POWER UP WOMEN!

Women own 40% of all businesses in the USA, but female entrepreneurs receive less than 1% of venture capital -- yes, ONE PERCENT! Plus, they are much more likely to be declined for a loan than male entrepreneurs.  The HERImpact Pitch Competition, supported by the Ford Fund, provides badly needed funding and business coaching to help female social entrepreneurs with great ideas scale their businesses.  Started in Detroit, the program has already expanded to Miami and Washington, DC.  We talk to pitch competition winners Brittany Rhodes, founder of Black Girl Math-gic, Arielle Johnson, founder of Fierce Staffing and Ford's Yisel Cabrera about how and why HERImpact works. 

Every year, thousands of women diagnosed with breast cancer face complex medical decisions.  Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame medical reporter Patricia Anstett, author of Breast Cancer Surgery and Reconstruction: What's Right for YOU, has made it her life's mission to inform women about what she calls "the under-discussed issues" related to breast surgery and reconstruction. She wants women to feel empowered to understand the choices are THEIRS ALONE and to give them the knowledge they need to resist well-intentioned pressure for surgery -- including for nipples -- that may not be right for them. 

Back in the Game: Why Concussion Doesn't Have to End Your Athletic Career is the definitive book on youth sports and concussions. Joanne Gerstner, co-author of the book, joins Anne and Monica for a cutting edge conversation on concussions, women athletes and her many-faceted career in the world of sports.

Hall of Fame photojournalist Linda Solomon was Aretha Franklin's personal photographer for decades, and given rare access to many of "The Queen of Soul's" most private family and behind-the-scenes musical moments.  We talk with Linda about her unusual relationship with Aretha and her gorgeous new book, The Queen Next Door: An Intimate Portrait of Aretha Franklin. Solomon calls the book her "love letter" to one of the greatest musical talents of our time. We'll also hear about Solomon's career journey, which includes putting over one million cameras in the hands of children and inspiring homeless children through her Pictures of Hope program.

In the early days of rodeoing in the American West, cowgirls competed just as fiercely as cowboys in everything from roping to bronco riding. But women were gradually forced out of the sport, supposedly because it was "too dangerous." But professional "All Girl Rodeo" is making a comeback.  Two of the driving forces behind this growing sport are sisters Nicole and Katie Schrock.  Skilled horsewomen and visionary entrepreneurs, they are the first siblings to both win the title of Miss Rodeo Oregon. If you like cowgirls, horses and "That Western Life," you'll love this episode. 

In addition to POWERING UP, I also host the "Game Changers" podcast for the International Women's Forum, which gives me the chance to talk with groundbreaking Sheroes from all over the world and share them here. Ersilia Vaudo Scarpetta, the Chief Diversity Officer for the European Space Agency, has worked in science and space for 30 years.  Our conversation ranged from why she believes studying science gives girls super powers to how her unusual mother taught her children, growing up in Italy, about chemical compounds in the kitchen!

Who ever heard of a franchising executive recruiter?  Monica and I never had, until I reconnected with former ran Ford Motor Company executive colleague Kris Odeh. Now the founder and CEO of Momentum Franchise Group, Odeh draws on her 30 years of global executive and leadership credentials in the technology, finance, non-profit, retail and auto industries, helping ambitious entrepreneurs -- of all ages -- find their perfect franchise match. With a particular passion for working with women and veterans, Odeh also shared her perspective on leadership and the importance of aligning your talents and work interests with the lifestyle you want. 

As an inductee into the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame, I worry about the future of journalism, which is facing two crises.  With newspapers going out of business and journalists losing their jobs, it is clear the old business model is broken.  Plus, the value of a trustworthy free press, one of the cornerstones of American democracy, is under attack, with disagreeable facts labeled, "fake news" and respected journalists called "enemies of the people." Monica and Anne tackle the crisis in journalism with Bob Zaltsberg, who is recognized as "the dean of Indiana newspaper editors" and is now teaching Media Management at Indiana University to the next generation of journalists.

Millennials have led the way on new thinking and open conversations about gender.  Co-host Monica Doyle invited two transgender friends – Grace, a transgender woman, and August, a transgender man – to talk about their experiences.  As a Baby Boomer committed to equal rights and dignity for all humans, Anne learned a lot. 

Meritor senior executive Linda Taliaferro has climbed the corporate ladder in the very male world of global commercial vehicles. So she understands the gender landmines and obstacles ambitious women must navigate throughout their leadership journeys. From confronting sexual harassers to mastering workplace politics, Taliaferro has experienced it all.  That's why she founded The TEE (The Extra Effort) organization to share what she has learned (often the hard way!) and mentor other women. The critical differentiator for women, she believes, is the ability to find the courage to step into and claim our individual and collective power.  She's a global executive in a tough, male-dominated field; she's authentic and she's committed to helping other women power up!