The Female Insight Zone

How do you turn a part-time job in a call center into a career? How do you grow your business when everyone else is downsizing? How do you become a C-suite leader in an industry dominated by men? Laura Brandao contends that the answer lies in making the most of every opportunity.

Brandao is the President of American Financial Resources, a wholesale firm that serves thousands of mortgage professionals and customers nationwide with their residential financing needs. Brandao was honored as one of 2018’s Most Influential Women in the Mortgage Industry, one of 2017’s Mortgage Business Hot 100, and one of the 50 Elite Women in the Mortgage Industry—three times! She has 20-plus years of experience building strong teams, consistently leading new divisions from launch to industry leadership.

Today, Brandao shares her journey from the call center to the C-suite, discussing how she survived the implosion of the mortgage industry to become president of AFR. She speaks to the importance of a strong work ethic and passion for the work you do. Brandao also reflects on her achievements in an industry dominated by men, explaining how a laser focus on making a name for AFR contributed to her success. Listen in for Brandao’s insight on making the most of every opportunity and hear her advice around differentiating yourself to remain relevant in your marketplace.

Key Interview Takeaways

Look for the opportunity in every role you take on. Brandao turned a part-time job in a call center into a career, and she attributes her success to the attitude that every position is what you make of it.

Show up every day. Brandao’s strong work ethic comes from her family, and she has always been committed to giving 110% every day, no matter who she works for or how much money she makes.

Focus on getting the job done. Brandao rarely thinks about being one of the few women in leadership in the mortgage industry because she is too busy making a name for her company.

Differentiate yourself. Brandao is proud to be a female leader in the mortgage space, and she argues that where you come from doesn’t matter if you go beyond the day-to-day and find unique ways to be relevant in your marketplace.

Understand your value. Brandao focuses on the fact that she gets to ‘bring families home every day,’ and the opportunity to impact other’s lives inspires her to do her best work.

Connect with Laura Brandao

Laura Brandao on LinkedIn

AFR Wholesale

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In recent years, we have experienced a massive transformation in the way organizations relate to the people they serve. The focus has shifted from ownership to access, from transactions to relationships, from single payment to subscription pricing, and from one-way conversation to open dialogue. In this new Membership Economy, businesses are called on to build trusted relationships with customers in order to earn their loyalty.

Robbie Baxter is the founder of Peninsula Strategies, a consulting firm that supports solopreneurs, venture-backed startups and industry leaders in developing business strategy. She has 20 years of experience working on growth initiatives with nearly 100 organizations in 20-plus industries, including ASICS, Netflix and The Wall Street Journal. Baxter is also the author of The Membership Economy: Find Your Superusers, Master the Forever Transaction, and Build Recurring Revenue, an Inc Top 5 Marketing Book of 2015, and she received her MBA from Stanford, where she serves as the Vice Chair of Stanford Women on Boards.

Today, Baxter explains the Membership Economy, describing how she supports entrepreneurs and startups in building authentic relationships with their clients and customers. She shares her transition from corporate product marketing to independent consulting, discussing how being the mother of young children made it difficult for her to be an A-player in a traditional nine-to-five setting. Listen in for Baxter’s insight on defining your area of expertise and learn how to choose a career path that works for your life.

Key Interview Takeaways

Businesses benefit from building relationships with customers. Baxter coined the term Membership Economy to represent the massive shift in how organizations relate to the people they serve, developing trust with consumers in order to win their loyalty.

Independent consulting requires niching down to a specific area of expertise. Baxter fell in love with the Netflix business model and leveraged her understanding of the Membership Economy to build a successful consulting business helping entrepreneurs and startups establishing meaningful relationships with clients and customers.

Integrity is key in the membership economy. Subscription businesses that don’t treat their customers well will lose them.

As an independent consultant doing knowledge work, it doesn’t matter WHEN you work on a project, as long as you complete it on time. The flexible model affords more control over your career and may be ideal for women who are the mothers of young children.

Connect with Robbie Baxter

Peninsula Strategies

Robbie Baxter on LinkedIn

Robbie Baxter on Twitter

Resources

The Membership Economy: Find Your Superusers, Master the Forever Transaction, and Build Recurring Revenue by Robbie Kellman Baxter

Stanford Women on Boards

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“If you’re not learning or growing, you’re dying.”

Thus says our special guest, Women in the Boardroom CEO, Sheila Ronning.

