Briana Dai | Empowering Women Leaders to Watch in 2023 | Exeleon

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CONTENTS

CONTENTS

CONTENTS

#MyJourney

BR IA N A D A I

Em p o w e r e d Un s t o

& d o p p abl e

“IT’S NOT ABOUT BEING THE BEST, IT'S ABOUT BEING WILLING TO PUT IN MORE WORK THAN ANYONE ELSE.”

T h r o ugh o u t

history we have been surrounded by stories. Stories of love, death, and life. Stories that make us smile as well as cry; stories of success and failures; stories of black, white, and grey. Story is a journey; a journey of truth and false, of hope and death, a journey of one within and one beyond.

In our search for such unique and powerful stories, we have stumbled upon a passionate entrepreneur who is building her legacy by empowering women across the globe.

Meet Briana Dai, Creative Director of eWomenNetwork, Speaker, Brand Strategist, Former Makeup Artist, and Mompreneur.

Aside from all the mentioned roles and adjectives that one might use to describe Briana, she is more than anything an Empowering Woman.

Fittingly, Briana Dai features as the Cover of Exeleon Magazine's Empowering Women Leaders to Watch in 2023. Herein, we look into the story of Briana – the entrepreneur, Briana – the leader, and Briana – the woman.

BEING THE BEST

From her growing up years, Briana was surrounded by strong leaders; leaders who instilled within her the courage and values of an entrepreneur.

Both of her parents were leaders and high achievers in their respective industries. As the daughter of Sandra Yancey, a CNN American Hero, who founded the #1 Entrepreneur Womens Network in North America, Briana always felt empowered. She explains, “I've always felt empowered not because my mom told me I could do anything, but because my mom showed me that SHE could do anything.”

For Briana, her mother has always been an example of empowerment. She proudly mentions how grateful and blessed she is to have her mother as a female igure to look up to.

Briana states that her parents led by example and had an innate willingness to aim to be the best at whatever they do. However, she is quick to point out that being the best doesn't necessarily mean that someone can be termed as a leader.

She explains, “I think the irst time it really hit me that being a strong leader has less to do with being the best, and more to do with being the best at inspiring others to be THEIR best, is when I earned the title of Cologuard Captain my sophomore year in high school.”

She continues, “I wasn't the best and everyone knew I wasn't the best. But leading up to the audition for the title, I worked my butt off so that I could BE the best. And I practiced relentlessly.”

On the day of the audition, Briana couldn't follow up on her relentless practice and failed to make the perfect impression. She was devastated and broken. The following day, when the results were announced for the captain, Briana couldn't even motivate herself to look at the results. Suddenly and almost unexpectedly, a fellow student yelled out “Congratulations Briana, You're The Captain!”

It was at this very moment a young Briana Dai realized that being a leader isn't about being the best. Rather, it's about being willing enough to put in more work than anyone else. It's about inspiring

others to raise their game. She asserts, “These leaders inspire others to want to dream bigger, learn more, and become more by just being around them.”

Briana chose to be that leader.

THE PATHWAY

Briana's love for hair and makeup brought her into the industry at the age of 16. Working as a makeup artist and hairstylist for Glamour Shots elevated her career in the beauty space and brought upon new opportunities.

Eventually, the opportunities guided her into working as a fulltime agency-represented makeup artist and hairstylist on massive campaigns for brands like Famous Footwear, Bloomingdales, James Avery, the ESPN Body Issue, and in the company of celebrity clients like Mariah Carey and LeAnne Rimes.

Recalling the experiences, Briana mentions, “Working in production for some of the biggest brands in the world is where I really fell in love with brand strategy and ultimately started dabbling in Creative Directing.”

Following this, Briana launched two companies. The irst company saw her train and certify aspiring makeup artists, and the second company was built around the concept of a membership-based community for beauty industry professionals.

Briana asserts, “Building and growing those businesses was the most fulilling thing I'd ever done.

And what I realized along the way, in both cases, I had subconsciously built two niched-down, beautyfocused versions of the eWomenNetwork concept, the family business that was created and founded by my mom, 17 years prior.”

This realization guided Briana to the next part of her journey –empowering women. She wanted to leverage her learnings and experiences developed in beauty and branding to expand eWomenNetwork.

“In 2018, we merged brands, I left the beauty industry, and I joined the family business, and began my 10year succession plan to ultimately inherit the eWomenNetwork name as CEO by 2028.”

EWOMENNETWORK: MISSION ONE MILLION

Briana mentions that the eWomenNetwork mission is simple – to help one million women achieve one million dollars in annual revenue.

With only 2% of women business owners ever reaching the milliondollar mark, eWomenNetwork is on a mission to change that.

She explains that every networking event, masterclass, training, blog, conference, and summit is aligned and centered around this mission. “We are empowering women by ensuring that we are bringing them the latest information, tools, resources, connections, and opportunities to move them closer towards becoming a million-dollar

(or more) business owner.”

