She Built That | Get Inspired! | Weekly interviews with female founders building their empires on their own terms!

After over two decades in politics, Premier Christy Clark has learned that to survive the political arena you have to let go of your need to be liked because you cannot please everybody. Winning her first elected role in 1996, Christy served as an MLA from 1996 to 2005, serving as Deputy Minister from 2001 to 2005.

In 2005, she took a break from politics to spend time with her son. It was during this time that she joined CKNW and started The Christy Clark Show, which ended up winning the national Peter Gzowski Award in 2008. After six years on air, she decided to return to politics, but this time it would be on her own terms.

I'm just going to try and be me and be truthful to myself about what I want to do, and if people don't like it, that's OK.

Fortunately for Christy, people ended up liking her. In 2011, she re-entered the legislature after winning a by-election and in 2013 she was elected in her first general election as the Premier of British Columbia. In May 2017, she will run again, and if elected, she will be the first woman in Canadian history to ever be re-elected as Premier.

In today's interview, you'll learn:

• Why Christy used to spend some mornings getting ready for work at a hockey rink.
• Why she thinks that women need to let go of trying to be perfect.
• Why she would like more women to pursue a career in politics.
• How being Premier has impacted her relationships.

Jen Murtagh has spent a significant portion of her career advocating for others. Dubbed a "people philanthropist" by one of her closest friends, she spent the past five years as the executive director of the CKNW Orphan's Fund, raising money for children with disabilities. Four months ago she took on a new role as the CEO of The Minerva Foundation, a charitable foundation that elevates the visibility, influence and contribution of girls and women.

When we build confidence in women, when we build capacity in women, when we build skills and leadership development and give women the opportunity to really bring their voice to the table, I feel that that really spills out into the community.

A firm believer in the law of reciprocity, Jen is passionate about giving back and meeting like-minded people. Over her years of networking, Jen has built what she refers to as a solid female powerhouse contingent and credits many of them as the reason behind her success. Recognizing the tremendous benefits of networking, Jen founded Networking in Van, an online database that curates events and networking opportunities in Vancouver, making it easier for others to meet and connect as well.

In today's interview you'll learn:

- Why Jen views networking as a by-product of professional development.

- Why she believes leadership is important.

- Why she says she has learned more in the past two years than the first 36.

- Why she believes it's important for women to advocate for themselves.

In Australia, Nikki Durkin is kind of a big deal.  At 25, she is the co-founder of her third startup Codemakers, has been named one of Sydney Magazine's Top 100 Most Influential People, and was one of the top 3 finalist's in Cosmopolitan Magazine's 'Fun, Fearless Female Of The Year' Awards. 

"I could go get a job tomorrow and get paid a lot of money, but I know what's going to happen everyday. That's just not me. I like the unknown whether it's I'm going to do really well or I'm not going to do really well. But at least for me I feel like it's in my control."

She founded her first company at 15, and her second, 99dresses, at 18 and within a couple years was accepted into one of the most prestigious startup accelerators in the world, Y Combinator, located in Silicon Valley. Everything seemed to be going according to plan…ish, until it started not too (sound familiar?).

First, her co-founders left, then the funding she had secured fell through, and while Nikki did everything she could to navigate yet another challenge of scaling a business, it wasn't enough, and her and her co-founder decided to wind 99dresses down. And almost overnight, Nikki became famous because of this article she posted on Medium: My Startup Failed And This Is What It Feels Like

In today's interview, you'll learn

 -How Nikki got her first foray into entrepreneurship.

-The advice her parents gave her about getting out of the rat race.

-How she was met her current Codemakers founder, James Ryan.

-Why she believes mindset is critical to success.

For more on Nikki and other rad women, head on over to SheBuiltThat.com

Kylie Toh is not your typical 26-year-old. As the founder of Chic Geek, a community she started four years ago for women wanting to explore technology and entrepreneurship, Kylie knows firsthand the importance of being digitally literate, and wants women to have all the advantages within our technology-driven economy.