As the CEO and founder of Women in the Boardroom, Sheila will share her experience building her company. Next, learn why there is a need for organizations like hers to enable women to gain board positions.

Listen, as she explains the reason for the shortage of women CEOs in the corporate boardroom. Plus, learn why diversity should be an important component when choosing the members of your board.

She’ll also list the qualities or background that corporate boards are looking for in their candidates; and why you have a chance to be part of the board even if you don’t belong to the financial industry.

As a networking expert, Sheila explains how she helps her clients land corporate board positions through strategic planning and processes.

Sheila is an expert in connecting women, executives and professionals with tools they need to succeed in business. She does this by organizing board coaching sessions, seminars and webinars. Plus, find out what drives Sheila to work with women and make a difference in their lives.

As a midwestern girl from Minnesota, Sheila talks about living in New York and the hard lessons she learned along the way.

Lastly, Sheila explains why she calls her members Life Learners: women who are stimulated with learning from extremely powerful people and having discussions with them.

http://media.blubrry.com/femaleredzone/content.blubrry.com/femaleredzone/Episode_025_The_Female_Red_Zone_-_Interview_with_Sheila_Ronning_Podcast_Ready_.mp3

In this episode, you’ll learn:

* How she started Women in the Boardroom.

* The reason why we need an organization like hers to get women in the corporate boardroom.

* The relationship between the number of women on corporate board and women CEOs. And why corporate organizations need to embrace diversity.

* The types of background corporate boards are looking for in their candidates.

* How do Women in the Boardroom prepare their clients en route to executive position.

* What drives her to help women succeed in the corporate world.

* How moving from Minnesota to New York became her biggest challenge and how did she overcame it.

Tweetables:

* The way you get into the boardroom is through your network.

* Our network wants to help us, but we need to help them help us.

* You don’t learn and grow without those bumps in the road.

* People love the authentic.

* If you’re not learning or growing, you’re dying.

Big Takeaways:

* Even though women are great at networking, they’re not so good at using this skill. Thus, the need for organizations like Women in the Boardroom.

* Corporate organizations need to elect board members that truly represent their customers (E.g. women, Asian, African-American and so on).

* Be authentic when building or running your business. Be who you are, not as someone who you think you’re supposed to be.

* Emulating the people you want to be doesn’t mean you have to be just like them.

Related Links & References:

* Women in the Boardroom official website: www.WomenInTheBoardroom.com

* Women in the Boardroom LinkedIn profile: linkedin.com/company/women-in-the-boardroom

* Women in the Boardroom Twitter handle: @BoardroomWomen

* Women in the Boardroom Facebook page: www.facebook.

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“If you don’t get it out there, nothing’s gonna happen.”

Priceless advice from our guest, Pam Ivey

Pam is the founder of Pam Ivey International – an Ontario-based online marketing company.

Join Pam as she explains the essential elements of an effective, smart content marketing strategy. She’ll kick-off the show by explaining the importance of creating a client avatar and how this method helps to land new opportunities.

Next, Pam talks about one of the biggest challenges in her life. She’ll share how this tragedy became a turning point of her career en route to building a business based on her passion.

You’ll find out how she was able to build her business despite having a full-time job. Then, she’ll discuss the ways to get immediate results from your launches.

Lastly, she’ll explain why your plans don’t have to be perfect the first time. But rather, it’s the actual implementation that matters.

http://media.blubrry.com/femaleredzone/content.blubrry.com/femaleredzone/Episode_26-The_Female_Red_Zone_-_Interview_with_Pam_Ivey_Podcast_Ready_.mp3

In this episode, you’ll learn:

* How to get your content out and make your customers pay attention.

* The biggest challenge she had to go through that inspired her to build a successful online marketing business.

* How she built her business in spite of having a full-time job.

* How to gain exposure for your programs, products or services.

* The secrets behind a winning video content.

Tweetables:

* We have to let people know, like and trust us

* If you don’t get it out there, nothing’s gonna happen

Big Takeaways:

* You have to be specific about the type of customer you’re trying to connect with. This means, having the perfect profile of your ideal prospect: a client avatar.

* You have to get out of your comfort zone to find the things you’ll enjoy doing.

* Producing free and useful video content is a powerful method to funnel customers to your products and services. The key here is to give resources that your customers can actually use and perceive as high-valued assets.

