entrepreneurship Archives - Page 2 of 3

Future Proof Me – When Money’s Stopping You Changing…

December 8, 2020December 8, 2020
by Claire

Brought to you by Microsoft’s The New Next

In this week’s Future Proof Me mini episode we explore one aspect of a topic we’ve been asked a lot about this year. That topic is career transition and today we dive a little deeper on one thing that can be a major consideration for some, and that’s their financial security.

Particularly in this time of COVID, it’s understandable if you’re giving extra thought to your finances. Of course it’s not everything, but it’s a really interesting topic because sometimes it can be hard to think purely rationally about money and one’s medium term financial security.

It’s why this mini episode revisits the refreshing and calm, practical thinking of one of our former guests, Katie Vanneck-Smith. Katie chose to leave her high paying job as President of Dow Jones in New York to co-found a media startup called Tortoise in the UK.

You’ll hear about the thought process she went through to work out whether she could afford to make this change and still support her family. And how she’s scaled back the parties she’s famous for!

Plus, at the end you’ll also hear Claire and Greta briefly each share their stories about how they considered one of their own career transitions.

Enjoy this mini episode.

Useful Links

Katie Vanneck-Smith full episode – Work Hard, Have Fun, Make History

Katie on Linkedin

Katie on Twitter

Tortoise Website

Tortoise on Twitter

Interview

Sophia Athas – 20-Something Founder and Creative Trendsetter

October 20, 2020October 21, 2020
by Claire

Brought to you by Microsoft’s The New Next

We’re excited to introduce you to the youngest woman we’ve had on the show to date. But age isn’t the reason we’re happy for you to meet 27 year old Sophia Athas.

Sophia is the self-taught, entrepreneurial founder of a thriving new-age creative agency called Hatrik House.

Sophia’s business started out simply as a creative outlet and side hustle for when she was studying law at university. In the years that followed, Sophia realised she had the makings of a business as her work on social media attracted attention and turned her into a brand influencer in her own right.

Hatrik House has now grown to become a fully fledged agency focusing on social media and content with a talented team of women helping service a whole host of brands.

And full disclosure here, we were so impressed with Hatrik’s work when we saw one of their clients on Instagram, we hired her ourselves about two years ago!

In that time we’ve watched as Sophia’s business has grown and admired how she continues to navigate all the challenges that come with leading a fast growing business as a young woman.

In this episode you’ll hear:

Sophia’s experiences of being taken seriously (or not) as a female boss in her 20’s
What she believes have been the most important factors in running her business
How she thinks COVID will affect both digital and real-life experiences going forward
And, her advice if you’re thinking of setting up a side hustle.

Without further ado, here’s our conversation with the composed and creative Sophia Athas.

Links

Sophia on Instagram

Hatrik House website

Hatrik House on Instagram

Future Proof Me Mini Episode

Future Proof Me – The Magic of Yes

October 13, 2020October 13, 2020
by Claire

Brought to you by Microsoft’s The New Next

This week’s mini, Future Proof Me episode features some insightful advice about saying “Yes” to the unknown, even when it really scares you.

We hear from fashion entrepreneur Caroline Issa, the CEO of the Tank group which includes the revered global fashion and culture magazine, Tank Magazine.

We loved Caroline’s openness to embrace unexpected and unfamiliar opportunities. It seems so relevant in this time of COVID when nearly all of us are navigating the unfamiliar on an almost daily basis!

Her willingness to embrace doing things she hasn’t done before, even when she’s not sure she knows how to be successful with them, has worked so well for her. It’s as if she channels the magic of saying “yes” and it’s really paid off.

Hear her advice on how she copes when she’s not sure whether she can rise to the challenge or not….

Useful Links

Link to full ‘Don’t Stop Us Now!’ episode with Caroline Issa

Caroline on Instagram

Caroline on Linkedin

Tank Magazine on Instagram

Tank Magazine website

Book: Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway – by Susan Jeffries

Future Proof Me Mini Episode

Future Proof Me – Advice on Starting your Idea

September 29, 2020
by Claire

This week’s Future Proof Me mini episode shares some great advice if you’re contemplating starting your own business or side hustle.

We were so inspired by social enterprise founder Navyn Salem when we had her on the show a year or so ago. She told us how, when she had the idea to set up a social enterprise to tackle malnutrition in children in developing countries, everyone told her it couldn’t be done.

