BoostHER: conversations designed to inspire you, me, & her

Boss BoostHER Month concludes with Domonique Debnam, Senior Director of Fitness and Tennis Footwear at Nike, joining us in the BoostHER Club to talk all things career, life, relationship green flags, and most importantly, how she finds it a responsibility to always maintain her authenticity throughout her journey, so that the young women following her can also show up authentically along their own paths. We learn about Domonique's humility, and how celebrating her wins is still something that she is learning to pause, reflect, and make time for, but something she acknowledges as a key to continued success. Domonique also discusses her connection to Nike, how it started, how it has manifested throughout the years, and we also discuss her new role as Senior Director; how she is learning to find gratitude in both the growing pains and the significance in this being an exceptional milestone not just for her career, but for her industry overall.

We invite Natasha Salter into the BoostHER Club as we continue celebrating December as our month of Boss BoostHERs. Tash leads the way for adidas Basketball as the Design Director for Color and Materials and goes into detail for us surrounding all that encompasses her role, and the areas across sports apparel and footwear in which her and her team makes an impact. We talk about what led Tash to the role, what she could see herself doing if not for her current role, and we also discuss how, although Tash has worked on some amazing projects in her career, her biggest honor lies in helping to bring along the women she works with to help further their ability to take up space in the industry. Lastly, Tash displays a an openness and vulnerability surrounding her mental health and how it was a low that she has been able to turn into an incredible strength, pushing her to continually learn and see the beauty in each experience life has to offer her.

We continue Boss BoostHER month with Ilona Stepanyants ("Lo"), Senior Vice President of Brand and Partnerships for The ARIA Network. Lo talks to us about how making sure she is always the most prepared person in the room has served her career thus far, and how her confidence level also hinges on making sure consistent preparation is a key staple of her professional endeavors. We talk about salary negotiation, the importance of having your own personal "board of directors" to ensure you're not operating in a bubble of solely your own opinions, and we dive into the importance of family to Lo, and how it has become the cornerstone of making sure she is operating in a way that still allows her to show up as her best self for her family each day. Lastly, Ilona discusses a disappointing period in her career that she wouldn't change for the world, as it allowed her to work with icons such as Pharrell and Beyonce, including talking through all of the knowledge that she gained from such wonderful experiences.

We finish out Gratitude Month by talking with Crystal Duncan, licensed therapist based out of San Diego, California, and someone in a profession we have a lot of gratitude for here in the BoostHER Club. In today's episode, Crystal talks to us about the nature of her role as a therapist, and some of the tools that allow her to really work as a teammate with her patients in order to help them reach a place of healing and wholehearted living. We talk about the influences that have shaped both Crystal's path to becoming a therapist, and also that promote her growth within this career - Brene Brown and Oprah Winfrey, just to name a few. Lastly, Crystal discusses with us how making sure she has a healthy relationship with herself is the catalyst to maintaining healthy relationships with others, and how continually doing the important internal work is a great trick to amplifying our life experiences.

Episode 3 highlights Dr. Alcha Strane, an obstetrician-gynecologist in the state of Georgia, and one of our many healthcare professionals deserving of our gratitude as she has been on the frontlines all throughout the pandemic. Alcha takes us through the ins and outs of her role, the misconceptions she can face from an outsider looking into her role, and we even get a glimpse into all of the different roles Alcha played before settling in as an OBGYN. We learn about the medical disparities that plague women - namely, black women - and all of the ways Alcha is working to make sure her patients, and all women, never have to face these inequities, or are well-equipped if they ever do. Lastly, Alcha reminds us of the importance of leaning into our purpose, and by her doing so, she now proud serves her community as *Dr.* Alcha Strane.

We continue Gratitude Month by celebrating Veterans Day in the BoostHER Club this week. Today, we talk with 9-year U.S. Navy veteran, Tracey Walker, about her time in the Navy as an Air Traffic Controller. Tracey talks to us about the highs and lows that come with being a woman in the military, but also shares with us how it is an experience she wouldn't trade for the world. We learn about the world of Air Traffic Control, the misconceptions that women in the military may face, and how Tracey built a confidence and leadership style that she still carries with her today. Lastly, we learn about some of the difficulties veterans face when they end their contract within the military, and how, through finding her support system in a community of veterans, she's been able to move past the uncertainty, and move towards her next adventure with a spirit of excitement and determination.

We kick off Season 2 with a very special guest in Rebecca Jury, VP of Women's Apparel Product at Nike WHQ. Previously a 15-year adidas alum, Rebecca talks about her time at the German-based company; how she got her start, and how doing such culturally-relevant collaborations with the brand added a more meaningful scope to her role overall. We talk about Rebecca's transition from adidas to Nike, and how dissolving the internal pressures she placed on herself led to a beautiful path of self-discovery. Rebecca discusses with us the highs and lows along her journey, and in the spirit of November as our Month of Gratitude, she explains why she is grateful for the good experiences as well as the not-so-good, just before detailing her gratitude for her most favorite role of them all: being a mom.

Our BoostHER creator, Nya Mason, takes a break from the host chair and moves into the guest seat this week to share with guest host (and episode 7 BoostHER), Dr. Charlotte Marshall, anecdotes from her own personal and career journey thus far. She takes us through her motivation and the process that went into creating BoostHER, and how both the evolution of the podcast, and of herself, truly have gone hand in hand throughout season one. Nya discusses how her family, her experiences as an athlete, and how the legacy she wants to leave on the world has shaped her worldview and allows her to live in a way that finds her always seeking growth and new ways to "level up". To end, Charlotte puts Nya in the hot seat for her version of a "Lightning Round", right before our BoostHER Up segment, where we learn the moment that has positively defined Nya's career.

It is AAPI Heritage Month and we have Corrie Tin Villatoro here in the BoostHER Club to help us celebrate. Corrie, with a wealth of experience and knowledge in the PR realm as former VP at Edelman, and in the Brand Communications realm as Communications Manager for both Nike and adidas, talks to us about how those experiences shape our path, and our evolution not just as professionals, but as people. We talk about how to pivot when a salary negotiation conversation may not go as desired, and about how having respect for people's lived experiences empower us all to show up authentically as ourselves. Lastly, Corrie talks about the joy she feels in being a Chinese-American woman, and how amidst all of the struggles brought on from the past year, her resolve has been fortified in terms of standing up for and with others in the fight towards a collective sense of equality and justice.