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[inspiredleader]

Celebrating Tradition and the Natural World with Entrepreneur Brenda Brock of Farmaesthetics

Do you know what you're putting on your body every day? Most of our body washes and skin creams are filled with harsh chemicals formulated in labs, but, as Brenda Brock knows, big corporations don't hold a monopoly on beautiful, healthy skin. Brenda grew up watching her mother and grandmother care for their skin with homemade remedies composed of plants and herbs from their Texas farm. Today, she continues their tradition through her award-winning natural skincare company, Farmaesthetics. 

After Brenda moved to rural Rhode Island following a career in TV, the self-described "accidental entrepreneur" started giving her own popular handmade skincare products to friends and family. Then, in 1999, she was invited to sell her products at a friend's farmstand and transitioned to a farmstand.  Brenda now owns a boutique in Newport, RI, and Farmaesthetics products are used and sold in the finest spas, hotels and stores around the world.

Brenda recognizes some core values that drove her to build her business. When she was just starting out, she wanted her young daughter to grow up knowing that "products don't grow on shelves." As the daughter of a farming family who witnessed many family farms succumb to large agro-businesses, Brenda demonstrates her support for small farms by purchasing the herbs for her products from local producers. She notes that, "What we choose to put in a product supports either a farm or a chemistry lab." Surprisingly, many conventional moisturizers contain mineral oils and other products derived from petroleum. Brenda's commitment to delivering superb results using whole, natural ingredients is an inspiration to engage with nature and to be mindful of what we put in and on our bodies. 

Receiving the Small Business Person of the Year Award from the Rhode Island Small Business Administration last year offered Brenda a chance to both celebrate and reflect on her path as an entrepreneur. She recalls that the business took off when a customer passed on the face cream she purchased from Brenda's stand to her hair stylist in New York City. This woman, Beth Minardi, is a top hair stylist who recognized the quality of Brenda's products.  Beth introduced her to more beauty industry professionals and secured her a spot in high-profile industry shows. At first, Brenda wasn't sure if she was ready for that level of exposure, but her response demonstrates a key lesson in entrepreneurship (and life in general): Say yes. Exhibiting her line in the beauty show forced Brenda to take her business to the next level even though she wasn't sure she was ready.

 Looking back, Brenda acknowledges the critical role Beth Minardi played in her business' early growth. Having a sponsor or someone of greater influence recognize your potential and help secure opportunities is a common factor in many successful entrepreneurs' stories. So, pay attention to opportunities to expand your business in perhaps an unexpected way if you're an entrepreneur, and if you're in a position to help, take note! You could be the turning point for a promising young business. 

 Brenda's passion for exploring the nourishing properties of plants is evident in her energy and voice. During the radio show, she noted that she was always fascinated by herbs and began to make essential oil candles and other herb salves for her friends while still in high school. Often, a true passion has roots in childhood. If you're looking for something to bring you joy, whether as a business or a hobby, ask yourself, "What did I most enjoy doing as a child?" 

To hear more of Brenda's creative process and story, listen to the full episode online or via iTunes. 

[inspiredleader]

Avivah Wittenberg Cox: A Vision of a Gender Balanced World

On the March 3 Visionary Leader, Extraordinary Life radio show, Avivah Wittenberg-Cox, CEO and founder of 20-first, shook us all out of a standstill in a conversation ostensibly about women's leadership in 21st century companies by throwing the accepted terminology out of the window. "We need to reframe women's networks and leadership initiatives as balance networks and balance initiatives. It's crucial that men get involved too as both genders have much to gain from a balanced workplace," said Avivah, referring to gender balance rather than work / life balance. When asked about Sheryl Sandberg's Lean In book and accompanying movement, Avivah responded, "Lean In is unhelpful. It puts the onus on women to change the system. Women have spent last 100 years leaning in. How much more do they have to lean in? Now, it's the companies turn to lean in." Avivah's consulting firm, 20-first, helps progressive companies build gender-balanced organizations that optimize the best talent from both sexes and leverage the fact that women make 80% of consumer buying decisions. 

So, what does gender balance mean? Having gender balance in an organization means that the distribution of men and women in leadership functions takes into account men and women's unique contributions and makes sense in a way that is relevant to the company's talent pool, organization, industry and customer base. Avivah adds that gender balance doesn't always have to mean a 50/50 split between men and women. For example, in a company that caters exclusively to women customers, it may make sense to have an overwhelming majority of women employees. However, Avivah adds "In most companies it will at least be closer to 50 / 50 than it is to the current 85 /15.

Avivah is an advocate of taking a systems approach versus a programmatic approach to achieve this balance. She recommends that senior leaders design the system they desire in order to create gender balance rather than try to solve symptoms of a broken system with episodic programming alone. She also states that organizations must be proactive on this issue: "Companies get the leadership balance they design."

When evaluating the prevalence of gender balance, Avivah assesses at gender balance at three levels of "altitude":

Countries

Companies

Couples

At each of these levels, gender balance contributes competitiveness, quality of life, and overall well being, not only for adults but for children as well. In Avivah's vision of a gender-balanced world, rather than being a "nice to have," gender balance is a "must have" for organizations.  Avivah envisions that gender balance will be a key recruiting metric for talent and that in the future, young people of both sexes should want to know which companies are gender balanced and which are not. 

For more of Avivah's convincing logic and insights into what it's like to bring this progressive message to the world (hint: she says there's a one word answer), listen to the full episode online or via iTunes.