9 to 5ish with theSkimm

Wendy Kopp founded Teach For America in 1989, which leveraged recent college grads against educational inequity in the US. Applying that same approach globally, she co-founded Teach For All in 2007. Wendy has been recognized as one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People & was awarded the presidential citizens medal for her work. On the couch, Wendy talks about how to sustain passion in a career that has spanned 30 years (12:40 ) and why inexperience can actually be a strength (23:53).This episode of Skimm’d From the Couch is sponsored by AC Hotels by Marriott.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jen Rubio is the co-founder of Away, the suitcases you see absolutely everywhere. Jen and her co-founder, Stephanie Korey, started Away in 2015, raising $31 million in seed financing, making it one of the highest-funded female-backed startups. On the couch, Jen gives her tips on mastering a co-founder relationship (17:35) and how they launched their brand before even having a product (20:07).This episode of Skimm’d From the Couch is sponsored by AC Hotels by Marriott.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Marie Forleo is an author and entrepreneur who has built one of the fastest growing companies in the country. She’s the founder of MarieTV and B-School, a digital educational program that develops mission-driven entrepreneurs and has helped 44,000 graduates. Her new book Everything is Figureoutable comes out on September 10th and is available now for pre-order.On the couch, Marie explains why she quit her first job on Wall Street to pursue her passion, even when it meant choosing between that and a steady paycheck (6:52). She shares how her journey to confidence came from disciplines as wide ranging as publishing, to bartending, to dance (15:30) and told us the one thing that makes her tell entrepreneurs to, “wake the eff up” (22:09).This episode of Skimm’d From the Couch is sponsored by AC Hotels by Marriott. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mel Robbins is an entrepreneur, best-selling author, and one of the most highly paid and booked female speakers in the world. You may know her from her infamous TED Talk and her 5 Second Rule. Up next, she’ll host her own daytime talk show The Mel Robbins Show which premieres September 16th. Check your local listings for where to watch.On the couch, Mel describes her journey of going from $800,000 in debt to becoming the multi-disciplinary entrepreneur she is today. She shares the practical strategies she uses every day, from the science behind the 5 second rule (3:05), to finding the “message in the mess” (13:05), asking for the right salary (22:00), and turning anxiety into excitement (33:30).This episode of Skimm'd From the Couch is sponsored by AC Hotels by Marriott. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ann Curry is an award-winning journalist, anchor and producer. She got her start in TV back in the 1970s and has been on our screens ever since. For NBC, she reported from war zones, natural disasters, human rights’ tragedies for 25 years. Her 2012 departure from “Today” was filled with tears and rumors about what happened behind the scenes. In 2015, she left NBC and now executive producers her own shows, including her latest, Chasing the Cure, which launches August 8th on TNT and TBS.On the Couch, we talked with Ann about why her grit helped her prove her worth to sexist colleagues back in the day (4:30), the promise about work she and her husband made to each other (8:20), how her new live TV project wants to crowdsource cures (10:30) and why she finds it tough to talk about leaving NBC (21:00).This episode of Skimm'd From the Couch is sponsored by AC Hotels by Marriott. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Leah Busque Solivan, Founder of TaskRabbit, discusses hiring her first 30 task rabbits, struggles with celebrating success, being pushed to the edge, and helping new entrepreneurs learn from her mistakes.

Last week, Planned Parenthood’s former president, Dr. Leana Wen, parted ways with the organization. After just eight months on the job. But even before she took the helm at PP, Dr. Wen was a rising star in the public health sphere. She was Baltimore’s Health Commissioner, an ER physician, and wrote a book calling for more transparency in medicine - all before she was 35. We sat down with Dr. Wen a week before she and PP parted ways. On the Couch, she talks to us about how she developed the drive to overcome huge obstacles in her childhood and start college at the age of 13 (6:30), how to find and keep mentors (8:50), and how she’s dealt with haters throughout her fast-track career in medicine and public health (17:00). Listen and subscribe to get in on it.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ICYMI, we wrote a book: How to Skimm Your Life. It’s all about making it easier to navigate allll the tricky parts of being an adult. From reading a wine list. To negotiating a raise. And then: we took the book on tour. In ten cities across the US, amazing moderators flipped the script and asked us the questions. We had so much fun that we decided to share it with you. Here’s our conversation with Ashley Graham, in our hometown: New York City. We'll be back next week with fresh new episodes from the Couch. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tina Sharkey is the powerhouse behind Brandless, the direct-to-consumer company that’s all about community. But before she started Brandless with her cofounder, she spent her career building communities online for major companies like AOL and Johnson & Johnson. Tina’s also been on the investing side and has helped out in tons of startups … including ours. Thanks, Tina. On the Couch, she talks to us about how her family taught her hustle (3:51), how she thinks about mentorship (10:18), and why she decided to step down as CEO in March (25:00). PS: Our book – "How To Skimm Your Life" – is finally out. Get it here: https://theskimm.com/book Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ICYMI, we’re on tour for “How To Skimm Your Life” (https://theskimm.com/book). While we’re away, here’s a quick chat we had with Sarah Larson Levey. She’s the co-founder and CEO of Y7 Studio, the yoga company she founded with her now-husband in 2013. Back then, she worked in fashion full-time. And their studio was a small weekend pop-up in Brooklyn. Now, she’s built it into a national chain. On the Couch, she talks to us about turning her side hustle into a main hustle (3:00), working with her husband (8:31), and scaling her brand (11:45). We’ll be back next week with more “Skimm’d from the Couch.”  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices