails from: San Francisco, CA
Three words that describe you: Creative, Visual, and Ambitious
Philosophy on life: "As long as you are still alive, you can find love and things can get better."
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Since 2010, you’ve had over 40 exhibitions including a solo show at the United Nations. As a creative artist, where do you go for inspiration?Literally, everywhere. Either from a word I read the other day or an exhibition on textiles. There is something that I can use that is hidden away in ordinary life. I’m constantly trying to find new ways to grow, either with myself or with my creativity. I have been through a lot and, funny enough, I am still standing. When things get really difficult, I don't fall a part, I rise to the occasion.
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What has been one of your biggest career challenges? How did you overcome it?I am still working on that. Let's talk in a year.
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What advice would you share with other filmmakers who are just starting out?Just. Keep. Trying. I watched this year, Barry Jenkins, a friend of friend, win the Oscar and what he said was inspiring: He never thought that Moonlight would get made and he had people in his corner, fighting for his ideas. I liked hearing that, because you never know what will come out of your wonderful ideas. Just keep trying.
Linda Park
Founder
MOFÉ

Linda Park
Founder
MOFÉ
Hails from: Los Angeles, CA
Three words that describe you: Curious, Free-spirited, and Determined
Philosophy on life: Be inspired so you can inspire.
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You quit your career as a corporate lawyer to start your company. What was the inspiration behind MOFÉ?Yes, I did quit my law career to pursue my own handbag line. I initially wanted to design “work” bags for women that were functional and fashionable, like P.MAI. :) I fell in love with the design process and began designing all kinds of bags for different types of women that were stylish, functional, and accessible.
MOFЀ is short for today’s “modern feminism”. I was reading an article in a magazine and it was talking about how far women have come in today’s time. It reminded me of when I was in law school – more than 50% of the students were women (not long ago women were not even allowed to attend law school). So, I wanted to pay homage to all the women who paved the way for us to be able to achieve whatever it is that we envision for ourselves. Our logo parallels an infinity symbol, which connotes no boundaries and no limitations. It’s embossed on our leather handbags to be a reminder to women that we’ve come a long way and that we can achieve anything we set our minds to. -
What has been one of your biggest career challenges? How did you overcome it?The biggest career challenge is transitioning to entirely different, new career, and, in essence, starting all over again. I’ve overcome it by working hard and always keeping in mind that that this is what I want to do.
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What advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs?It’s a process, and it may be a long one, so be prepared to go on a roller coaster ride.
Lizzie Agnew
Co-founder & COO
Modern Citizen

Lizzie Agnew
Co-founder & COO
Modern Citizen
Hails from: San Francisco, CA
Philosophy on life: "Life is a journey, not a destination." This is something we hear all the time, but it is also something that really resonates with me. I think it can be easy to fixate on achievements or goals and not enjoy the process of getting there. Enjoying the journey is what brings me happiness and peace.
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What essentials do you always carry in your bag?All of the typical essentials plus I always have sunscreen! I also still have a physical planner that I take everywhere.
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What’s something that you believe that other may not?It is possible to make your own luck. I believe that we have more power over our own "luck" than we think we do.
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What advice would you give to young women today?Take advantage of all of the support networks that are available to you, whether they are mentors, career counselors, or peers! This advice is definitely auto-biographical; there were so many times when I could have used more support but felt I had to "do it on my own." Whenever I reach out for mentorship I never regret it.
Lorraine Sanders
Founder
Spirit of 608