As the Creative Director of the company, Briana handles all the outward-facing areas of the brand. She oversees the digital marketing, graphic design, and event design teams as well as looks into the brand partnerships and afiliations.

“My role is to ensure the brand message is carried out cohesively, and consistently, and is in alignment with our mission to help one million women each achieve one million dollars in annual revenue.”

Moreover, Briana shares that she absolutely loves representing the eWomenNetwork as a speaker across the country.

ENSURING FLUIDITY

Having collaborated with multiple brands, worked with leading companies, built her brand, and so on, Briana has grasped the understanding that balance is a never-ending pursuit. She mentions that wearing different hats requires one to be luid.

“No two days are ever the same in my world, so you just go with the low of the current situation while also having intentional boundaries to help steer things back to the center as needed. Know your nonnegotiables and don't waver from seeing that they're met,” she points out.

Perhaps it is luidity that has enabled her to be grateful for the lessons she has learned along the way.

OF Fem a l e E nt r e p r ene u r s h i p

“IT’S SURREAL HOW MANY WOMEN HAVE CREATED LIFELONG FRIENDSHIPS, BUSINESS PARTNERSHIPS WITH, COLLABORATIONS, AND CLIENTS BECAUSE OF EWOMENNETWORK.”

Exeleon Shorts:

One Book Entrepreneurs Must Read –The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work & What to Do About It, Michael Gerber

One Productivity Tool / App that Everyone Should Use – Asana

One Podcast / Course that you would Recommend – Earn Your Happy Podcast with Lori Harder

One Movie / Show that you would Recommend – Ozark & Schitts Creek

One Quote that Motivates you the Most – “To whom much is given, much will be required.” Luke 12:48

One Investment Advice that you Follow – 1) start early and 2) Diversify your investment strategy with short, medium, and long-term investments.

Talking about if she would do anything differently if she were to start again, Briana says that are collective experiences, including the ones of failure and pain, has made her become the person she is today.

Moreover, she shares that one of the most painful lessons she has learned as a leader is that it is easy to overlook bad attitudes when people put out good work. “But the lesson I learned the hard way, and have had to learn a few times, unfortunately, is that good performance coupled with a bad attitude will do more damage than good in the LONG haul,” she adds.

Briana advises, “It's critical to align with people who share the same values. And the second you get a whiff of misalignment, you

need to run, not walk, RUN in a different direction.”

THE EXCITEMENT AHEAD

Briana mentions that the future is full of excitement for eWomenNetwork. She is especially excited to watch the brand open new chapters across the globe. “We have 118 Chapters right now across the US, Canada, the UK, and Australia, so I'm amped for the continued growth of our network and sisterhood of women entrepreneurs!”

“It's surreal how many incredible women have created lifelong friendships, business partnerships with, collaborations, and clients because of eWomenNetwork. The thought of what we as women can do for this world as that level

of connection continues to multiply blows my mind.”

On a personal level, Briana is excited to grow into the CEO of the next generation of eWomenNetwork. She concludes saying, “I still have so much to learn, but if my growth over the last 5 years is any indicator, then I really look forward to getting to know the woman I am becoming.”

We Embrace Excellence!

Exeleon Magazine features some of the leading players in business and shares their journey of excellence to inspire aspiring leaders across the globe.

Bean Example – NATALIE STAVOLA

What according to you makes one a transformational woman? How do you integrate the same thought into your leadership?

I think awareness. Awareness and implementing that awareness would make anyone transformational. Speciically, with women, being a transformational woman would be becoming aware that there are cultural biases, objectiications, different traumas based on gender and races… and learning how to heal from all of that and becoming who you were meant to be (or come back to yourself). Learning how to stand up and speak up for yourself and others – I believe that to be a powerful tool to use for anyone in the leadership position.

How I personally integrate this into my own leadership is by healing and learning. Healing from the things that hurt me and learning to see myself more clearly and respectfully. The more clearly I see myself, and honor and respect

myself, the more clearly I can see those around me and honor and respect them as well.

Transforming myself so I can help show others how to do the same and join in to be a leader in change.

Talk to us about your growing up years. What is your earliest memory as a leader?

I grew up in Connecticut and then we moved to Florida right before my teen years. So I got the best of both worlds – New York City and winters full of snow… then spending my time in the ocean as much as possible. I'm a city woman meets outdoorsy woman through and through.

My earliest memory as a leader is being an older sister. When my brother was born, we were pretty close in age, but I always looked at him, even when we were babies, as this is my family, I will protect this person and lead this person as best as I can. I couldn't say “baby brother” when

my parents introduced me to him, so I called him Bobo. I still call him by that name to this day.

