Thank you to Forbes #ForbesOver50 Mika Brzezinski and the judges for including me on the 2024 list. And thanks to the nominator for nominating me--feel free to self-identify as I don't know who did this. I'm honored to be surrounded by so many incredible leaders.
I started Mycocycle, Inc. after working for 30-years in the construction industry. Every role from technical support, to sales management, to sustainability leadership required carving out a "voice." As a woman in a (then) underrepresented industry, the challenges of balancing who I was as a leader and the organizational norms aren't unlike the challenges I face today as a solo, female founder.
Today, women still gain less than 2% of the venture capital funding being invested. I've been fortunate to raise the money needed to get us to a sustainable revenue path, and lead to catalytic growth, but I can only assume my marginalization has come at a greater cost than my male counter-parts.
If you listen to a late-2019 episode of Kristi Ross' "Bootstrapping in America," you can hear me say that I will likely write a book called "Who Let the 50-year Old in the Startup Sandbox." I still feel like that book will come, I just have far less time now that we've hit our stride.
When I learned that I might be on the Forbes 50 over 50 list, I had been working in the field all day--covered in sweat--sitting on a delayed airplane with an employee resignation in my in box. Honestly, I burst into tears! They weren't happy or sad, they just were all the emotions rolled into one. I asked myself HOW I ended up on a 50 over 50 list, and then realized that my vision of a world without waste hadn't been truly realized until the ripe young age of 52.
I am extremely grateful for all of the women who have gone before me.
I am extremely grateful for all of the allies who have supported me in my entrepreneurial journey.
I am extremely grateful for my family and friends who keep me sane and grounded.
I am extremely grateful to pay it forward to the women yet to come.
It's never too late to #knowyourvalue, be inspired, or put your vision in action. My vision is a world without waste and we are solving this problem one mushroom at a time.
See the entire list here: https://lnkd.in/guK45rFN
#grateful #leaders #empowerment #nature #fungi #business