Lorraine Sanders
Founder
Spirit of 608
Hails from: San Francisco, CA & Charlottesville, VA
Three words that describe you: Curious, Independent, and Unsatisfied
Philosophy on life: Show up, stand up and uplift.
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What was the inspiration for starting Spirit of 608? Why focus on fashion, entrepreneurship, sustainability and tech?It’s really the coming together of everything I’ve worked on over the last decade, but it took me a long time to figure out that this approach was the right, best, most effective way to use my skills and who I am as a person to get closer to my end goal, which is really to help push fashion into a better place – both for consumers and for the people producing it.
I’ve covered fashion and the intersection of fashion and technology for a number of years, and I’ve been a journalist for more than ten, and I love reporting and covering the news, but I’ve honestly always been more of a cheerleader than a comfortable adversary, and I think you have to be comfortable in that adversarial role if you want to be a really great investigative business journalist. I’m happiest when I can show off really cool, badass things that are happening in the world that I think other people should know about. And I’ve always had the sense that fashion is about much more than just aesthetics. I had a blog quite a while back called SF Indie Fashion that was about indie designers, and it had a loyal readership, and the whole point was to support creative people and get fashion fans to think about the origins of their clothes. And then I had another site called Digital Style Digest, and the whole point there was how much technology is changing fashion, and it allowed me to really fawn over some of the entrepreneurs I admire.
And then, after a stint working for a startup last year, I fell in love with podcasting and the whole audio format as a way to create a really intimate connection with people that I think is pretty impossible to do in the same way online these days. So this is the result of all of that, basically poured into one bucket.
As for FEST, it’s my play on STEM for fashion, entrepreneurship, sustainability and tech. And like I often tell people, I think it’s the future of fashion. I really believe that technology is enabling fashion to become something that has the potential to function more sustainably and become a force for social responsibility in the world. And the intersection of those things also has huge potential for empowering women, whether it’s by letting a mom build a business that’s in line with her values around her own schedule or being the catalyst for income and improvements for artisans in another country. I spent several months trying to articulate this space that was very clear in my head: I could see it happening all around me, women literally flocking to jobs in this space and trying to build companies with ties to all these things, but when I tried to explain it to other people, they looked at me like, okay, so wait, can you say that again?
One day, I was sitting at my desk writing an email using that long, convoluted series of words for what felt like the millionth time, and it dawned on me, oh, the first letters of those words form the word fest. And how awesome is that? Doesn’t everyone want to get festive every once in awhile? -
What's something that you believe that others may not?It’s pretty common to hear people say that they have no regrets or that they admire women who don’t care what other people think. I disagree with both. If you don’t have any regrets in life, what kind of life are you leading? Are you taking real risks and putting yourself in uncomfortable places often enough? I’m not advocating looking back and wishing for life revisions at every turn, but if there isn’t one thing in your past that you would approach differently or, if given the chance, would try that you bypassed at the time, then I believe there’s a lack of self-reflection going on there. I view regret as a catalyst for positive future action. I’m not riddled with regret, but when I notice it, I try to use it to propel me forward in a better way. And on the second one, this whole idea of not caring what other people think being glorified as a sign of empowerment is misguided. If you don’t care - at all - about what other people in your networks think, then you aren’t going to be a good collaborator or able to hear the signs that you may not be stepping into your most powerful moments as a person. I do care what other people think, and I try to use my interpretation of their feedback as a compass. Not a motor or a steering wheel, but a guide and a suggestion.
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What advice would you give to women looking to get into the media space?Have something to say and embrace the upheaval that is at the core of today’s media landscape. Media is changing rapidly, and it behooves those who want to forge ahead as media professionals to think constantly about how new tools can deliver information in ways that are relevant to the audiences on the other end. But you also have to have something to say. There are so many people out there saying stuff right now, what are you here to say and communicate that’s different? And along with that, I’ll add career advice that’s relevant to those seeking media jobs, but also for any creative professional: if you don’t have the job, the best way to get the job is to do the job. If you want to write, write like hell and get your work in as many places as possible. If you want to be a designer, start creating asap. Do whatever you can possibly do today to get the skills you need to do the job, establish an online presence and demonstrate that you can do the work. To distill it down, it’s kind of like, do the job today that you want to have tomorrow.
Maxi Knust
Founder & CEO
Fempreneur

Maxi Knust
Founder & CEO
Fempreneur
Hails from: Berlin, Germany
Three words that describe you: Passionate, Driven, and Creative
Philosophy on life: Believe in yourself and do it your own way.
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You started an incredible online community and magazine for female entrepreneurs. What was the inspiration behind FEMPRENEUR?My inspiration was to encourage and empower women, who are interested in starting a business. I know women have all the potential, but usually they lack of self-confidence and they are overthinking or over-planning. But for starting your own business, you shouldn’t let fear win over courage. That’s why I wanted to showcase other women on Fempreneur, who already founded their own companies and therefore can be role models to inspire and motivate my readers.
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What's been the most surprising thing you've learned since launching (whether about yourself or about what you're doing.)?There have been many things I’ve learned since starting a business, but what probably surprised me most as a really impatient person, was that things take much more time than you thought in the beginning.
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What advice would you give to women looking to become their own boss?If you really want to start your own business, just start with it. You might always lack money, some knowledge or time. But that shouldn’t hold you back from doing what you would love to do in your life. So don’t think too much and just start really doing something. Have the courage to follow your own path, ignore the naysayers and always believe in yourself and your business idea. Because especially in the beginning, you might be the only one believing that you can do it. And ask other people for advice, be open to learn a lot of new things and always try to think positive. It might help to write this as mantra on your mirror to train our mindset.
Paulien Wesselink
Founder
O My Bag

