Some people think that the key to success lies within their daily routines. Do you agree with this, and if so, what is your daily routine?
I absolutely agree with this. This is my entire philosophy, and how I live my life is based on building healthy habits. My daily routine involves exercise every morning. Not just for my physical well-being but for my mental well-being. It helps me with my mood, and my energy levels, also just my ability to think quickly and problem solve and it just gives me an edge cognitively. I also try to make sure I get the hard things out of the way first thing. I eat very much the same breakfast every morning just so I don’t have to spend time thinking about what I’m going to eat and allows much more energy allocation for other things.
Looking back at your teenage years, did you have any entrepreneurial interests?
I kind of did. I have always liked to make money. I don’t know how much of that is just being a kid. I always loved to play cashier and have a business and kind of play store. As I was getting older, I always wanted to make my own money so I could be able to buy the things I wanted and not have to rely on my mom and dad giving me a $5 allowance. I always worked multiple jobs as I got to be a teenager. I always enjoyed making money on my own schedule. I did always have a bit of an entrepreneurial string in me.
Is there a specific time of day when you feel most productive?
I always feel the most productive in the morning. I always tell people to get the most difficult things out of the way early because that is also when their brain is most efficient. As the day progresses, people get a little more tired, and other things come up.
Do you think there is one character trait/skill that is important to have in order to become a successful entrepreneur in today’s world?
I think anything can be learned if you want it bad enough but I would say curiosity and being resilient is really important. So learning how to fail early is really important as being able to fail and then getting back up and trying again. With entrepreneurship, there is a lot of resilience that needs to be part of the equation and problem-solving. If you don’t have the stomach for that type of situation is it better to work for a corporation and just get a paycheck. So knowing yourself and having self-awareness is super important as knowing what your strengths are.
Has being a woman in the business world affected you positively or negatively, and how so?
It can be very difficult because you have to prove yourself much more than a man would and sometimes the opportunities are less. But with that being said, I would also say it is an advantage.
What is one major goal that you wish to achieve by 2030?
For me, in my business world, my goal for 2030 is to have successfully transitioned the leadership of my company to the next CEO, and that process is underway. I’ve got a president underway who is doing a great job. He is a male, so the future CEO of Design Workshop probably won’t be female in the near term, but he is really working hard to make sure that the company continues to be successful and has a really smooth leadership transition.
What is one major goal that you wish to achieve by 2030?
Currently, I am in the process of starting and getting into new business ventures. I would love to see one of the companies I’m working with be acquired by a larger company by them. At the end of the day, the most important thing, and always has been to me, is doing the things I love. I think when you do something solely for the money you’ll be very unhappy. You got to have something you enjoy so you don’t think so much of it as work. For me, it’s not just about having a goal for 2030 it’s about what you want to achieve in your life and how you want to live your life, and how you want to have a rich life. Is more important than having money. Having money is not having a rich life. Balance is important, being able to do what you love with the people you love doing it with and then you can also of course have goals. If you are doing things with the right intention, I do believe those things will happen anyway when they’re supposed to.
Who is your biggest influence, and why?
I think my mom is my biggest influence because she’s always had a strong work ethic. I had a good model of behavior I could model from. I think it’s important for kids to see their parents working hard for a work ethic and my mom did that for me, so it was the very pinnacle of my success.
If you could pick one female entrepreneur, who would you say is your biggest inspiration?
I would like to say Sara Blakely is one of them who made spanx. I think people who look at something where it seems so simple and stupid, like “why didn’t I think of that?” and then disrupt the market place. I like Sara Blakely because she did it on her terms, and then she really created a market.
What has been the most formative advice you have received and why?
The most formative advice was to be bold, to take chances on myself, and not sometimes listen to the advice of people who haven’t done it before. Sometimes the best advice is no advice, and the best help is the best help you can get because it can confuse you when people’s experience is coming from a different place. So follow your north star and choose you has always been my motto and listen to my own gut.
If you have siblings, are they also entrepreneurs?
I have a sister whose name is Maureen, she actually started her own salad dressing company many years ago and still does it, but that’s her side hustle. She never went full throttle and did it 100% all the way, but she makes a nice little penny from it and really enjoys it, and that is really the most important thing. It’s called Grandma’s Gourmet.
Do you think the drive to become an entrepreneur is born with or is learned?
I would say a lot of times you are born that way, but like I said it can develop and you can learn it based on circumstance and environment. You could have found a need for something if you’re in a situation where you needed something, and you couldn’t find it therefore you got an idea. So it was born out of necessity to become an entrepreneur, and because of that, it was something you developed over time. As opposed to someone who didn’t think they had it in them. I do think it is sometimes a combination of both but I do think it is something you can develop if you don’t have it naturally.
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