Badass Women at Any Age
Illana Raia's journey to entrepreneurship stemmed from her love of law and her personal experiences with mentorship. Despite loving her career as a mergers and acquisitions lawyer, she took a break to raise her children and later rejoined her firm. Realizing the impact of showing her daughter accomplished women at work, Illana envisioned scaling this experience to benefit other girls. She left her law practice, driven by the idea of creating a platform where girls could meet female leaders, leading to the founding of Etre. Illana is the founder and CEO of Etre, a membership platform for...
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Helen Jonsen aspired to be a writer from a young age and chose journalism for its daily writing opportunities. After studying at Fordham University and gaining experience at Channel 11 and WINS radio, she moved to Rhode Island as a senior producer, where she met and married her Australian husband. This led to a stint in Australia, where she worked in television before returning to New York. They worked for Australian networks before she joined Channel 5. After her first maternity leave, she opted to form a production company with her husband, eventually returning to Channel 11 and writing...
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Bianca Best’s lifelong pursuit of ambition led her from a corporate career in advertising, creativity, and publishing to a successful freelance writing career. While juggling motherhood in her late 20’s, she inadvertently founded the Bespoke Gift Company. What started as a creative, personalized anniversary gift has become a wildly successful company. Bianca is an award-winning global business leader, author, certified success strategist, entrepreneur, speaker, and single mother of four. Bianca describes her CV as a chronology of passions, explored and includes a decade as a...
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Sandy Rosenthal was an ordinary citizen who became an extraordinary activist following Hurricane Katrina. After uncovering that defective flood walls built by the Army Corps of Engineers caused the disaster, Sandy founded the nonprofit levees.org and rallied over 25,000 supporters for safer infrastructure. Her book, 'Whispered in Water,' and her podcast, 'Beat The Big Guys,' continue to inspire change and empower listeners to take on powerful institutions and make a difference in their communities. Sandy shares her journey from a part-time copywriter to a relentless advocate for truth and...
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Feeling lost and purposeless when her youngest child left for college, Rita Lussier leaned into her writing and running to cope. Forming a new morning routine along with the process of running and writing helped her find a new sense of purpose, culminating in the creation of her book, And Now Back To Me. Rita is an award-winning journalist and writer whose column ‘For The Moment’ was a popular feature of the Providence Journal for a dozen years. Her writing has also been featured on National Public Radio in the Boston Globe, the New York Daily News, and many other...
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Marcia Dawood's journey into angel investing began in 2012 when she attended an angel investing meeting in Pittsburgh. Previously working in sales, marketing, and operations within corporate America, she was intrigued and fascinated by the world of entrepreneurship and investing in early-stage companies. Initially unaware of the opportunities that existed locally and globally, Marcia quickly immersed herself in the field. Overcoming the misconceptions that one needs a finance degree or significant wealth to invest, she discovered that anyone with curiosity and willingness to learn could...
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Yue Zhao's career began with aspirations rooted in a desire to help people, initially thinking she would become a doctor. However, her path led her into the tech industry, where she spent over 15 years as a product executive in Silicon Valley. Discovering the power of executive and leadership coaching became a pivotal point in her career. Inspired by her experiences and driven by her commitment to support underrepresented groups, Yue transitioned from a tech executive to a full-time executive coach. She now focuses on advancing the careers of women and minorities by leveraging her unique...
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Kathy Caprino began her professional journey with ambitions of working in publishing. However, she soon found herself navigating a corporate career filled with numerous challenges as she climbed the corporate ladder. After a period of deep reflection, Kathy embraced her calling ultimately leading her to become an international career leadership and personal growth coach. She utilized her experiences and lessons learned to guide mid to high-level professionals toward achieving their highest potential. Kathy is a writer, speaker, and executive trainer helping mid to high level...
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Emily June Wilcox grew up in rural Michigan with aspirations of becoming a veterinarian, earning a degree in animal science. Her early career took unexpected turns, from horse training to pharmaceutical sales and eventually entrepreneurship. Emily is a wealth and business coach, number one bestselling author and speaker on a mission to help others heal their money wounds and build financially and personally fulfilling lives. She's built two seven figure businesses, an e-commerce clothing company and an Amazon marketing agency. Now she focuses on using energetics and...
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Growing up in a family that didn't view a career in the arts as feasible, Kathryn Burnett pursued writing with determination, transitioning from magazine articles to professional screenwriting. She faced numerous challenges, particularly in a competitive industry that often overlooks middle-aged women. Post-menopause, Kathryn experienced a personal transformation, embracing her true self and taking greater creative risks. This shift led to a focus on complex, authentic female protagonists, inspired by real-life experiences and conversations. Her writing now champions strong, relatable women,...
info_outlineDespite facing significant discrimination in the male-dominated culinary industry, Chef Rossi transformed her rebellious upbringing and passion for food into a successful career as a pioneering chef and author. Her journey is a testament to resilience, creativity, and living authentically. Chef Rossi is the catering director, owner and executive chef of the Raging Skillet, a cutting edge catering company known for breaking any and all rules. She has earned a reputation as the one to call when it's time to do something different. Rossi, who credits America as her hometown, grew up in a camper wedged on the top of a Ford pickup truck, and had visited most of the United States by the time she was 10. She has a wacky sense of humor, loves international food fusions that reflect her Hungarian Yiddish background, and her love of all things. Rossi has been published in outlets including the Daily News, New York Post, Time Out New York, and McSweeney's to name a few. She has been the food writer of the Eat Me column for Bus Magazine since 1998. Hosting her own hit radio show on WOMR and WFMR in Cape Cod, now in its 19th season, Rossi has been featured on the Food Network, NPR and has been a popular blogger for Huffington Post. Her first memoir, The Raging Skillet, The True Life Story of Chef Rossi, was published by the Feminist Press to rave reviews. It was adapted for the stage, and has been a smash hit touring the country. In addition to the memoir, Rossi has written two full length plays, a number of one act comedies, and a one woman stage adaptation of Queen of the Jews. Her new memoir, the Punk Rock Queen of the Jews was released this spring.
What You Will Hear in This Episode:
02:54 Rossi's Rebellious Beginnings
06:17 The Birth of a Chef
13:18 Challenges of Being a Female Chef
19:20 Standing Up to Discrimination
23:21 Starting a Zen Kitchen
28:19 The Essence of Kosher Food
33:30 Living in a Hasidic Community
37:02 Parental Perceptions and Success
Quotes
“I do love a chance to hang out with other bad ass babes.”
“I think I might've started rebelling from birth.”
“Food equals love.”
“Once you use the F bomb and the S bomb and the MF bombs.”
Mentioned:
IG: @ChefRossiNYC
Fb: Chef Rossi NY
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Gendered Ageism Survey Results
5 Tips to own the superpower of your age
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