Paulien Wesselink
Founder
O My Bag
Hails from: Amsterdam, Netherlands
Three words that describe you: Open minded and Excited about life
Philosophy on life: “You have to be brave with your life, so others can be brave with theirs.”— Katherine Center
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What inspired you to start your company? Can you tell us about the social component as well?I started O My Bag 5 years ago with a belief that business can bring solutions to social issues through the use of fair business principles. Creating awareness around consumer behavior and informing people of their power to determine the world around us, has been one of our major drivers. Our bags are made in Kolkata, India where men and women are proudly working on O My Bags. They can work together in a social environment for a fair wage, with health insurance and under fair conditions. This way, hardworking people get the price they deserve for the bags they make with love and dedication. Creating jobs for minorities in India is our way of contributing to the UN Sustainable Development Goals*, like fighting poverty and women empowerment. * http://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/sustainable-development-goals/
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What has been one of your biggest career challenges? How did you overcome it?Challenges are manifold and on a daily basis, but it’s nothing we can’t handle. The biggest challenges we faced had to do with quality issues. Small fair trade producers are not used to work with a demanding European brand. Realizing that how you wish things would be (our partners deliver the quality we expect, goods are delivered on time, interest in growth and professionalization is present) and how things actually are (quality issues seem to rise when you least expect them, the list of reasons why goods are late is endless, ambitions for growth do not always match) often differ, is something to handle with wisdom and perseverance. There is a solution to every problem, and every problem is an opportunity for growth. We’ve learned to embrace this and are stronger and better for it.
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What advice would you give to women today looking to start their own companies?Be dedicated to personal growth. Pursuing a life of development and betterment is important. Through improving ourselves we get the most out of life. So pick up a book every day (I listen to audio books a lot too, my commute is a 25 minute bike ride, which is my ‘learning time’, I listen to podcasts or audiobooks. I’m currently listening to Zero-to-One from Peter Thiel and my fave podcast is The Tim Ferriss show.) Also, learn from people who inspire you. Powerful women give me encouragement. We work with a lot of powerful female social entrepreneurs in India that do great and inspiring work. I’m currently reading ‘On the Road’ by journalist and activist Gloria Steinem; she stands up for issues of equality. I’m amazed by her and get so excited about the lessons I draw from that book! When things get overwhelming I feel comforted by the quote of Bhuddist Zen teacher Thich Nhat Hanh: Smile, Breath and go slowly. You can find this quote in big letters on our office wall. I can be quite impatient, but taking your time and not be rushed is a much better way to live life. This is friendly reminder.
Rebecca Ballard
Founder & CEO
Maven Women

