How She Does It

Thasunda Brown Duckett has a seemingly endless list of honors to her name: TIME 100, Fortune’s Most Powerful Women, and, most recently, Barron’s 100 Most Influential Women in Finance.  She’s marking five years as President and CEO of TIAA, overseeing $1.6 trillion in assets.   She is also one of just two Black women leading a Fortune 500 company. With women holding just 11% of CEO seats, she is passionate about seeing both numbers grow. “ I just think there is an opportunity to add another chapter of what it means to be a CEO,” remarked Thasunda Brown Duckett in her conversation with Karen Finerman.   That means not only being an exceptional leader, but also showing the world more of her complete self.   She is a married mother who says she needs a village to make it all work.  She is also a deeply faithful person who doesn't shy away from sharing the difficult parts of her life.  Whether it’s her childhood, which was “long on love” but often short on money, or the grief she felt when she lost her brother a few years ago, she understands that showing her three-dimensional self, while still being an extraordinary leader, helps others see their own potential.      💬 In this episode, we explore: Thasunda Brown Duckett’s theory of living her life like a “diversified portfolio” (and why she believes the idea of work-life balance is a lie)  Why she and her husband Richard made the decision to have him stay at home with the kids  The skills and attitudes she possesses that she believes helped her climb the corporate ladder at Fannie Mae, Chase & J.P. Morgan How she feels her leadership style has evolved, and why she enjoys “giving power away What she learned working for Jamie Dimon at JP Morgan Chase How her father, Otis Brown, ultimately inspired her passion for amplifying the message about the importance of saving for retirement  Why she enjoys expressing herself through fashion Resources: 💻  Learn more about TIAA 📸  Follow Thasunda Brown Duckett On LinkedIn 📸  Follow Thasunda Brown Duckett on Instagram Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Creating a company with beloved products from scratch is no easy task, and Nicole Bernard Dawes has pulled it off twice. At 29, she launched Late July Snacks, which are famous for their flavored organic, non-GMO tortilla chips. When the $100+ million company was acquired by Campbell's in 2018, Bernard Dawes decided to do it all again.  This time, she set her eyes on the competitive beverage business. In 20219, she launched Nixie, a line of organically flavored sparkling water and organic zero-sugar sodas.  Nicole Bernard Dawes had a unique entrée into the world of entrepreneurship, which led to her two gigs as a CEO. Her father was Steve Bernard, co-founder of the Cape Cod Potato Chip Company. She grew up visiting the company’s factory in Hyannis and learning the business from him. After college, she worked for her dad and launched the brand's most popular product, their reduced-fat chips. The mother of two shares how those early business experiences shaped her, why she loves brand building, and her commitment to creating healthy food and drinks that are also tasty.  💬 In this episode, we explore: Why Nicole Bernard Dawes is obsessed with grocery stores, and what she’s looking at that the average customer may miss How Nicole Bernard Dawes’ mom, who ran a health food store in the 1970’s, influenced her tastes  The reason she believes a store selling out of your product is not a good thing, especially in the food & beverage business  Why she considers herself always on the clock, but has a very different set of expectations from her team  The reaction she has when she sees her products out in the wild - including spotting her favorite Peloton instructor enjoying one of her beverages  Resources: 💻  Learn more about Nixie  📸  Follow Nicole Bernard Dawes On LinkedIn 📸  Follow Nixie  on Instagram 📸  Follow Nixie on TikTok 📸  Follow Nixie on LinkedIn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you’re on TikTok, Instagram, Substack, or YouTube, you’ve likely come across content creator Vivian Tu.  She’s taken her expertise learned from her time as a trader at J.P. Morgan and a sales exec at Buzzfeed to create the platform “Your Rich BFF,” which now boasts 10 million combined followers. Vivian is the CEO of Your Rich BFF and has a team of approximately 20 people working for her.  Together, they channel her social-media savvy and pithy communication style to teach her followers how to make smart money moves and grow their wealth.  Her message is a departure from her own upbringing, during which her hardworking, Chinese immigrant parents mostly stressed about the family’s finances, with a focus on “scrimping and saving.”  Vivian’s goal with all of her work, including her podcast “Networth & Chill” and her latest  New York Times bestselling book “Well Endowed: The Secrets to Strategic Spending, Building a Financial Foundation for You and Your Family, and Creating Lasting Generational Wealth,”  is to empower her readers financially across all areas of their lives.    