Tami Forman is the Executive Director of Path Forward, a nonprofit organization that creates mid-career returnships to help caregivers return to full-time work. "Returnships" provide an on-ramp for individuals (often women) who are ready to return to full-time work after taking a break to care for loved ones. Whether it’s been 5 years or 15 years, getting back into the workforce after being a caregiver is challenging.
 
As a nonprofit executive, Tami wears many hats and no day is like the next. Her goal is to bring talent back into the workforce and to identify future talent.  Path Forward has worked with more than 80 employers, including Amazon, Netflix, Walmart, Apple, Verizon, and more.

Returnships are like the cousin of internships. For internships, you're a young adult who is in or who has just graduated from college. For returnships, you're an adult who already worked for at least 5 years, took time off to care for a child or an adult, and you're now wanting to return to the workforce. Often, returnees are in their 40s, have an undergraduate degree (or more), and have 10 years of career experience. Returnees are highly educated, skilled, and talented individuals who can make incredible contributions.
 
 Resources

• 50 Ways to Get a Job , a book by Dev Aujla 

Contact Info:
Tami Forman
https://www.pathforward.org/
[email protected]

Julie Berman - Host
www.womenwithcooljobs.com
@womencooljobs (Instagram)

Send Julie a text!!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I absolutely LOVE being the host and producer of "Women with Cool Jobs", where I interview women who have unique, trailblazing, and innovative careers. It has been such a blessing to share stories of incredible, inspiring women since I started in 2020.

If you have benefitted from this work, or simply appreciate that I do it, please consider buying me a $5 coffee. ☕️

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/julieberman

Thank you so much for supporting me -- whether by sharing an episode with a friend, attending a LIVE WWCJ event in Phoenix, connecting with me on Instagram @womencooljobs or LinkedIn, sending me a note on my website (www.womenwithcooljobs.com), or by buying me a coffee! It all means so much. <3

Erin Hernandez-Reisner's start in the photography world was unexpected-- she thought she'd be an actress. Instead, her ex-husband's dad handed her a camera to support him going to law school. From the beginning, her natural skill combined with her deep understanding of the beauty and imperfections of life are what make her an incredibly talented and sought-after artist.

Erin  creates museum-quality art by capturing meaningful moments in someone’s life--whether it's weddings, senior portraits, or even exploring physical and emotion trauma. Erin is the co-owner of Photos Edge with her husband since 2007. She has been published over 200 times in publications such as Professional Photographer Magazine, Rangefinder, and The Knot. Her images have been on the covers of over 30 magazines and books.

She also discusses what it is like to be Autistic, the adaptations she has made (like discovering the glory of shopping at luxury stores!), and how she uses her sensory skills to create the photographic outcome she wants.

Trigger warning: Erin bravely shares childhood trauma during the interview and how that affected her. Please be aware in case this may trigger something for you. 

Resources

• Professional Photographers of America
• Clubhouse - Find the photography groups

Contact Info:
Erin Hernandez-Reisner
https://photosedge.com/
@erinhernandezreisner (Instagram)

Julie Berman - Host
www.womenwithcooljobs.com
@womencooljobs (Instagram)

Send Julie a text!!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I absolutely LOVE being the host and producer of "Women with Cool Jobs", where I interview women who have unique, trailblazing, and innovative careers. It has been such a blessing to share stories of incredible, inspiring women since I started in 2020.

If you have benefitted from this work, or simply appreciate that I do it, please consider buying me a $5 coffee. ☕️

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/julieberman

Thank you so much for supporting me -- whether by sharing an episode with a friend, attending a LIVE WWCJ event in Phoenix, connecting with me on Instagram @womencooljobs or LinkedIn, sending me a note on my website (www.womenwithcooljobs.com), or by buying me a coffee! It all means so much. <3

Latin American mompreneur Marjorie Spitalnik created award-winning plush dolls after realizing that her daughter's textbooks didn't feature enough female role models for kids to look up to, and she wanted to change that. As a result, Little Rebels includes a line of interactive, plush dolls that educate kids about iconic women such as Marie Curie, Amelia Earhart, Malala Yousafzai, and Mary Jackson. These dolls connect to an app and provide educational videos, trivia, coloring activities, and ebooks. 