Rebecca Ballard
Founder & CEO
Maven Women
Hails from: Washington, DC
Three words that describe you: Intentional, Effusive, and Tenacious
Philosophy on life: Find the place where your passion meets the world’s great needs. - paraphrased from Frederich Buechner
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How did you decide to start Maven Women? Why is sustainable fashion so important to you?Maven Women was born out of my journey as a lawyer and social justice advocate, my love of elegance and glamour, and the desires of so many women for something better in terms of both style and sustainability.
The global garment industry is the second worst polluting industry in the world, after oil and gas. 80% of the workers in this industry are women, many of whom suffer from exploitation, harassment, and unsafe workplaces that silence their voice. In 2013 the voices of garment workers who noticed cracks in the walls of the Savar factory in Bangladesh were silenced, resulting in the deadliest accidental structural failure in modern history. There is tremendous potential to flip the script and have this industry fulfill the promise of economic opportunity that leads so many women to work in it. Transparency is en vogue now and I couldn’t be more thrilled. Clothing is more beautiful when you know the story behind it can and truly feel good about each purchase. -
Words of advice to aspiring female entrepreneurs?Life is all about timing. I had the idea for Maven Women a decade ago but knew I needed many more experiences to be ready for success. Each experience I have had along the way, from government litigation to running small nonprofits to supporting human trafficking survivors, has made Maven Women a stronger company and put me in a better position to lead and listen.
You need to deeply understand the current market, market trends, and the passions driving your potential customers. Make sure your company is unique and meets unmet needs. Listen, learn, and be prepared to pivot early on when you go to market. That said, it’s even more important that you have experienced some great success and also many failures that have taught you relevant skills. You need to be 1. emotionally grounded and prepared for being “in the red” for some time in the early days, 2. self-aware so you can work towards your strengths and bring in additional bandwidth for your weaknesses, and 3. highly resilient. -
Who have been the biggest contributors to your success thus far?My girlfriends are a source of great strength, support, and inspiration. Many of them have given countless hours of their time to help me move Maven Women forward. There’s not a week that goes by without my amazing friends offering me encouragement, wisdom, and problem solving advice. My husband has put tremendous sweat equity into Maven Women and is a constant source of emotional support.
And…all of the Maven Women out there who are part of our product co-creation process and have shared their feedback!
Rebekah Kouy-Ghadosh
Owner
Bex Spex

Rebekah Kouy-Ghadosh
Owner
Bex Spex
Hails from: Born in DC, raised in LA, live in SF.
Three words that describe you: Colorful, Engaging, and Playful
Philosophy on life: More is more!
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What was the inspiration for starting Bex Spex?I've worn glasses since I was in 2nd grade. After college and a series of jobs that didn't click I realized I liked and missed making things but wanted them to have a function. It became obvious to me after the fact that I had always been specific about the kids of glasses I wore. I knew what I liked.
Glasses are at this beautiful intersection between need and want. You need them to see, but you want them to still be a part of who you are. They are the first thing people see. When you look someone in the eyes you often do it through glasses.
I became a licensed optician with the express purpose of designing glasses. Knowing what the need people have from their glasses helps in creating the want. -
What's something surprising that you learned about yourself along the way?I've learned to be patient. Starting something from the ground up takes lots of time. There are so many steps and so many parts that you have to responsible for. It isn't something you can hope someone else will take care of. If you don't do it, no one else will. I also realized that I miss being around other like minded people. Volunteering with Project Homeless Connect and helping homeless people get glasses gives me a chance to give back and connect with other optical people in my industry.
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What advice would you give to other women who want to start their own business?Learn as much as you can and don't be a afraid to reach out. There are so many of us other women who have started a business and can help you if you ask.
SARAH MIYAZAWA LAFLEUR
Founder & CEO
MM.LaFleur

SARAH MIYAZAWA LAFLEUR
Founder & CEO
MM.LaFleur
Hails from: Born in Paris, raised in Tokyo, now in New York
Three words that describe you: Purposeful, Philosophical, and Practical
Philosophy on life: "Set yourself on fire. Seek those who fan your flames" --Rumi.
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What essentials do you always carry in your bag?Stain remover. Our company motto is "We're perfectionists who spill on ourselves."
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What has been one of your biggest career challenges? How did you overcome it?Not knowing what I wanted to do with my Life (more specifically, my career) was my biggest challenge of my 20s. Step one to overcoming it was getting to know myself better, which you can read more about here. I thought hard about my strengths and understood where I was likely to succeed. But once I came to terms with that, I knew that the only way I would find success is if I made unconventional choices.
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What is the best advice you’ve ever received?"Show up." The batter who gets to base ten out of ten times is more valuable than the occasional home-run hitter.
Shama Hyder
Founder & CEO
The Marketing Zen Group

