A Life Worth Living

Dame Stephanie Shirley

Dame Stephanie (Steve) Shirley is a workplace revolutionary and successful IT entrepreneur-turned-ardent philanthropist. In 1962, she founded an all-woman software company that pioneered remote working, upending the expectations of the time. It was ultimately valued at almost $3 billion and made 70 staff members millionaires.

Since retiring, Dame Stephanie’s focus has been on philanthropy — especially autism and IT. She’s brought three significant autism charities to sustainability, which together employ approximately 1,000 people: Autistica, Prior’s Court, and Autism at Kingwood. Her TED Talk, “Why Do Ambitious Women Have Flat Heads?” has over 2 million views. She is the Author of two books, Let It Go and So To Speak, and every penny from the books sold goes to Autistica, the medical research charity she founded.

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Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn: 

  • How Dame Stephanie Shirley’s background as a refugee influenced her life
  • Why Dame Stephanie started a software company, and how she elevated women in the process
  • How Dame Stephanie’s name change came about — and what she did to make her employees millionaires
  • Dame Stephanie explains how her autistic son inspired her philanthropic work
  • The extraordinary stories presented in Dame Stephanie’s books
  • Why do ambitious women have “flat heads?”
  • Andrea and Dame Stephanie talk about racism in the workplace, diversity and inclusion, and the challenges of motherhood
  • The best piece of advice Dame Stephanie has ever received and her advice to women trying to break the glass ceiling
  • The importance of value recruitment
  • Dame Stephanie’s superpower and where to learn more about her

In this episode…

Women undertake many responsibilities in both their professional and personal lives. These may include being an entrepreneur, business leader, and mother. All of these responsibilities present unique challenges that women have to face and find solutions for.

Dame Stephanie Shirley has gone through these phases in her life. A child refugee at five years old, she procured determination and resiliency at a young age. Eventually, Dame Stephanie started a company to help women in the IT space operate in more inclusive and diverse workplaces, became a mother, and started a foundation to provide support to autistic kids. She embraced all the challenges she faced, became stronger and wiser over the years, and continues working toward a more equitable, generous future.

In this episode of the Lead Like A Woman Show, Andrea Heuston interviews Dame Stephanie Shirley, an IT entrepreneur and philanthropist, about her life story, entrepreneurship, and philanthropy. Dame Stephanie talks about her motivation to start a software company in 1962, her books, and the importance of value recruitment. You don’t want to miss these inspirational, insightful stories.

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Sponsor for this episode…

This episode is brought to you by Artitudes Design by Andrea Heuston. Artitudes Design is an award-winning creative agency that has been creating visual communication for Fortune 500 companies for over 25 years. They have worked with notable companies such as Microsoft, Starbucks, Expedia, and have also served startups and nonprofit organizations.

They specialize in connecting speakers with audiences by creating visual value with presentations and through the creation of motion graphics, video, and content.

To learn more about Artitudes Design, visit their website today. Checkout their portfolio to see their previous projects, and contact them today to find out how they can help you bring your business a cut above the rest.

Your Best Looks Different Every Day

Caity Cronkhite

Caity Cronkhite is the CEO and Founder of Good Words LLC, a technical communications consulting firm based in Seattle, Washington and remotely around the globe. Good Words was created to help produce, edit, and deliver communications content for organizations, from startups to Fortune 500 companies. The goal is to intersect both technology and communication to relay complex, specialized information to any audience.

Caity was born and raised on a farm in rural Indiana before leaving her prairie roots to attend Carnegie Mellon University. After college, she moved west to start her career as a technical writer and eventually, an entrepreneur. Caity is passionate about using her personal and professional experience to uplift others, which includes advocating for rural policy change, advocating for increased labor and wage protections for freelance workers, and creating a company that empowers its employees with meaningful career opportunities, no matter where they live.

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Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn: 

  • Why Caity Cronkhite left technical writing to start her freelance writing career
  • How Caity turned her freelance writing into a business
  • What went right in Caity’s company?
  • Caity’s struggles in her career coming from a small, remote town
  • How bagpipes led Caity to Carnegie Mellon and, ultimately, Good Words LLC
  • Good Words’ efforts to bridge a gap between writers and the new world of freelancing
  • Advice Caity would give to those starting their own business or freelancing career

In this episode…

How can you carve your own career path? What does it take to become a trailblazer and turn your passion into a business?

Coming from a small town, Caity Cronkhite faced many struggles in the journey to build her career. Looking for new jobs out of college was repetitive, and Caity was searching for something new and exciting. That’s when she decided to step into freelancing, which led her to start a business, continue growing, and achieve her dreams.