Related Links & References:

* Pam Ivey International official website: The Impossible Institute’s website: pamivey.com

* Online Marketing Success Magazine website: ommmagazine.com

* The Online Marketing Sales Machine: pamivey.com/online-marketing-sales-machine

* The Online Marketing Certification Program: www.onlinemarketingmanagercertification.com

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Discover the value of authenticity, perseverance, and following your passion.

That’s what our guest, Geeta Kadambi, has been doing her entire life – and it has been rewarding.

As someone who has mentored young professionals, she’ll share her recommendation to people looking for a career in science and medicine. What does it take to become a successful physician or scientist? What attitude should you bring to the table? What does passion have to do when choosing the right career for you?

Then, you’ll get to know the people who mentored and helped her along the way – from her PhD studies in India to a prestigious scholarship in the US. What qualities does she has that made her attract these people in the first place? And what value could you get from her experience when you’re looking for mentors and industry leaders?

Leadership skills is something she had to learn during her early years. Find out how she developed this skill and what she has to say about leading the upper-management.

Working for a bio-tech company is one thing, but building her own business is another. Geeta shares her biggest risk when she became a patent practitioner and founded her own company, Ridhi IP LLC. You’ll discover how her company is innovating in the patent law business.

Lastly, you’ll get to know HiPower – a group of women corporate leaders who empower their “tribe” through training programs and off site meetings.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Why do more women don’t get involved in science and technology.

• Her recommendation to students who would like to pursue a career in science and medicine.

• What personal and professional qualities made her attract a wealth of accomplished people to help her succeed in the field of science and medicine.

• How to lead up and manage upper-management people.

• Her thoughts about pay equality and what should you do to deserve a raise not just economically but professionally as well.

• The value of taking risks and the lessons you’ll learn from businesses like Ridhi IP LLC.

Tweetables:

• The reason to go into medicine shouldn’t about making money, it is really serving humanity and really doing something different to help others.

• If you have done something good to other people … people turn around and do good to you.

• The passion that comes from an innovator is very infectious.

Big Takeaways:

• Getting ahead in your life starts with having a burning passion with what you’re doing. Exhibit perseverance and the willingness to go an extra mile to attract the right people who will help achieve your dreams.

• If you want to lead a group of upper-management people, find ways on how you can make their goals possible. Figure out how you can incorporate your purpose into their agenda. Make them feel that you belong to their group and you champion their cause.

• You have to be around people who believe in your capacity to lead and manage an organization. Be the person who they trust. Do remarkable things and let them know that you deserve a raise both financially and professionally.

Related Links & References:

• HiPower.org official website: www.hipower.org

• Geeta’s LinkedIn profile: linkedin.com/geeta-kadambi

• Ridhi IP LLC official website: www.riddhiip.com

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Tricia’s mother thought that her daughter won’t get ahead in life if she wasn’t in science.

Not anymore!

Taking risks and reaping the rewards has been the theme of our guest, Tricia Benn.

As a lover of sociology and anthropology, Tricia found out the strong application of her passion to market research. And in this episode, she’ll talk about her 20-year career journey that started as a market researcher up to her present position as Northstar’s managing director in the US.

Along the way, she learned the value of equality in the workplace. She shares her opinion about having a conference where certain groups are free to discuss on subjects that has an impact on the diversity of their workplace (e.g. promotion of women executives, gender equality, issues among minority groups).

Being a leader of a big organization, she discuss how she encourages collaboration in her team. Tricia explains why everyone should be a supporter and a champion; a management style where each team member has an opportunity to support and to lead.

Then, she talks about the risks she took to become successful in her field. You’ll find out how learning golf made her close a business deal and formed a 15-year relationship. You’ll discover the risks she took when she got a job as the youngest vice-president for public affairs.

Finally, Tricia shares how her parents influenced her to become what she is today. What could parents learn from her childhood experience when it comes to raising kids?

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• The current situation of diversity in the work environment and how to address this issue to promote excellence.

• How does Tricia create an environment where her team enjoys and thrives in collaborating with each other.

• The impact her parents brought in her life when it comes to taking risks and accomplishing her goals.

Tweetables:

• Everybody talks about collaboration. But how do we actually do it? That’s the key.

• The role that men play with their daughters and helping them to understand how capable they are cannot be understated.

• The biggest opportunities do come from challenges.

Big Takeaways:

• A recent statistics says that women are 4x more likely to think that their gender is going to impact them negatively in their workplace as compared to men — which is about 12%.