There were times when our parents would compare us (as parents do) because I always had my nose in a book and my brother was, I believe at that time, struggling with his grades. I remember even then, as teenagers, understanding that the books I was reading were FANTASY, they were an escape for me. Not something to be compared to and make someone else feel bad about. I pulled my brother to the side one day and I told him that, “don't even listen to them or anyone else compare you to me or others. I am reading these books because I'm escaping in them. They're not even academic. You keep listening to what you need and ind your path.”

He went on to go to college and become an awardwinning journalist. He's got a masters now and continues his education.

What prompted your interest and subsequently your foray into the coaching space?

Growing up, helping others was always something that felt natural. I used to give everything I had away (I was that type of kid). To the utter shock of my parents at times. I grew up with a lot of chaos and trying to igure people out, so naturally I wound up getting a degree in psychology and communications. I used to double major with Criminology and Psychology (that was fun!) I've always been fascinated with human behavior… I'm also an actress so I love tackling characters and diving into the WHY behind people's actions… and the HOW behind overcoming obstacles and pain to reach your dreams.

After college, I started focusing on acting but then addiction took over… I was in a lot of pain from the toxic relationships I'd been in, I was trying to cope and was destroying myself in the process. I was still helping others; I was still giving everything I had to everyone around me, I just had to learn how to give and be there for others without it costing me my sanity, my mental health, and me anymore. I had to learn how to stop the chaos from childhood that still lived inside of me and learn to choose healthy over comfort.

After I got sober and healed more, I wanted to share that. I got certiied for coaching, for NLP

(neurolinguistics programming, similar to what Tony Robbins does), continued mentoring and coaching, continued doing the work with my own coaches, sponsors, therapists, healers, and the recovery programs I love… and started learning what I pass on to my clients…

Learning your worth, your boundaries, your values, your standards and moving in alignment. Learn to pour into your cup FIRST and then pour into others (as best as we can). Getting comfortable with your own depths, and inding people who are on the same journey as you… inding your aligned partnerships.

My entire life and overcoming my own obstacles prompted me to be a coach and help others do the same. I get to be an example today.

What is the approach followed by you in your coaching to ensure optimal client satisfaction?

I'm not sure if it's an approach so much as just care and consideration for the client, but it's just about paying attention to their goals and needs and discovering what's working and what's not and then using the tools to remove the blocks standing in the way of their goals.

We ind the issues, we discover the solutions, we use the tools to get it done. I think what ensures satisfaction the most is that we're doing this together and they're seeing the results for themselves. They're doing it. They see they can do it. That they've had the power and empowerment all along. I just get to help them through their journey.

You have spoken about addiction and abuse as some of your biggest challenges, among many others in your journey. For people facing similar challenges, what would be your biggest advice?

GET HELP!!! ASK FOR HELP!! The moment you start hearing yourself or your head say, “It's ine. I'm ine. I CAN FIGURE IT OUT!” Nooooooo. Grab the phone, call the substance abuse hotline or whatever hotline you want or a HEALTHY friend, and GET HELP. We DO NOT DO THIS ALONE. No one does. Not even the “self-made millionaires”. EVERYONE has help. Even if it's from their parents or mentors or whoever… EVERYONE has help.

Don't do this alone. I DEFINITELY do not. There's no such thing as a bottom, the bottom keeps getting worse. You can stop and get help and get out of the dark place you're in, ind out how. Get help from the people who have been through it and OUT of it now, too.

Being an entrepreneur, speaker, coach, actor, and more, what does a day in the life of Natalie Stavola look like? How do you ensure work-life balance?

Luckily for me, I'm doing a lot of things that bring me joy. So, most of the time I have to ind my balance between how much I am giving to others and in what ways am I giving back to myself.

Without art and acting, I'm pretty much useless to others. I have to ill my soul up in order to hold space for others. That's the main balance for me.

A typical day looks like… wake up, meditate (or at least put it on and breathe deeply) make my coffee (latte!), jump into coaching (helping someone wakes me up the fastest), audition, or work on a script or read/write, then pause… ask myself “what do I need now”… this is where I'll go hang out with a friend, go to a dance class, cultivate joy in some way… something that makes me silly happy.

Throughout the day, I'm checking in with my sponsors and coaches and mentees.

I wish I could give some huge magic “this is how you do work-life balance” that would blow someone's mind… but it's really simple. And the same thing I pass on to clients now…

I LISTEN to myself today. I'm a much better listener to myself and my needs… so I check in throughout the day and see where am I hiding or playing small? Where am I overworking now? Am I escaping anything? What do I need? How do I meet that need?

It gets so much faster to be in that low of life and pivot when life is doing its life thing and throwing things my way… I'm good today. I listen to those needs, I meet them. And when I fall short, I love myself through it and have incredible people around me today that we walk through this whole thing together. I do not do this alone.

What are some of the most intricate things that we often get wrong in relationships? And how can one overcome this for a sustainable relationship and life?

The pain and limiting beliefs we picked up from childhood that are still on repeat in adulthood.

