Lead Like a Woman

Sarah Nichols is an attorney who has more than 20 years of experience in HR employment law. She is the founder of Nichols Law P.C. where she represents individuals who experience discrimination and retaliation at work and helps them with wage and hour claims. She assists employees in negotiating their exits from their employers and she is a tough and conscientious advocate for her clients. Sarah believes that having experience on both sides makes her a better attorney. Sarah is passionate about different cultures in the workplace and in closing the pay gap. She is also involved in the community through her work with Youth Speaks, an educational non-profit empowering youth through the spoken word. A percentage of her firm’s profits is donated to Equal Rights Advocates every year as she believes the work that organization does is essential to closing the wage gap. Sarah is also the host of The Women’s Advocate podcast where she discusses how women can negotiate and support each other to close the wage gap. In this episode… When someone is looking to go into business or is considering taking up a new leadership position, most people tend to wait too long because they want to feel that they’re ready before taking the plunge. The thing is, there is never a “perfect time” to take that leap because all you really need is to have courage. In every situation or circumstance, there is always a decision to be made. And if that decision can be made quicker, it can help propel people forward to where they want and need to go. Staying focused on your story and your path are also crucial in making your success into a reality. It is also important to be focused and own your story and path. Sarah Nichols, Founder of Nichols Law P.C., is Andrea Heuston's guest in this week's episode of Lead Like a Woman, where she talks about the importance of women taking the leap in their careers and not waiting for the perfect time. Sarah shares details about her career history and why she decided to move to the US from Australia and start her own law firm, what drives her success, and she also shares her advice for women leaders and entrepreneurs. Stay tuned.

Wendy Pease is the President of Rapport International, a translation, interpretation, and language services company that eliminates spoken and written language barriers in 200+ languages. Prior to this, she served in corporate senior management positions in international marketing and business development. She has an MBA from Dartmouth College and a BA in Foreign Service from Penn State. Wendy is a frequent speaker and writer on language, culture, marketing, HR, entrepreneurship, and exporting. She has lived in Mexico, Taiwan, and the Philippines, and is enthusiastic about languages, culture and communications. Her lifetime passion is to connect people, especially when it leads to friendship and productive business relationships. In this episode… For a number of women, the decision to take a major risk in business or leadership can be scary. It is similar to climbing a mountain before taking a big jumpoff of a cliff. It is for this very reason that leaders need to come prepared for anything. They need to set goals, create a strategic plan, and build a support community around them that can help them achieve success. Once all the necessary preparations have been put in place, getting to the goal will be a piece of cake. Tune in to this episode of Lead Like a Woman Show as Andrea Heuston talks to Wendy Pease, President of Rapport International, about the benefits of having a strong culture and connection when running an organization. They also discuss the services provided by Wendy's company, how she built her company's culture, and the steps to take before taking a big jump in leadership.

Stephanie Dalfonzo is an integrative hypnotist, coach, and speaker. She has spent over 20 years researching simple ways to calm stress, anxiety and fear. She has authored a very timely book called Goodbye Anxiety, Hello Freedom: How to Build Resilience and Overcome Anxiety. Stephanie helps women heal and find freedom from the past, reclaim their lives, and create the life they deserve with ease and joy. Her journey has taken her through several career transitions from being a celebrity radio DJ to the proprietor of a successful hypnosis practice for 10 years, and ultimately, becoming an anxiety expert. In this episode… No one ever goes through life unscathed. People are bound to make mistakes and failures at some point in their lives but what separates successful people from the not--so-successful ones is their determination to rise up, learn from their mistakes, and try again. People who find success have learned that the only way to live life is to move forward. And more often than not, women have a tendency to beat themselves up after experiencing failure. They are often inclined to judge themselves harshly and this leads to unhappiness and unproductivity and this is something that Stephanie hopes to remedy and turn around so that instead of becoming miserable, they end up as the best version of themselves. Andrea Heuston is joined by Stephanie Dalfonzo, a hypnotist and coach, on this episode of Lead Like a Woman Show to talk about the power of hypnosis and being kind to oneself. Stephanie also discusses her book and how she’s preparing for her webinar, how she shifted her career from being a celebrity radio DJ to a coach, why it’s important to be kind to yourself, and the value of asking “What’s right right now?” Stay tuned.