She decided she would prove the naysayers wrong and, today, her organisation Edesia has made an incredible impact and transformed 12 million children’s lives in 54 countries.

In this mini episode, Navyn shares advice about how to get started and how to approach the many problems any founder is sure to encounter.

Navyn really is the ‘real deal’ and if you like this mini episode be sure to listen back to our full conversation with her here.

Useful Links:

Edesia Website

Navyn on Instagram

Link to the full ‘Don’t Stop Us Now!’ episode with Navyn Salem

Interview

Brianne West – Running the World’s most Sustainable Cosmetics…

July 28, 2020
by Claire

Our guest on the podcast this week is Brianne West, the New Zealander serial entrepreneur and founder of global sustainable cosmetics company, Ethique.

Brianne has a bold and pioneering mission, to rid the world of single-use plastics. She started Ethique to replace all those bottled products we use in our bathrooms, from shampoos to moisturisers, with solid bars of concentrated product.

We’ve been so impressed with the degree of sustainability and ethical practices that Brianne has baked into her business, from sourcing her products directly from around the globe, to being a B Corp, to donating 20% of profits to charitable causes. It really is a business that walks the talk.

In this episode you’ll learn:

How Brianne displayed the entrepreneurial gene very early
How she’s funded Ethique with two very successful crowdfunding campaigns, as well as what it takes to crowdfund successfully
What Brianne does to manage her anxiety; and
How Huffington Post and Britney Spears changed everything for her business overnight!

We hope you come away as inspired by this conversation as we were. It’s a real demonstration of what’s possible when a business decides to make a reasonable profit whilst also caring for planet and people.

Finally, a quick request from us, if you enjoy our podcast and have yet to rate or review us on your listening platform of choice, we’d so appreciate it if you would. This is a passion project for us and it would really make a positive difference.

Interesting Links

Ethique Website

Brianne on Instagram

Future Proof Me Mini Episode

Future Proof Me – How an Innovator Stays Creative

July 7, 2020
by Claire

Welcome to this week’s mini Future Proof Me episode all about how to stay creative in a busy world.

We loved the advice that serial Canadian entrepreneur and founder, Vicki Saunders shared with us when we spoke to her last year.

Vicki is CEO and Founder of SheEO. SheEO is an international network of women who support, finance and celebrate female innovators who run ventures solving important world problems.

As a serial entrepreneur and true original thinker, Vicki has learnt she needs to create space for ideas to flow. As you’ll hear in this episode, she’s very conscious of ensuring she has a routine and practices that give her that space and stimulus despite facing, as we all do, the demands of a hectic busy work life and all the usual stresses we all experience.

You’ll hear how Vicki carves out time in her schedule to consume a wide variety of different topics in order to fuel her creative thinking, and you’ll hear how she’s found meditating makes a big difference.

If you’re struggling to have fresh ideas or see old problems from new perspectives, then this mini episode is just what you need!

Links of interest

Our full interview with Vicki

SheEO website

Future Proof Me Mini Episode

Future Proof Me – Why Career ‘Progression’ Doesn’t Always…

May 26, 2020May 26, 2020
by Claire

Ever felt a lot of self-imposed pressure to keep on moving up the career ladder?

That’s the key topic of this week’s Future Proof Me episode.

These mini episodes are all about sharing a ‘nugget’ of an idea, a piece of advice or a thought provoking insight to help us all navigate our way ahead in these uncertain and unusual times.

This week we revisit a conversation we had a year ago with well known Australian media entrepreneur, Mia Freedman. One of our favourite parts of our conversation with her was some great advice she shared on how to think about your next career move.

With COVID-19, we’re hearing from many of you who have lost their roles or are fearful of losing their jobs, and whilst this advice from Mia was recorded before, we think you’ll agree that what Mia has to say is particularly useful in this new context.

So if you’re curious about what connection ‘ladders’ and ‘lattices’ have in the context of your career; or what the heck ‘flearning’ means…. Listen on. We promise you’ll be the wiser for it.

Enjoy this Future Proof Me episode with Mia Freedman. . .

Interview

Audrey Tang – Taiwan’s Digital Minister and Her Vital…

May 5, 2020May 5, 2020
by Claire

We have a fascinating episode this week with our guest, Taiwan’s remarkable Digital Minister, Audrey Tang.