Everything and everyone around can be (and typically is) a mirror for what's going on inside of us. The answers are already within each of us. Your answers are already inside of you… get with someone who's good at helping you read your own answers, heal, overcome, and ind your truths.

Learn how to drop your guard and up your boundaries. Guards block good things and great people. Boundaries help let the good things in and keep out the things that hurt you or don't align with you.

Finally, what does the future look like for you and your brand? What are you most excited about?

Expanding and helping more people. I am so excited about just growing my platform and becoming more of an example of what it looks like to overcome anything and showing others how to do the same.

Ultimately, what I would love to do is ilmmake more, be on set more, create, and just pass out all of this information for others to live their best lives, too.

ExeleonShorts:

One Book Entrepreneurs Must Read –The Mountain is You by Brianna Wiest

One Productivity Tool / App that Everyone Should Use – Notes (lol so simple)

One Podcast / Course that you would Recommend – TBM To Be Magnetic

One Movie / Show that you would Recommend – The Woman King

One Quote that Motivates you the Most –“Do your work. When you're scared, do it anyways.”

One Investment Advice that you Follow – Invest in yourself. Wait for the fear and insecurity to pass so you're not doing it from lack mindset and then spending money on things that won't help (conirmation bias.) Invest in yourself. It's worth it. More people will beneit from you investing in you irst. Be an example.

How

Two Young Female Entrepreneurs Use Their Love for the Arts to Advance Their Community

The coronavirus pandemic inspired countless adults to reassess their careers and life choices and perhaps make some changes. But it was not only adults that felt they could have a greater impact. Two young female entrepreneurs felt compelled to share their love for the performing arts with their communities. Their goal: improve conidence and mental health among children and create performing arts opportunities for others.

HOW MENTAL HEALTH CHALLENGES CREATED A SPARK

In the early days of the pandemic, stories about mental health challenges among kids and teenagers abounded. Uncertainty, lockdowns, and fear of the disease put additional pressure on young people who already felt the need to perform at school and beyond.

While external demands continued to mount, many felt their conidence drop, often because they were unable to express themselves, demonstrate their talents, and realize their potential. About one-third of high-school students reported mental health challenges during the pandemic, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). A Johns Hopkins survey found that nearly one in ive young people

suffered from an increase in depression.

While those igures are rightly giving cause for concern, they inspired two accomplished young artists. Elite dancer Madeleine Chen and award-winning musician Elizabeth Echt decided to use their love of performing arts for the beneit of young people in the wider community. They founded Vision for Conidence (V4C), a non-proit with the goal of supporting aspiring artists on their journey and sharing the mental health beneits with their wider community.

HOW FINE ARTS SUPPORTS MENTAL HEALTH

For years, evidence of the mental health beneits of exposure to and participation in ine arts has been mounting up, both anecdotally and scientiically. For example, studies have shown a connection between ine arts activities and increased mental health and well-being in those affected by autism.

Madeleine and Elizabeth believe that every young person can beneit from easier access to ine arts activities, whether they are dealing with a disability or suffering from low conidence in general. One of their most recent target

Madeleine Chen & Elizabeth Echt, Co-founders

groups includes young people with rare diseases. Their conditions have been linked with a higher risk of feelings of isolation and other mental health problems, including low self-esteem.

Aside from these speciic groups, the two entrepreneurs are looking to create performing arts opportunities for young children and teens who would otherwise have missed out. Although arts feature in many schools' curriculums, funding cuts in the public school system have made access to ine arts education and related opportunities more dificult.

As a result, talented children and teenagers have been missing out on an important creative outlet, and some are missing once-in-a-lifetime career opportunities. V4C is attempting to make up for the shortfall.

“We've been involved in ine arts from a very young age, and we realize that the resources that were given to us are not necessarily available to a lot of other kids outside of our own community,” says V4C co-founder Madeleine Chen.

“That inspired us to create a program that supplies resources and monetary support to students who want to pursue the arts as a career when they get older.”

Since the non-proit's inception, the team has been able to raise nearly $30,000 in scholarship funds and has started transforming lives. In June 2021, for example, V4C awarded a travel scholarship to an

exemplary young artist at The Dallas Conservatory. The scholarship allowed her to participate in the national inals of the New York City Dance Alliance (NYCDA), an incredible opportunity she would have otherwise had to miss.

The result speaks for itself. The scholarship recipient used the opportunity to win a $100,000 scholarship to PACE University's commercial dance program, successfully laying foundations for continued education and a career in the arts.

A WIDER VISION FOR CONFIDENCE AND MENTAL HEALTH

With early success stories conirming that the organization is on a promising path, founders Madeleine and Elizabeth have not lost sight of their bigger vision.

“I think there is a direct link between conidence and success, and we want to help other children attain both of those things through performing arts,” says Madeleine.

Psychologists believe that projecting conidence helps people gain credibility, deal with pressure, and tackle personal and professional challenges. All of those could also be considered prerequisites for success.

