Entrepreneurship

Uplifting Fearless Hispanic and Latin American Changemakers

Posted on by Case Foundation

In celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, we’ve been reflecting on the great achievements and contributions of fearless Hispanic and Latinx changemakers that have transformed our communities and the world. These contributions span the fields of medicine, law, civil rights, arts and culture, science and technology and more. And in looking back, we’ve found that the story of Latinx leaders in entrepreneurship is equally impressive and groundbreaking.

To celebrate this history of innovation and shed light on the scope of this impact, we are highlighting a few organizations that have been featuring the Hispanic and Latinx community this month. The Case Foundation strives to lift up people and ideas with the potential to change the world, and this groundswell of acknowledgment and support is encouraging.  

 

MacArthur Foundation

The MacArthur Foundation is focusing on amplifying the voices of MacArthur Fellows of Hispanic or Latin American descent. You can follow along on Twitter with the hashtag, #MacFellow or head over to Medium to read the full story. We particularly like this quote from Juan Salgado, a Community Leader. “Communities like ours are only as strong as the human capital they can retain and attract. If people here can get access to better economic opportunities, if they can increase their earnings while staying in their communities, then we have healthy and livable communities.” 

NASA

NASA looks back on the remarkable accomplishments of Hispanic astronauts with a particular focus on the contributions made over the last 20 years that the Space Station has been aloft. The first Hispanic-American in space was Franklin R. Chang-Díaz when he flew as a mission specialist aboard Space Shuttle Columbia’s STS-61C mission in 1986. He flew in space a record-tying six more times, including one visit to the Russian space station Mir and one to ISS.

Pixar

Pixar artists are celebrating some of the many Hispanic and Latinx artists throughout history who have inspired them. Pixar Visual Development Artist Ana Ramirez shares her admiration for the artistry of director Alfonso Cuarón Orozco, winner of four Academy Awards; Pixar Story Supervisor Louis Gonzales reflects on an artist who inspires him, comic book creator Jaime Hernandez; and Pixar Story Artist Paula Assadourian pays tribute to Mexican photographer Lola Alvarez Bravo.

National Geographic

Check out National Geographic’s extensive Resource Library for videos, photographs, and articles, as they join communities across South, Central, and North America to celebrate the history, contributions, influence, and accomplishments of Latinx, Latina, Latino, and Hispanic people who have enriched the United States. 

American Society of Landscape Architects

ASLA is celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month with a series of webinars. Register to watch one of the following presentations with experts in the field: Cultural Diversity through the Latin American Landscape; The Spectacular Nature of Ancient Mexico; On Social Urbanism and Reframing Spatial Design in Latin America; Climate Change, Landscape, Cultural and Natural Heritage.

Smithsonian

Oriana E. Gonzales and Ariana A. Curtis of the National Museum of African American History and Culture and Sara Cohen of Because of Her Story wrote an informative blog entitled, “Nine Latinas You May Not Know This Hispanic Heritage Month.” Know their names, share their stories. 

Google

In addition to sharing stories of Latinx changemakers in the daily Google Doodle, Google is highlighting Latinx culture everywhere from Hollywood to Congress and supporting Pop-Up Magazine, a new collection of stories celebrating Latinx voices with tales of fearless creativity, songs of love and longing, and even inspired advice for public speaking. And perhaps more important now than ever, Google is spotlighting Latinx businesses around the country and providing free tools and training to help Latino-owned businesses adapt and grow.

Marvel Entertainment

The Marvel Universe is celebrating their Hispanic and Latinx characters. From Araña to White Tiger, check out the heroes who have made their mark on Marvel. Araña is giving us some serious #BeFearless vibes: “This half-Puerto Rican, half-Mexican web-slinger crackled with bravery since her first appearance!” 

She Se Puede

The organization She Se Puede is a community for Latinas, by Latinas. They’ve reminded us that while we celebrate the amazing accomplishments of our community during this month, Latinx excellence never stops. A great reminder that changemakers are powerful all 365 days of the year!

Instagram

All month, Instagram is sharing letters to “mi gente” from the Latinx community around the world. Don’t miss the stories, art, and comedy found in their #LatinxHeritageMonth story! If you’re celebrating the Hispanic or Latinx community on Instagram, tag @CaseFoundation and perhaps we’ll feature you on our Story!

Seven Podcasts for Entrepreneurs to Explore

Posted on by Case Foundation

Everyone loves a good story of innovation, and entrepreneurs tend to have especially fascinating ones. In her best-selling book, Be Fearless, Jean Case uplifts the stories of entrepreneurs and changemakers who used innovation to change the world. She examines the core qualities of great innovators, past and present, and identifies five surprising traits they all have in common. It isn’t wealth, privilege or even genius. In fact, it is that every leader who broke through and brought forward transformational changes made a “Big Bet,” took bold risks, learned from their failures, reached beyond their bubbles and let urgency conquer fear. 

However, sometimes hearing—not just reading—stories can be uniquely powerful. So, we asked the Case Foundation team to share some of their favorite stories of entrepreneurship, as told by podcasts. While there are many great stories out there, we compiled a list of episodes that stand out. 

