Whitney Johnson

Welcome to the Forty Over 40 blog. We frequently spotlight one of our honorees and their thoughts on reinvention, mentorship and momentum…plus a peek into what makes them tick.

This Q & A is with Melissa Goidel, the Chief Revenue Officer for Refinery29, Digital Media. As Chief Revenue Officer, Melissa has successfully taken Refinery29 from a fashion and style website catering primarily to fashion advertisers, to a multi-platform lifestyle media company that reaches and engages millennial women. Goidel started her digital career at Yahoo, overseeing Yahoo Financial Services Sales as RVP. She also worked at Time, Inc., InStyle, and Entertainment Weekly digital.

1) What was a pivotal momentum of reinvention for you?

On a professional basis, I believe reinvention happens when you push yourself to the most uncomfortable place and take risks. I’ve done this repeatedly in my career. The first time was leaving traditional media and going to Yahoo in 1998, the second time was leaving Yahoo to go to People and help them reinvent themselves as a digital company, the third time was leaving a job where the name on my business card was as prominent as my own personal brand to a complete startup where my name defined the company’s reputation. And ultimately, selling that company was an incredible achievement. Finally, coming to Refinery29, my most exciting experience ever, is about channeling what I personally stand for as a woman in this business. Now for the personal part; being able to show my three sons how you can have work/life balance because you love your job is the moment of payoff that came from this pivot.

2) Who has been a valuable mentor or sponsor?

The most valuable sponsor has been my husband, Jonathan. I rely on his council, wisdom and the best unbiased-but-biased opinions as we’ve built a long, happy life together. I’ve made good decisions for myself and my family in business with him as my sounding board.

3) What is your biggest goal right now?

At Refinery29, we are building the new media company for THIS generation of women, globally. Thats a big endeavor. Opening Europe, then Asia is a big part of our focus as a team. I am very excited to bring this opportunity to find makers, patrons, employees and fans and build a sharing culture where we not only contribute but absorb into our brand the voices of women around the world.

Check out Melissa Goidel’s full 40 Over 40 profile here!

Welcome to the Forty Over 40 blog. Every week we spotlight one of our honorees and their thoughts on reinvention, mentorship and momentum…plus a peek into what makes them tick.

This week’s Q & A is with Jane Condon a wife and mom who balances her life by getting lots of great material for her stand-up routines from her family, as well as her hometown of Greenwich, Connecticut.  Condon performs at functions ranging from large charity fundraisers to national television.  The WSJ calls Condon “a rarity” whose material “never needs to be laundered.”

1) What was a pivotal momentum of reinvention for you?

I went from being a responsible person (a reporter for FORTUNE and LIFE magazines; author of a book about Japanese women, A Half-Step Behind,) to being a comedian where I could say what I wanted to say.

2) Who has been a valuable mentor or sponsor?

NYU film professor Susan Sandler who wrote the delightful and very popular movie called Crossing Delancey. She gave me her time spot at Ensemble Studio Theatre for my one-person show. She gave me my beloved director. Most of all, she gave me encouragement. She believed in me from the moment she saw my comedy. I have been a cheerleader for many young comics (particularly women) but this was my FIRST very own fairy godmother.

3) What is your biggest goal right now?

I am a very good comic. I want to get even better. I want to be a funny voice for women over 40. There aren’t many. And when Betty White dies, I want to take her place. But in the meantime, long may she live!

 4) How did you get your first job? How did you jump to your second job?

My first comedy show was at my sons’ nursery school fundraiser. I got up on a Fisher-Price picnic table, told jokes, and people laughed.

My second job was at Christ Church in Greenwich, CT where a very patrician man came up to me after my show and said, “You are so funny I almost laughed out loud.”

5) What time do you typically wake up? What do you do every morning?

I wake up at 7 AM. (I wake up at 8 AM if I have a show the night before.) Every morning I have grapefruit juice and Banana Nut Cheerios with some organic milk that comes in a red box (recommended by my son). Then I have another dry bowl of Banana Nut cheerios and read my NYT. Then I pop open a can of Diet Coke (my coffee) and get to work.

I rehearse my upcoming show. I outline a game plan for other upcoming shows. I write for each specific show and for my core act. I call friends or fellow comics to try out new jokes. Afternoon is for the business of comedy (bookings, filing, phone calls) and late afternoon is for errands and exercise. Night is for performing or  watching Game of Thrones, Downtown Abbey, Orange Is The New Black, Transparent, Homeland, House of Cards or any Shonda Rhimes show.

