She Creates Change Discussion Series Presents:

Reinvent Yourself: Success stories of women who have kicked the traditional career path in favor of pursuing their passions!

Have you ever wondered how someone goes from a typical professional career path into a passion often very different from what they were doing before?  We’ve heard many career switch stories in newspapers and magazines, and we think to ourselves, how did they pull that off?  For most of us, even the thought of making a significant career move is immensely challenging.  The psychological toll is heavy--you’re venturing out of your known professional comfort zone and into uncharted territory.

At this event, we want to provide you access and a frank discussion with women who have successfully reinvented themselves in pursuit of their passions.  They all once had a “typical” professional career, and decided to start something completely new, exciting, and most importantly, meaningful.  Learn the steps they took to redefine who they were to confidently enter into a completely new career and life.  This is your chance to find out how they really pulled it off!

~Light appetizers will be served~

Moderator: Megan Murphy - Member, She Creates Change Community, Aspiring Entrepreneur

Panelists:

Gretl Claggett: Writer. Speaker. Culture Catalyst.

Jane Slusser: VP of Sales and Marketing, Catchafire

Diana Sonis: Head of Business Development, UnitConnect; Founder, 85Broads Entrepreneurship Forum; Photographer

Marissa Feinberg: Co-Founder, Partner, Chief Marketing Officer, Green Spaces; Founder, Executive Director, Green Leaders Global

Moderator: Megan Murphy - Member, She Creates Change Community, Aspiring Entrepreneur

Megan started her journey after graduating from College of Charleston in 2005, earning a degree in Business and Marketing.    Megan's career was mostly comprised of working in marketing, brand management, advertising, events, PR and more.  In May of 2008, Meg moved her career to New York and began her life here.

It didn’t take long working the NYC grind that she found herself lost, empty and trapped. The excitement of the new city had worn off and realized she was in a dead end job that had become unbearable.  It was a paycheck though, so she stayed the course dreading Mondays and counting the minutes to Fridays for almost 2 years.  

Searching for answers she attended a She Creates Change event in September of 2009. Inspired by the idea that she didn’t have to settle for just a paycheck, she knew it was time for a real change.  In December of 2009 she took the leap and quit her job, declaring that she was in control of her life and wouldn’t return in 2010.  She has currently completed one of the She Creates Change classes and has become a member of the community.  Megan is now living and breathing reinvention in all its brilliance and hardships. She is an Independant Sales Representative for BeautiControl, a mobile spa, skin care, cosmetic business dedicated to empowering millions of women to create the future they love.  Megan is also currently earning her Yoga teacher training certification. During her free time she loves dancing, practicing yoga, meditating, laughing and sharing the inspiration that she’s found from She Creates Change.

Panelists:

Gretl Claggett: Writer. Speaker. Culture Catalyst.

In the late ’80s, she moved from Hannibal, Missouri to Manhattan, sight unseen, to pursue an acting career. For six years she pounded the pavement. And after appearing in more than thirty Off- and Off-Off Broadway plays—coming painfully close to a few TV and film roles—she traded in her waitress apron for a business suit.

This led to a stint producing videos, product launches and conferences for Fortune 500 companies. But soon seeking a new challenge, Gretl landed the role of saleswoman in the incentive (or “performance improvement”) industry. A woman in the boys’ club, she climbed the proverbial ladder—delivering millions of dollars in business annually and quickly becoming a top seller.

Gretl took another leap of faith when, in November of 2007, she left her successful ten-year sales career to follow her passion and build a life as a writer.

Nominated for a 2008 Pushcart Poetry Prize, her poetry and prose have appeared in many journals and anthologies. She’s currently shopping her first book, DO THIS, GET THAT: The Inside World of an Accidental Saleswoman, to major publishers.

Gretl holds an MFA in Theater from Western Illinois University, an MFA in Poetry from Sarah Lawrence College, and an MFA in Creative Nonfiction from Goucher College. She’s also passionate about the healing arts and is certified as a neurofeedback trainer and hypnotist.

Drawing from her eclectic background—through writing, speaking and leading workshops—Gretl’s mission is to help others create more authentic lives: personally and professionally.

Jane Slusser: VP of Sales and Marketing, Catchafire

Jane Slusser has a passion for reading history and making history.  She started out her career working at Oxford University Press where she quickly rose through the ranks to become an associate editor in world history.  During a brief detour into international arbitration at White & Case, Jane was impressed by the streamlined pro-bono operation, but ultimately returned to the publishing world. 