Do you have a woman in your life who inspires or empowers you? In this episode of the Lead like a Woman Show, Andrea Heuston talks to Caity Cronkhite, Founder and CEO of Good Words LLC. Caity discusses leaving her career to start freelancing and, ultimately, create her business. She explains how each day looks different and sometimes you can only do so much — because your best looks different every single day. You don’t want to miss this inspiring story!

Resources Mentioned in this episode

Sponsor for this episode…

This episode is brought to you by Artitudes Design by Andrea Heuston. Artitudes Design is an award-winning creative agency that has been creating visual communication for Fortune 500 companies for over 25 years. They have worked with notable companies such as Microsoft, Starbucks, Expedia, and have also served startups and nonprofit organizations.

They specialize in connecting speakers with audiences by creating visual value with presentations and through the creation of motion graphics, video, and content.

To learn more about Artitudes Design, visit their website today. Checkout their portfolio to see their previous projects, and contact them today to find out how they can help you bring your business a cut above the rest.

Making Decisions From Your Head Or Your Heart

Peggy O'Flaherty

Peggy O’Flaherty is an accomplished entrepreneur, author, and community-centric business leader with over 30 years of experience managing and growing female-founded and mission-driven businesses and organizations. Her work has been featured in Forbes, Startup Hustle, Business Insider, Women’s Wear Daily, Modern Retail, and more. In her current venture as the Co-founder and Chief Community Officer of Mavely, Peggy has merged her experience in consumer engagement, fundraising, sales, and account management with data-driven and growth-oriented functional solutions.

In 2017, Peggy co-authored the book Living Your Calling vs. Chasing Your Craving, a reflection and guide dedicated to high-performing women who are seeking to find the balance between their personal ambitions, families, and spirituality. Through detailed exercises, Peggy helps readers discover the joy and harmony that often seems unattainable in running a successful business while raising a family. She often reminds other women to learn the difference between when you make decisions from your head and when you need to use your heart. She is an Illinois native and lives in Downers Grove, Illinois. She holds a BA in government and business from DePaul University and is the proud mother of five children.

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Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn: 

  • What drives Peggy O’Flaherty’s desire to help other businesses and women succeed?
  • What went right for Peggy as she built her businesses?
  • Peggy explains why she started Mavely and how she chooses who to work with
  • Why Peggy started Creating Space, why she co-authored Living Your Calling vs. Chasing Your Craving, and her reasons for creating the OneParish app
  • How Peggy leads like a woman
  • The best piece of advice Peggy has received from a mentor and her advice to women looking to build a great brand
  • Peggy talks about her superpower and shares her contact details

In this episode…

When building a company, it is important for business owners to take note of their data and key performance indicators. These factors demonstrate how the business is performing and can help identify new opportunities in the industry.

For Peggy O’Flaherty, it is also crucial for business owners to know when to use their hearts and when to use their heads when making a decision. This has helped her build a great brand and make better decisions in both her professional and personal life.

In this episode of the Lead Like A Woman Show, Andrea Heuston interviews Peggy O’Flaherty, the Co-founder and Chief Community Officer of Mavely, about her work in helping women build their businesses and balance work with their personal lives. They also discuss how women struggle with imposter syndrome and talk about living an intentional life.

Resources Mentioned in this episode

Sponsor for this episode…

This episode is brought to you by Artitudes Design by Andrea Heuston. Artitudes Design is an award-winning creative agency that has been creating visual communication for Fortune 500 companies for over 25 years. They have worked with notable companies such as Microsoft, Starbucks, Expedia, and have also served startups and nonprofit organizations.

They specialize in connecting speakers with audiences by creating visual value with presentations and through the creation of motion graphics, video, and content.

To learn more about Artitudes Design, visit their website today. Checkout their portfolio to see their previous projects, and contact them today to find out how they can help you bring your business a cut above the rest.

You Need a Rudder For Your Boat

Erin Keam

Erin Keam is the Host of Conversations About Closets With My Closest 1000 Friends podcast and has interviewed over 160 women, mainly entrepreneurs, and she interviews them about what they do and why it matters. She loves to showcase and connect women, as she believes they are the answer to everything. The more money they make, the better the world will be.

Erin also offers mentoring and marketing services. There’s nothing she loves more than exploring The Shero’s Journey with her businesses so they can create content that resonates with clients, strategize ways to develop growth, or clarify core messaging. Her word of the year is “clarity,” and that’s what she brings to her clients. When not creatively brainstorming, Erin is rewriting sexist lyrics to popular songs and learning to rap.

