Speaking with the Founders of Voice First World!

In many ways, the disparity between men and women in the workplace is manifested from the economical standpoint, societal expectations, and existing biases. How often do women apologize or minimize the importance of what they say in the workplace? This displays a lack of confidence and in order to combat that, empowerment must take place. In today’s episode, we have the founders of Voice First World. We tackle the way to success as women in business by being empowered and instilling confidence in ourselves.

Jennifer Rettele-Thomas (she/her/hers) and Jen Vellenga (she/her/hers) are the co-founders of the virtual coaching company, Voice First World. They coach women to speak with presence to advance their careers in the digital age.

[00:01 – 10:07] Overcoming Challenges in Careers as Women

• Jennifer Rettele-Thomas and Jen Vellenga founded Voice First World in 2011 as a way to empower women to use their voices confidently in their careers
• How taking a risk can be rewarding, even if it's scary at first.
• How empowering women is a necessary step in order to help them overcome any challenges they may face in their careers
  
  

[10:08  – 19:32] On the Way to Success through Empowerment

• Helping women become successful in whatever position of life they were in
• Finding solutions to the gender gap in leadership through empowerment
• The lack of diversity among leaders during the pandemic
• The path to overcoming challenges to start an academic career

[19:33  – 29:10] How To Deal With Rejection 

• The benefits of not holding yourself back because of gender
• Overcome the lack of confidence by using language that is more assertive
• The importance of using the right words to show your expertise

[29:09 – 32:06] How To Connect with Jennifer and Jen

• Work your way towards empowerment!

Key Quotes:

“The decision to work with women was because of some of the bias that we had seen, that we faced as women in our positions. There were many stories of bias and things that got under our skin about how women were treated in the workplace. And we wanted to be part of the solution. ” - Jen Vellenga

“It [overcoming the lack of confidence] is the choice of vocabulary. And it's what you say and how you say it, and what we see at all levels… that could be adjusted to make them [women] even stronger.” - Jen Vellenga

Connect with Jennifer Rettele-Thomas and Jen Vellenga

Website: www.voicefirstworld.com/links 

Podcast: Ditch Your Backup Plan

Podcast: Speak with Presence

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Life Unedited: Working Women is a podcast hosted by Alisa McCabe of First Steps Financial.  Our weekly conversation series focuses on women entrepreneurs and leaders - what drives them, what they have learned, and how they find ways to thrive. They commiserate, laugh, and curse a little, but they end up smarter and building camaraderie with each other and other Boss Women!  Listen and subscribe to Life Unedited: Working Women wherever you get your podcasts. 

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