The V4C founders believe that performing arts can become a gateway to growing conidence for children from less privileged backgrounds, or those with disabilities or rare diseases. They

are poised to share their skills and passion not only by teaching the arts but also by establishing longterm relationships with scholarship recipients and others.

The V4C founders believe that arts and self-esteem training can help children with disabilities or rare diseases participate more fully in society. While it may be easy for these children to become marginalized and somewhat trapped, performing arts and selfesteem training can help them step outside of their niche. As they grow their conidence, they will ind it easier to participate more fully and increase their quality of life in the long term.

BENEFITTING ALL OF SOCIETY

Mental health concerns affect all age groups. However, mental health challenges in children and young people can be particularly detrimental as they may predispose the person to a lifetime of mental illness or mental health concerns.

Using performing arts as a path toward improved self-conidence and mental health not only helps those affected by mental health challenges since the pandemic. Their changed mindset can make a big difference for entire families and our society as a whole. As the pandemic continues to recede, we all stand to beneit from a generation of healthier, happier, more conident young people.

Jessica Wong , Founder and CEO of Valux Digital , is a digital marketing expert and experienced PR executive with over 20 years of success driving results for clients. Using cutting-edge technology, Jessica and her team at Valux Digital helped corporations and startups achieve digital transformation and develop robust data-centric marketing campaigns. They strive to improve eficiency, affordability, rapidity, quality, and - most importantly - results.

As a digital expert, Jessica was invited to publish thought leadership articles on Forbes as an

oficial member of the Forbes Communications Council. She also provides business advice to millions of Entrepreneur.com readers. She was named the Most Inluential CEO by CEO Monthly magazine.

The Women in IT Awards have named Jessica a inalist for the Digital Leader of the Year. MARsum USA has recognized her as one of the Top 100 Marketing & Advertising Leaders. In recognition of her work with Valux Digital, The Female CEO of the Year Awards recognized her as the Best Digital Marketing & Public Relations

About the Author

Agency CEO. The Global100 Awards have also named Jessica CEO of the Year.

Through her extensive digital experience in pharmaceutical, healthcare and biotechnological, Jessica has been named as the authorized digital transformation advisor for the Rare Advocacy Movement (RAM), the irst community-based decentralized autonomous organization dedicated to the best interests of people diagnosed with life altering rare diseases and their families.

Diversity And Inclusion, Or Beauty But Not The Beast

Written By: Dr. Thomas J. Bussen

The industrialist Andrew Carnegie once said, "Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision. The ability to direct individual accomplishments toward organizational objectives. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results.”

True, perhaps, but not always so. Teams can also lead otherwise productive individuals to wither and burn, to crack, break, and shatter. What distinguishes Carnegie's hopeful team's outcomes from the dreary and painful?

To be sure, teamwork is a complex, multi-faceted phenomenon, and so explanations for team outcomes bely a singular explanation. And yet, in an ever more global world, the diversity of teams – or its lack thereof – is a vital predictor of team success.

Does then diversity improve team performance, or does it harm team performance? Somewhat unfortunately, “yes” seems the best answer. Before exploring the ways in which diversity may both harm and help a team, a brief excursion to consider exactly what is meant by diversity is useful.

UT Austin's David Harrison and colleagues conceptualize diversity at the surface level and at the deep level. Surface level diversity is that diversity which is quickly and readily apparent. This is the diversity of the young and the wizened coming coming together, the accents of different ethnicities, the visible manifestations of gender or race.

By contrast, deep level diversity is rather sneakier – a team may exhibit very little surface level diversity but may over time come to recognize its differences across various psycho-social spectrums. You are an extrovert; I an introvert. His values differ from her values, her behaviors are at odds with his. These deep level differences may be invisible during early interactions, but the longer a team works together, the more familiar each becomes of the others' little peccadillos.

THE DOUBLE-EDGED SWORDS OF DIVERSITY

At irst glance it may appear that surface level differences ought to cause teams the biggest headaches. And indeed, they do. In the absence of signiicant deep level differences, however, the timeline is brief. Imagine that you and I come together with a kaleidoscope of surface level differences – differences in age, gender, nationality, religion, perhaps even different roles and responsibilities in the organization. The similarity-attraction theory holds that initially, we may not much take to one another.

This theory proposes that we humans tend to prefer that which is similar, and to disdain that which is different (lest we judge our species too harshly, sufice it to say that this preference has evolutionary roots, roots which arguably serve us less with each globalizing day).

But then imagine that as it happens, our surface levels differences mask deep level similarities. We both are big St. Louis Cardinals baseball fans; we support the same national politicians; our sense of morality overlaps; and heck, we both love cruise ships despite their icky reputation. Before long, the two of us are getting along splendidly, having long ago intuited that those surface level differences matter little amidst similarities that go

more to our senses of identity.