Sue Peterson is a Managing Director of Client Management at Cornerstone Advisors. She has more than 30 years of experience in the financial industry, helping high-net-worth individuals and families achieve their financial goals. Over the course of her career, she has developed expertise in helping widows and divorcees, women business owners, and couples approaching retirement. She enjoys helping clients plan their financial future while shaping the legacy they will leave to their heirs and community. Sue's dedication to serving others reaches beyond her role at Cornerstone. She also offers her expertise to a variety of other charitable organizations and nonprofits such as the YWCA. In this episode… In some households, the subject of money or finances is often considered a taboo. This means that a lot of people grow up having zero knowledge on how to address financial issues properly which often leads to problems with debt and financial insecurity. And while this is a pervasive problem among adults in general, the circumstances become even more problematic for women who are either divorced or widowed. This is where Sue Peterson comes in. Thanks to her more than 30 years of experience in the financial services sector, she is able to help women gain a foothold on their financial challenges and come out triumphant. She is a strong advocate for women to make better financial decisions, to save up, and achieve financial freedom no matter what situation they may be in. Join Andrea Heuston in this episode of Lead Like a Woman Show as she interviews Sue Peterson, the Managing Director of Client Management at Cornerstone Advisors, about her work in providing financial guidance to women and high-net-worth individuals and families. Sue also talks about how she leads like a woman, why she’s passionate about giving back to the community, and she shares her top financial advice to women who have reached their tripping. Stay tuned.

Andrea Heuston is the CEO and Creative Principal of Artitudes Design, an award-winning creative agency. She has over 20 years of experience in the design industry and has won several awards such as the Puget Sound Business Journal’s 40 under 40, the Annual Enterprising Women of the Year Awards for Enterprising Women Magazine, Cambridge Who’s Who, and the Key4Women Achieve Award.  Andrea holds a degree in Communications and Design from the University of Washington. She is a speaker, author, and a volunteer who helps plan, purchase, prepare, and serve meals for the members of The Matt Talbot Center. Andrea is also the host of the Lead Like a Woman Show where she features top women leaders in order to share their inspirational stories on life and leadership. In this episode… Losing a close friend or family member is painful in many different ways. But losing someone you’ve worked with for a long time can be just as devastating. This is what happened to Andrea Heuston when she lost her long time employee and dear friend, Rian, to colon cancer. Andrea was affected by his passing in ways that she didn’t expect. In fact, she wasn’t just affected personally; her business was affected as well. But she managed to get through this life altering event with the help of family and friends. She was able to pull herself and her business back together while keeping close to her heart the huge impact that came with Rian’s passing. In this week's episode of Lead Like a Woman Show, Andrea Heuston gets interviewed by Dr. Jeremy Weisz, Co-founder of Rise25 Media, about losing her friend and long-time employee to colon cancer and how it affected different aspects of her life. Andrea also shares how she dealt with the depression she didn’t know she had, how her inner circle pulled her out of her dark place, and her advice to people going through difficult times in life Stay tuned.

Jan Levy is a former Executive Director of Leadership Tomorrow, a Seattle organization that inspires, prepares, and connects leaders across the public, private, and nonprofit sectors. She knew the moment she joined Leadership Tomorrow that she wanted to work in the field of leadership development and she served as the organization’s Executive Director for 29 years. Jan was named Citizen of the Year by the Municipal League of King County and received numerous other awards including the Woman of Influence award by the Puget Sound Business Journal, Spirit Award from the Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle, and she was also honored by the Girl Scouts of Western Washington as their 2007 Woman of Distinction. In her retirement, she enjoys yoga, dancing, attending theater and listening to jazz. She loves to be outdoors and walks around Green Lake every day. In this episode… In order for a community to grow and thrive, it needs to have competent leaders from the private, public, and nonprofit sectors. These leaders have to work together to bring about change for the common good. The 10-month leadership program offered by Leadership Tomorrow brings together all these players. It allows them to work towards achieving a healthy and resilient community, while also helping women step up into leadership roles. Andrea Heuston is joined by Jan Levy, a former Executive Director of Leadership Tomorrow in this week's episode of Lead Like a Woman Show where they talk about leadership development and community impact. Jan shares with Andrea her colorful career journey, what she has learned about leadership over the years, and her advice to fellow women leaders on stepping up and taking charge. Stay tuned.

Gillian Muessig is a serial entrepreneur noted for her ability to form indelible brands, claim critical markets, sustain fiercely loyal customers, and attract investors and best-in-class talent. She co-founded and built SEOMoz.org into Moz.com, turning it from a blog site and directory to the world's leading provider of marketing applications and metrics reporting software and the global hub for digital marketers. A thought leader in the startup industry, global keynote speaker, author, Gillian enjoys a global reputation for her ability to forecast trends in technology in established and emerging markets. She also helps companies understand how to develop and package new and existing product lines to nudge and ride those trends and successfully navigate these new markets. She is a sought-after counselor and has guided companies and inspired audiences as a keynote speaker in 50+ countries. Gillian serves on boards of directors of technology, biotech and global marketing firms on four continents and she was a former advisor to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. In this episode… One of the best pieces of advice Gillian Muessig has ever received is "Listen, lurk, and learn". She learned the benefits of observing what other leaders did and learning from it before engaging into her own work. This advice has enabled her to grow her businesses and succeed in industries dominated by men. Gillian has a great passion for investing in women-led tech startups and advises women on the best techniques for growing, leading, and scaling globally competitive companies. She has the ability to connect women to each other to help improve their businesses and the companies they lead. Gillian Muessig, the CEO of Outlines Venture Group, gets interviewed by Andrea Heuston in this episode of Lead Like a Woman about how women can successfully manage and lead global companies. Tune in as she talks about founding and scaling Moz, an SEO company, leading a top venture capital firm, and her advice on finding the best companies to invest in.