To ensure this, Chic Geek empowers women young and old to expand their digital literacy by facilitating regular workshops, meet-ups and conversations that encourage women to stay curious and get "geeky."

"Being a chic geek is pairing these two words that don't normally go together. It really is around challenging stereotypes and encouraging women to own being smart, being nerdy and just loving it."

As a result of her efforts, Kylie was selected by the U.S. Department of State as part of the International Visitor's Leadership Program to represent Canada on a tour for Women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) and was also featured in the November issue of Avenue Magazine's Top 40 Under 40. 

In today's interview, you'll learn:

• Why Kylie founded Chic Geek.
• What it means to be a Chic Geek.
• Why it's important to choose your partner wisely.
• The five values that embody the Chic Geek community.

To find out more about Kylie and Chic Geek, head on over to www.shebuiltthat.com

Lauren Robinson is not afraid of hard work. From competing on the varsity rowing team at McGill University where she graduated with a degree in Finance and Entrepreneurship, to making deals on the trading floor at one of Canada's top brokerages, Lauren has never been one to back down from a challenge.

As the first Venture Partner at Highline BETA, a startup co-creation company that launches new ventures with leading corporations. Lauren spent the past few years, building HIGHLINEvc as an operator and investor, after a career in the corporate world. She spends a significant portion of her time traveling, and gets excited about submerging herself in startup ecosystems to gain a better understanding of the history, culture perspectives and how startups can work with successfully larger corporates.

"My decision to leave a traditional job in the corporate world developed through building a mindset around a career as a portfolio of projects and activities that bring value to the people and organizations you are working with."

In today's interview you'll learn:

-Why Lauren decided to pursue a career in investment banking.

-How sport has shaped a large part of how she looks at life.

-The three things that make up her definition of success.

-How she is focused on building an intentional life.

To learn more about Lauren and other rad women, head on over to shebuiltthat.com

"Disruption is the way in 2016. Whether it's a business, or it's innovation, or it's transportation, the people who are successful are able to be disruptive in terms of finding new ways." Barinder Rasode on She Built That

Barinder Rasode is proud to be called disruptive: heck, that just means she is getting stuff done. While Barinder's so-called "disruptiveness" has at times rubbed people the wrong way — in particular some of the South Asian men in her community — she sees being disruptive as a good attribute, and would like to encourage other women to identify with it positively as well.

As a long-time social justice advocate, Barinder became the first female South Asian councillor in North America in 2008. In 2014, she ran for mayor of the City of Surrey, and despite being a front-runner in the campaign, she received a ton of backlash from her community as it was not widely encouraged in the South Asian community for women to speak out. Despite these challenges, she has been the recipient of a Ruby Award for the work she has done in the community and was listed as one of the 50 Most Powerful People in Vancouver in 2014.

In today's interview you'll learn:

- Why Barinder left her government gig to pursue a career in politics.

- Why she is passionate about advocating and supporting women.

- How the cultural limitations put on men and women in the South Asian community can create a lot of barriers.

- The three things she wants her children to know about life.

To learn more about Barinder, head on over to www.shebuiltthat.com

"This is our only life so make an impact, work for yourself, make the decisions, do the work and get the recognition".  Sandra Zovko on She Built That

Sandra Zovko has always had an appreciation for garments that were printed, patterned and unique. That proved to be a good thing, since Sandra's mother, the late MILA ZOVKO and namesake of Sandra's company, also shared a similar passion, and spent most of Sandra's childhood knitting colourful, multi-pattern sweaters for Sandra and her siblings to wear.

When her mom passed away in 2008, Sandra inherited her mom's entire collection of knit sweaters and would often wear them to work, parties and events. Almost everywhere she went wearing an original Mila Zovko knit, people would stop to compliment her and ask her where she had bought it. It wasn't long before Sandra started thinking about what it would take to reconstruct Mila's designs for the masses.

