SheVentures

Jen Groover's been through it all and has the emotional growth to prove it. Rather than letting her troubled childhood with an abusive, alcoholic father defeat her, she used it to shape her view of life, business, and finances. A motivational speaker, author, and entrepreneur, Groover is a strong advocate for human potential, as well as for the success of women.

Complete organ failure at 26 from overexertion made her realize how negative patterns were harming her. Listen to the way she transformed herself and about her latest venture, Empowered Eyewear.

For a transcript, visit the show notes at https://sheventures.centsai.com/podcast/episode-4-jen-groover/

Erica Meltzer has taken the of SAT and ACT tutoring sphere by storm. After scoring an improbable 800 on the verbal portion of the SATs, Meltzer realized that she had a unique perspective to share, which she now spreads on an international level.

Her first book, The Critical Reader, which she originally self-published, has sold over 160,000 copies to date.

How has her focus on the socioeconomic disparity of tutoring in the U.S. set her apart from the rest in her field?

Find out on this episode of SheVentures. For more information, visit the show notes at https://sheventures.centsai.com/podcast/ep-3-erica-meltzer/

Every entrepreneur faces a moment when they decide if they're all in. For Belinda DiGiambattista, it was one weekend when she and her husband agonized over whether to take out a loan out against their home in order to fund a much-needed upgrade to her food business' kitchen. They could have lost everything.

Instead, DiGiambattista's focus, drive, and unrelenting optimism catapulted her first company, Butter Beans — a business whose mission it is to provide healthy lunch menus for public, private, and charter schools — to a multi-million-dollar revenue business. After nine years, she successfully sold the company for an undisclosed amount. She says she is now "financially comfortable."

DiGiambattista, who earned her MBA from New York University's Stern School of Business, decided the valuable lessons she learned as an entrepreneur could be sold as online classes on the platform Teachable. She is now an "infopreneur" who ran her first successful pilot this fall and plans to relaunch her full-blown course in the coming months.

Listen to what it means to grow up on a farm, move to the Big Apple, bootstrap your business for nine years, and succeed. Get ready to be inspired.

For more, visit https://sheventures.centsai.com/podcast/ep-2-belinda-digiambattista/

I met Alexa Carlin last year in Washington, D.C. After hearing about her conference, WEX — short for Women Empower Expo — I wanted to see it for myself. I admit, having attended many conferences in the past, I was dubious about the value I would get as an entrepreneur.

Damn, was I wrong.

Let's get one thing straight from the get-go: WEX is a conference for any woman who wants actionable, affordable advice on starting or improving her business or her mission.

WEX's tickets range from $30 to $99, priced by design to be inclusive, and I have never been to a one-day conference that represents such racial, socio-economic, and age diversity. I spoke with teenpreneurs, women in their 60s, and everyone in between. The panel topics I attended were immediately relevant to my business.

My only critique is that I left fully charged, but I wanted more. Also, I'd love to see Carlin expand locations. Travel can be a big expense for entrepreneurs, especially those of us who are bootstrapping. I know she is aware of this and is announcing a third location for 2019 somewhere west of the Mississippi. Think NYC for your fourth!

At WEX, Carlin spoke authentically and vulnerably about her near-death experience without feeling an ounce of victimhood, about her excitement when five people attended her first event, and about how her success is very much about showing up and not letting fear stop her. I was impressed.

Carlin is charismatic, confident, and a natural leader. She carries herself well as a public speaker because she speaks passionately about what she loves: helping other women and girls make a difference, all while being an entrepreneur herself.

It's also appropriate that Carlin is the first episode of SheVentures because she made a difference in my own career and in this project.

I've always had a moribund fear of public speaking, though I would do it when my previous jobs demanded it of me, whether on TV, on the radio, or in front of a group of people. But when I saw Carlin speak so effortlessly, I realized my silence was, in fact, harming me. I wasn't telling my own story. Nor was I doing what I desired, which was to host in-depth interviews of other women to inspire and build community.

Carlin's course on public speaking can be found on her site, and I highly recommend it. Our interaction speaks to how women can help each other through community, networking, and support.

Here's SheVentures' first episode. Listen to Alexa Carlin share her journey from a teenpreneur to the founder of a national conference that attracts thousands of women and counting. We've also picked out some of our favorite moments below.

I'd love your feedback and any ideas for future guests. Venture on!

Best,

Doria Lavagnino

Jana Lynne Sanchez Pivots from PR Maven to Political Hopeful

Listen to the inspiring story of Jana Lynne Sanchez, a woman who ran a tight race as a Democrat in Texas' 6th Congressional District and nearly won in a red state. She is now a political consultant for Blue Texas Strategies, where she's putting her political prowess to work.

Sheer determination, grit, savvy, and kindness are Sanchez's hallmarks. From her early Texas roots, she became a political and business correspondent for Reuters in Europe. From there, she pivoted to building her first venture, a PR firm called City Savvy that had offices in Amsterdam, London, and New York, and then returned home to Texas where she ran for Congress.

Get ready to be inspired by her tips on how to change direction and follow what you're meant to do. For more information, visit the show notes at https://sheventures.centsai.com/podcast/bonus-episode-jana-lynne-sanchez/