Lead Like a Woman

Zoey Mann is a fourth generation jeweler and President of Fox’s Seattle. She graduated from Whitman college with a Degree in Theater and Elementary Education and joined the family business full time after earning her Degree in 2003. After working in Fox's Seattle for 10 years, Zoey took over as the majority shareholder and President in 2013. She's a member of Seattle Executives Association, and the Women Presidents’ Organization. She was also on the board of the Seattle Children's Theatre for 14 years. On a personal note, Zoey and her husband, Jordan, have three kids aged 3 to 11. She has been through a lot in the last few years, having battled BRCA1 genetic mutation after finding out that she was a carrier of the gene when she was 36 and her youngest was only nine months old. She had a preventative oophorectomy and hysterectomy four months later, and a radical breast reduction after a year. In March 2020, she had a preventative double mastectomy with her husband by her side. When she woke up, guests were no longer allowed and non essential surgeries were cancelled as an effect of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this episode… Oftentimes, when people inherit or take over the leadership mantle in their family's businesses, they tend to do what the leaders before them did as opposed to creating their own course. Zoey Mann made the same mistake during her early days in their family business, Fox’s Seattle, until she realized that they were in a bad place business-wise. It was then that she decided to pivot and make several changes which turned out to be very much in their favor. Zoey currently works with a number of designers and jewelers who ensures that she supplies top quality products to her clients. After taking over the leadership of the company, she not only moved the business to a new location but she has also changed its business model, leading it to the growth and expansion that it currently enjoys. In this episode of Lead Like a Woman, Andrea Heuston is joined by Zoey Mann from Fox's Seattle to talk about jewelry and conquering adversity. They’ll be discussing the changes Zoey brought about in their family business, how the coronavirus pandemic has impacted the company, and how they’re supporting their employees and community today. She also shares her experience of overcoming BRCA1 gene mutation and how this has affected her personally and professionally. Stay tuned.

Jaci Russo is a brand strategist, author, podcast and radio host, and the co-founder & CEO of brandRUSSO, a strategic branding agency. Jaci began her career in Hollywood as a Junior Talent Agent at Creative Artists Agency working with clients such as Helen Hunt, David Letterman and Gwyneth Paltrow. After that, she worked as the Executive Assistant to Chairman and CEO Barry Diller, adding strategic value to his many companies including the Home Shopping Network and Ticketmaster. Jaci has years of experience in branding and marketing on a national level and is a sought-after speaker on the topics of branding and social media. She has four children and is married to Michael Russo, co-founder and Creative Director of the agency they launched together in 2001. In this episode… To be a successful entrepreneur, you have to be a lifelong learner and be willing to do more in order to grow. The mindset you have as your business grows is crucial because your beliefs and the way you think serves as either the nudge you need to push boundaries or the wall that limits you from moving forward.  Jaci Russo loves change and the uncomfortability that comes with it. Her daily mantra is 'check yourself before you wreck yourself' and she believes that it is only through suffering and being uncomfortable that one can open up space for self-improvement.  Join Andrea Heuston in this episode of Lead Like a WomanShow as she talks with Jaci Russo, Co-founder of brandRUSSO, about creative branding and the importance of having an abundance mentality. Jaci also shares why she and her husband, Michael Russo, started their own branding agency, what sets their agency apart from other players in the industry, what it’s like to work in Hollywood, and how your mindset can be the key that sets you up for success. Stay tuned.

Erin Branche is a lifestyle expert who has merged her background in luxury hospitality with her passion for makeup into a successful lash and beauty brand. She is the Founder and CEO of Lash Bash and has a passion for lashes, beauty, and the latest trends. Lash Bash opened its first location in Philadelphia's Rittenhouse Square in 2015. Erin Branche graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 2006 with a B.A. in Communications and a post-graduate diploma in Hotel & Restaurant Management from École Hôtelière de Lausanne. She is a licensed aesthetician and a graduate of Esthiology from the Jean Madeline Institute of Philadelphia. She is certified in both classic and Russian volume lash extensions. Erin also recently completed the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses incubator program.  Erin is active in her community and is passionate about the arts. She serves on the executive board of the Young Friends of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. In this episode… Many female entrepreneurs and leaders have been working from home for these past few months because of the lockdowns that took effect as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. This has given them a lot of time to think about their work, family, and future plans; and many of them say that despite working from home, they have found themselves to be more productive during the lockdown. This has been the case for Erin Branche, who was able to sit down, research, and develop online courses which had taken a backseat to her numerous other projects over the years. She has also coined a new motto, 'there's no someday on the calendar' and the time she spent at home has allowed her to not only revisit shelved ideas, it has also allowed her to spend more time with her family.  In this episode, Andrea Heuston is joined by Erin Branche, Founder and CEO of Lash Bash to talk about her passion for beauty and luxury, and the impact and power of determination. Erin shares how she started her entrepreneurial journey which led her to Lash Bash, the challenges she faced growing her business, and why it is very important for her to create quality connections with her clients. Stay tuned.

