Farah Ismail, the founder of Interacting Consulting, shares her journey to success and her fearless mindset.
Farah brings her fearless mindset and inspiring journey to the table, sharing her insights and experiences on how to live the life of your dreams. She guides listeners through the process of unlocking their courage and taking action, providing tips on forgiveness, planting new seeds, and finding someone else to enjoy the journey with. Farah encourages us to be brave enough to use our voice, bold enough to listen to our heart, and strong enough to make big changes in our life. Don’t miss this insightful conversation!
Learn how to make big changes in your life and be the master of your own destiny!
Hosted by Betty Collins, CPA, and Director at Brady Ware and Company. Betty also serves as the Committee Chair for Empowering Women, and Director of the Brady Ware Women Initiative. Each episode is presented by Brady Ware and Company, committed to empowering women to go their distance in the workplace and at home.
Balancing your professional and personal life can be challenging, but it’s essential.
Often, work takes precedence over everything else in our lives. Our desire to succeed professionally can push us to set aside our own well-being.
Creating a harmonious work-life balance or work-life integration is critical, though, to improve not only our physical, emotional, and mental well-being, but it’s also important for our career.
My guest is Dianne Grote Adams. She is president of Safex, a health and safety consulting business, who started her company in 1992. As a working mom with a young family, she wanted to create a company that would respect the abilities of people in a technical career while also offering them some flexibility. From its beginning, Safex has offered flexible scheduling and benefits—vacation, insurance, and paid holidays—for anyone who works more than 25 hours.
Did you find that you attracted the right team around you because of that philosophy?
A lot of people, I think, have this myth that part-time workers aren’t committed. And they say, well, they’re not really committed to their careers. And I found the opposite. They have time to do personal things. And guess what? They don’t make doctor’s appointments during work hours. They don’t make personal calls during work hours because they have other days to take care of that. So I find actually they are probably more committed because they knew they have a special opportunity that others might not have.
But there are people who maybe can’t handle flex time and flexibility. They need more structure. Do you find that sometimes that’s a challenge?
I think there are certain people who maybe need more guidance or more coaching to help them learn how to manage flex time. Many of us didn’t grow up with that as an option, right? Can everyone be successful? I don’t know. But you’ve got to be able to manage responsibility and accountability.
What would you tell employers who are starting businesses to get into this mindset today? How do you get started?
It has been a focus on what does that person. What is that person supposed to contribute, what are they supposed to do? And if you can put a good definition around that and they meet that, then why should you care what the exact hour is or whether they rode their bike for an hour at lunch or they left early to catch a concert?
So in your journey, what comes easy for you in the work-life balance?
For me, it’s really easy to tell someone else to go take the time off. I struggle still with that work ethic that I grew up with, that I need to be first in, last out, and yes, I need to on Sunday night to prepare for the upcoming week. I just don’t give myself that same grace.
Hosted by Betty Collins, CPA, and Director at Brady Ware and Company. Betty also serves as the Committee Chair for Empowering Women, and Director of the Brady Ware Women Initiative. Each episode is presented by Brady Ware and Company, committed to empowering women to go their distance in the workplace and at home.
My guest is Rachel Winder, Executive Director at the Ohio Women’s Coalition.
What is the Ohio Women’s Coalition?
“The Ohio Women’s Coalition is a diverse, non-partisan alliance of women in business, women leaders, women business owners, and men that support the mission across Ohio who are coming together to improve the economic position for all women in our state. The OWC was created to amplify the voice of women in Ohio and to help draw attention to the unique challenges that women encounter, especially underserved women of color and women who live in underserved areas of the state, to gain access to economic opportunities in order to achieve financial stability and prosperity.”
In a very short time, the OWC continues to increase the awareness of women small business owners, and help them find funding and support that is usually elusive to them. Rachel goes in-depth about the exciting initiatives the OWC has accomplished, and what is on the horizon.
Here’s an overview of what we talk about…
Accomplishments on behalf of Women-Owned Businesses in Ohio
• Created a statutory definition of “microbusiness” in the Ohio Revised Code (2016)
• Created a Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE) program in the State of Ohio (2020)
• Successfully advocated for $10 million in state-backed women-owned business loans at 3% interest rate (2021)
• Successfully advocated for $10 million in state-backed women and minority-owned business microloans at 0% interest rate (2021)
Results
• As of May 2022, $2,297,012 in Women’s Business Enterprise Loans have been approved for 11 companies, and $1,490,511 Ohio Micro-Loans have been approved for 39 companies. Nearly $3 million remains available in both loan programs with an additional $5 million available next fiscal year for each program.
• There are nearly as many WBE’s certified in Ohio as MBE’s, which is a program that was established more than 40 years ago. The OWC is committed to equality and lifting everybody up!
