WIL Talk (Women in Leadership Talk)

Why is your image so important not only in your career but in life overall? Linda Yates, the Image Energizer, joins us to talk about all things image.  Linda is a dynamic speaker, author, and executive coach and is known for her positive energy and real-world strategies. She has worked with over 10,000 individuals representing Fortune 500 companies including CVS/Aetna, Delta Airlines, Wells Fargo, and Fannie Mae, just to mention a few. Her mission is to inspire, inform, and illustrate how to lead, build teams, and communicate a positive, polished, and professional image. She believes NOTHING is impossible.

 At 13 years old Linda knew she wanted to focus on image and asked her parents to invest $300 so that she could go to a seminar to learn about image. She knew exactly what she wanted to do. Then life, marriage, the stories we tell ourselves, and her plans changed. So, she left her dream on the table for over 30 years and entered the corporate world. Then as life does, eleven years ago, her dream came back to the forefront, and she circled back to her true passion of helping clients create an image of distinction.

The image of distinction is about how you show up, behave, and communicate with yourself and others. She shares with us the importance of the embodied condition which is bringing the result of how you feel with what you wear. During our conversation we share many stories both personal for each of us but also those we have encountered. How what you wear has an impact on how you show up and why what you wear should be reflective of how you want to be perceived. 

Some research that was conducted with sales professionals measured their results when wearing a particular colour, they liked versus a colour they didn’t, and sales went down with the colour they didn’t like. Interesting how this impacts not only us but the energy we emit and the impacts on others.

We also discuss what not to wear and being highly in tune with your surroundings. You need to think about what your purpose is and who you are meeting with, does it make sense what you are wearing. She shares some great examples of when she moved from the Midwest to Miami.  Linda shares that for women when you are speaking and remove your jacket, you actually lose 50% of your perceived authority.  And lastly, we speak to that internal image and the communication we share. Words matter and powerful words create an emotional response so think carefully when you choose your words. Always look to lift others including yourself.

You can find Linda on LI at Linda H Yates. 

Looking to better understand your own leadership then visit us at www.wilempowered.com and take our free leadership quiz.

#imagematters #imageofdistinction #selftalk #imageenergizer #wilempowered #wiltalk

How does one find their passion and give back at the same time? Join us for a conversation with Blima Ehrentreu, CEO of The Designers Group where she speaks with us about her passion for creating and innovating in a way that leaves a lasting legacy.

Blima shares how she first became interested in design and construction at the early age of 8 when her parents moved across the street from her family home to demolish and rebuild it. She was fascinated with every step of the process and was eager to see the finished product.

She speaks with us about having a diverse lens and perspective enabling her and her team to bring the best from the many cultures we experience. She also talks about the importance of empowering others and not letting perceived obstacles get in your way. 

Giving back is a core staple of her business which is why she created a platform “TDG Furniture Exchange” that takes someone’s furniture that is no longer needed and matches it to a new owner. This keeps less furniture out of our landfills and makes someone else very happy to receive an item that they need.

In addition, they have created TDG Gives Back which allows individuals interested in design to spend a day at their offices to learn and step into the shoes of this creative process. They will mentor individuals hoping to become designers. Check out their website to learn more: thedesignersgroup.com.

Blima’s passion for the work that they do at TDG is inspiring. Knowing you love what you do every day makes it feel not like work but more like living your dream. That’s not to say that every day is easy but it’s worth it!!

Her focus on creating an experience through design and truly understanding the needs of her clients is crucial to her work. Using skills to really listen, hearing beyond what is being said and touching all of the senses is what brings a design to its fruition. 

Interested in learning more about your leadership abilities? Take our free leadership quiz at www.wilempowered.com. 

#design #listeningskills #thedesignersgroup #creativity #innovation #wilempowered #wiltalkpodcast

What is the ugly truth about the world of beauty: Is it doing more harm (to both you and the planet) than good? Join us for a conversation with CEO, Susannah Dellinger of the Bright Beauty Collective as she shares her journey over the past 17 years as a top executive for leading luxury brands such as Trish McEvoy, Laura Mercier, Dr. Brandt Skincare to name a few. She started her own personal health journey when faced with sudden hormonal issues, adult-onset acne, unexplained infertility, and a devastating miscarriage.  She soon realized the ugly truth about the world of beauty and began to ask the question is it doing more harm than good, especially to yourself and the planet?