Shama Hyder
Founder & CEO
The Marketing Zen Group
Hails from: Dallas, Texas. I am a Texas girl!
Three words that describe you: Taurus, Eldest, and Entrepreneur
Philosophy on life: If I may borrow from Shakespeare - "There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.” - Hamlet
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What was the inspiration behind The Marketing Zen Group?A combination of market demand and professional passion. We were one of the first social media agencies in the world. There was such a hunger around understanding social media, and that is an ongoing demand we look to meet everyday. When I wrote my first book, The Zen of Social Media Marketing, I never expected that it would go on to a 4th edition or be used as a textbook to teach college courses on social media. It was one of the only books on the topic. In business, as is in life, so much is timing.
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What has been one of your biggest career challenges? How did you overcome it?I believe our own mindset is often our biggest challenge. For me, it is in allowing myself to think bigger! I work on this every day. Life is short, why not have more audacious goals?
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What advice would you give to aspiring female entrepreneurs?START! So many aspiring entrepreneurs stay stuck in the details. Yes, the details matter, but nothing matters unless you start. I do believe boldness, as they say, has magic to it.
Shujan Bertrand
Founder
àplat

Shujan Bertrand
Founder
àplat
Hails from: Manhattan Beach, CA
Three words that describe you: Insightful, Creative, and Passionate (and maternal)
Philosophy on life: Follow your intuition, test it constantly and be open for change. Surround yourself with family and friends. Live outside, go to the trees and feel the ocean
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What was your biggest motivation for taking the leap to start your business?My intuition led me to start àplat and simply wanting to share something useful and meaningful with the world.
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As a designer, where do you go to for inspiration? Whose work is resonating with you most currently?For inspiration I go to friends and family. Meeting new creative people in diverse industries. The work of Carla Fernandez from Mexico City inspires me most. I respect her approach for local labor and human/cultural sustainability. Along with Eileen Fisher for her ability to help young designers.
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What advice would you give to new female entrepreneurs?Gain as much experience as possible by working internationally and locally with various organizations and consulting firms. Look for mentors (executive/senior level) in your jobs. When you are ready to start your own business, they will be there to support you. (With their insight and support I had confidence to start àplat.) Network - be open with others, share your thoughts, experience, and knowledge. Help others while on your journey to becoming an entrepreneur.
Simone Schuerle
Professor / Lab Head
ETH Zurich - Responsive Biomedical Systems Laboratory

Simone Schuerle
Professor / Lab Head
ETH Zurich - Responsive Biomedical Systems Laboratory
Hails from: Ulm, Germany - more precisely a teeny tiny town/village called Ringingen with 1500 (proud) inhabitants
Three words that describe you: Energetic, Passionate, and Caring
Philosophy on life: Figure out your inner flame—whatever it is-—and then nurture it and ignite the world around you :)
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You're only 32 and already on a professor on a tenure track in a field most people couldn't even understand. What exactly are you working on?My research is about the development of tiny systems that are applied in the human body and help to diagnose or treat certain diseases. These somewhat smart and responsive systems can react to specific signals of a disease environment, such as characteristic pH levels or molecular activity, and send us a signal to the outside. By tweaking more with their design, we can also activate them from the outside by heat, acoustic or electromagnetic signals, and trigger the release of certain drugs on demand.
While I am mostly working with synthetic materials, I recently started to include living organisms that can be “customized” by new methods in synthetic biology. I specially focus here on their use to combat cancer. It was shown that certain circulating bacteria can inherently locate tumors, and be engineered to controllably induce local cytotoxicity while remaining unobtrusive to the host system.
I propose to advance this promising approach by leveraging bacteria that are naturally capable of producing magnetic particles within their body. With the application of low and high frequency alternating magnetic fields, these living, mobile therapeutics can be monitored in vivo and also be remotely activated to achieve increased tumor penetration, toxin release, and their own self-destruction to provide an externally-controlled ‘safety net’.
My goal is to shed light on the clinical potential of combining the power of magnetics and probiotics, in order to test the hypothesis that this one-two punch may pave the way for a revolutionized cancer therapy. -
How did that interest grow into a field as specialized as micro/nanosystems?This was during undergrad! I was intrigued by an introductory lecture on micro/nanotechnology and was caught by the very first moment. It fascinated me how literally a whole new world of physics and engineering opens up at the small scale. Different physics laws apply and when I started to learn how to fabricate systems at that small scale - and by small mean length scales smaller than 1/1000 of the width of your hair- I experienced kind of a thrill of potentially discovering something new.
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What advice do you have for woman entering a male-dominated field?Hang in there! For now, there will be still men who don’t believe in women in their field. Ignore them or better: prove them wrong! It was often hard in the beginning, but in hindsight I think this environment made me even stronger. If times are difficult, see it as a boot camp and advocate for yourself and your fellow women!
Stephany Lapierre
Founder & CEO
tealbook

