Young Executive Panel: Side Hustles & Entrepreneurship Event Recap

Written by: Jill Reisinger

The She Runs It Young Executive Committee hosted its annual Spring Panel on Wednesday February 6th at Influenster.

Each year, the panel focuses on a different topic relevant to people in the early stages of their careers. The panel’s mission is to increase exposure to the fast-changing career options that are available in advertising and media.

Hosted by Co-Founders of The Integrated Hustle, Ami Watkins and Laena McCarthy, this year’s panel theme was “Side Hustles and Entrepreneurship”. It focused on the many inspiring ways people are building their careers and owning businesses outside of their day jobs.

Panelists included Lindsay Champion, Food & Wellness Director at PureWow and author of young adult novel “Someday, Somewhere,” Candice Collison, Vertical Marketing Manager at Facebook and founder of retail brand Mod + Ethico, Chelsey White, President & Founder of Chelsweets, and Melissa Mash, founder of Dagne Dover.

Though each panelist shared unique experiences, some consistent themes emerged. One was a reminder that being told “no” is a universal experience. Another is that there will always be new challenges with each new success. Finally, each panelist discussed the value of integrating work and life, striking a balance, and leaning on your support network.

Event attendees had the opportunity to ask their own questions, and it became evident that many people in the crowd had their own side hustles – yoga teachers, amateur boxers, clothing designers, and more. Key takeaways that these panelists shared with the inspired guests were to focus on what energizes you and realize that there are always new challenges.

Melissa Mash challenged the attendees to “think about what you want out of your life. Time is finite, so how do you want to spend it and develop yourself?”