During her journey, she began to discover effective brands with beautiful skincare and makeup products that left out toxicities, utilized alternative energy sources, gave back to the community, used reusable packaging, and minimized beauty’s footprint on the planet.  With the firm belief that these rising conscious beauty brands could compete against the big names if given the right access to retail advantages, she founded the Bright Beauty Collective (BBC) in October 2021.  Using her expertise in the luxury beauty industry, she is giving conscious brands such as Indie Lee, OGEE, One Love Organics, Jillian Dempsey, RMS Beauty, Solara Suncare, and Kjaer Weis a voice, presence, and the tools to stand out on the shelves, with the hope that big-name brands will take notice and start following suit.

In our conversation, we discuss the role marketing plays in the multi-billion-dollar industry and how conscious brands can compete. We also dive into the stories we tell ourselves and how to overcome and take that step of courage to have an impact. In only a few short years, Susannah has taken an idea and passion and turned it into a multi-million-dollar industry raising awareness and educating consumers about conscious beauty choices globally. Today she has over 140 freelancers that lead this charge across the globe.

Warning – this is an episode that is a must to listen to. You will better understand not only what you put into your body but what you put on it and the potential harm it will cause. In addition, if this episode resonates please listen to our conversation with Kori Estrada where we dive into oral care and its footprint. Add link

 Would you like to better understand how you show up as a leader? Visit our website at www.wilempowered.com and take our free leadership quiz.

Thanks for listening and please do share this episode with someone you feel needs to hear it.

 #beauty #conscioiusbeauty #consciousleadership #wilempowered #brightbeautycollective #womenleaders #empowered

Revolutionizing conflict with creativity, how does one do that with grace? Karen Valencic, Mechanical engineer, and author of Spiral Impact, Aikido Master combines her experience with conflict resolution and leadership to offer a fresh view to transform the leadership journey. 

Karen loves the art of Aikido, a martial arts practice that began back in the early 1900s and is the truest form of martial arts. She takes us on a journey of how power moves with us rather than against us. Aikido mimics life through the movements of energy and creativity; struggle and fear keep us stuck, and differences between people, when: they don’t see things your way or you are at an impasse.

She speaks to the power of intention and knowing what it is you desire and the 3 levels to check in with: 1) Big picture 2)  Personal by honouring yourself and others 3)Immediate intent – what do you want now?

She provides a great metaphor of how a hammer and nail are forced with short-term impact, whereas a screw and screwdriver provide expansion and longer-term effects. So many great examples of how Spiral Impact actually gains momentum. We discuss what conflict is and why so many avoid it like the plague. Conflict can be used in a very healthy way to build a creative tension or if not used properly will create a destructive tension. That destructive conflict pushes hard, fast, and long, the intention is typically to control, make wrong, or destroy. Whereas conflict mastery pushes just right for the people involved. The intention is to engage for positive outcomes and innovation.

How do you handle conflict? In what ways do you practice either creative tension or destructive tension?

You can read more about Karen’s on her website at www.spiralimpact.com. 

 Wanting to better understand how you show up as a leader, visit us at www.wilempowered.com and take our free leadership quiz.

 #leadership #conflictmastery #difficultconversations #wilempowered #wiltalk

From passion to purpose – what does that look like?

For Cathi Nelson, founder and CEO of Photo Managers, author, and community builder, shares her story of passion of storytelling by turning it into a thriving community of purposeful human beings. In 2009, Cathi began organizing photos for family and friends, which very quickly turned into a thriving business with over 700 members worldwide.  She purposefully built this business to be able to create a legacy, community, and human-to-human connection. 

She shares her insights as to how every life experience is part of the thread that shapes who and how we are being in the world. When she started this business, she never dreamed that it would take off the way that it has. She empowers others to create, innovate, and serve others in a very intentional and purposeful way. Visual storytelling is powerful and brings a person’s story to life because of the curiosity that someone has about you. Her team of illuminators helps you tell your story. She speaks to David Brooks's book about whether you are an illuminator or a diminisher.

 I was so inspired by Cathi’s story of intention and awareness to what was right in front of her and the power of saying “YES”. As women especially, we must seize the moment and when the Director of Marketing of Fuji Film asked to meet with her, she did just that, nerves and all, she still said yes.  What will you say yes to?

 Looking to better understand your leadership abilities? Visit us at www.wilempowered.com and take our free leadership quiz. 

 #Connection #Community #justsayyes #illuminator #wilempowered #wiltalkpodcast

How often do you think about your impact on the world? We welcome Tonya Dickenson, Founder and Creative Director at Asymmetric by Design to the show where she shares her journey of having a dream at 10 years old and actualizing that 40 years later.