• The State of Ohio is literally making room for Ohio women-owned businesses. Recently, members of the Minority Development Financing Advisory Board voluntarily stepped away in recognition of the lack of women-owned businesses represented. Because of our advocacy, the work of this Board has been mostly focused on women-owned business loans, and they recognized women-owned businesses were not represented equally on the Board.
• For the first time in Ohio history, in 2022, each state agency is being asked to predict how many contracts will be going to women-owned businesses during the next fiscal year.
WHEN: June 24, 2022, 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. WHERE: Renaissance Columbus Downtown Hotel
Gain insights and connections with your Columbus professionals during this full-day event featuring:
Networking opportunities to make friends, business contacts, and build relationships to grow your career and business!
More than 300 professionals in attendance
Customize your day with choices from 15 breakout speakers
A powerful breakfast speaker
A luncheon keynote
More than 30 exhibitors
Hosted by Betty Collins, CPA, and Director at Brady Ware and Company. Betty also serves as the Committee Chair for Empowering Women, and Director of the Brady Ware Women Initiative. Each episode is presented by Brady Ware and Company, committed to empowering women to go their distance in the workplace and at home.
Sheryl, as the mentee, was in really, really bad shape as a business owner and reached out and said, I need a mentor. And she met Merry Korn, who’s a very successful businesswoman. She has used common sense practices, good advisors, all that kind of stuff. But Merry was not in Sheryl’s industry. Merry was a little intimidated by it, but she became a great mentor because business is business.
The key thing about their relationship that made it successful from the beginning, there was a connection. They had a great connection to the point that Sheryl, who didn’t know Merry, could be transparent, be open, and then she could actually listen and as she says, “be obedient” to and accountable to what Merry was telling her. Those were key elements of a good mentor relationship.
They also didn’t put a timetable on the relationship. They are still going strong. It’s not just about getting together. It’s not just getting coffee together. It’s just not talking. It’s about developing success. And in the case of Sheryl and Merry, Sheryl really became a completely different person as a business owner and a person. And Merry really loved the mentor role and was energized by being there with her. And there will probably be, I would say, business friends and lifetime friends.
This is why Sheryl thinks the mentoring was so impactful.
It was impactful because it actually pushed me to believe in myself. It was like it unleashed my potential that I didn’t even recognize.
We find out what Sheryl was hoping in the beginning that the mentoring would accomplish.
In the beginning, I was just hoping to break even because I was in a different mindset at the time. So initially I was thinking, if I can just break even, I’ll walk away and be done with business. But after being in the program, that changed it. I mean, it just changed everything and it just ended up being so much more.
And what did Merry want the mentoring relationship to accomplish?
One of the things I always said to Sheryl is, Sheryl, whatever happens between us, I know you’re going to be successful. And my big ask is to pay it forward. Her success as a minority woman business owner is she’s literally one in a million. It’s that rare. So my big ask of Sheryl is to pass it forward.
This is THE podcast that advances women toward economic, social, and political achievement. Hosted by Betty Collins, CPA, and Director at Brady Ware and Company. Betty also serves as the Committee Chair for Empowering Women, and Director of the Brady Ware Women Initiative. Each episode is presented by Brady Ware and Company, committed to empowering women to go their distance in the workplace and at home.
I have two women who completely inspired me at an event that I attended for the Women’s Small Business Accelerator. The WSBA has a gala every fall, and Brady Ware & Company is a big supporter of that organization.
Merry Korn and Sheryl Marrero told their story of how they came together. They started out together as mentor-mentee through a six-month program with the WSBA. As women business owners, we need to be inspired by other women business owners. So I really want them to tell a little bit about their journey together. And then we’re going to talk about mentoring, being a mentor or a mentee.
We cover a lot of ground in this episode, including how and why Sheryl needed the mentor relationship that Merry had to offer to help her with her business debt.
I was in a large deficit and so I was referred to the Mentor Match program through the WSBA. I ended up at the table with Merry. And although her business was totally different from mine, I instantly felt trust in her. And that was one of the things I had hoped for and prayed for, for a mentor who I could trust.
Find out what made the difference in turning her business around, and more detail about Merry’s Wellness Checkup Plan.
This is THE podcast that advances women toward economic, social, and political achievement. Hosted by Betty Collins, CPA, and Director at Brady Ware and Company. Betty also serves as the Committee Chair for Empowering Women, and Director of the Brady Ware Women Initiative. Each episode is presented by Brady Ware and Company, committed to empowering women to go their distance in the workplace and at home.
I speak with Janet Meeks. Janet is the author of Gracious Leadership, Lead Like You’ve Never Led Before. You will love getting the perspective from her because she has lived it, she’s experienced it, and her amazing journey as a leader.
She’s going to talk from her book, which is such a simple read. Yet there are some very important basics in there. What should we expect from our leaders? There’s an expectation we should have.