What really matters, therefore, are those surface level differences. Take the reverse situation. Initially two teammates seem to have much in common at the surface level. Similarity attraction bias acts to magnetically attract the two, and all assume a friendship or at least collegial relationship is fast budding. But as deep level difference after deep level difference rises to the surface, the relationship begins to fray.

The research offers us this, therefore: surface level differences initially disrupt team harmony, but over time matters less and less. By contrast, deep level differences initially matter little, but disrupt team harmony more over time

The takeaway may appear obvious: to avoid deep level differences. Alas, such a takeaway would ignore a vital strand of research. That while deep level differences do indeed tend to harm teams, they also tend to improve team outcomes much more than does surface level diversity.

All of that deep level diversity allows team members to learn from one another, to better explore decision making paradigms, and to exchange a greater quantity and quality of information. In and of itself, for instance, differences in team members' ages or ethnicities offer little; but when those differences in age and ethnicity lead to dramatically juxtaposing life experiences, or when other deep level differences do so, now the team has a rather more diverse set of opinions and ideas to view decisions from all perspectives.

The problem is that deep level differences may prevent the sort of communication needed to leverage such learning opportunities. Similarly, surface level differences may prevent team members from learning enough about one another to recognize that despite their surface level differences, and perhaps despite deep level differences, they also have deep level similarities.

The challenge for teams, therefore, is to avoid the potential conlicts arising from diversity, and to thereby gain access to the goldmine that is a

deeply diverse team. The SimilarityAttraction Bias offers insights as to how, exactly, we can do this.

WEAPONIZING THE SIMILARITYATTRACTION BIAS

I spoke to Doug Mattheus, the senior marketing executive at telecommunications company Cell C until 2019, and now an independent consultant and professor at Nelson Mandela University. He explained to me that while working for Firestone Tire in post-Apartheid South Africa, during the heady days surrounding Nelson Mandela's election to President, Firestone provided diversity training to its employees. Mattheus explains that a psychologist divided the group into partners based on surface level differences: this man with that woman, that white South African with that black South African, and so forth.

Then, the trainer asked the partners to converse and aim to discover what characteristics they held in common. While all of the partners engaged in the activity, Mattheus recalls two individuals in particular. These two individuals were overlowing with surface level differences: one male and one female, one a white and one a black South African, one a senior organizational member and the other a lowlevel worker. But now both were crying.

30-odd years later, Mattheus felt the goosebumps rising as he tells the story. It turned out that the partnered professionals were each the parent of a developmentally disabled child. Did their surface level differences matter in the face of this realization? Of course not. They now shared something, something deep , that far exceeded the import of such surface levels characteristics.

This is the similarity-attraction bias at work for us . Far from allowing the bias to manipulate us into a place of separation, that psychologist working for Cell C leveraged

the bias by helping trainees to identify similarities that would prove more important than differences.

The psychologist Jonathan Haidt, similarly, advised that surface level differences may be “drowned in a sea of similarities.” He was correct, in part. We ought indeed to highlight similarities, though to “drown” our differences may not quite hit the mark. Rather, we ought to highlight similarities, but use the similarity-attraction bias to create the space for embracing differences, too. Only then do we facilitate a working relationship that is based on mutual attraction, while also learning and beneiting from each other's differences.

While Mattheus' story is powerful, it is admittedly anecdotal. As researchers like to say, it has an n of 1 - a sample size of just one person, hardly suficient to generalize at large. Psychologist Jerry Burger tested this proposition, however, and his indings are perhaps even more provocative.

In the study, research participants complete a psychological survey, which they are made to believe is the focus of the study. The real study, however, came later – as participants were exiting the study, another would-be study participant working undercover for the researchers asked if the participant would be willing to read his 8-page essay, providing one page of feedback within 24 hours. Somewhat surprisingly, 48% agreed.

This represented the control group. A second group of participants were subjected to the same procedure, but during the purported psychological study were told that they shared a Type-E ingerprint with another research participant. This is not surprising, they were told; approximately 80% of the population has Type-E ingerprints. Leaving the research study later, lo and behold their ingerprint twin comes approaching – asking as before whether the participant would review his eight-page paper and return the notes

within 24 hours. This time, 55% agree – a slight increase but not a statistically signiicant one.

The real breakthrough came in study three. This time, the participant is again told that he shares type-E ingerprints with the undercover research participant, but now he is told that only 2% of the population has these same prints. Approached to review the essay by the ingerprint friend, now a full 82% agree to review the essay.

The study suggests that, as Wharton's Adam Grant once put it, we don't simply highlight commonalities. We highlight “uncommon commonalities”. Paired with Mattheus' story from Cell C, we might also seek to highlight important commonalities (which presumably the Type-E ingerprints were not).

In creating the terms by which team members may communicate and recognize uncommon commonalities, and important ones too, organizations play a key role. The risk is that employees never reach this vital place of communication, and this is most likely to happen when employees are too blinded by their prejudices and stereotypes to recognize the multitude of commonalities that all of us humans inevitably share.