We hope these podcasts inspire you on your entrepreneurial journey. And if you’re interested in more content on inclusive entrepreneurship, we regularly share stories of female entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs of color in our weekly newsletter, Breaking Good. Sign up here!

 

1. GirlBoss Radio, Building a Business Around Sustainability with Sarah Paiji Yoo of Blueland

GirlBoss Radio dives into what it takes to be a successful female founder through conversations with innovative women in business. Whether you are looking for advice on advancing your career, tips for scaling a business, or just a laugh, this podcast has you covered. Hosted by Sophia Amoruso, CEO and founder of Girlboss and Neha Gandhi, editor-in-chief and COO of Girlboss.

In this episode, host Amoruso interviews co-founder and CEO of Blueland, Sarah Paiji Yoo. Blueland is aiming to reduce the amount of single-use plastic in the cleaning product industry by building concentrated cleaning solution tablets that are water activated. Listen to this episode to learn more about the growing market for environmentally sustainable businesses and how entrepreneurs are tackling global problems while making a profit.

 

2. Being Boss, First Year of Business at Almanac Supply Co

In this podcast, hosts Emily Thompson and Kathleen Shannon examine what it takes to make money doing what you love. The podcast is geared towards full-time founders, those thinking about their first fearless step and anyone looking to learn from entrepreneurs who have turned their passions into a profiting business. 

In this episode, host Emily reflects on the one year anniversary of launching her product-based business. She highlights how she dealt with the challenges along the way, made failures from her past business ventures matter, and developed the skills necessary to be CEO. Emily’s firsthand knowledge and Kathleen’s advice offer a useful case study for those wondering about getting a business off the ground.

 

3. How I Built This, Live Episode! Walker & Company: Tristan Walker

In this podcast from NPR, host Guy Raz profiles entrepreneurs, changemakers, and innovators whose companies are making significant impacts on the world. The episodes examine the evolution of well-known brands and how successful founders turn ideas into movements.

Guy Raz interviews Tristan Walker, an entrepreneur and CEO of Walker & Co., a company that was recently acquired by Procter & Gamble (P&G), in this special live episode. Walker explains how his frustration with the way razors irritate those with curly hair turned into his first business, a subscription shaving system and personal care product line. His company attracted millions of customers and eventually was sold to P&G. Listen to this episode for an inside look at what it takes to build momentum around your business idea. *Bonus: Check out another episode of How I Built This with Case Foundation Chairman Steve Case!

 

4. How Success Happens, Tech Pioneer Jean Case on How to Change the World With Your Big Idea

How Success Happens features host Robert Tuchman as he converses with successful entrepreneurs in an effort to learn from their stories. Episodes focus on both successes and failures that the entrepreneurs have faced, and how challenges they encounter along the road can ultimately transform into steps towards progress and profit. 

In this episode, Jean Case discusses her bestselling book, Be Fearless, dives into the five universal qualities of great innovators, shares tips for startups pitching to investors, as well as how to turn an idea into a life-changing endeavor. This podcast is perfect for anyone looking for a roadmap for their next breakthrough in business.

 

5. RISE Podcast, Serving Your Community With Your Business with Charis Jones

Hosted by New York Times best-selling author Rachel Hollis, the RISE podcast aims to offer actionable items to listeners for both business and life outside of work. Through conversations with innovative entrepreneurs and personal development experts, RISE will arm you with real-world takeaways that you can implement directly in your own life. 

In this episode, Rachel interviews entrepreneur Charis Jones, founder and CEO of Sassy Jones Boutique. Jones discusses how staying connected to a loyal fan base has been crucial for the success of her business, allowing her to scale the boutique into a seven-figure enterprise. If you are looking to start or expand your business, listen to this episode for useful marketing tips that will help you connect to customers.

 

6. Side Hustle Pro, How To Get Your Niche Brand Into Major Retailers with Aycee Brown

Hosted by Nicaila Matthews Okome, Side Hustle Pro features stories of Black female entrepreneurs who have turned their side hustles into full-blown, successful businesses. Every week, Black female entrepreneurs such as Lisa Price of Carol’s Daughter and Myleik Teele of CurlBox highlight their startup stories and offer advice for burgeoning side hustlers. 

In this episode, Nicaila interviews Aycee Brown, Goodnight Darling Co.’s Chief Sleep Officer. Under Brown’s direction, the niche sleep company has created partnerships with luxury boutiques and companies like West Elm to expand their in-store presence and increase the visibility of their brand. Listen to this episode to learn how Brown scaled her business into a trusted authority in the self-care field and for tips on getting your product onto the shelves of major retailers.

 

7. The Failure Factor, Bluemercury Co-founder and CEO Marla Beck On Failing Her Way To Success

How do successful entrepreneurs respond to failure? The Failure Factor: Stories of Career Perseverance examines how the low points of careers can motivate entrepreneurs to reach highs that they had never dreamed of. Host Megan Bruneau sits down with founders to identify how they were able to leverage their experiences of both success and failure to overcome obstacles and ultimately reach their full potential. 