• There should be a conscious effort in an organization to empower both men and women in the workplace. Do not exclude one from the other. Instead, bring them together to promote excellence. Doing so guarantees an exciting, profitable and effective work environment.

• Create an environment that supports diversity — whether it’s between genders or races.

• Every person is a blend of male and female traits. Which means we have to encourage equality amongst the people in our organization.

Related Links & References:

• Tricia’s profile on Northstar: www.northstarhub.com/team/tricia-benn/

• Tricia’s LinkedIn profile: linkedin.com/in/triciabenn

• Tricia on Twitter: twitter.com/triciabenn

• Tricia’s interview on Magazine Canada: Better Data, Better Decisions

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Ever heard about Forensic Accounting?

If not, then you’ll in for a treat as our special guest, Elizabeth Dean shares how her passion for mathematics led her to a rather new kind of service in the financial world.

As the vice-president and founding member of TM Financial Forensics LLC, Elizabeth tells her journey from doing a traditional accounting role into consulting.

Along the way, she discovers key issues that impact not just her but all women who are looking to further their career in male dominated fields: law, technology and finance.

With more than 20 years in financial services, Elizabeth shares her personal definition of success. She talks about how success changes as she move forward from being in college to the professional field. Plus, we’ll learn about HiPower and what value it delivers especially to women who want to advance their careers.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• How she got started in a field that’s dominated by men.

• Reasons why there’s quite a shortage of women scaling up to higher position in traditional industries like law, financial services, engineering and accounting.

• Instances in her career where being a woman restricted her from doing what she has to do.

• The value of being in an organization like HiPower.

• The challenges that she had to overcome during her career in forensic accounting.

• The risks involved in creating a business that is fairly new to the market and wasn’t recognized by most companies.

Tweetables:

• The assumption that women can’t be effective at their jobs once they have a family is naïve.

• If you need something, you should ask. Don’t toil in silence.

• I feel in retrospect that everybody, even in a very large organization, has an impact. Everything you do is beneficial to the company.

Big Takeaways:

• Organization should create a cultural environment that encourages women to develop a long-term career goal. Such encouragement could be in a form of a more flexible policies.

• If you want to advance your goals – whether professionally or personally – you have to learn how to ask. Toiling in silence isn’t a smart thing to do.

• Create an environment that supports diversity – whether it’s between genders or races.

• Even challenges can open a window of opportunity to grow your business or your career. Don’t close your door to the possibility of building on the challenges you had to go through.

Related Links & References:

• TM Financial Forensics LLC official website : www.tmfin.com

• Elizabeth’s LinkedIn profile: linkedin.com/in/elizabeth-dean

• Elizabeth on HiPower.org: www.hipower.org

• ELLEVATE official website: www.ellevatenetwork.com

• Book: Stiletto Network: Inside the Women’s Power Circles That Are Changing the Face of Business by Pamela Ryckman

• Book: The Ask: How to Ask for Support for Your Nonprofit Cause, Creative Project, or Business Venture by Laura Fredrick

• Book: The Connectors: How the World’s Most Successful Businesspeople Build Relationships and Win Clients for Life by Maribeth Kuzmeski

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Quick question: What are you curious about?

If you’re going to ask our guest, Joanna Bloor, you’ll be surprised at what she’s bringing to the table.

As someone who was compared to or associated with Bette Midler, Tony Robbins and Steve Wozniak, Joanna opens up our episode with a list of topics she’s curious about: the impact of millennials, the next phase of the Internet and 3D printing.

She explains why being curious is a fundamental trait if you want to network with other people – whether they’re prospective clients or potential business partners.

Through her podcast 3D LILA, Joanna reveals her thoughts on weight loss and fitness and how she combines technology, data and humanity to promote a healthy lifestyle.

Lastly, Joanna tackles about turning your workplace into an environment that exhibits more empathy towards your team and your customers.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• The reason why curiosity is an important trait to have if you want to fulfill something important in your life.

• The potential of 3D printing – from health and fitness to space exploration.

• Why the concept of job descriptions and resumes is unimportant anymore.

• How can a workplace exhibit more empathy.

Tweetables:

• Being curious is truly the thing that starts to manifest the things you know you’re supposed to do.

• We cannot possibly be curious about something that we don’t care about.

• You hire somebody because you need a problem solved.