6)  How did you feel on your 30th birthday? What were you doing at that time?

Not my favorite birthday. We lived in Tokyo. My husband was working that day in Hong Kong. I wanted to go out to celebrate and I got food poisoning. I remember walking down the street–sick and all alone. (I didn’t know any Japanese doctors. Heck, I didn’t know many people at all.) Hey, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. Every birthday since has been MUCH better than my 30th!

7)  How do you unplug? How often do you unplug?

I rarely unplug. I LIKE to work all the time. I guess I unplug for an hour or two when I go to Broadway plays—my secret pleasure and reward. I love movies and TV, too. I watch both on my phone when I am exercising.

9)  What challenge / achievement are you most proud of?

I was the commencement speaker at Wellesley College (my alma mater).

Also appearing on NBC’s Last Comic Standing really helped my career.

10)  What was the last business book you read? 

Sheryl Sandberg’s Leaning In.

11)  What cause do you most want to advance?

I’m very pro-women even though I live in an all-male family (my husband and two boys). Note to self: Get a girl dog!

I went to a woman’s college, I wrote a book about Japanese women, I love women in comedy (I produce a number of all-female shows, a rarity in comedy where women are usually only one per show). I’m strongly pro-choice. I love female politicians. We need more. If you have a uterus, I will make a small donation!

12)  What song can’t you get out of your head? 

Happy by Pharrell Williams! Celebration by LLCool J. Work It by Missy Elliott.

13)  What is the best piece of advice you ever received?

My dad died when I was 15 so I learned early on that “life is short.”

14)  What is your “keep me going” quote?

The Japanese proverb: Be a nanakaroobi, yaoki (a seven-times fall down, eight-times get up) kind of person.

15) What is your secret indulgence?

 Fig Newtons.

16)  Who on the list of prior Honorees would you like to meet?

Actually on this year’s list I would be thrilled to meet Sheryl WuDunn (she wrote about Chinese women, I wrote about Japanese women) and Betsy Beers (she works on the Shonda shows and I watch them and love them).

Check out Lisa Joy Rosner’s full 40 Over 40 profile here!

Welcome to the Forty Over 40 blog. Every week we spotlight one of our honorees and their thoughts on reinvention, mentorship and momentum…plus a peek into what makes them tick.

This week’s Q & A is with Paula Froelich, Yahoo Travel’s Editor-At-Large. Paula is a New York Times bestselling author of the novel, Mercury in Retrograde. She developed her editorial experience as a senior writer at Newsweek, a freelance journalist covering politics, travel and pop culture, as well as the former Deputy Editor of the New York Post’s “Page Six.” Under her leadership Yahoo Travel has become the largest travel content site in the world.

1. What was a pivotal moment of reinvention for you?
When, at the ripe old age of 36, I quit my high profile job, ditched all of my success, for the great unknown — without another job waiting.

2. Who has been a valuable mentor or sponsor?
I have had several  — all women. My first boss, Clare Longrigg was invaluable, and I have a close circle of friends who are all successful in business.

3. What is your biggest goal right now?
To turn “A Broad Abroad” into a nationally recognized brand/series and make Yahoo Travel a daily read for everyone.

4. How did you get your first job? How did you jump to your second job?
I was living in England and cold called every single features editor of every single paper – only the assistant to the features editor at The Guardian was too polite to not hang up on me. In the States I got a job covering interest rate swaps and over-the-counter derivatives at the newsletter division of Institutional Investor and was then recruited out by Dow Jones as they didn’t have anyone doing that at the time.

5. What time do you typically wake up? What do you do every morning?
I wake up at 5 but don’t get out of bed until around 7 — I use that time to dream, think and thank the universe. I get up, walk and feed the dog, have breakfast, take a shower and go!

6. How did you feel on your 30th birthday? What were you doing at that time?
My friends threw me a huge 30th birthday party and it was great except I imbibed too much and gave myself a raging hangover the next day as a present. My 40th was way better — I took myself to Egypt to see the Pyramids and Luxor. By myself. No hangover.

7. How do you unplug? How often do you unplug?
Not as often as I should. I unplug on planes… and by reading. A lot.

8. What’s the best networking contact you’ve made? How did you make it?
I’ve had several people change my life just by meeting someone who knew someone…the thing is: always be nice. Always be courteous and remember Manhattan is a small island.

9. What challenge / achievement are you most proud of?
All of them. Every. Single One. Even my failures (which have been spectacular), because I did them on my own. And learned from them all.

