Choupettes Diary – Page 2 – Choupettes Diary

Today, “Girlboss” is a buzz-word among young female professionals and a label used to best describe women in power. It all started with the original Girlboss, Sophia Amoruso and today is a widespread term used to label female humans who are taking charge of both their personal and career lives, making a name for themself in their specialized industries.

Being a Girlboss means different things to different humans but to moi, this woman is an empowered individual who sets her sight on a goal, achieves that goal, and then takes it to new levels. While I may not be a human Girlboss, I consider myself to be the feline equivalent. The only difference is that I can be a power woman even with a few (dozen) catnaps thrown in between.

In honor of my fellow female leaders for Women’s Month, What Goes Around Comes Around hosted a “Power Panel” last week featuring a line-up of successful women, including Choupette Social Girl (AKA Ashley Tschudin). Fellow panelists included Grace Murray, VP of Fohr, April Mokwa, Managing Editor of Fast Company, Sterling McDavid, Co-Founder & President of Burnett New York, Joiee Thorpe, Celebrity & Editorial Fashion Stylist, and Mandi Meng, VP Marketing & Communication for WGACA. These dynamic dahhhlings discussed everything from female empowerment and career success to power dressing. Because let’s be honest, every Girlboss feels her most powerful when dressed her best!

Girlboss Tips from WGACA Panelists:

Grace Murray, VP of Fohr, on her first job and lessons learned from it:
“I worked casually in hospitality for nearly ten years – some amazing jobs & some terrible ones. A lot of people barely notice their servers or bartenders, but it is a tough job to be good at and when I see someone nailing the delicate-but-rapid-expectation-dance that it is, my first instinct is to hire them.

One important lesson was learning how to play both sides of the fence to get things done as quickly & happily as possible. You don’t tell a customer who’s ordering a well done steak that they’re an idiot, but that’s exactly what the chef will want you to do, & likely make you feel like one too for putting the order in as if it was NBD. I learned to tell the customer it was no problem, and to deliver the order to the chef with an eye roll to make it feel like I was on their team & the customer sucked. That may sound disingenuous but working with other people and paying customers often means competing priorities & personalities, & sometimes being able to get it done means figuring out how to make everyone feel heard, understood, and as though you’re on their team. This is like a step before picking your battles: it’s avoiding being shot as the messenger via subtle chameleon-ing.”

April Mokwa, Managing Editor of Fast Company, on the best advice she’s been given by a woman she admires:

“I wouldn’t necessarily call this the most valuable advice but it is something that I’m really trying to put into practice. Fran Hauser talks about the bad habit of women over-apologizing, especially in the workplace, in her book The Myth of the Nice Girl and I realized how often I did that myself as a default reaction for things that weren’t actually in need of an apology. Her suggestion was to rephrase the default “sorry” with “thank you” instead. For instance instead of, “sorry for the delay,” saying “thank you for the reminder” or “thank you for being patient.” It’s a simple transition but takes the unnecessary “weakness” out of your vocabulary.”

Amy Choi, Head of Partnerships at ShopStyle, on what empowerment and success mean to her:

“I believe empowerment and success go hand in hand. There are two parts of the equation (1) you and (2) your environment. One is empowering yourself to really go after your goal. In addition, changing your mindset that you can achieve anything and speak up with your thoughts and ideas (& even questions!) The second piece of the equation – which I think is equally if not more important – is having true support of people around you, and them empowering you to put your best self forward. It is the combination of the two that I think can help fuel growth in the mind – professionally and personally – resulting in success. Definitely who you surround yourself with matters. Make sure it’s people who make you better!”

Sterling McDavid, Co-Founder & President of Burnett New York, on her most important tip for women on how to progress in leadership positions:

“My tip would be support other women and lift other women up and you will see that what goes around comes around! It is so important for all of us to support one another for more progress. We are in this together and can achieve more by working as a team.”

Joiee Thorpe, Celebrity & Editorial Fashion Stylist, on having one must-have piece as a young professional in their work wardrobe:

“A power blazer is the perfect essential for s young professional because even when paired with jeans you look like a boss! Minimal & tailored clothing makes me feel very professional.”

Mandi Meng, VP Marketing & Communications for What Goes Around Comes Around, on what her go-to piece for feeling her best and most powerful wearing is:

“I feel empowered when I feel like myself, and when I am comfortable in my own skin. Overall, I think people focus too much on what’s ‘on-trend’ or what other people think, instead of what makes them feel good, regardless of the price, style, or ensemble they are wearing. Personally, my go-to power outfit formula is to pair a patterned midi or maxi dress with a vintage blazer (Chanel is my favorite, of course), ankle boots, layered gold jewelry, and a killer handbag (usually also Chanel, but FINALLY got my first Hermes bag, so I will be carrying that non-stop).”

Following the passing of Daddy Karl Lagerfeld there was a lot of speculation as to his estate plan. From what chateau I would live in, to how much money I was set to inherit, humans waited with bated breath.

With tears streaming from my baby blues, I desperately wanted the questions of my personal finance to stop. While I have made much of my life public on @ChoupettesDiary, these questions were not ones simple for me to answer nor were they always asked with the kindest intent. For humans asking without ill-will and with a pure heart, I am taking it day by day and putting one paw in front of the other.

Once I wiped away the tears and read your messages of love and support, I realized that I had an opportunity to give back. Not all animals live a life as fortunate as I do and with Daddy looking over me from above, I wanted to make him proud. With this newly-found confidence, I launched the RIP Daddy collection with the intention of raising funds and awareness for the Helen Woodward Animal Center.

A portion of the proceeds from select #RIPDaddy collection items will be donated to the @hwac. I chose this private non-profit organization because of their 40-year commitment to people helping animals and animals helping people. Located on 12 acres in Rancho Santa Fe, California, their nationally recognized Center provides a variety of services that benefit the community through educational and therapeutic programs for people, and humane care and adoption for animals.

Whether you shop the RIP Daddy collection, want to make a direct donation to the center, or choose to volunteer, there are many ways to get involved:

Shop the RIP Daddy Collection

Make a Direct Donation

Join the Campaign for Caring

Become a Business Buddy

Donate Goods

Donate a Vehicle

Volunteer

Be a Pet Foster Parent

Become a Paw Partner