In this episode, Bluemercury co-founder and CEO Marla Beck talks about the severe downturn the company faced early on and how she was able to turn the company around. Spoiler alert: Bluemercury ultimately secured a $210 million acquisition by Macy’s. Beck explains failure in two distinct ways: how she deals with failure herself and how she responds to failure as a manager overseeing staff. This is a great listen for any entrepreneur looking to make failure matter.

 

2019 Inclusive Entrepreneurship Conferences on Our Radar

Posted on by Case Foundation

Jet across any part of the country and you’ll come across a host of conferences designed to ignite the inclusive entrepreneurship movement. At the Case Foundation, we’ve crisscrossed the nation to attend and speak at a number of these events—from SXSW to Urban Tech Connect and Fortune Most Powerful Women—to learn new ways to build the social, financial and inspirational capital needed to support diverse entrepreneurs.

As we look towards the new year, the team has assembled a list of the preeminent conferences across the globe that are designed for diverse founders, ecosystem builders and startup champions who are seeking to collaborate and build the relationships needed to drive meaningful change for inclusive entrepreneurship. We are certain that you’ll find something for every stage of your business as you work to accelerate brands.

  1. Blacktech Week, February 5-9, 2019, Miami, Florida: BlackTech Weekend connects entrepreneurs, tech professionals, educators and creatives to the resources they need to be competitive in the innovation economy. Together they explore the ins and outs of life as techies, entrepreneurs and ecosystem builders.
  2. Watermark Conference for Women, February 21, 2019, Silicon Valley: This year’s Watermark Conference will unite more than 100 speakers and 6,500 women from across the globe in search of inspiration, motivation, networking, personal and professional development, and community. Jean Case is slated to take the stage, as well as activist Gloria Steinem, champion and investor Serena Williams, educator Brené Brown, Sequoia Capital’s Jess Lee, and founder and CEO of MM.LaFleur Sarah LaFleur.
  3. Lesbians Who Tech, February 28, 2019-March 2nd, Silicon Valley: This is one of the largest LGBTQ professional events in the world, focusing on increasing the visibility of women, LGBTQ women and LGBTQ women of color in tech, demographics that are underrepresented in the tech sector.
  4. SXSW Interactive, March 8-12, 2019, Austin, Texas: While the Case Foundation is gearing up for a big SXSW announcement, you can check out a few sessions led by our team in the meantime. On March 9th, Jean Case will host a Be Fearless Book Talk. Also be sure to add to your calendar two sessions on March 12th: one moderated by yours truly featuring Veronica Dagher of the Wall Street Journal, Jean Ellen Cowgill from Bloomberg’s TicToc and Catherine Clifford of CNBC on How to Tell Your Startup Story, and a second Case Foundation led session on The Overlooked Future of US Entrepreneurs: Latinx featuring Dyan Gibbens from Trumball Unmanned, Marcos Gonzalez from Vamos Ventures and C’pher Graham from Seed Spot. Stay tuned for our annual SXSW Sessions to Watch Blog coming soon.
  5. HBCU@SXSW, March 8-11, 2019, Austin, Texas: Since 2015, HBCU@SXSW has exposed high-potential technical and non-technical students of color to programming and opportunities within inclusive entrepreneurship. Last year, more than 100 students from 41 colleges and universities attended SXSW. Check out the USAToday feature on the experience that unites students from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs). Apply to attend HBCU@SXSW HERE.
  6. Women in the World, April 10-12, 2019, New York City: Going on its tenth year, the event convenes powerful women leaders, blazing activists and courageous movers and shakers who will move you with their provocative first-person storytelling and change your worldview. Previous speakers have included Nobel Peace Laureate & Liberian Peace Activist Leymah Gbowee, Co-Anchor of CBS This Morning Norah O’Donnell, Award-Winning Actress and Activist Viola Davis, Sally Yates and founder of TaskRabbit, Leah Busque.
  7. Black is Tech Conference, April 12-13, 2019, New York City: This conference creates a platform for Black and minority tech professionals, entrepreneurs and enthusiasts to connect. With an expected attendance of over 1,000, the Black is Tech Conference will provide a platform that creates more inclusion of people of color in startups and the technology sector. Speakers will include executives from Harlem Capital, LISNR, First Round Capital, 500 Startups, Citibank and more.
  8. Women of Silicon Valley, May 2-3, 2019, San Francisco: This conference invites you to join more than 1,500 tech leaders and professionals from the hottest startups to learn from industry pioneers. You’ll experience inspirational keynotes, panel discussions on business strategy, technical classes, and career development workshops. Speakers include executives from Slack, Salesforce, Accenture, PepsiCo, Microsoft, IBM and Coursera.