In 2014, Sandra turned that idea into action.  After two years and numerous lunchtime phone calls and evening and weekend meetings with friends and advisors talking all things colour swatches, photo shoots and production timelines, Sandra Zovko launched her coveted knitwear line MILA ZOVKO this past fall, and I couldn't be more proud.

In today's interview you'll learn:

-Why growing up, Sandra never wanted to be an entrepreneur.

-How she taught herself everything she needed to know about knitwear.

-Why she will never quit.

-Why she would encourage future entrepreneurs to learn what they don't know and go for it.

For more on Sandra and other rad women, head on over to shebuiltthat.com.

It probably would have been sounder for us to stay small here and really develop this firm, but I am enjoying the challenges of the new side of things. Rain Henderson on She Built That

 Rain Henderson is building an empire — a legal empire, that is. In 1996, at the age of 29, Rain and her partner Kevin Heinrich started Henderson Heinrich LLP, a family law practice, in Vancouver. Over the course of the next two decades, they have grown it to three firms across Canada, and Rain has no plans of stopping.

With a reputation as one of the top family lawyers on the West Coast, it is evident from speaking with Rain that she has no qualms about hard work. It's her dedication to her health and that of her colleagues that has always impressed me. Not only does Rain make daily physical fitness a priority — I know this because I see her at noon in the gym at noon almost daily — Henderson Heinrich LLP also invests in bi-weekly training sessions for their staff, as both Kevin and Rain know firsthand the benefits of regular physical fitness.

In today's interview you'll learn:

• How Rain built a successful law firm while raising two young children.
• The two careers Rain would possess if she wasn't a lawyer.
• Her secret to being married to the same man for 23 years.
• The most common reason Rain sees marriages end in divorce.

To find out more about Rain and other rad women building big businesses, head on over to www.shebuiltthat.com

"It wasn't until music that I would lock myself in my room and just play the guitar for hours." Kelsey Klassen on She Built That.

Kelsey Klassen is an artist with many talents. A passionate writer and musician, Kelsey spent most of her 20s writing and performing her own songs in venues around Vancouver and Australia. Upon completing her second album in 2011, tragedy struck Kelsey and the Vancouver music community, and she decided to take a break from music to focus on her career as a writer.

A natural talent, she quickly worked her way up the ranks as an established writer. Earlier this year, she accepted the position as editor-in-chief of VITA Daily, formerly Vitamin Daily, Canada's premiere online lifestyle magazine.

In today's interview, you'll learn:

- How music helped Kelsey overcome an early traumatizing childhood experience

- Her passion for print media, despite it being a "lost art"

- Her most memorable interview with a man who embraced life despite his physical limitations

- Why she believes other people's stories are the fundamentals of human nature

To find ou more about Kelsey and other rad women, head on over to shebuiltthat.com

"There is no balance being a mom, there are weeks that work and then there are weeks where all the balls you are juggling are rolling down a hill and you can't catch them". Erin Treloar on She Built That

From RAW talks to real talk, Erin Treloar may just be one of the funniest, most honest straight-talking women I have yet to sit down with on She Built That. As the founder of RAW Beauty Talks, Erin is passionate about cultivating a positive body image for young women, and celebrating their unique and natural beauty.

I created RAW for the girls who look in the mirror and don't feel good enough. [Who] are starting to experiment and think about really cutting back their food or dieting heavily and are using their body or appearance as a tool to find happiness.

In today's very candid interview with Erin, we talk about everything from eating disorders, to self-love; from entrepreneurship to relationships.

In today's interview you'll learn:

- How her upbringing had a profound impact on her entrepreneurial endeavours.

- Why she believes there is no such thing as "balance."

- The two women she would love to feature on RAW Beauty Talks.

- The advice she has for other entrepreneurs who don't know where to start.

To learn more about Erin and other rad women, head on over to shebuiltthat.com