Stephany Lapierre
Founder & CEO
tealbook
Hails from: A small city between Montreal and Quebec City in Canada
Three words that describe you: Genuine, Hard-working, and Passionate
Philosophy on life: Try new things and live your life to have as little regrets as possible.
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What does tealbook do?It supercharges a company's entire supplier master to give teams instant access to internal and external supplier intelligence and enables them to identify qualified suppliers in seconds. It increases the scale and productivity of procurement efforts by powering them and their internal stakeholders with credible, valuable updated data including peer perspective.
Prior to tealbook, I build a reputable strategic sourcing and procurement consulting business, helping Fortune 500 companies identity the strongest suppliers for their business needs. None of them had an efficient way to access and share supplier knowledge internally and spent a lot of time finding and gathering supplier intelligence prior to initiating a sourcing event. I knew there was a solution and took it upon me to build it. -
What has been one of your biggest career challenges? How did you overcome it?I am finally at a point where I am building a management team, but spent the first 2 1/2 years as a sole founder. Luckily I have great support team and many advisors, but the journey has been very lonely at times.
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What advice would you give to aspiring female entrepreneurs?Finding balance is really hard when you build and run a company. I am not quite sure I found mine yet, but save some time for yourself. You are most important!
YAEL AVERBUCH
Midfielder
FC Kansas City

YAEL AVERBUCH
Midfielder
FC Kansas City
Hails from: Upper Montclair, NJ
Three words that describe you: Ambitious, Disciplined, and Hard-working
Philosophy on life: I believe in setting goals and pursuing them with everything you have, but enjoying and learning from the journey as well!
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You've been playing professional for many years now. How do you keep your A-game? Can you tell us about your training schedule?Even as a professional player, there are so many ways I realize I can still improve my game. Part of what it means to be a pro is to be consistent and to be able to perform at your best day in and day out. But a large part of the process for me is to continue to chip away at refining my strengths and improving my weaknesses. My training schedule varies depending on if it is during the season or the offseason. The offseason is when I train the hardest because I don't have to be rested for games. I usually train for 2-4 hours a day, including on the field and in the weight room.
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How did you know that you wanted to play professionally? Were you afraid to take this leap as a career? What other careers did you consider?When I was 9 I wrote in my journal that I wanted to be a professional soccer player. I'm the kind of person who is extremely single-minded so my vision and goal has never wavered. It has certainly been a journey, and in a lot of ways probably not what I had thought or expected. But I've never wanted to do anything else.
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What advice would you give to other women who might be afraid to follow their passion?I think the only way to live is with no regrets. I hate the feeling of looking back and saying "if only..." so I live every day to the best of my ability to do the things I love and do them as well as possible. I don't think anyone has ever regretted fully chasing a dream, even if it meant multiple failures and pivots along the way. But I know a lot of people who have regretted not going for it.
Zoe Share
Founder
Schmooz Media Ltd.

Zoe Share
Founder
Schmooz Media Ltd.
Hails from: Toronto, Canada
Three words that describe you: Driven, Energetic, and Caring
Philosophy on life: Try to do something you are proud of every day – whether that’s spending time with your family or reaching a new client.
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You help companies utilize social media to grow their business. What was the inspiration behind Schmooz?There are so many options in marketing technology and the people using it for their small-mid size businesses feel overwhelmed – what should I use first? What will the return on investment be? Do I have to do SEO stuff? I am inspired by empowering people to use technology in a way that makes them feel in control of their business and happy with results that fit the size and scope of their business goals.
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What has been one of your biggest career challenges? How did you overcome it?These two things go hand-in-hand: growth and work-life balance. Growing your team and your company in the right way is one of the hardest things to do. Whether you need 1 or 10 new hires, you have to know what your goals are. This is why I mention work-life balance here. If your goal is to have more time at home while making passive income, that’s a very different goal than the goal of growing revenue by 100% in 6 months. Whatever your goal, just know that growth and finding a balance is hard!
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What advice would you give to aspiring female entrepreneurs?Dream and then do, do, do! Whether you are doing something on a full time basis or a part time basis, the most important thing is to know yourself and what makes you feel comfortable and then do it! Start today and don’t make excuses!