10. What was the last business book you read?
Wars, Guns and Votes by Paul Collier (I think it’s a business book).

11. What cause do you most want to advance?
Feminism. Which, I don’t know if you know this, but just means EQUALITY.

12. What song can’t you get out of your head?
Depends on the day. I once went to KMart and a Muzak version of Richard Marx’s “I Will Be Right Here Waiting For You” was on – I dreamed about it for a year. I haven’t been back to KMart since.

13. What is the best piece of advice you ever received?
It’s all going to be fine. Just keep doing what you believe in.

14. What is your “keep me going” quote?
If I am a little down, the “Just keep swimming” scene from Finding Nemo has saved me. More than once.

15. Who on the list of prior Honorees would you like to meet?
All of them.

Check out Paula Froelich’s full 40 Over 40 profile here!

Welcome to the Forty Over 40 blog. Every week we spotlight one of our honorees and their thoughts on reinvention, mentorship and momentum…plus a peek into what makes them tick.

This week’s Q & A is with Diane Tuft, Photographer and Global Warming Activist. As a mixed media artist, Diane uses her photography to bring awareness and call attention to the reality of global warming. She’s had her work exhibited at the Katonah Museum of Art in New York and Art L.A.. Diane earned a degree in mathematics at the University of Connecticut and studied art at Pratt Institute, New York.

1. What was a pivotal moment of reinvention for you?
I have always been involved in creating art. I don’t think I ever reinvented myself. Being a wife and mother was quite demanding but I was able to make time for myself. As my children were growing up, art was intertwined in my life. I attended Pratt institute for ten years, took classes at the International Center of Photography, and participated in art workshops every summer.

2. Who has been a valuable mentor or sponsor?
I did not have a sponsor but have been in admiration of women artists who have been able to be recognized in a world where most of the attention has been on male artists. Many female artists were overshadowed by their husbands (i.e. Lee Krasner and Helen Frankethaller) and others were not recognized until later in life (Louise Bourgeois).

3. What is your biggest goal right now?
I have just returned from a month in the Arctic Circle, where I photographed the visual effects of ultraviolet and infrared radiation on the landscape of the Arctic Ocean. I also interviewed several scientists that have been involved with research on climate change and its effects on wildlife and the environment. My goal is to exhibit my work and to publish my third monograph, “The Arctic Melt”. I also want to continue my dialogue on climate change and its effect on our environment.

4. How do you unplug? How often do you unplug?
My husband and family require quite a bit of time and attention. We are constantly traveling and entertaining and art is difficult to incorporate on a day to day basis. In order for me to be able to create, I have had to leave my home environment and completely immerse myself in my art. Once I have completed a project, I can then return home and work on putting together a book, an exhibit, a panel discussion and whatever the project requires.

5. What challenge / achievement are you most proud of?
The National Science Foundation administers an Artists and Writers Grant every 2 years to only 5 Artists and Writers who will document and educate the public on the Antarctic though the arts. William Fox (the writer in my first monograph) suggested that I apply for this grant in 2007. However, because of our economy at the time, the 2009 application was never available. When applications for this grant became available in 2011, I applied and was awarded an Artists and Writers grant from the National Science Foundation to photograph the “Hidden Light” of Antarctica. While living at McMurdo Station (the National Science Foundation’s science research center) for 6 weeks in the Austral Spring of 2012, I traveled throughout the Ross dependency and to the South Pole in order to capture the essence of Antarctica. The harsh environment of Antarctica became a challenge. During this time, the average wind speed in Antarctica is 67 miles/ hour and the average temperature is -32 degrees F. My second monograph, Gondwana; Images of an Ancient Land is the result of this expedition.

6. What cause do you most want to advance?
Since 1998, I have been photographing the visual effects of the environment on the Earth’s landscape. Through visual communication, I have been trying to bring attention to the issue of climate change and global warming on our landscape. Climate Change is having a large impact on the Earth’s environment and on the future lives of humans and wildlife. My photographs highlight the fragility of the Earth’s environment.

7. What is the best piece of advice you ever received?
The best piece of advice that I have received was to follow your passion no matter how many obstacles are in your path. Within the myriad of responsibilities that a woman needs to endure, it is necessary for a woman to be able to carve out time for herself and follow her passion.

8. What is your “keep me going” quote?
An artist can show things that other people are terrified of expressing. (Louise Bourgeois)

9. What is your secret indulgence?
My secret indulgence is to watch Indie Movies after 12:00PM on my ipad, in bed, with earphones.