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Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn: 

  • What inspired Erin Keam to start a marketing and mentoring business?
  • What went right for Erin when she started her business?
  • Erin talks about her coaching and mentoring work and explains what The Shero’s Journey is about
  • What sparked the idea for Erin’s podcast, Conversations About Closets With My Closest 1000 Friends?
  • What made Erin move to the US from New Zealand?
  • Why mental health should be a top priority in women’s careers
  • The most impactful piece of advice Erin has received from a mentor — and her inspiring superpower

In this episode…

To become a great leader and businesswoman, you need clarity in everything you do. You need to know what you want, where you are heading, and what steps you should take to get there. In business, you have to understand your target audience in order to create the right marketing messages for them.

One way to do this is to work with professionals and surround yourself with a community of like-minded people. This is what Erin Keam did while growing her marketing and mentoring business. Now, she’s an inspiration to professionals everywhere, working with women to help them gain clarity in their lives and realize just how amazing they are.

In this episode of the Lead Like A Woman Show, Andrea Heuston is joined by Erin Keam, the Host of Conversations About Closets With My Closest 1000 Friends podcast, to talk about her coaching and mentoring work and the importance of clarity. Erin also explains how she helps women improve their lives, talks about her podcast, details The Shero’s Journey, and explains why mental health is important. Stay tuned.

Resources Mentioned in this episode

Sponsor for this episode…

This episode is brought to you by Artitudes Design by Andrea Heuston. Artitudes Design is an award-winning creative agency that has been creating visual communication for Fortune 500 companies for over 25 years. They have worked with notable companies such as Microsoft, Starbucks, Expedia, and have also served startups and nonprofit organizations.

They specialize in connecting speakers with audiences by creating visual value with presentations and through the creation of motion graphics, video, and content.

To learn more about Artitudes Design, visit their website today. Checkout their portfolio to see their previous projects, and contact them today to find out how they can help you bring your business a cut above the rest.

[100th Episode] Looking Back on Inspirational Lessons From Powerful Women

Andrea Heuston

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.

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Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn: 

  • Andrea Heuston talks about her interview with Jean Thompson and Dr. Kristin Kahle
  • What Andrea learned from her interviews with Jasmine Donovan, Catherine Crosslin, and Gillian Muessig
  • Why do women in leadership return a higher ROI?
  • How to make your soul sing with Pastor Chanda Mills Crutcher
  • Timeless lessons from Cole Banks, Andrea Herrera, and Jenna Lange
  • Andrea talks about her interviews with Sharelle Klaus, Lisa Rueff, and Stephanie Sims
  • Tips for supporting women in the wine industry from Faith Koen and Christina Starr
  • The importance of trusting your inner GPS
  • What Andrea learned from talking with the Mayor of Oakland Park, Florida and the CEO of TechWerxe
  • Andrea’s interviews with Ironman athlete Suzie Yorke, football star Adrienne Smith, wine expert Deborah Brenner, and yoga instructor Hope Zvara
  • Andrea’s books — and the major life experiences that have influenced her life

In this episode…

Andrea Heuston has had the privilege of interviewing many smart women on her podcast, the Lead Like A Woman Show. These have included top business leaders, philanthropists, and political leaders. She has also talked to female Ironman athletes, football stars, yoga instructors, as well as women in the wine industry.

Over the course of the podcast, Andrea has unearthed different perspectives about starting and running a successful business and leading like a woman. She has also seen how important it is for women to build resiliency in both their personal and professional lives.

On this 100th episode of the Lead Like A Woman Show, Andrea Heuston is joined by Dr. Jeremy Weisz, the Co-founder of Rise25, to talk about the key lessons she learned from some of her podcast guests. They also talk about the importance of pivoting, supporting women in the male-dominated wine industry, and explain why women in leadership often return a higher ROI. Stay tuned.

Resources Mentioned in this episode

Sponsor for this episode…

This episode is brought to you by Artitudes Design by Andrea Heuston. Artitudes Design is an award-winning creative agency that has been creating visual communication for Fortune 500 companies for over 25 years. They have worked with notable companies such as Microsoft, Starbucks, Expedia, and have also served startups and nonprofit organizations.

They specialize in connecting speakers with audiences by creating visual value with presentations and through the creation of motion graphics, video, and content.

To learn more about Artitudes Design, visit their website today. Checkout their portfolio to see their previous projects, and contact them today to find out how they can help you bring your business a cut above the rest.