Some people may tell you that New York City was built with steel, brick, and concrete, yet others will say it was the grit and vision of each generation that served as a foundation for the world’s greatest city. While there’s some truth in each, we’d be amiss if we didn’t acknowledge the special contribution women entrepreneurs make to the texture and flavor of our city. We sat down with four influential female business owners, including our very own CEO, Judy Paul, to hear their secrets, stories, and advice for the next generation of women go-getters.
Beth Ward
Beth Ward Studios
Beth Ward may be a successful entrepreneur with over two decades of experience leading her own design studio, but she hasn’t forgotten the importance of staying grounded. In a recent interview, she emphasized the role that people have played in her success, from the friend who inspired her to start her business to the experts she’s turned to for guidance along the way. Those individuals helped Beth Ward Studios grow into what it is – a pioneering team of visionaries and designers, dedicated to individualized and collaborative service. Read on to learn more about what makes Beth tick. (Spoiler alert: it includes a good nights’ sleep.)
Washington Square Hotel (WSH): What inspired you to start your business?
Ward: My former business was inspired by a friend and our parallel soul-searching trips – mine was to Thailand – that helped us find the courage to go out on our own. Meeting a few key individuals who I knew would be refreshing and fun to work with inspired me to start this new venture.
WSH: What was the best piece of advice you received when starting out?
Ward: I attended a Thich Nhat Hahn retreat and this perspective changed how I viewed business and life: “When someone is acting badly, they are suffering.”
WSH: What advice would you give someone who is just starting out in his or her business?
Ward: Focus on your strengths. Be equally aware of your weaknesses and bring on people/consultants or outsource to fill in your gaps. And, remember, when you hire experts, you also get the benefit of their experience and network.
WSH: What does success mean to you?
Ward: Win-win-win. Success is having a reputation as a trustworthy leader, colleague, and partner who cares; someone who aims to creatively solve problems so that everyone involved benefits, from the external customer and end-user to the internal team and supply chain.
WSH: How do you overcome times of doubt and adversity?
Ward: I get a good nights sleep, or call up a friend or family member to ask how they are doing.
WSH: Is there anything else you would like to add about your business, your journey, or your work/life balance?
Ward: When working through a tough communication or approach, I ask myself if it satisfies all three of these criteria: “is it true, kind and purposeful?”
Carmen Yazejian
Network 9
You’d never know it from her work, but Carmen Yazejian says her foray into website design was “accidental.” As far as accidents go, we’d consider this a happy one, bordering on the serendipitous. Yazejian’s marketing firm, Network9, has helped countless clients elevate their online reputations through brand design, management, and SEO expertise. Here, Yazejian shares twelve years’ worth of knowledge on believing in yourself, moving on from difficult moments, and her nonexistent work/life balance.
WSH: What inspired you to start your business?
Yazejian: I started out as a fashion designer, and then raised my kids for about ten years. When they were old enough to walk to school alone, I wanted to get back to work. I fell into website design by accident, but I fell in love with it. I wanted to help businesses look great and make more money on the (then) emerging web.
WSH: What was the best piece of advice you received when starting out?
Yazejian: I never really got any. If anything, I was discouraged!
WSH: What advice would you give someone who is just starting out in his or her business?
Yazejian: Believe so much in what you are doing that nothing will stand in your way. If you doubt yourself, do something else you truly love.
WSH: What does success mean to you?
Yazejian: Growth, respect and financial freedom.
WSH: How do you overcome times of doubt and adversity?
Yazejian: Fix it and move on. Practice gratitude and forgiveness.
WSH: Is there anything else you would like to add about your business, your journey, or your work/life balance?
Yazejian: There’s no such thing as work/life balance. My work is a part of my life. My family had to learn to respect that. I still devote part of my life to them and make sure they know how much they matter to me. I’m on a journey and my work evolves along with me.
Stephanie Teuwen
Teuwen Communications
When Stephanie Teuwen was working at a massive PR agency 25 years ago, a well-known chef walked in. Little did she know at the time, his arrival marked the beginning of her journey as a small business owner. While she doesn’t miss her old 9-to-5 job, she acknowledges there have been some trying times — nothing that she can’t fix with yoga, her husband, and the therapeutic effects of shoveling snow. Recently, she shared some of the insights she’s gained as the head of Teuwen Communications, a thriving public relations agency focused on food, wine, and spirits.
WSH: What inspired you to start your business?
Teuwen: I was in a large PR agency and a famous chef knocked at our door. His budget was very modest and he convinced me to work with him directly after trying with the large firm. The job included multiple tastings of new dishes, which as a small firm, I could oblige.
WSH: What was the best piece of advice you received when starting out?
Teuwen: Give everything you have, don’t hold back. My motto was “no time sheet!” That would be a hashtag today.
WSH: What advice would you give someone who is just starting out in his or her business?
Teuwen: Surround yourself with great people — an accountant, a lawyer, business mentors, and friends with a compassionate shoulder. Join a trade association where you can meet peers. And have fun with it! If there is no fun, why do it?
WSH: What does success mean to you?
Teuwen: Being proud of my team, our work, being able to choose our clients and enjoying what I do. See people grow around me.
WSH: How do you overcome times of doubt and adversity?
Teuwen: I am lucky to have a wonderful 24/7 partner, my husband Geert, co-founder of the firm. He listens and grounds me when I hit a bump, professionally or personally. My “bookend” yoga classes (Monday and Thursday) have a great balancing effect, after a few minutes of breathing and stretching, issues vanish. Even if the fix is temporary, I’ll take it! Spending weekends in the country, hugging trees, shoveling snow and being in nature helps me decompress and put things in perspective.
WSH: Is there anything else you would like to add about your business, your journey, or your work/life balance?
Teuwen: I have learned that letting go of a client or staff that doesn’t work well for us is a recurrent theme in business, as it is in life. Eliminating negativity opens new doors and is always rewarding.
It’s an exciting journey, though not an easy one, as a small business owner. I wouldn’t trade it for a 9-to-5 job in a million years.
Judy Paul
Washington Square Hotel & North Square Restaurant
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Judy Paul, CEO of Washington Square Hotel and North Square Restaurant in Greenwich Village, always dreamed about opening her own restaurant. Though it was her passion for food that started her on the journey, it was the guidance of mentors and a strong team that secured her success. In a recent interview, she shared some thoughts on how surrounding yourself with the right people — namely, people with high emotional intelligence — can make all the difference.
WSH: What inspired you to start your business?
Paul: I’ve always had a passion for food and dreamed about owning a restaurant. After North Square Restaurant became established, I took over operating the hotel and became CEO in 2005.
WSH: What was the best piece of advice you received when starting out?
Paul: That old adage “cash is king” is true. It’s vital to have sufficient capital on hand to ride out start-up challenges and slow business cycles.
WSH: What advice would you give someone who is just starting out in his or her business?
Paul: It’s critical to seek out a mentor who can assist in getting a business off the ground. I would also strongly recommend networking with industry associations/organizations.
WSH: What does success mean to you?
Paul: My definition of success is when you’ve achieved both your personal and business goals and the ideal work-life balance.
WSH: How do you overcome times of doubt and adversity?
Paul: It’s critical to brainstorm with your key team members in challenging times. On a personal side, I find meditation and physical activity extremely helpful.
WSH: Is there anything else you would like to add about your business, your journey, or your work/life balance?
Paul: We changed our hiring practices to find team members who fit the company’s culture and possess high emotional intelligence.