Marjorie has always loved to play, yet she never imagined she would be an entrepreneur in the toy industry. She went from running a marketing and PR company to creating two different plush toy companies. Despite no previous experience in the industry, she has earned some major accolades for Little Rebels, including:

• Finalist for the Toy of the Year (TOTY) Awards 2021 (competing against Baby Yoda)
• Winner 2020 Toy & Game International Excellence Awards (TAGIES) awards (the Emmy's of the toy industry)

Resources

• Women in Toys
• Good Toy Coach
• Mojo Nation
• The Toy Fair

Contact Info:
Marjorie Spitalnik
https://wearelittlerebels.com/
@mjspitalnik (Instagram)

Julie Berman - Host
www.womenwithcooljobs.com
@womencooljobs (Instagram)

Send Julie a text!!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I absolutely LOVE being the host and producer of "Women with Cool Jobs", where I interview women who have unique, trailblazing, and innovative careers. It has been such a blessing to share stories of incredible, inspiring women since I started in 2020.

If you have benefitted from this work, or simply appreciate that I do it, please consider buying me a $5 coffee. ☕️

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/julieberman

Thank you so much for supporting me -- whether by sharing an episode with a friend, attending a LIVE WWCJ event in Phoenix, connecting with me on Instagram @womencooljobs or LinkedIn, sending me a note on my website (www.womenwithcooljobs.com), or by buying me a coffee! It all means so much. <3

Carly Leisk is a cheesemonger, a merchant who specializes in cheese. As Carly points out, most delicious foods have one thing in common: cheese! Pizza, mac n' cheese, grilled cheese, fondue, nachos... Its ability to be transformed from a comfort food, to a simple meal, to a decadent experience is magical.

Carly shares that while she went to NYC to become an actress, she ended up realizing that she really loved everything about cheese and wanted to have her own place one day. She now  owns a cute shop with her husband in Brighton, Michigan, called Culture Beer and Cheese. They pair craft beers with fine cheese, and they offer: crepes, charcuterie plates, jams, gelato, and more. It's like a slice of heaven on Earth. (Get that cheesy joke?! "Slice" of heaven...*Insert cheesy smile here.*)

Episode Resources:

1. American Cheese Society
2. American Cheese Society Professional Certifications
3. The Cheese School of San Francisco

Contact Info:
Carly Leisk
www.culturebeerandcheese.com
@culturebeerandcheese (Instagram)

Julie Berman - Host
www.womenwithcooljobs.com
@womencooljobs (Instagram)

Send Julie a text!!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I absolutely LOVE being the host and producer of "Women with Cool Jobs", where I interview women who have unique, trailblazing, and innovative careers. It has been such a blessing to share stories of incredible, inspiring women since I started in 2020.

If you have benefitted from this work, or simply appreciate that I do it, please consider buying me a $5 coffee. ☕️

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/julieberman

Thank you so much for supporting me -- whether by sharing an episode with a friend, attending a LIVE WWCJ event in Phoenix, connecting with me on Instagram @womencooljobs or LinkedIn, sending me a note on my website (www.womenwithcooljobs.com), or by buying me a coffee! It all means so much. <3

Smokejumper, Madison Whittemore, jumps out of airplanes and walks towards danger to put out wildland fires across the United States.  As a smokejumper, she is among an elite crew of highly skilled wildland firefighters. Along with her colleagues, she jumps out of an airplane in 100 lbs. of gear, parachutes down to the ground, and then heads towards the fire.

Madison is the epitome of a strong, driven, kick-ass woman who picked a highly competitive career  choice. She was laser-focused and did everything possible to prepare herself physically, mentally, and nutritionally.

Smokejumping is a Western trade that started in the 1940s and has not changed much since then. There are around 400 smokejumpers employed in the United States.

Episode Resources:

1. Smokejumpers StoryMaps
2. U.S. Forest Service Smokejumpers

Contact Info:
Madison Whittemore
@madwhits (Instagram)

Julie Berman - Host
www.womenwithcooljobs.com
@womencooljobs (Instagram)

Send Julie a text!!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I absolutely LOVE being the host and producer of "Women with Cool Jobs", where I interview women who have unique, trailblazing, and innovative careers. It has been such a blessing to share stories of incredible, inspiring women since I started in 2020.