Jennifer Scott is the Founder, CEO, and Chief People Officer of HireEffect. She brings a unique view to small business leadership after moving from corporate roles to solopreneurship and then to owning and running a growing multi state consulting firm. Jennifer and her team helps business owners create and sustain the kind of culture that promotes growth and success whether it's through the deployment of technology to improve efficiencies or focusing on people to improve effectiveness, Jennifer received her Bachelor's degree in Psychology from the University of Connecticut and has earned a certificate in Human Resources Management from Florida Atlantic University. She presently resides in Frisco Texas with her husband and her son. In this episode… The journey of entrepreneurship is challenging and entrepreneurs are bound to make a couple of mistakes along the way. To reduce the risk of making costly mistakes, business owners are better off working on their businesses as opposed to working in their business. But what is the difference and how does focusing on the former affect the way that their business is run? In this episode of Lead Like a Woman Show, Andrea Heuston talks with HireEffect Founder and CEO,  Jennifer Scott, about the value of outsourcing business services to other companies who are experts in that field. They talk about which business services are most commonly outsourced, the benefits of outsourcing and running a virtual company, the importance of values and culture in the hiring process, and what lead Jennifer to start her company, HireEffect. Stay tuned.

Dr. Cortney Baker is an award-winning entrepreneur, host of The Women in Business podcast, TEDx speaker, and a nationally-recognized authority on women's leadership. She's been featured on Fox News, Forbes, iHeartRadio, and Huffington Post, among other publications. As a leadership expert, mentor, business coach to female entrepreneurs and mother of three, she is passionate about empowering women to close the gender gap through the power of entrepreneurship. Dr. Cortney Baker is also the author of the best selling book The 10 Dos and Don’ts for Business Leadership: Lessons to Lead Effectively and her most recent book Unlimited: Conquering the Myth of the Glass Ceiling. She was named the 2016-2017 Texas Businesswoman of the Year and the top 100 in HealthCare in America. She's the Founder and CEO of KidsCare Home Health, a multi-million dollar healthcare organization with 11 locations across Texas, Colorado and Idaho. She holds a Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Organizational Leadership from Pepperdine University, where she concentrated her studies on understanding and advancing women to the highest levels of leadership. In this episode… When a young lady approached Dr. Cortney Baker after an event and asked Dr. Baker to be her mentor, she readily agreed because she is a big advocate of women supporting other women. Dr. Baker mentored the young lady who ended up achieving much success in her career and eventually starting her own business. And so being an award-winning entrepreneur and leader, Dr. Baker decided to take up coaching to be able to help other women in their entrepreneurship and leadership roles.  In this week's episode of the Lead Like a Woman Show, Andrea Heuston talks with Dr. Cortney Baker about the importance of women mentoring and supporting each other, the before and afters in Dr. Baker's life, and why women don't need to have it all to be happy and successful. Stay tuned.

Pastor Chanda Mills Crutcher is the President and CEO of the American Senior Assistance Program, Inc. (ASAP). She began her career as a certified nursing assistant in Louisiana and continued working in nursing homes to help pay her way through college. In 2004, she founded the American Senior Assistance Program whose primary focus is to provide services to the aging disabled adults and children in regards to transitioning and finishing well. In 2014, Chanda became an ordained minister. In 2018 founded the Legacy Center, which helps aging adults continue to live life with independent purpose and provides comprehensive support for caregivers. Not only is the Legacy Center the first facility of its kind in the state of Alabama, but Chanda is the first certified geriatric care manager in the state. With over 25 years of professional experience in the geriatric care industry, Chanda shows no signs of slowing down. As a wife and mother of seven children and three grandchildren, she's always up for a challenge. She currently serves on the Governor's task force for Alzheimer's and health literacy, and is an executive council member with AARP, an advocate for seniors and their caregivers. Chanda shares her expertise with thousands annually from the White House to rural communities all over the world. In this episode… While working for a large long-term care provider, Chanda Mills Crutcher was disappointed by the gap in services that were offered to older and disabled adults. She later resigned and started the American Senior Assistance Program (ASAP) through which she now provides transformational life opportunities for the elderly. In addition, Chanda's great desire to help other people has driven her to be of service to her community. She recently distributed over 60,000 pounds of food in her community as her way of helping out in the midst of the current COVID-19 health crisis In this episode of Lead Like a Woman Show, Andrea Heuston interviews Chanda Mills Crutcher, President and CEO of the American Senior Assistance Program about her advocacy work and her commitment to providing quality care for the elderly and disabled adults. Chanda discusses why she founded the American Senior Assistance Program and the Legacy Center, her decisions to become an ordained Minister, and why women should believe in themselves. Stay tuned.