Tonya combined her creative flair with her business acumen from her pharmaceutical career and created Asymmetric by Design, a sustainable, one-of-a-kind jewelry brand. It is recognized for its socially responsible practices, but more importantly for its empowering, bold, and unique designs that captivate with beauty and narrative. Each piece is created to tell a story with its uniqueness. Tonya has travelled to over 100 countries and has witnessed first-hand the inequalities and impacts of climate change, fueling her purpose to make a difference, specifically to empower women and artisans and protect our planet.  Her originality and sustainability commitment shine with accolades like being nominated “Coup De Couer Du President” in her first presence at Montreal Fashion Week. 

In our conversation, Tonya shares the importance of leaving a legacy not only to her family but for the planet. Her courage has enabled her to impact initiatives such as her sustainability calculator and membership in 1% for the planet showcasing her determination and dedication to raise awareness, change consumer habits, and protect the planet. Her creativity enables her to repurpose, reuse, and recycle many of the treasures of the world.  For Tonya, it is important to consistently live her values which enables her freedom, truth, integrity, and sustainability. She could no longer be shackled by the restrictions of corporate and knew it was time for change. Her purpose is commendable, and we invite you to take a look at the work Tonya creates at www.asymmetricbydesign. 

Want to keep up with the latest podcasts or events happening at WIL Empowered, sign up for our monthly newsletter at www.wilempowered.com.

 #sustainability #purpose #fashion #wilempowered #wiltalkpodcast 

What does it take to make that move from corporate to being a small business owner? Find out now with Susie Dantas, Ex -executive, at L’Oreal International in Paris, Montreal, and most recently PepsiCo where she spent a very successful career in marketing and innovation. During Covid, Susie had an eye-opening experience and realized she needed to have more flexibility and autonomy. She was intrigued by the idea of combining her passion for beauty with her years of experience in the corporate world to build her own business as a franchise owner with #LaserClinicsGroup, the largest cosmetic clinic company in the world. 

Susie’s energy and passion are contagious so be warned as you watch this episode, you will be inspired and energized. She shares with us how she took a step back to reflect on her journey and what it was that got her out of bed every day, the common denominator always came back to people and innovation. She loved the work she had been doing for so many years but knew it was time for a change and with the support of her partner, they visited the franchise show. This opened her to new possibilities and the opportunity to start something for her and her family.

She speaks to the importance of slowing down long enough to listen before making changes whether that is with your career, with your teams, etc. She wanted to be part of something to make you feel good, to do better, and to be better which she has done. Her team at the Square One Mall location in Mississauga, ON, works closely to shadow and bring out the best in each other, what is one person's strength might be an opportunity for the next person, so they focus on how to leverage for the best possible outcomes. Moving to owning your own business brings many different challenges and we speak a lot about what skills can actually transfer. There are way more than you realize. 

At the end of the day, it is about taking care of yourself and putting yourself first so that you can take care of everyone else. Making you a priority is critical.  The WIL Empowered April Newsletter speaks to just this and the importance of how to fill your cup, you can find that on our website at www.wilempowered.com.

If you are curious about your own leadership, visit us at www.wilempowered.com and take our free leadership quiz. 

 #beauty #selfcare #laserclinics #wilempowered #wiltalkpodcast  

Why is male allyship so important especially for female leaders? Join us as we speak with Dr. Anju Virmani who spent many years as Director of Engineering and is passionate about her role as a director for many boards which include Payments Canada, Ontario Power Generation and Ontario Health. She migrated to Canada at the young age of 20 and sadly her education was not recognized. But she knew she had to find a way to build a life and sustain herself in her new country and even after a lot of discouragement, she decided to switch from child education to computer programming, eventually leading her into engineering where her focus was about solving for complexities. 

 During our conversation, Dr. Virmani shared with us the opportunities and challenges faced when working in male-dominated sectors, and how she is making a difference for both men and women as they navigate the differences in how we lead. She also speaks about the work she has done to encourage and support students (especially women) in those final years of school by helping with scholarships and mentorship. Her influence spreads wide and far with those she leads and is a role model for. 

The power distribution belongs to men – so how do we get better at empowering more women? And how do you ignore the male influence? This becomes critical to change the narrative. Understanding the role male allies play and how both men and women leaders have a responsibility and power to make this change. She shared a great story when she was invited to join a celebration for Diwali and out of 40 participants, she was the only female in the room. The men were congratulatory and communicative, and yes there were no other women in the room. She was comfortable highlighting this and encouraging everyone to change that in the future. She also talks about the importance of ensuring our boys are raised with equality in mind. We can’t make changes unless we are all working toward building a pipeline for a more equitable future.

 Another wonderful example she shares is when a male ally invited her to a round table discussion with Prime Minister Stephen Harper…to learn what happened and her first experience being on a board, have a listen.