In 2007, Jane began volunteering for the Obama campaign in New York, later relocating to battleground territory in South Philly for the final months of the general election.  Fresh off the victory, she headed to DC to help set up and manage the headquarter offices of the Presidential Inaugural Committee. 

Newly reinvented, Jane has recently joined Catchafire, a web-based service that connects skills-based volunteers with nonprofits that need them.  As VP of Sales and Marketing, Jane is focused on managing Catchafire's nonprofit and volunteer community. 

Jane graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Barnard College at Columbia University.  In her free time, Jane Slusser enjoys blogging about burgers with the illustrious Burger Club New York (http://www.burgerclubny.com/).

Diana Sonis: Head of Business Development, UnitConnect; Founder, 85Broads Entrepreneurship Forum; Photographer

            Diana Sonis is a creative soul with a strategic mind.   Before taking her leap of faith, Diana held a senior investment position in the alternative asset management arm of Union Bancaire Privee, a Swiss Private Bank based in Geneva, where she led equity-focused investments and saw the firm grow from $2Bln to $15Bln in assets under management. At UBP, Diana was a frequent participant in business development and marketing meetings with Institutional and High Net Worth clients.    

Diana also has behind-the-scenes experience in the television world, having served in a production role at Canal Plus - Vivendi SA, a French Cable television channel, where she planned and executed programming for Le Grand Journal, including interviews with Yoko Ono and Michael Moore.

In her new day, Diana is focusing on business and strategic development at www.UnitConnect.com, which serves to make real estate real simple. It is an easy-access online solution for real estate owners and property managers to efficiently and cheaply manage the daily grind of taking care of their properties

After taking her leap, Diana also found time to dedicate her creative and strategic strengths towards founding an Entrepreneurship Forum (E.Forum) and becoming a NY Chapter Leader at 85 Broads, an exclusive global female network whose mission is to generate exceptional professional and social value for its members. Through our regional events and online, password-protected community, our members engage in a rapid, high-powered exchange of ideas and information, which is what makes 85 Broads so unique.

Diana (www.DianaSonis.com) has also become a published photographer with multiple print and online appearances in Time Out New York. She specializes in music, travel, and architecture. 

Diana graduated from New York University with a B.A. in Journalism/Mass Communications & Politics. She has held the Certified Financial Analyst (CFA) designation since 2008. In her spare time, Diana enjoys adventure travel, good coffee everyday, and wants to write a book.

Marissa Feinberg: Co-Founder, Partner, Chief Marketing Officer, Green Spaces; Founder, Executive Director, Green Leaders Global

Marissa has had a career path ranging from acting, modeling, real estate and journalism to her current role as an officer in a national mission based company, mainly responsible for marketing and business strategy.  Her first job out of college was public relations for the General Electric Foundation and GE in the Community Worldwide.  After realizing she may not be cut out for "Corporate America", she moved to New York and pursued her life-long dream of becoming an actress. She landed roles on Sex and the City, Law & Order, and The Sopranos, among others. She also modeled for Glamour Magazine. Modeling was not her passion, so in order to sustain a flexible work schedule and act, she got her real estate license and worked for The Corcoran Group. 

After some time, she missed having a "routine" and using her education. Therefore, she leveraged her portfolio of work to get a literary agent and worked as an editor for Random House and The Princeton Review. She segued from that job to being Managing Editor of Focus Magazine, a fine art photography publication.

When she felt unsuited for a career behind a computer, she sought out a marketing role at a design house, focusing on socially responsible initiatives and building its membership to 350 organizations globally. It was at that job where she met her current business partner, Jennie Nevin, and realized she was an entrepreneur at heart. She now has a track record of getting successful startups off the ground, including Green Spaces, New York City’s first Green Business Competition, and Felissimo Universal's DESIGN 21, Japan Brand and JapanC.

Marissa has degrees in public relations, marketing, and Spanish from Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications and also studied at City University of Hong Kong and Instituto Internacional de Madrid. Marissa dedicates herself to causes as well. She is on Fashion Delivers‘ Associate Board and is an active member of the Business Council for Peace. During her free time, she pursues her creative side by acting, writing and singing.