  9. Urban Tech Connect, May 16, 2019, Los Angeles: Last year, the Case Foundation’s Sarah Koch took the stage at Urban Tech Connect in an interview with Mayor Eric Garcetti. (Watch that interview HERE.) The conference is designed to support and provide networks for startup founders of color. Last year’s speakers included Keith Coleman from the Tesla Foundation, Brian Martinez from Airbnb, Derek Smith from Plug In South LA and Natalie Bruss from Fifth Wall Ventures.
  10. Summit 21, June 7-8, 2019, Atlanta, GA: Summit 21 is a carefully curated gathering that will assemble the most influential black women of this generation from across the country to learn and grow together. This 2-day experience is designed to give women entrepreneurs, creators, and influencers the opportunity to hone their visions and gain valuable insights to achieving their goals. Through engaging masterclasses and fireside chats, Summit 21 provides hands-on experience with the brightest and most inspiring leaders across sectors. Speakers included actress, producer and screenwriter Lena Waithe, Myleik Teele of CurlBox, Lilly Workneh of Blavity, and investor Monique Woodard.
  11. Forbes Women’s Summit, June 17-18, 2019, New York, NY: This conference celebrates the women who are making a change while inspiring,  connecting and empowering women around the world. Featuring keynote conversations, panel discussions, one-on-one interviews and interstitial spotlights, the Summit brings together the voices and insights of a diverse range of female luminaries from the worlds of business, entertainment and politics. Speakers include leaders from Nest, Audi, Pipeline Angels, SAP and more.
  12. Code2040 Summit, July 27-28, 2019, San Francisco, CA: Attendees will experience two days of deep, enlightening programming that will equip you to play an active role in the inclusive entrepreneurship movement. Whether you are a startup founder, a college student breaking into computer science or the head of diversity and inclusion at a major tech company, Code 2040 wants to empower you.
  13. Essence Festival, July 4-7, 2019, New Orleans, Louisiana: Connect with some of the most successful power players in the country for interactive exchanges designed to help you take your career or business to the next level. Essence offers attendees front row seats as CEOs, business owners and flourishing entrepreneurs from across multiple industries share inspiring stories and tips for how you can follow in their footsteps.
  14. BlogHer Summit, 2019 Date TBD, Location TBD: Each year, more than 2,000 social media influencers, bloggers, entrepreneurs, activists and all-around amazing women head to the BlogHer summit. Past speakers have included Uzo Aduba, Gwyneth Paltrow, Arianna Huffington, Chelsea Clinton, Sheryl Sandberg, Serena Williams, Carla Hall, Soledad O’Brien, Ava DuVernay, Kerry Washington and President Barack Obama, so you’re guaranteed an amazing 2019 lineup!
  15. National Urban League, July 24-27, 2019  Indianapolis, Indiana: The National Urban League Conference is the largest annual civil rights conference that kicks off with the State of the Urban League by NUL president Marc Morial. It attracts thousands of the nation’s most influential community leaders, policymakers, startup and small business leaders, and media for four days of dialogue, networking and entertainment. The gathering also features the Small Business Matters Entrepreneurship One-Day Summit and Young Professionals L.E.A.D. (Leaders. Entrepreneurs. Advocates. Dreamers.) Summit.
  16. Female Founders Conference, multiple dates, multiple locations: Last year, three events took place throughout the country featuring combinator partners, alumni, and other female entrepreneurs and investors. Speakers included Christina Cacioppo of Vanta, Jess Lee from Sequoia Capital, Holly Liu of Kabay and Ashley Wong of Gemnote.
  17. Rural Rise Summit, September 16-19, Pine Bluff, AR: The second annual Rural Rise Summit will bring together community leaders and rural ecosystem builders. Over three days, they will work to answer the question, “How do we empower the leaders, doers and innovators in rural communities?” Rural Rise also hosts monthly action session calls to learn more about the successes and learnings from communities across the country.
  18. National Black MBA Association, September 24-28, 2019, Houston, TX: The 40th Annual convening unites their members, corporate and university partners and some of the world’s most sought after thought leaders. More than 10,000 professionals attend each year for sessions on “Big Data: Algorithms vs. Human Analysis”, “The First 90 Days: Making Your Mark as An Executive”, and “Motivating and Retaining Generation Z”. Also check out events like the Scale-Up Pitch Challenge sponsored by FedEx, “Meet the Experts” expo stage featuring representatives from Microsoft, Nationwide, Bank of America and Wells Fargo.  
  19. Black Wall Street Homecoming, September 2019, Location TBD: This is an annual networking conference for early-stage entrepreneurs, focused on the intersection of content, connections and culture. Celebrate and learn from diverse, multicultural entrepreneurs, their investors and the community that supports them. Speakers have included executives like Arlan Hamilton from Backstage Capital, JaNay Queen Nazaire of Living Cities, McKeever Conwell of TEDCO and Torrence Reed from HBCU Wall Street.