Audrey became the youngest Government Minister ever in Taiwan when she was appointed a few years ago at the age of 35. She is also the world’s first ever Transgender government Minister.

Audrey’s childhood was anything but conventional, in her early years she was something of a child prodigy who also had a serious heart condition. She dropped out of school at the age of 14 to manage her own education and at the age of 16 started her first successful software business.

Fast forward in time, and after some years working in Silicon Valley and further success, Audrey found herself moving from being a Government activist in her home country to a Government Minister!

In this episode you’ll hear:

How Audrey’s quick involvement in creating a valuable app has played a key role in Taiwan’s extraordinarily successful management of Covid-19, with the country never having to stop working
How her heart condition as a child means that to this day Audrey does not experience anger or upset or extreme joy
How in Taiwan, thanks to calling software coders Programme Designers vs Software Engineers, there are significantly more women than men working in the field
And her unique ways of seeing arguments from both sides

Enjoy this discussion with the remarkable Audrey Tang.

Useful Links

Audrey on Twitter

Taiwan Can Help Us – a COVID-19 initiative from Taiwan to help other countries

CoHack – a hackathon led by Audrey to use open data and technology to help fight the coronavirus pandemic across the world

G0V – a decentralised civic tech community from Taiwan

Interview

Bobbi Mahlab AM – Defining Success on Her Terms

March 24, 2020
by Claire

Our guest this week is entrepreneur and philanthropist, Bobbi Mahlab.

We think you’ll love Bobbi; she’s authentic, brave and very humble!

More than 20 years ago, Bobbi founded the content marketing and communications agency, ‘Mahlab’. Given how much the publishing and content businesses have changed in two decades, it’s a testimony to Bobbi’s foresight and agility that the business thrives and continues to evolve today.

Much more recently, Bobbi also co-founded the fast-expanding Australian arm of Mentor Walks, an initiative she was exposed to when she took part in a Mentor Walk in China, the brainchild of one of our earlier podcast guests, Michelle Garnaut.

Bobbi’s business has won multiple awards and accolades, and Bobbi herself also has her fair share of honours including recently being appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for her services to women, publishing and philanthropy.

Bobbi has some fascinating insights and perspectives on women in business and being an entrepreneur, particularly thanks to the insights she gleans from all the women taking part in Mentor Walks as well as from being a Juror on the prestigious international Cartier Women’s Initiative awards for entrepreneurs.

In this episode you’ll hear:

How it felt to grow up with a very high profile and feminist mother
Why Bobbi thinks leaders need to act like a hammerhead shark
What it was that made her walk into her office one day and say “everything changes from today”
The formative experience that taught Bobbi to think bigger

Enjoy this episode with the humble, wise and entertaining, Bobbi Mahlab.

Links of interest

Mahlab Media

Mentor Walks Australia

Cartier Womens Initiative

Episode photo credit: Mumbrella

Interview

Michelle Garnaut AO – Fabulous Stories from One of…

December 17, 2019March 19, 2020
by Claire

Our guest this week has taken the road less travelled, and pioneered her industry in Hong Kong and China for more than 30 years. We’re talking about one of Asia’s most celebrated restaurateurs, and a philanthropist as well, Michelle Garnaut AO.

Michelle grew up in Australia but always knew she wanted to travel. The fact she founded and launched her business, the M Restaurant Group, in Hong Kong in the late 1980s makes her one of the first independent restaurateurs to set up shop anywhere in Hong Kong or China.

Time Magazine has even described Michelle as an ‘industry celebrity’ and someone who ‘pioneered the fashionable-dining scene in China’.

Michelle is well known for the upscale restaurants and bars she’s created and launched in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing – including M on the Bund restaurant still delighting diners in Shanghai.

She’s also committed to giving back, and founded the Shanghai International Literary Festival the M Literary Residency, the Village People Project and the women’s initiative, Mentor Walks, which she started in Beijing.

Michelle has won numerous international entrepreneurial awards and accolades, and last year was awarded an Order of Australia for her numerous contributions to business and society.

In this episode you’ll learn:

How Michelle became one of the most successful fine-dining restaurateurs in China
Her hard fought lessons about starting and running a business
Why she started out with her cash locked in a fridge, and
How she had to fight to win back control of her business.

We think you’ll just love Michelle’s amazing stories and all-round fabulousness.

Happy listening!