Sarahbeth Yeli Marshall is the Founder and Chief Chocolate Officer of Yelibelly Chocolates. She started her career as a registered dietician with a Master's Degree in Nutrition and Food Science, and worked for 15 years in the food service industry before falling into the dark side of chocolate.  Yeli has been studying and performing the art of Middle Eastern belly dancing since 1999, and on one of her travels to Italy, she discovered flavor-infused chocolates. She brought back that inspiration and started making her own chocolates in 2007 and since then, she has worked at perfecting various flavors to entice her family and friends.  Yeli started selling her chocolates around the Metroplex and at a dance studio where she taught belly dancing. After searching for a name that truly told the story about her chocolates, a friend suggested melding her name and her passion for dance, thus Yelibelly Chocolates was born. Yeli still performs from time to time around the Dallas area, and she also teaches nutrition and healthy cooking classes. In this episode… Sarahbeth Yeli Marshall fell in love with flavor-infused chocolates while on a trip in Italy so much that she was inspired to start making her own when she got back home. When she no longer found happiness in her career as a dietician, her husband encouraged her to start a chocolate-making  business and since then, there’s been no turning back for Yeli. The journey of entrepreneurship has been enlightening for Yeli and things she learned in the process is something that she hopes to share with other women.  Join Andrea Heuston on this episode of Lead Like a Woman Show where she interviews Sarahbeth Yeli Marshall about chocolate and about chocolates and belly dancing. Yeli talks about how she came to start a business enterprise around chocolate, the challenges she faced growing her business, and the lessons she learned that she hopes other women can learn from. 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… For the last couple of months, the world has seen a lot of sudden and unexpected changes in people’s lives as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. This crazy and uncertain time has cost people their employment, their health, and have essentially forced them to pivot from their usual routines so abruptly. One of the most common pivots done by many companies who remain operational is shifting their workforce from working in the office to working from home. However, not everyone is conversant with working virtually, and taking part in online meetings has proved to be a challenge for many. In addition, balancing work and family time for women has proven to be another challenge. In this episode, Andrea Heuston shares a recording of a webinar she did with a group of 200 women from different industries. In this webinar, they share the best tips for working from home, preparing and effectively taking part in online meetings, and the importance of empathy, patience, and communication when working remotely from your team. They also discuss solutions to the challenges they're facing and how they're staying connected to their work colleagues and family during the quarantine. Stay tuned.

Jasmine Donovan is the President and CFO of Dick's Drive-In Restaurants. Being the granddaughter of one of the founders, she has worked in the business several times since she was 16 years old and started working full time on the executive team in 2013. Jasmine stepped into the role of President when her father, Jim Spady, retired in March of 2019.  Jasmine is on the board of the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, Mary's Place, and The Forum Foundation. She was recently recognized by the Puget Sound Business Journal as a Woman of Influence for 2019. She graduated from Hillsdale College with a Bachelor's degree in Mathematics and Chemistry in 2006.  Jasmine joined the Navy after college and was assigned as an instructor at the Naval Nuclear Power Training Command in Charleston, South Carolina. During her service, she was the Public Affairs Officer, earned her Master Training Specialist certification and was the Division Director of the physics teaching division. While in Charleston, she also earned her Master's degree in Business with an emphasis in Finance at Charleston Southern University. She currently resides in North Seattle with her husband and two sons. In this episode… Being in the military is a great experience and there's a lot to learn from being in service. Things such as discipline, leadership, and being of service to others are learned while in the military, and it’s a great place to start practicing persistence and how to manage through a crisis. Jasmine Donovan knows this first hand because her time at the Navy was one filled with enriching experiences that prepared her for when she eventually took the helm of their family business, Dick’s Drive-In Restaurants. Being part of the business for a long time and developing the need to serve others has led her to make decisions that has not only allowed their company to help others in times of crisis, but also to maneuver beyond the challenges posed by being in one. Join Andrea Heuston in this week’s episode of Lead Like a Woman as she talks to Jasmine Donovan, about what it’s like to be the first female President of one of Seattle's top restaurants. She also talks about the philosophies her grandfather had for the business and how it made their business stand out from competition, how she applies the things she learned while in the Navy to their company, and her future plans for Dick's Drive-In Restaurants. Stay tuned. 