  20. Project NorthStar Conference, October 2019, Location TBD: This three-day tech conference provides connections, education and opportunities for current or aspiring entrepreneurs of color. If you are currently building a tech startup or aspiring to build one, this is for you. Organized by Black & Brown Founders (BBF), in partnership with the City of Philadelphia the conference works to establish a framework that helps people with modest resources create a path to economic security.
  21. Grace Hopper Celebration, October 2-4, 2019, Orlando, FL: This is the largest gathering of women technologists in the world. It seeks to inspire and educate women in tech and connect them with companies that view technological innovation as imperative. Last year’s speakers included Sherrell Dorsey of ThePLUG, Shelly Bell of Black Girl Ventures, Stephen Green of WeWork, Brigitte Daniel of Wilco Electronic Systems, Aniyia Williams of Black & Brown Founders and Karla Monterroso of Code2040.
  22. A3C Festival & Conference, October 2019, Location TBD: At this conference, thousands of artists, creatives, entrepreneurs and industry veterans from around the world will hear from more than 200 speakers who focus on topics ranging from civil rights, brand activism, mental health, building a movement, entrepreneurship, health and wellness.
  23. Black Enterprises TechConneXt, October 2019, Location TBD: This is not just another tech conference, it’s an opportunity to engage, empower, and recruit tech talent of color. More than 500 tech professionals gather to hear from speakers like Morgan DeBaun of Blavity, Melinda Briana Epler from Backstage Capital, Nancy Douyon from Uber and Damien Hooper-Campbell of eBay.
  24. Fortune Most Powerful Women, October 21-23, 2019, Washington, D.C.: Fortune Most Powerful Women has evolved into a convening of the best women in business, along with select leaders in government, philanthropy, education and the arts. Speakers and attendees come from companies like Ariel Investments, The Home Depot, The World Bank, Bumble, OpenTable, the New York Stock Exchange, Microsoft, Airbnb and Instagram.
  25. Blavity Afrotech, November 7-10, 2019, Oakland, California: You’ll join more than 3,000 engineers, designers, and business leaders for groundbreaking content that includes a 360-degree look at how culture and tech run the world.
  26. MogulCon, November 2019, Location TBD: MogulCon unites industry influencers, startup founders and female business owners to share their knowledge on how to create more powerful female entrepreneurs. MogulCon 2019 is about providing attendees with the resources that will help them build a sustainable strategy and accelerate the growth of themselves and their business. From master classes to fireside chats, every experience at MogulCon is focused on molding attendees to think, act, and be a MOGUL.
  27. Fortune Most Powerful Women Next Gen, Fall/Winter 2019, Location TBD: The annual Next Gen summit will gather a stellar group of game-changing executives, entrepreneurs and innovators in business, along with leaders in government, philanthropy, education and the arts for a wide-ranging conversation. You’ll join speakers and attendees like Glossier founder and CEO Emily Weiss, Nextdoor Co-founder Sarah Leary, Andreessen Horowitz General Partner Connie Chan, Stitch Fix CMO Deirdre Findlay, FabFitFun Co-founder Katie Rosen Kitchens, Maven Founder and CEO Katherine Ryder, plus standouts from Fortune’s Brainstorm TECH network and 40 Under 40 list and executives at leading global companies such as Airbnb, eBay, Facebook, IBM, Lyft, Mastercard, Microsoft, Morgan Stanley, NBCUniversal, Salesforce, Twitter and Visa.
  28. Tech Inclusion, Multiple dates in 2019, Multiple Locations: Created by Change Catalyst, Tech Inclusion events bring the local tech industry together to find solutions for diversity and inclusion. You’ll join executives, hiring managers, human resources personnel, data scientists, engineers, educators, entrepreneurs, investors, policymakers and diversity and inclusion advocates at three events across the year in locations like Melbourne, New York and San Francisco. Learn new solutions for diversity and inclusion, meet underrepresented entrepreneurs and investors, speak with policymakers and educators, interact with inclusive and accessible design, and collaborate and network with other people who care about creating positive change in tech.
  29. Black Enterprise Entrepreneurs Summit, Date TBD, Location TBD: Gain access to the connections, financing, resources and strategic insight you need to launch and grow your dream business. This is the must-attend event for aspiring business owners, startup founders, and established entrepreneurs looking for new money-making and growth opportunities for their ventures.
  30. LULAC’s Latinx Tech Summit, Date TBD, Location TBD: Presented by the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) in partnership with Capital Factory and Prospanica Texas, the annual Latinx Tech Summit is designed for Latino tech leaders, designers, innovators, corporate and government leaders, and scholars. The one-day program features engaging peer-to-peer discussions, culturally relevant professional development, and exceptional opportunities to interact with Latinx public officials, artists, scientists, authors, business executives, scholars, entrepreneurs and Latino tech leaders from every major industry.