Organizations, therefore, ought to play an active role in facilitating an environment not just of diversity, but of diversity and inclusion . An inclusive environment is one in which cultural and other differences are embraced; in which differences are seen as opportunities for learning, for personal growth, and for achieving excellence. By championing diversity, by ensuring employees recognize the potential value when opting into diverse teams, the foundation is laid for just the sort of breakthroughs seen by Mattheus, and in the Burger study.

About the Author:

Dr. Thomas J. Bussen , with a Doctorate of Busines Administration, JD, and MBA, is an Assistant Teaching Professor at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, and a cross-cultural management scholar. He is the author of several cross-cultural books, including Shaping the Global Leader (2019).

His latest book, Enlightened Self Interest: Individualism, Community, and the Common Good (coming in 2023, Georgetown University Press), makes the case for a more inclusive and globally minded professional ideology.

How to win at entrepreneurship and parenting

Iwant to be honest about

something I haven't shared before.

I've got two kids — age 3 and age 20 months.

And I coach some incredible entrepreneurs who are also parents.

We all want to win at entrepreneurship and at parenting — without compromising our success or sanity — so how can we do it?

The same solution comes up: WORK. LESS. IN. YOUR. BUSINESS.

Yes, you need to work less hours if you want to win at entrepreneurship and parenting.

Hear me out.

We need to screw the idea that you can work the exact same as before you had kids and everything in life will be smooth sailing.

You'd be lying to yourself or you're actually not there for your kids or for your partner or for yourself.

HERE'S ARE 8 WAYS TO WORK LESS WHILE GROWING YOUR BUSINESS:

1.Double your prices and cut your clients in half.

2.Finally stop F***ing around half the day and focus.

3.Hire a team member (or 100) and delegate the small stuff that doesn't move the needle.

Tracy Livingstone

1.Stay in your zone of genius. Do work that matters. Do work that brings in the money!

2.Fire sh** clients and people that don't add value to your life.

3.Work a 4-hour day (or week) in peak performance, low-states, and elevated emotion.

4.Automate as much as possible.

5.Understand that being easy on yourself, taking time off, sending your kids to day-care, sharing parenting duties, is completely normal and necessary. Do it more often.

BEFORE KIDS, I WORKED ALL THE TIME MAINLY TO FILL UP MY LIFE.

I'd bum around London to coffeeshops, networking events, coaching at all hours of the day, coming home late at night.

I loved it.

And then in my irst four years of business — I had two kids. That comes to 32 months (!!) out of 48 months experiencing pregnancy, birth, breastfeeding and postpartum recovery.

I stopped being an all-hours entrepreneur.

I stopped illing up my time with stuff that didn't move the needle.

And I implemented these 8 solutions that allowed me to increase my revenues every year.

I don't work on Fridays. I'm with my boys 5+ hours every day. And I sleep 8 hours at night.

WHY NOT DESIGN THE NEXT CHAPTER OF YOUR LIFE FROM A PLACE OF STRENGTH? POSSIBILITY? UPLEVELING?

That's how you will win at entrepreneurship and parenting.

What do you think? Agree or disagree?

Email me at tracey@livlitceo.com to share what does it take to win at entrepreneurship and parenting, from your perspective? I'd love to hear your experience and wisdom.

ABOUT TRACEY LIVINGSTON

Tracey Livingston Howard is the Cofounder of Liv.Lit! and is a coach for highgrowth entrepreneurs and trainer in conlict resolution. Her coaching philosophy blends the science of peak performance with spirituality because she believes that: "leading a high growth company requires a high-growth version of you."

She has coached and trained over 2,500 people across 31 countries in 5 years. Her roster of clients include: LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, CVC Capital Partners, Deloitte, numerous YPO Members, Corporate Connections Members, and Forbes 30 Under 30 members.

Tracey is joyfully the mother to two young boys, Liam and Henry, and her husband Chris is also the Co-Founder and CFO of Liv.Lit!. She loves reading, writing, and running by the ocean at her current place of residence, Curacao.

Moss

Moss G u ru m ee t t h e

What was the idea that led to the start of Moss Pure? What was the market gap that you wanted to address?

I founded Moss Pure during a startup competition at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in June 2020, called the MIT Lebanon Challenge. Moss Pure won First Place Startup in the competition in Track 1B Health, Energy, and Waste Management. From there, the United Nations invited me to compete in their Development Programme in August 2020, where it won the Top 10 Startup.

During the competition, I realized that moss has several beneits. But there weren't many companies that were using live moss. Most moss companies use preserved moss or dried moss, which are no longer living. Because preserved and dried moss are no longer living, they are not able to improve air quality as only live moss can.

In talking with customers and scientists, I found that:

1. No other company was able to use moss as an effective air ilter.

2. No other company was able to keep live moss alive in indoor environments for more than a few days.

3. Existing living walls and moss walls used a great amount of water and electricity and were bulky and required time to assemble.