Big Takeaways:

• People really want to matter. And if you want to build a strong relationship with your customers, colleagues, boss or even your family, you have to show interest — or curiosity — about who they are or what they do.

• If you want to advance your goals – whether professionally or personally – you have to learn how to ask. Toiling in silence isn’t a smart thing to do.

• Empathy in the workplace begins with putting yourself into other person’s shoes. Understand where they’re coming from and make an effort to see the situation through their eyes.

Related Links & References:

• Joanna’s official website : www.joannabloor.com

• Joanna’s LinkedIn profile: linkedin.com/in/joannabloor

• Joanna’s Twitter handle: twitter.com/joannabloor

• Amplify Lab official website: www.theamplifylab.com

• 3D L.I.L.A. – the Late in Life Athlete official website: www.3dlila.com

• Leading Women In Technology profile: www.leadingwomenintechnology.org/about/board/joanna-bloor

• Joanna’s HiPower.org profile: www.hipower.org/members/joanna-bloor

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“I got this.”

When was the last time you’ve said those words?

And if things aren’t working out so well, our special guest, Kathleen Caldwell will walk you through the steps to get you on track.

As a keynote speaker, business strategist and hypnotherapist, Kathleen knows a thing or two about high performers. She gives us practical lessons on how to overcome failures – the same strategies professional athletes are doing to bring back their A-game.

Plus, learn her quick, simple pointer on how to wow your audience, bring a stunning presentation or take care of your work – the same strategy Broadway actors are following.

Lastly, Kathleen shares a valuable lesson in taking risk as she talks about her experience winning an award as a computer salesperson back in the day when men dominated that profession.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• The mindset that you’ve got to have should things didn’t happen the way their supposed to be.

• How can hypnotherapy guide us to what she calls the “success zone”.

• The 2 practical laws professional athletes are following to consistently bring their A-game.

• The first thing you have to do before speaking to a large crowd, talking with your family or taking care of your work that guarantees a perfect performance.

Tweetables:

• I think we’re better if we’re confident and we’re going into it with both feet underneath us saying, “Hey, I got this!”

Big Takeaways:

• Failure happens to all of us. But holding on with what’s right will help us get through the toughest moments in our life.

• The difference between people who succeed in life and those who don’t is how they deal with failure. Successful people are so driven to excellence, they know how to get back to the “zone” after a temporary setback.

Related Links & References:

• Caldwell Consulting Group, LLC official website : www.caldwellconsulting.biz

• Kathleen’s LinkedIn profile:linkedin.com/in/kathleen-caldwell

• Kathleen’s Twitter handle: twitter.com/k_caldwell

• Ellevate Network: https://www.ellevatenetwork.com

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If there are two words that clearly define Chris Tieri, that’ll be grittiness and tenacity. But it’s the relationships she forges with clients that truly have brought her success.

In this week’s episode, Chris brings us back in time when she had to brave the rain to make anappointment with a creative director she’s been following for so long. She’ll show us why sometimes, talent and skills can only do so much. That it also takes some grit and tenacity to get the job done.

As the only certified brand strategist in New England, Chris walks us through the process of getting that certification and show us the responsibilities it requires. She will explain the importance of crafting a unique message if you want to stand out among the competition.

Then, she’ll explain why your presentation may not be the most important aspect of business communication. Instead, she’ll point us to a deeper source – something that doesn’t involve technology at all! Relationships.

Lastly, Chris shares her experience around managing her agency by herself and the realization that hiring qualified people to work on things she’s not good at is always a smart business decision.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• How to search for and connect with clients without appearing as if you’re stalking them.

• The role of a brand strategist and the process you have to go through to earn such role.

• The key to making a good pitch.

Tweetables:

• If you’re not standing out, you just don’t really exist these days.

• You don’t have to be anything to everyone; nor should you be.

• You do business with people that you like.

Big Takeaways:

• Grit and persistence bring results which talent, IQ and skills cannot.

• The mistake that people make in marketing is that they don’t message themselves properly. And if you don’t have the right messaging, it doesn’t matter how many places that you’re advertising – nobody will pay attention to you.

• Having a successful business starts with identifying your customer’s key pain points and addressing them on a personal level.

Related Links & References:

• Idea Agency official website: www.ideaagency.biz

• Chris’ LinkedIn profile: www.linkedin.com/in/christieri

• Chris’ Facebook account: www.facebook.com/christieri

• Chris’ Twitter handle: twitter.com/christieri

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