As Janet mentions…
I also believe that leaders need to be secure enough to understand they don’t have all the answers and that leaders who try to hoard getting the results accomplished are really holding back the organization they need to trust their employees who are subject matter experts and free them, let them lie in the war, if you will, and be all they were created today so they can play at the top of their game. And then that leaves time and room for the person with the big title to be able to take on those difficult tasks that perhaps someone and other levels of the organization cannot.
Coming up on July 30th is the 7th annual Brady Ware Women’s Leadership Conference. Each year, 100% of the proceeds go to support women initiatives through non profit organizations within Ohio. This year our supporting non profits are the Better Business Bureau and the Women’s Small Business Accelerator
Many months ago when we began planning for this year’s conference, we felt it best to err on the side of safety, so this year’s conference will be held virtually. While this may not be the most ideal situation, it does allow for us to offer participants speakers that are nationally recognized as well as locally recognized women leaders.
We’re excited to be able to present keynote speaker, Peggy Klaus, author of ‘Brag! How to toot your own horn without blowing it’. We’ll start the morning with a lively discussion with a panel of women business owners and leaders.
And to add to the excitement of the day, you’ll be able to network, visit exhibitor tables and win wonderful prizes throughout the day!
I would like to personally invite you to join us on July 30th. Early bird registration ends on June 15th, so I encourage you to sign up now! Just go to Columbus Women’s Leadership dot com and complete a simple form. We’ll do all the rest!
This is THE podcast that advances women toward economic, social and political achievement. Hosted by Betty Collins, CPA, and Director at Brady Ware and Company. Betty also serves as the Committee Chair for Empowering Women, and Director of the Brady Ware Women Initiative. Each episode is presented by Brady Ware and Company, committed to empowering women to go their distance in the workplace and at home.
What does successful leadership look like? There’s so many definitions out there, but we’re well aware we’re desperate for good leadership.
When you look at successful leadership, you look at people who are pretty open and honest; good communication skills; they connect with that team member; they encourage personal and professional growth; they don’t just think that they are the only ones that should be learning and doing.
They make others better around them for sure, keeping that positive attitude. Nothing worse than working for a downer, right?
They teach employees instead of giving orders. It’s a huge, huge mindset. Some people just don’t have that ability, but that’s a successful leader. That’s what they look like.
But what about your own style in your leadership? Not everyone should be doing it the same. If you’re going to be a good leader, and you’re trying to be somebody else, you’re probably not going to be effective. You’ve got to find your style in the midst of all of it.
You’ve got to know your values. They’re traits upon which your reputation is built. They affect how you will consciously and subconsciously lead.
You’ve got to know what your strengths are. Chances are, you’re a leader because you have those certain strengths. A lot of times those strengths, too, are your weaknesses, so you have to be careful, but leverage them.
You’ve got to define your uniqueness. What sets you apart? Why are you so special?
What are your true-to-the-core motivations? In fact, what would people say you’re motivated by? When you’re figuring out your style, find out your motivation. Then, you’ve got to observe the leaders and peers around you. Who do you admire right now? Who do you look up to? But you’ve got to be you at the same time. It’s not that impossible.
Successful leadership is all about influence. It’s having followers and getting it done. But doing it on your terms, with your style, is even better. It’s the only way to do it.
This is THE podcast that advances women toward economic, social and political achievement. Hosted by Betty Collins, CPA, and Director at Brady Ware and Company. Betty also serves as the Committee Chair for Empowering Women, and Director of the Brady Ware Women Initiative. Each episode is presented by Brady Ware and Company, committed to empowering women to go their distance in the workplace and at home.
It’s everywhere; books, coaches, seminars on the why, the what, the who, and the how.
It’s really, in my mind, almost overkill. But the sad truth is, with all of that help, we are desperately looking for leadership that is authentic.
In our society, in politics, to corporate America, to education systems, within our homes, within professional organizations, authentic leadership is really tough to find.
Authentic leadership works on the principle that leaders can prove their legitimacy, their credibility, by nurturing sincere relationships with whomever they’re leading. Notice I did not say “I am the leader, follow me!” It isn’t about the title. It really is nurturing sincere relationships.
How do you do that?
An authentic leader encourages their followers to be more open. They appreciate their support in the success of the organization. When you want to be an authentic leader, it’s pretty tough. It’s a pretty high standard, and it takes a while to do.
This is something you have to be pretty intentional about. If you are a true authentic leader, you’ll have certain characteristics. You probably can’t have all 10 that I’ve come up with, but you’ve got to have some of these, or you’ve got to be working on them.
Self-awareness
Integrity
Vision
Focus On Long-term Results
Listening Skills
Speaking Carefully
Transparency
Consistency
Drawing On Experience
Sharing Success With Your Team
This is THE podcast that advances women toward economic, social and political achievement. Hosted by Betty Collins, CPA, and Director at Brady Ware and Company. Betty also serves as the Committee Chair for Empowering Women, and Director of the Brady Ware Women Initiative. Each episode is presented by Brady Ware and Company, committed to empowering women to go their distance in the workplace and at home.