If you have benefitted from this work, or simply appreciate that I do it, please consider buying me a $5 coffee. ☕️

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/julieberman

Thank you so much for supporting me -- whether by sharing an episode with a friend, attending a LIVE WWCJ event in Phoenix, connecting with me on Instagram @womencooljobs or LinkedIn, sending me a note on my website (www.womenwithcooljobs.com), or by buying me a coffee! It all means so much. <3

Cassandra Bankson is a skinfluencer, medical aesthetician,  and entrepreneur with more than 10 years of experience as a skincare expert. She runs a YouTube channel where her content, skincare advice, and acne story inspire over 10 million viewers every month. She also has a social media following of more than 2 million people online.  

Cassandra is a pro at explaining incredibly complex concepts, terms and processes in an easily digestible and understandable manner. She is also an incredibly smart entrepreneur and charismatic business woman with a multi-pronged business model.  

She considers herself a positive influencer and encourages people to embrace beauty from the inside out. She posts educational and entertaining YouTube videos online, such as: 

• Reacting to celebrity routines, 
• ‘Before and after’ Instagram posts (that show how pictures are filtered and Photoshopped), 
• Q&A’s with other dermatologists and experts, and
• Skincare ingredient deep dives to help people choose the best products for their skin. 

Contact Info:
Cassandra Bankson
https://www.youtube.com/cassandrabankson
@cassandrabankson (Instagram)

Julie Berman - Host
www.womenwithcooljobs.com
@womencooljobs (Instagram)

Send Julie a text!!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I absolutely LOVE being the host and producer of "Women with Cool Jobs", where I interview women who have unique, trailblazing, and innovative careers. It has been such a blessing to share stories of incredible, inspiring women since I started in 2020.

If you have benefitted from this work, or simply appreciate that I do it, please consider buying me a $5 coffee. ☕️

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/julieberman

Thank you so much for supporting me -- whether by sharing an episode with a friend, attending a LIVE WWCJ event in Phoenix, connecting with me on Instagram @womencooljobs or LinkedIn, sending me a note on my website (www.womenwithcooljobs.com), or by buying me a coffee! It all means so much. <3

Nan Ponting had an exceptional career in the field of clinical laboratory medicine and is now retired. She started as a Medical Technologist working in a hospital clinical laboratory and ended her career as the Associate Vice President of Program Management (reporting to the Chief Scientific Officer) of one of the two largest clinical laboratories in the United States.

Over her 40-year career, she held the titles of:

• Medical Technologist
• Biochemical Genetics Department Manager for a genetics specialty lab
• Genetics Laboratory Site Manager
• VP Laboratory Operations 
• Associate Vice President of Program Management 

Her career path was the result of 4 things:  education, work ethic, ambition, and support from her family. 

Send Julie a text!!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I absolutely LOVE being the host and producer of "Women with Cool Jobs", where I interview women who have unique, trailblazing, and innovative careers. It has been such a blessing to share stories of incredible, inspiring women since I started in 2020.

If you have benefitted from this work, or simply appreciate that I do it, please consider buying me a $5 coffee. ☕️

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/julieberman

Thank you so much for supporting me -- whether by sharing an episode with a friend, attending a LIVE WWCJ event in Phoenix, connecting with me on Instagram @womencooljobs or LinkedIn, sending me a note on my website (www.womenwithcooljobs.com), or by buying me a coffee! It all means so much. <3

Lori Erickson is the Vice President of Casting at CBS Studios where she oversees the casting process for shows across several broadcast and streaming platforms. She currently oversees SWAT, MacGyver, NCIS, NCIS: LA, The Equalizer and Unicorn on CBS, Diary of a Future President on Disney+, and The Moodys on FOX. Plus, she is also working on some pilots.

Her responsibilities include:

• scouting for talent, 
• hiring casting directors (each show has its own), 
• guiding the process of securing top tier talent on time and on budget, 
• and ensuring that the many stakeholders in the projects have their needs met.

She also created and launched a program called the CBS Leadership Pipeline Challenge, a nonprofit-focused short film competition that empowers early-career storytellers to step into creative leadership positions. 

Contact Info:

Julie Berman - Host
www.womenwithcooljobs.com
@womencooljobs (Instagram)

Send Julie a text!!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I absolutely LOVE being the host and producer of "Women with Cool Jobs", where I interview women who have unique, trailblazing, and innovative careers. It has been such a blessing to share stories of incredible, inspiring women since I started in 2020.