💬 In this episode, we explore: How Vivian has learned from her mistakes when it comes to hiring people for her team  What Vivian sees is the difference between hustle and grit, and why she thinks only one can be taught  Her thoughts about the future of Your Rich BFF and what role she might play in it Why owning her business influenced Vivian’s choice to undergo IVF at age 30 and freeze her embryos  The lasting impact her female mentor at J.P. Morgan had on her life and career, including the very generous gift she gave Vivian  The critical importance of discussing money with your partner, and what led to  Vivian and her now-husband having that conversation very early on in their relationship What her mom’s advice to Vivian was when she started making more money than her husband  Resources: 📕 Learn more about “Well Endowed” by Vivian Tu  📸  Follow Vivian Tu on Instagram  📸  Follow Vivian Tu on TikTok 📸  Follow Vivian Tu on YouTube 🎧 Listen to Vivian Tu on Networth and Chill  🎧 New episodes of How She Does It drop every Tuesday. Be sure to follow us so you never miss an episode Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Veronica Swanson Beard’s life changed when she met her future business partner, Veronica Miele Beard, and her future husband, Jamie Beard, on the same evening. The two Veronicas, who became sisters-in-law, share a love of fashion. They explored a number of possible business ventures together (including, at one point, maternity wear) before landing on their game-changing women’s dickey jacket.  Since they introduced their signature piece in a market set up in Veronica Swanson Beard's apartment in 2010, the company has exploded.  They now offer a complete “uniform” for women: dresses, pants, shoes, swimwear, jewelry, and more. The two Veronicas are Co-CEOs of their namesake company, which was recently named Private Company of the Year by Women’s Wear Daily.   For Veronica Swanson Beard, their brand is the culmination of a dream that started as a young girl, and was heavily influenced by the stylish women she saw growing up in Naples, Florida, London, and Northern California.    💬 In this episode, we explore:  What Veronica Swanson Beard’s mentor taught her that frames philosophy on working in the fashion business  How the two Veronicas approach leading their company together Where Veronica Swanson Beard gets her design inspiration from  The very-subtle, but important, (and not often spoken-about) detail in Veronica Beard jeans that Veronica Swanson Beard absolutely loves  How the Co-CEOs managed some of the more challenging times faced by their company  Veronica Swanson Beard’s outlook on building a company while also raising three sons  Resources: 🔗 Visit Veronica Beard 📸  Follow Veronica Beard on Instagram 📸  Follow Veronica Beard on LinkedIn 🎧 New episodes of How She Does It drop every Tuesday. Be sure to follow us so you never miss an episode Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gorgeous landscapes, high-stakes drama, and throw in some horses and cattle for good measure.  That’s just another day at the office when you work on a show in Taylor Sheridan’s universe.  Emmy-nominated Christina Alexandra Voros is one of the most influential female voices in Sheridan’s inner circle, having directed multiple episodes of his hit shows, including “Yellowstone,” “1883,” “Lawman: Bass Reeves,” and now, every episode of “The Madison.”    “The Madison” stars Michelle Pfeiffer and Kurt Russell and explores themes of family and loss, as well as the healing power of the land. For Christina, working with Michelle Pfeiffer on the series in Montana was a career highlight, saying, “ her focus and resilience and heart through the process of making the show is absolutely remarkable.”  Christina also serves as executive producer for the series, which is streaming now exclusively on Paramount+.    💬 In this episode, we explore: Christina’s path to becoming a director, which meant veering from her original dream of being an actress How this NYU Film school grad and proud Brooklynite fell in love with a cowboy, and now lives on a ranch in Texas  Why she took a demotion to camera operator to work on “Yellowstone,” and why at first she thought it was the biggest mistake of her career How she approaches shooting technically challenging scenes, including working with animals and choreographed fights Her thoughts on the advances women directors have made in the industry, and why she is optimistic for the next generation   How she is preparing to direct two more highly anticipated Sheridan projects: “Frisco King,” starring Samuel L. Jackson, and the “Yellowstone” spinoff, “Dutton Ranch.” Resources:🔗 Watch The Madison on Paramount+  📸  Follow Christina Alexandra Voros on Instagram  🎧 New episodes of How She Does It drop every Tuesday. Be sure to follow us so you never miss an episode Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices