Stephanie Nadi Olson: Foundation

Today, we are spending time with Stephanie Nadi Olson. 

Steph is the founder, Executive Chair of the Board and former CEO of We Are Rosie.

Being a founder is NO JOKE.

It’s not for the faint of heart.

It takes a toll on you – your bank account, your peace of mind, your nervous system, your family, your friendships, your health.

Steph's body started to break down in response to the stress and pressure she was under as a founder and CEO scaling her bootstrapped start-up to a 110 Million Dollar valuation and acquisition in under five years.

During this episode, we talk about the loneliness of being a founder and CEO…

And about the unbelievable tension that exists between priorities when you’re trying to build a business inside of life that you are also creating. 

I have never felt more seen as a founder than in this conversion, listening to Steph’s story.

And in reflecting on the lessons I took from it, the word that kept coming up for me was Foundation. 

Foundation is defined “literally” as the lowest load-bearing part of a building, typically below ground level.

Metaphorically, it’s an underlying basis or principle.

Building We Are Rosie was possible because of the foundation Steph created inside of herself and her family. Scaling it broke Steph down to *her* foundation…her lowest load-bearing point. 

And it got me thinking: As Founders, how do we ensure that we don’t *personally* get taken down to our studs as we’re building a business from the ground up?

Let's find out.

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Check out and support the women we love to HYPE!

• Stephanie Nadi Olson: Steph on LinkedIn, We Are Rosie
• Elena Arecco Bridgmom: Elena on LinkedIn,  LUMO
• Misha Bleymaier-Farrish: Misha on LinkedIn, GSD Factor
• Dana Mahia: Dana on LinkedIn, Dana Mahina, LLC, Erin’s Work-Life Harmonized Podcast Episode, “B is for Burnout, not Bitch”

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The Hype Women Podcast is produced by Erin Gallagher and Melanie Scroggins.

Original score by Alex Yewon.

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