Have a conference we missed that you would like added to the list? Tweet us or share on Instagram @CaseFoundation.

 

Five Be Fearless Principles for Entrepreneurs

Posted on by Case Foundation

Six years ago, when we started studying the “secret sauce” of those who have created transformational, breakthrough advances in society, we found five surprising common traits. They weren’t wealth, privilege or even genius. It was that they–no matter their time in history, their gender or where they were born–chose to make a “big bet,” take bold risks, learn from their failures, reach beyond their bubbles and let urgency conquer fear. The results became what is now known as the Five Be Fearless Principles and these are the focus of the book Be Fearless: 5 Principles for Breakthroughs and Purpose that will be coming out in January.

I love getting to share the Be Fearless principles with different audiences across the globe comprised of those who are striving to create change or have a big bet they’ve dreamed about but haven’t yet taken the first step. People are often surprised when I share these findings and are excited by the tangible and attainable nature of them—they’re applicable to everyone, no matter their skills, talents or background. While the principles create the framework for the book, they are brought to life around a wide variety of stories of innovators, entrepreneurs and changemakers who come from all walks of life who made big bets, learned from failures along the way and took bold risks to make transformational changes.

At the Case Foundation, we recognize that entrepreneurs are often innovative creators, risk takers and problem solvers working to transform industries, products and the world we live in. And yet, entrepreneurs routinely tell us they have found the principles helpful in their own fearless journey, and have been inspired by the stories of others who have overcome fear, moved past failure and turned a really big bet into a breakthrough. Commenting on the role of these principles for entrepreneurs, Tory Burch said: “Starting a business is not easy, but Be Fearless gives entrepreneurs the tools they need to embark—fearlessly—on their own journey.”

And it is clear that we need fearless entrepreneurs now more than ever. So, whether you are just getting started or are farther along on your entrepreneurial journey, I hope you will apply these principles and set your sights high by checking your approaches against the Be Fearless framework:

Make Big Bets and Make History. By nature, almost all entrepreneurs are making bets at some point—including starting a business from scratch or hitting a new ambitious milestone. But to truly breakthrough to something bigger, it requires setting audacious goals. Making big bets and fearlessly going after them is the only way to reshape our world for the better.

Be Bold, Take Risks. Don’t be afraid to experiment or to go first! An entrepreneur who is working hard to build a business can sometimes lose sight of the need for constant risk taking to advance a business to the next level. Whether starting or trying to grow a new business, entrepreneurs would do well to approach risk taking as R&D, applying a proven approach that recognizes the importance of trial and error in bold pursuit of a transformative idea.

Make Failure Matter by using errors or failures along the way to teach you something new by embracing the perspective of Thomas Edison, who famously said, “I haven’t failed. I’ve just found 10,000 things that won’t work.” Making failure matter means staring down both the failure and the fears that accompany it, and applying the lessons as you move forward.

Reach Beyond Your Bubble by identifying the skills and perspectives that aren’t represented on your team or among those contributing valuable advice to you as you take forward your big bet. A study by the Boston Consulting Group released earlier this year found that companies with more diverse management teams had revenue streams that were 19% higher than those lacking. Why? Different views can eliminate blind spots and help lead to more and better innovation.

Let Urgency Conquer Fear by using it as a powerful motivator to seize the moment.

No matter where you are on your own fearless entrepreneurial journey, these principles can be applied to help you breakthrough.

And, by the way, if you need a little help along the way, #FacesofFounders is a great place to start. Our Resources for Entrepreneurs page highlights resources and tools that can be used to help you in mentorship, research, business plans, forming your company, funding and finding networks or events. Entrepreneurs don’t have to go it alone.

The Case Foundation believes that ordinary people can do extraordinary things. You’ll find countless examples of this in my upcoming book, Be Fearless: 5 Principles for a Life of Breakthroughs and Purpose. Really big problems require really big solutions, and fearless entrepreneurs can help us pave the way to these big ideas and new approaches. As celebrated entrepreneur and founder of Nike, Phil Knight advises: “Dream audaciously. Have the courage to fail forward. Act with urgency.”

Put simply, it’s time to Be Fearless.

#FacesofFounders is Changing the Face of Entrepreneurship One Story at a Time

Posted on by Case Foundation

At the Case Foundation, we’ve set out on a mission to create an inclusive entrepreneurial space in which any entrepreneur, regardless of their gender, race or geographic location, has the opportunity to succeed and thrive. Too often we hear the same outdated myths and stereotypes of who can be an entrepreneur. Over time, these narratives have been reinforced and have left women and entrepreneurs of color on the sidelines. #FacesofFounders seeks to provide a wealth of inspiration capital by recognizing America’s diversity of talent and experiences that doesn’t always get equal coverage in the entrepreneurship space. By telling their stories of triumph and recognizing the changes they have inspired within their respective industries, we hope to change the way we view entrepreneurship and the importance of supporting diverse entrepreneurs.

Originally launched in 2016, the Case Foundation created this campaign to be the centerpiece of the Foundation’s inclusive entrepreneurship movement by highlighting a diverse array of entrepreneurs, focusing on women, entrepreneurs of color and entrepreneurs between the coasts. Nearly 750 founders took the time to submit stories of their own entrepreneurship journeys. Five of those stories were featured in Fast Company and we launched the Medium publication to continue telling the stories of incredible founders building businesses right now. Last month, we launched a new video featuring entrepreneurs from across the country and expanded the content on FacesofFounders.org so we can keep the drumbeat going and dig even deeper into the rich stories and lessons these powerful entrepreneurs can offer us.

What’s New?

  • Resources for entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs, you don’t have to build your business alone. We compiled a list of useful guides and tools on numerous topics to help you succeed.
  • Resources for ecosystem builders. The Kauffman Foundation gathered resources to help the ecosystem builders who are on the ground working to build a better future and to grow a more inclusive economy.
  • Resources for investors. InclusionVentures shared their key learnings from research and their experience supporting investment firms on building an inclusion strategy, in an effort to inspire and support investors’ interests in making inclusive entrepreneurship the norm.
  • Data on the state of inclusive entrepreneurship. We dove into three types of data that show major disparities: the number of entrepreneurs and businesses; investments in entrepreneurship, mainly in the form of venture capital; and revenue these businesses are producing. We will update consistently as new data becomes available.
  • Videos. In addition to the written stories we’ve been publishing on #FacesofFounders for the past year and a half, we have now added a suite of videos that allow you to hear directly from entrepreneurs how they’re getting to work, what barriers they’ve encountered and what successes they’ve had.

