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Startup Advice from WFN's Top 10 Finalists

Aug 23, 2019
2 min read

Updated: Jul 8, 2021

WFN finalists share some advice from their personal journeys to help other women founders


Startup Advice

We asked this year's Top 10 Fast Pitch finalists to share some advice from their personal journeys to help other women founders.


Be sure to reserve your seat for the Fast Pitch event on October 30th to see them pitch!



Kiah Tolliver, Co-Founder & CTO, C-Trax
Kiah Tolliver, Co-Founder & CTO, C-Trax


"It's not easy. Be prepared for the tough patches.


Surround yourself with people that have your back and don't pass judgment, especially if you're a mom and/or a wife. You need a tribe."








Paris Sabo, MD, Co-Founder & COO, Dr. Brite
Paris Sabo, MD, Co-Founder & COO, Dr. Brite


"I learned that it is very important that you take the time to self-care. Any effort you put into making yourself better will make your relationship with everyone better, and your business will thrive.


Also, communication is still the key to success. It is very important to communicate clearly and effectively with your team."




Koh Kim, Founder & CEO, EVENPRIME
Koh Kim, Founder & CEO, EVENPRIME


"Building a community of mentors, peers and business partners is incredibly important. Perspective is tough when you're always head-down building your business.


You need people who have been there before (and who you trust) to talk through challenges and share what worked."






Hannah Hong & Mollie Cha, Co-Founders, Hakuna Brands
Hannah Hong & Mollie Cha, Co-Founders, Hakuna Brands


"Something that I learned is the importance of choosing your team carefully. Think critically about your strengths and weaknesses and consider adding people to balance you (the founder) out.


Having the right people on your team can make or break the company culture and trajectory, especially when the company is still young."





Erin Levine, Founder & CEO, Hello Divorce
Erin Levine, Founder & CEO, Hello Divorce

"If bootstrapping your company with little or no seed funding, then you better be a “Jill-of-all-trades.” So often, you just don’t have the luxury of outsourcing everything that needs to get done.


You’ve got to be able to throw on a million different hats to ensure that all the pieces fit together. Basically, you have to think big picture (visionary) while also overseeing all of the “small” details."




Sandra Smith, Co-Founder & President, Immersive Systems
Sandra Smith, Co-Founder & President, Immersive Systems



"Stay focused on what you are trying to build.


But remember to periodically step back and really evaluate whether you're spending your time and money in the most efficient manner possible to reach your goals."







Akshita Iyer, Founder & CEO, Inirv
Akshita Iyer, Founder & CEO, Inirv


"Inevitably, we will all face rejection but how we deal with it is what matters most.


Treat every “no” as one step closer to a “yes” and as an opportunity to learn, improve and challenge yourself."









Shayanne Wright, Founder & CEO, Left
Shayanne Wright, Founder & CEO, Left



"Don't focus on how you are not (fill in the blank) 'enough' for the big picture dream.


Only focus on how you can exceedingly rise to the occasion for the next step in front of you."








Zora Chung, Co-Founder & CFO, ReJoule
Zora Chung, Co-Founder & CFO, ReJoule


"A big part of building your business includes building strong relationships - with your team members, vendors, mentors, and customers.


You never know who is sitting next to you and who they know, so take every opportunity to meet people and talk about your business. Even if the contact doesn’t pan out, it’s great practice!"







Sarah Tamilarasan, CEO, SOTAOG
Sarah Tamilarasan, CEO, SOTAOG

"Bootstrapping the business is an option for a startup that does not get a lot of press. We bootstrapped because we had to, just did not have the luxury of large investment early on.


Looking back, I'm glad we did. I learned a lot firsthand about marketing, sales, delivering projects, client retention, etc."






WFN 2019 FAST PITCH EVENT

OCTOBER 30 from 5-9pm | Covel Commons at UCLA


To hear more inspiration from a WFN alumna, reserve your seat today! See you in October!



23 Comments


John Charles
John Charles
7 days ago

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xin wang
Sep 13

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bingzead
Sep 07

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