Connie Wyatt is the Founder, President, and Principal Consultant of S.A.I.D. Strategy Group. She has been leading the rapidly growing woman and minority-owned professional services firm since its inception in 2014. As a management consulting firm, S.A.I.D prides itself on being the best of the best at creative critical problem solving to deliver on what they commit to with their clients for their organizational strategic initiatives, hardware service platform deployments, and software application development projects. Their motto is ‘When you work with us, it's SAID and done’.  Connie is a certified project manager, business analyst, and a thought leader in the industry, including being a contributing author to the book The Keys to Our Success: Lessons Learned from 25 of Our Best Project Managers, Second Edition. She has a Bachelor of Science in Finance from the University of Illinois, a Certificate in Project Management Strategy from the University of Chicago, Certificate in Customer Relationship Management from DePaul University, and a Certificate in Entrepreneurship from Harold Washington College. She is also a graduate of 10 KSP.  In her free time, Connie is an avid listener of music, creating playlists and exploring new genres. She also loves bicycling with an ultimate goal of riding a century, which is a 100-mile ride. In this episode… You are the master of your own destiny. If you are in a position where you feel that your business or relationships are not working out the way you want them to, then it's high time you made some changes in the way you approach these things. Instead of looking at everybody else, make a decision to change yourself because things will change when you change. Oftentimes people tend to have a victim mentality when things don’t turn out the way they want them to. But according to Connie Wyatt, it’s very crucial for people to evolve as things around them change and to take the time to learn from others along the way. This week's episode of the Lead Like a Woman Show is dedicated to Christine Wyatt, the late mother of this episode’s guest, Connie Wyatt. Connie talks to Andrea Heuston about the need for change, why she started her consultancy company, the importance of continued growth and learning, and how the COVID-19 pandemic has personally affected her and her family. Stay tuned.

Lisa MacLean is the Founding Partner and CEO of Moxie Media, one of the first women-owned political consulting firms in the US. A courageous determiner and tenacious collaborative, Lisa turned first-hand experience with gender inequity into an established national political consulting firm that expands the impacts of women in leadership, and helps create a more inclusive government and nation. For more than 20 years, Lisa and Moxie Media have made a difference in electing candidates, winning a national initiative, advancing policies, and building movements across the country.  Lisa holds a Degree in American Culture and Women's Studies from Vassar College. She is smart, savvy and driven. In this episode… While working for the Democratic party in Washington, DC soon after college, Lisa experienced first-hand the frustrations women in politics go through. These experiences were powerful and disturbing for her at the age of 22 and it made an impact in her life. She soon left and decided to go into the field, this time in California, to work for a woman who was running for congress that year. Lisa learned a lot after the exciting work experience she had in California and ended up starting one of the first woman-founded political consulting firms in America. She focused on helping women and other marginalized groups get a stronger political voice in the country. In this episode of Lead Like a Woman Show, Lisa MacLean joins Andrea Heuston to talk about her work in gender equity and politics. She explains why she started working in the political field, the various challenges she has faced working in this primarily male dominated field, what she's most passionate about, and her best piece of advice to fellow female entrepreneurs. Stay tuned.

Andrea Heuston is the CEO and Creative Principal of Artitudes Design, an award-winning creative agency. She has over 20 years experience in the design industry and has won several awards including Puget Sound Business Journal’s 40 under 40, the Annual Enterprising Women of the Year Awards for Enterprising Women Magazine, Cambridge Who’s Who, Key4Women Achieve Award, and more. Andrea holds a degree in Communications and Design from the University of Washington. Apart from being an entrepreneur, Andrea 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 In this episode… Twelve years ago, Andrea decided to have a lap band surgery because she was unhappy with her body weight and wanted to get to her ideal body weight. What she didn't know was that the positive results she experienced post surgery would be short-lived and that it would instead turn into a series of events that would require her to be placed under a medically-induced coma. It was an experience that opened up her eyes to the importance of family and friends in a patient’s recovery process, and it also made her realize a few things about herself that she believes other people should be aware of as well. In this episode of the Lead Like a Woman Show, Andrea gets interviewed by Dr. Jeremy Weisz of Rise25 in her own show about how her experiences as a coma patient impacted not just her life but the lives of the people she was closest to. Tune in as she talks about why she decided to get surgery, being diagnosed with Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), being in a coma for 19 days, and the lessons learned from her experience.

Catherine Crosslin is the owner and CEO of Instar Performance, an internationally recognized personal and organizational development company. Catherine is an internationally respected leadership and organizational cultural consultant, executive coach, master facilitator and keynote speaker. Her engaging and interactive facilitation and coaching techniques help clients challenge and overcome deeply held beliefs and habits that inhibit growth, achievement and success.  Prior to founding Instar Performance, Catherine dedicated 15 years to Gordon Graham & Co. Inc, where she led and developed for businesses in prison. In this episode… As more women take on leadership positions in companies and in different industries, the expectation to match men in order to achieve success can become overbearing. This is particularly true for male-dominated industries where the demand for women to behave just like men can be overwhelming . But according to Catherine Crosslin, that shouldn’t be the case. Women can be more effective at work and they can achieve more if they stay true to who they are. By embracing their own uniqueness and working with who they intrinsically are, they will be able to accomplish more things. If things don’t go as planned, the best option is to fail forward and to continue pushing on. By treating their failures as learning experiences and mistakes as stepping stones for pivotal beginnings, women can open more doors of opportunities for themselves. Join Andrea Heuston in this episode of Lead Like a Woman Show as she interviews Catherine Crosslin of Instar Performance about women in leadership and organizational culture. Join the conversation as Catherine talks about her experience and lessons learned while working in male-dominated fields, how women can be better leaders, what it means to fail forward, and the benefits of having an abundance mentality. Stay tuned.