As we work to make the entrepreneurial space more inclusive, we recognize that this campaign goes beyond just the entrepreneur herself, and as Jean Case says, is an economic imperative for our nation. Entrepreneurs from all places and backgrounds can have the ability to lift up their communities, bring job growth and new innovations to our economy. Get ready to take the journey with us as we explore inclusivity and redefine the face of entrepreneurship.

Empowering Female Founders and Entrepreneurs of Color in Los Angeles and Beyond

Posted on by Case Foundation

This Spring, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti sat down with our Case Foundation VP for Social Innovation, Sarah Koch, at Urban Tech Connect, a conference designed to support and provide networks for startup founders of color.  Together they explored how the Los Angeles tech ecosystem has grown over the past several years—from a record numbers of startups calling LA their home to an influx of funding rounds and the many high-profile acquisitions and exits—and how important the building of ecosystems to support founders from all backgrounds has proven to be across the country.

In 2017 alone, startups throughout the the city of Los Angeles raised $7 billion in capital, through an upsurge in new investments and new firms. And more than $1.4 billion was raised in 2017 across 16 funds. During the conversation Mayor Garcetti shared how his office has sought to expand their startup ecosystem through programs like the Grid110’s and the creation of the TechFair LA which featured more than 200 leading regional startups.

Watch the video as Mayor Garcetti and Sarah share more on how we can be intentional about how we fund, mentor and support female founders and entrepreneurs of color in thriving cities like Los Angeles and beyond.

The Future of Business Will Be More Female

Posted on by Case Foundation

This Spring, the Case Foundation brought together a dynamic slate of female founders at SXSW for a conversation on why we believe the future of business is female. Case Foundation Board Member, Sonal Shah, who heads Georgetown University’s Beeck Center on Social Impact & Innovation led a discussion with Stephanie Lampkin from Blendoor, Jennifer Stybel from the Rent the Runway Foundation and Cindy Whitehead from The Pink Ceiling. Together they explored why intentionality around equal opportunity for women is key to building and funding a successful startup enterprise and the new pathways for investing in women-led companies.

Lampkin, who founded Blendoor, works with hundreds of tech companies—from Salesforce, to Google, Microsoft and more eliminating unconscious bias in job hiring by creating identity-blind applications. Meanwhile, Whitehead—who sold a company for more than $1 billion dollars three years ago—shared more on how she raised money to fund her company in unconventional ways. Her new company, The Pink Ceiling, provides seed investing and commercial support for female-led startups. The panelists each shared how they pay it forward by making early bets on other women-led companies and providing support for female entrepreneurs. Jennifer Stybel shared how Rent the Runway Foundation is doing just that. She, along with Whitehead and Lampkin are building a pipeline of women-led startups set to change the world.

Watch their conversation above.

7 Fearless Founder Podcasts to Listen To

Posted on by Case Foundation

Everyone loves a good success story, and entrepreneurs tend to have especially fascinating ones. The road to success rarely goes in a straight line; rather, most successful people have encountered quite a few failures and obstacles along the way.  

Learning from these challenges and failing forward is what often leads to breakthroughs. As our Be Fearless principles state, making big bets, failing forward, trying brave experiments, working with unlikely partners and letting urgency conquer fear can be the keys to success for entrepreneurs.

Being fearless isn’t always easy. But seeing stories of fearless entrepreneurs who have braved the path before can be the inspiration capital needed for aspiring entrepreneurs to begin to build their businesses. That’s why telling the stories of entrepreneurs from all backgrounds, and lifting up role models whose stories are not told as frequently in mainstream entrepreneurship coverage, is so important. Our #FacesofFounders campaign has brought together stories of entrepreneurs across race, place and gender, what they struggle with, what they’re building and why inclusivity makes entrepreneurship even stronger. We also regularly share stories of those changing the narrative of who is and can be entrepreneurs in our weekly newsletter, Breaking Good.

But sometimes hearing—not just reading—stories can be uniquely powerful. So, we asked the Case Foundation team to share some of their favorite stories of entrepreneurship, as told by podcasts. While there are many great stories out there, we compiled a list of nine podcast episodes of entrepreneurs who each stand out in a different way. Read on to learn about some of the founders who inspire us and remind us to Be Fearless.


Spanx—Sara Blakely on NPR’s “How I Built This”

Sara Blakely’s story starts with selling fax machines and ends with her becoming the youngest self-made female billionaire in the US. But her journey to get there may be less well-known. She launched Spanx with the money in her savings after seeing a need for an undergarment that incorporates the control top feature of pantyhose without the legs of pantyhose.

Blakely’s journey gathering support from manufacturers, patent attorneys, buyers and even Oprah is an inspiring one for women founders pitching unique and disruptive products. The story of how she convinced a Neiman Marcus buyer to work with her is also a funny reminder that unconventional methods can sometimes be the most effective ones.  

Be Visible—Andrea Guendelman, on Backstage Capital’s “Mission and Values”

As fans of Inclusive Entrepreneurship, we loved hearing about the journey of Andrea Guendelman, who co-founded Be Visible. Recognizing a lack of available professional mentoring and networking resources for Latinx professionals, she built Be Visible as a professional social network for the group.