If you have benefitted from this work, or simply appreciate that I do it, please consider buying me a $5 coffee. ☕️

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/julieberman

Thank you so much for supporting me -- whether by sharing an episode with a friend, attending a LIVE WWCJ event in Phoenix, connecting with me on Instagram @womencooljobs or LinkedIn, sending me a note on my website (www.womenwithcooljobs.com), or by buying me a coffee! It all means so much. <3

Rosie Chhun, an LA-based calligrapher and owner of Wander Crafter, has collaborated with luxury brands (such as Jay-Z, Netflix, Neiman Marcus, and Nordstrom’s) in addition to small organizations and individuals.  After truly defining her niche in 2020 ( engraving luxury perfume bottles and high-end lipsticks), she plans to make this her full-time career in 2021.  

Rosie first turned to calligraphy and engraving to get through pharmacy school (even making beautiful notecards with calligraphy to practice drug names.) She started Wander Crafter with her sister to pay off six-figure debt after graduating and becoming a pharmacist in a retail environment.  Rosie has more than 10 years experience in pharmacy-related roles and has loved it, but the more experience she gained creating memories through calligraphy and engraving, the more she realized that this is her true passion.  While being a pharmacist and calligrapher may sound like polar opposites on the career spectrum, Rosie's past skills and experiences are what contribute to her becoming a skilled and talented calligrapher. 

Contact Info:
Rosie Chhun
https://wandercrafter.com/ 
@wandercrafter (Instagram)

Julie Berman - Host
www.womenwithcooljobs.com
@womencooljobs (Instagram)

Send Julie a text!!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I absolutely LOVE being the host and producer of "Women with Cool Jobs", where I interview women who have unique, trailblazing, and innovative careers. It has been such a blessing to share stories of incredible, inspiring women since I started in 2020.

If you have benefitted from this work, or simply appreciate that I do it, please consider buying me a $5 coffee. ☕️

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/julieberman

Thank you so much for supporting me -- whether by sharing an episode with a friend, attending a LIVE WWCJ event in Phoenix, connecting with me on Instagram @womencooljobs or LinkedIn, sending me a note on my website (www.womenwithcooljobs.com), or by buying me a coffee! It all means so much. <3

Compilation Inspiration--Amazing past guests share tips, insights, and experiences on how to: 

• Grow your confidence, 
• Own your awesomeness, 
• Embrace imperfection, and 
• Accept that not having ALL the answers is ok. 

My 2021 challenges for you:
You are NOT an imposter!!! Imposters are purposely deceitful.  That is not you. Challenge 1: Please stop using the term "imposter syndrome" to describe yourself. That is the opposite of you. We often forget that when we start something new, whatever the age or stage of life, that we need to give ourselves grace and space to learn and grow. You cannot master something at the beginning. Instead, consider there are likely areas of your life where you can grow your  confidence over time, with practice and determination. Challenge 2: Take a small action each day to grow your confidence-- it is a SKILL you can learn. 

The quotes  you heard in this episode are from the following 4 episodes:

1. Growing Your Confidence Through Daily Action with Carol Sankar, Founder of The Confidence Factor for Women 
2. NYC Plumber and "Tools & Tiaras" Nonprofit Founder Breaking Stereotypes and Empowering Tradeswomen with Judaline Cassidy
3.  Nonprofit Pioneer in Farm to Early Childcare and Education with Tiana Kamen, Farm to Keiki: Cooking, Gardening and Nutrition with Children
4. Craft Chocolate Educator Guiding Tasting and Pairing Experiences with Jessica Henderson of Chocolate Monkey

Contact Info:
Julie Berman - Host
www.womenwithcooljobs.com
[email protected]
@womencooljobs (Instagram)

Send Julie a text!!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I absolutely LOVE being the host and producer of "Women with Cool Jobs", where I interview women who have unique, trailblazing, and innovative careers. It has been such a blessing to share stories of incredible, inspiring women since I started in 2020.

If you have benefitted from this work, or simply appreciate that I do it, please consider buying me a $5 coffee. ☕️

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/julieberman

Thank you so much for supporting me -- whether by sharing an episode with a friend, attending a LIVE WWCJ event in Phoenix, connecting with me on Instagram @womencooljobs or LinkedIn, sending me a note on my website (www.womenwithcooljobs.com), or by buying me a coffee! It all means so much. <3