Are you ready to better understand how you show up as a leader? Visit www.wilempowered.com and take our free leadership quiz. 

 Enjoyed this episode of #WILTalk, please leave us a review and share with your friends and other women looking to have an impact.

 #maleallies #womenonboards #changemakers #womenintech #mentorship #sponsorship #wilempowered

What does it take to champion your cause? Find out how with Shannon Walker, the founder of Northwest Battle Buddies. Shannon has been in the non-profit business since 2012 and has embarked on a journey to support Veterans battling PTSD by providing them with professionally trained service dogs and facilitating their path to freedom and independence. 

In the face of the bleak reality where 22 Veterans a day, over 8000 annually commit suicide on American soil, she and her team stand at the forefront of transformation. Boasting a 100% success rate and no lives lost to suicide since the introduction of service dogs, and her pursuit of positive change.

Shannon spent over 30 years as a professional dog trainer working with police organizations, and service dogs, both in North America and Internationally.   Her father served in the Korean War and her twin boys also served in the military to fight for our freedoms. During our conversation she dives into why and how to champion your cause, the resilience it requires and the determination to succeed. 

She is on a mission for no more lives to be lost to suicide and to date has adopted and professionally trained 245 service dogs, and currently has 90 veterans on a waitlist to be paired with a service dog. The positive impact she is making is remarkable. Her level of commitment to educating and making what is invisibly visible is to be commended. She recognizes the courage our veterans require to step forward and not succumb to the statistics. She also shares the obstacles and the importance of truly trained service dogs that there is an abundance of “fake” ones out there and the importance of educating others on the harm that can happen due to the system being polluted and those looking for hope and a new start.

Her motto is “No one lost to Suicide”. You can find Shannon and her team at www.northwestbattlebuddies.com  to learn more about their mission and how you can support them.

Want to better understand your own leadership, visit us at www.wilempowered.com and take our free leadership quiz to learn more.

#veterans #northwestbattlebuddies #servicedogs #wilempowered #wiltalk #purpose

How do you overcome ageism in today’s society? Corinne Aumen, Ph.D. joins us for a conversation to talk about ageism and her new book, “Keenagers”. She is the founder of Choice Care Navigators based out of Greensboro, NC, where her company is dedicated to helping families navigate the aging process. Her passion lies in helping us reshape how we perceive older adulthood, a vision she has beautifully encapsulates in her book “Keenagers”. She is on a mission to change the conversation around aging. Especially in a culture where many avoid thinking about older adulthood until the last minute, she urges us to embrace aging in a positive light.

 During our conversation, Corrine explained where ageism comes from and how we have the largest demographic of people over 65 years of age with 10,000 people daily turning 65 and the highest number of people wanting or needing to continue to work. 

 Research shows that those living a powerful and purposeful life gain a longer life by at least 7 ½ years. If we don’t have purpose that is when we start to see that negative downhill effect usually after the 18-month honeymoon phase.  Dr. Becca Levy shares a lot of research and stats on ageism and more about the impact of the 7 ½ years. Corinne urges us to get educated and to better understand that living with purpose helps increase our vitality but also how older generations impact business and healthcare. 

She speaks with us about stereotypes and how what we say matters. 

Some of those stereotypes in business might include things like:

• Older people can’t learn.
• Older workers cost more money.
• Work is too much for them.

But the benefits of keeping older adults include:

• Maintaining a strong knowledge bank.
• The social acumen.
• Etc.

If we take an example like technology, the older generation is being left out and with having the largest population ever in an older demographic, this becomes highly impactful. Especially when a youngster is creating apps and algorithms’ s that are focused on a specific demographic. And with the acceleration of AI (Artificial Intelligence) it’s even more important to influence the knowledge of older generations to help us shape correctly and with fewer biases.

Healthcare is another area that is impacted greatly as we will often hear doctors explain things away because of age versus the actual problem at hand. It becomes imperative that you advocate for yourself or at least have someone with you to help advocate and get the answers you need. 

 Corinne urges us to educate and arm ourselves for the day that each of us will eventually get to, ageism impacts everyone and we owe it to ourselves to prepare and enter it prepared. 

If you have questions for Corinne that we did not answer in this podcast you can find her on her social feeds on IG, FB, and LI. 

Want to know who has been on our most recent podcast or want to learn more about our community events, visit us at www.wilempowered.com and sign up for our monthly newsletter. And if you found this episode interesting please do share with your family and friends, and don’t forget to leave us a review.

#ageism #olderadults #wordsmatter #wiltalk #wilempowered