Throughout the podcast, Andrea breaks down the underlying barriers that separate Latinx professionals from many opportunities available to the wider population. She talks about the group’s unique needs and how Latinx Millennials specifically can be supported and encouraged to be engaged and connected citizens. She also has an interesting backstory that crosses countries and industries before launching Be Visible. Listen through the end to hear about where the platform is going and which big client Be Visible just landed.


Hamdi Ulukaya—Chobani, on Fast Company’s “Innovators Uncensored”

For a lesson in humble beginnings, hard work and compassionate leadership, listen to Fast Company editor, Robert Safian’s interview with Hamdi Ulukaya, Founder and CEO of Chobani. Ulukaya’s path to success was untraditional, to say the least. He started in a closed down factory in a small town in upstate New York, working with a team of just five people and had no prior formal business, marketing or managing experience.

What was the first thing his team did after opening the factory? It’s not what you’d expect, but Ulukaya’s story bucks tradition from the beginning and you have to tune into to hear it straight from Ulukaya. After Chobani’s massive success, Ulukaya shares how he didn’t let success go to his head, how he has sought to stay accountable to his employees and how he doesn’t shy away from wider issues, like the refugee crisis. Listen to the interview to hear him tell the story of two refugees (of the 600 he’s hired) who found success working for Chobani. Ulukaya’s story is the story of a leader rebelling against assumptions about how businesses are run and putting purpose at the center of his business.  

Capway—Sheena Allen, on “VC Cheat Sheet”

Sheena Allen took a non-traditional route to entrepreneurship, launching Capway, a Financial Tech company, from rural Mississippi. Allen talks about her journey to launching the FinTech company, which serves different groups of financially underserved consumers and talks about the unconscious bias that she had to overcome to succeed.  

The ‘aha’ moment that led to her launching Capway came in a grocery store, where she saw a long line of people waiting to cash their checks. Through more research, Allen identified the massive gap in financial services for unbanked and underbanked populations—which leads to people cashing checks at nontraditional financial institutions, like grocery and convenience stores. Despite there being a huge market to serve this community, gaining support from investors was a challenge. Allen shares how she’s been able to find success and find the right investors to work with. And she holds nothing back, giving very direct advice to women and other underrepresented entrepreneurs looking to build support and sharing her advice on how to ask for help the right way. Listen to her story for insight into the experience of an entrepreneur building support for a service for underrepresented consumers.


Radio One—Cathy Hughes, on NPR’s “How I Built This”

For some serious entrepreneurial inspiration, you’ll want to listen to Cathy Hughes’ journey to radio success, which involves a fair share of bumps in the road along the way. As a young, single mom, Hughes moved from Omaha, Nebraska to Washington, DC to help launch the radio station at Howard University. She found success there by creating shows that catered to underrepresented communities in DC, but her journey didn’t stop there.

Hughes’s path to becoming a media mogul takes unexpected twists and turns, including a stint of living with her son in the young, struggling radio station she bought. Her story of navigating entrepreneurship, motherhood, success and expansion as a female founder of color is interesting for so many reasons; from the creative to the financial to the personal.

Coss Marte—ConBody, on Gimlet Media’s “Start Up”

Part 1 and Part 2
This is a story about second chances. Coss Marte is an ex-convict who spent four years in prison for selling drugs. Fast forward to today and he’s running a successful fitness business, ConBody.  

The inspiration for the company came while Marte was still in prison. Dealing with health problems and the confinement of prison, Marte developed his own workout routines that could be done in small spaces and without weights, and he helped other inmates do the same. In the podcast, Marte shares his story building up a customer base, battling negative perceptions and making sure to hire fellow ex-convicts, who struggle to get jobs after leaving incarceration. The podcast begins and ends with Marte and his cofounder, Jenn Shaw going to a pitch competition where they’re starkly reminded how much they stand out; he being Latino and Shaw being a woman among a crowd of mostly white, Ivy league grads. The story of his journey there, and the results of the pitch competition, will inspire and surprise you.


Mariam Naficy—Minted, on “Masters of Scale with Reid Hoffman”

Mariam Naficy is a two-time founder who launched both her companies in uncertain times. She started with Eve.com, the first major online cosmetics seller, which she launched in the late 90’s, a time when the future of the internet was unclear. In fact, to obtain the domain name, she actually had to make a deal with a very powerful five-year-old by the same name. From there, Eve.com raised $26 million in its first year and continued to scale rapidly until she sold the company in 2000.

After moving on from Eve, Naficy moved on to her next venture, Minted, an online stationary store. In this episode, she shares her challenges raising venture capital as a mom entrepreneur, and launching a company in 2008, at the height of a financial crisis. Minted would go on to raise $89 million in Venture Capital and ship to 70 million households, but along the way, Naficy faced a lot of teachable failures, which she shares with listeners.

We hope these podcasts inspire you as much as they have our team. For some more #BeFearless inspiration, check out our Be Fearless hub, and to learn more about how we’re championing entrepreneurship for all through inspiration capital and more, check out our Inclusive Entrepreneurship page and #FacesofFounders series.

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