10. Who on the list of prior Honorees would you like to meet?
I would love to meet Jennifer Willig who founded Whole World Water. She is a proactive environmentalist who has taken the problem of clean available water for the world and been pro-active in starting an organization that would address this issue. Not only does her organization address clean water availability but it also addresses the elimination of plastic bottles.

I also am in admiration of Ruth Ann Harnisch whose foundation supports women in film, the arts and in Awesome Without Borders projects.

I would also like to meet Paola Gianturco who has compiled a book to celebrate grandmothers throughout the world and to bring attention to the lives and struggles that occur within these various cultures.

Check out Diane Tuft’s full 40 Over 40 profile here!

Welcome to the Forty Over 40 blog. Every week we spotlight one of our honorees and their thoughts on reinvention, mentorship and momentum…plus a peek into what makes them tick.

This week’s Q & A is with Lisa Joy Rosner, Chief Marketing Officer at Neustar, Inc. Lisa previously held the title of CMO at NetBase, a social media analytics firms. Lisa began her career with Oracle and eventually hopes to transition all she’s learned in B2B marketing to B2C marketing.

1. What was a pivotal moment of reinvention for you?
Becoming a mother was a pivotal moment of reinvention for me. I found out I was pregnant with my first child the day after announcing the sale of the company I was working for at the time. I went through a major shift in how I prioritize. I became even more focused and efficient in my planning and execution and had to work on mastering work-life balance.

2. Who has been a valuable mentor or sponsor?
My mentor is Bob Runge, a high-tech marketing executive who developed Oracle University, and was the VP of Marketing who launched Silicon Valley companies, Gain Technology and BroadVision, to extraordinary success. He’s one of the best marketers I’ve ever met, who really understands the value of customers, teamwork and family. When I was very young, he pushed on me to see how strong I was. I’m especially grateful to him because years after he had left BroadVision, he recommended me to the CEO, as the marketer to take the company to the next level. It was my first role as an officer at a public company, managing people all over the world and it led me to where I am today.

3. What is your biggest goal right now?
On the work front my biggest goal is to help guide Neustar through a major brand transformation from a telecommunications company into an information services company. This is a lofty goal, but we make strides every day. On the home front, it is making sure my children get a solid education.

4. How did you get your first job? How did you jump to your second job?
The first year after college, I lived in New Zealand and worked for a radio station selling ad time (but that is another story). I then moved to the San Francisco area where I planned to go to school to get a Ph.D. and eventually teach English Literature. When I arrived to the Bay Area, I lived near Oracle Corporation, so I sent in my resume because I needed a job for a year until school started. It landed on the desk of someone in human resources who coincidentally was about to travel to New Zealand. We made a connection, and I was offered a position as the executive admin for the vice president of marketing. Shortly after that, I decided that I wanted to do his job one day. In my new role, I made myself available to his direct reports and embraced any opportunity to learn about the different aspects of technology marketing so that I, too, could become a marketing executive and disrupt how it is perceived and measured. By age 29, I was the head of marketing for a startup and since then have run marketing for five companies. Today, I’m the chief marketing officer of a $1 billion information services and analytics company and am leading a major business transformation.

5. How did you feel on your 30th birthday? What were you doing at that time?
I felt empowered and amazing on my 30th birthday. I was a year into my goal of being the head of marketing and had just launched a high tech company. I treated myself to a trip overseas to celebrate and completely embraced the milestone.

6. What’s the best networking contact you’ve made? How did you make it?
The best networking contact I have ever made was a sales rep for IDG, her name is Ai Collins, and she is the most connected person I know. We met when she called on me to become a customer of her services. Not only did she construct the best brand and lead gen programs for my company, but she helped me hire a fantastic team by referring me to talented people and even introduced me to the real estate agent who helped me find my first house and the OB who delivered my first child. She now works for a different company, but is always a reliable resource!

7. What challenge / achievement are you most proud of?
I gave birth four times in four years while launching two high-tech startups. I look back on that time and have no idea how we did it, but we just did.

8. What was the last business book you read?
I just finished reading “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team” by Patrick Lencioni. Given that I am helping lead Neustar through a major transformation, this book really came in handy.

9. What cause do you most want to advance?
Equal opportunity for women in the workplace and every-place for that matter.

10. What is the best piece of advice you ever received?
Best advice came from my wonderful grandfather, Hy Rosner: “You don’t get what you don’t ask for, so be confident and ask for what you want, because chances are the answer will be yes.”

Check out Lisa Joy Rosner’s full 40 Over 40 profile here!