Using engineering and biology, I created the irst and only live moss design that improves your air quality and provides therapeutic relief without needing any watering, sunlight, or maintenance. I wanted to create an aesthetically pleasing, yet simple decor piece that anyone could use in their everyday, modern space.

How Jamie Mitri used engineering and biology to create the first and only live moss artwork that improves your air quality – Moss Pure.

Talk to us about the science that went behind the creation of the product.

A great deal of science is used in the creation of our products. We are not simply just putting moss on a wall frame. Although I have a strong science background, I spent months and many hours doing hands on research with moss to engineer Moss Pure.

I formulated a multi-layered design of ecofriendly materials that sustain the moss within our product in any environment – indoor and outdoor. Because of this, our products do not need watering, sunlight, or electricity. Our proprietary technology extends the life of live moss from days to years. The multi-layer also works in synergy with the live moss, so that the moss uses toxic pollutants in the air as its food source, therefore improving your air quality. Air purifying plants take decades to purify the surrounding air. Moss Pure's technology enhances the air iltering capability of live moss.

We are the only company that has certiied analytical results showing that our live moss products improve your air quality within minutes, capturing carbon dioxide, dust, allergens, pet dander, VOC, metals and certain bacteria and viruses.

I also worked with 150 customers in the U.S., gathering feedback on the aesthetics of our design. I conducted prototype, alpha, and beta testing with our customers to create the inal Moss Pure products you see in our online store today.

As the Moss Guru, what role do you play in the day-to-day proceedings of the company?

I'm a very hands-on CEO. I am involved in every aspect of the business in some way – whether it's working with a customer on a custom moss wall, helping assemble our products, pitching to a distributor, sales, marketing, PR, accounting, inances – you name it and I'm doing it or have

done it. I am able to combine my passion for science and fashion and interior design every day and I'm stepping out of my comfort zone to grow the business.

Looking at your journey as an entrepreneur, if you were to start again, what would you do differently?

Absolutely nothing. Every milestone, every mistake, every failure, and every success accompanied a learning lesson, and I wouldn't take any of it back. It has been such a rewarding and amazing experience, even on the crazy days.

What would be your advice for emerging entrepreneurs bringing-in new and innovative sustainable solutions?

Being an entrepreneur and launching a business is dificult in itself – let alone creating an innovative product in an existing market. When you create such an innovative product, you have to make sure your messaging is right so that you capture people's attention and then you have to clearly explain why you are different from your competition. It's incredibly challenging but if you know it's worth the risk and you are consistent, the business will grow and everything that you've worked so hard for will pay off – and it is such an amazing feeling.

Finally, what does the future look like for you and Moss Pure? What are you most excited about?

I'm excited to get the word out about the company and expand it. Moss Pure has such a positive impact and story and I want to share it with the world. We are also always learning and growing, and we are releasing new products with feedback from our customers. My creative and intellectual mind is always at work coming up with something and I love it.

Model & Entrepreneur

Interview with ReShonda Parker

Can you please introduce yourself and your background as a woman entre preneur.

Hi! Mt name is ReShonda and I am a 45 year young mother of 3 beautiful children ages 24, 19 and 11!

I have been a professional fashion model for 20 plus years now. I also create one of a kind and custom jewelry pieces and I've been a vendor at an open-air market for 6 years now. The name of my jewelry business is " Sugar"!

I also enjoy cosplay modeling where I become different characters from X- Men's Storm to Morticia Addams! I've always been a creative and because I have a background in fashion as well, I create costumes. I have always loved jewelry and decided to start my own business back in 2012. It was so amazing to see people get excited about my work and even more exciting to see them wear my pieces!

Talk to us about your brand. What is the nature of your service or solution ?

My business " Sugar " is an accessory business where I create quirky, fun, classy, one of a

kind pieces that speak to the wearer.

Being a woman entrepreneur, what are some of the biggest challenges that you faced in your journey?

One of the challenges I faced was not so much being a woman as it was competing with big chain stores that people already knew about. It was a little dificult starting out because not everyone will see your vision, but I put in a lot of work to get my name out there. Also sometimes being a woman, people may not take you seriously. You have to just show them different.

What according to you makes one an empowering woman?

A woman who stays true to self and doesn't allow others to sway her from her dreams. Someone who has been through many struggles and at the end of it still stands. A woman who lives by example, relies on God, and doesn't give up when things get hard.

What would be your advice for aspiring and emerging women entrepreneurs?

Follow your heart and chase your dreams. Give it your all and do what you love. It'll never feel like work. I also say do your research, never stop learning. And pray often.

Where do you see your business or your brand in the near future?

I see myself doing bigger things with my modeling because I enjoy networking at all my events. I want to start an organization to help young girls and women do what they are passionate about and to never stop striving to be their best. I also want my jewelry to be in those big stores I use to look in for jewelry!