Elizabeth Miles Of March Forth Media Company: Why We Need More Women Founders & Here Is What We Are Doing To Make That Happen
An Interview With Vanessa Ogle
Reduced/Removed barriers to entry, even when funding is available. Rent can be a major barrier for a lot of businesses to get started. Business incubators that focus on female founders would be one great way to reduce the barrier to entry.
As a part of our series about “Why We Need More Women Founders”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Elizabeth A. Miles, founder of March Forth Media Company).
Elizabeth Miles is an expert in authenticity in business, an author, coach and host of The Power to Pivot Podcast. With a mission to help others dance through and with fear, Elizabeth empowers individuals to overcome obstacles and transform their lives, emphasizing the power of choice and the importance of authenticity. She is on a mission to create a more heart-centric, and is passionate about sharing the stories of those visionaries who are also marching a similar path.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your “backstory”? What led you to this particular career path?
A lot of twists and turns along the way. 🙂
When I was a kid, I went back and forth between all sorts of career ideas, never really having that “one big thing” that I wanted to be when I grew up. By the time I got to college, I had hunches about going to culinary school, but a lot of people told me that, as a woman especially, there would be no money to be made.
So I ended up taking the “safe” route and went to college for a degree in psychology and a minor in business. I went through a few different career paths before actually going to culinary school. It took me a few years, still in various corporate-type roles, until I opened my bakery. At that point, I knew that I wanted to be an entrepreneur. It allowed me to have so much creative freedom in my day, how the business ran, and gave me the opportunity to show up, authentically, as me in the world.
Once COVID hit, my then-business model did not work for what was needed to keep everyone safe, so the bakery shut down. I started looking at what would come next. That was when the podcast launched, which has taken various formats since its beginning. I loved hearing about other people’s stories, and felt such a connection and calling to sharing their own pivots. I started receiving emails from people saying that episodes resonated with them in some way, which inspired me to continue on.
Last year, I launched the magazine, which is an extension of the podcast. I love the creative collaboration, the community, and how so many people are sharing their message and story, all with the intention of creating a better world. To be able to share that, and have a platform that fosters that, feels amazing.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?
I remember receiving an email from someone requesting that I interview him for the podcast. He gave his name, and mentioned that he was the developer of a video game series. Being that I am not a big gamer myself, I had no idea how important this game is in the gaming world.
I told a friend of mine that I was excited that someone reached out asking me for an interview, and mentioned they created a video game series. When my friend asked me which one, and I told him, his eyes lit up. I remember him saying “do you have any idea how big of a deal that game is?”
I just sort of shrugged my shoulders and shook my head. And he said to me “Google it.” When I did, and saw the reviews, the comments, and how far back the game goes, my eyes lit up, too.
I felt a little embarrassed that I didn’t know. Here I was just thinking “oh okay, he developed a video game. Cool. I will interview him. It will be fun.”
Little did I know…lol. And my friend and I still laugh about it. It wasn’t until that point that I realized the visibility or reach the podcast was having, and that felt really good. There is a real struggle for entrepreneurs to believe that their work has reach, or is valuable. It’s really easy to question that. So when things like this happen, it’s motivation to keep moving forward.
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
Oh my, yes!
When I opened the bakery, I was entirely gluten-free and vegan. And when you are a new business, people come from out of nowhere to ask you to participate in every event under the sun. One of these events was a cheesesteak festival.
The organizer gave me such a great sales pitch about why I needed to be there that day, and how much potential money I could make. He assured me that desserts would be to a minimum so it was a natural fit.
I spent the money for the table fee. I made a lot of product for the event. Gave out a lot of samples. And I probably only made about ¼ of my table fee back that day. At first, I left feeling completely defeated, and extremely embarrassed.
There were a few people there who were gluten-free, yes, but the primary demographic was not. And here I am standing in the middle of this busy festival selling gluten-free treats.
After a few days, though, I realized that I could look at it another way, and that made all the difference.
Looking back now, it was a funny mistake. I learned that day that not everyone is your customer, and that is okay. Find your people and stick with them. When you offer value and good service, and a product that solves a need, they will find you.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
My daughter Mary has been a huge help and support every step of the way. The day that I moved out of my business incubator space, and into my own retail shop, I remember her telling me how proud of me she was. Up until that point, she gave her weekends to help at our farmers market spots and she attended the festivals.
When I started classes and parties in the new space, she still continued to work with me. That was a great opportunity for me to share a piece of me with her, and I got to watch her grow out of some of her shyness. She was also a huge help logistically, and there were some events where, she had a better sense of how to organize the workflow than I.
Is there a particular book that made a significant impact on you? Can you share a story or explain why it resonated with you so much?
The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron
I loved this book. It was the first time that I realized that creativity was way more than painting or drawing, and that had a profound impact on me.
Do you have a favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Do you have a story about how that was relevant in your life or your work?
“Fear has two meanings. Forget Everything and Run. or. Face Everything and Rise. The choice is yours.”
I don’t know who said that, but it resonates every time I see and hear it. It is a reminder of just how powerful our mind and our choice is. We can be afraid and still succeed. We don’t have to run away from it.
How have you used your success to make the world a better place?
Everything I do focuses on making the world better. My books. The podcast. My coaching. The magazine. The world needs more love. Period.
Businesses need to start moving to a place where their people matter and are more than a number.
As a society, need to treat people with dignity and respect.
It’s time we end the war and the hate and the judgment, and recognize that we are all trying our best to get by each and every day. When we start to sit down and listen to one another, we realize we are all very similar in one way or another. And that is why I do what I do.
Ok, thank you for that. Let’s now jump to the primary focus of our interview. According to this EY report, only about 20 percent of funded companies have women founders. This reflects great historical progress, but it also shows that more work still has to be done to empower women to create companies. In your opinion and experience what is currently holding back women from founding companies?
I think there are multiple components to this.
There are challenges for women to take the lead that stem from old perspectives of what it means to be a woman. If a woman starts a company, can she be strong enough to make the hard decisions? Does it mean she can still be a wife? A mother? Leaders can’t be “gentle” or “nurturing” — they have to be strong, and strong does not equal woman. At least, that is the old paradigm view.
It takes a lot for a woman to wrestle with these and overcome the fear of “how will the world perceive me if I do this?” and “does it make me less of a woman if I do?”
And so I believe this holds a lot of women back.
Can you share with our readers what you are doing to help empower women to become founders?
I coach women to help them find their voice and use it to balance both the masculine and feminine aspects of business. Together, we create a vision and a plan that works for them. AND, incorporate all of the teaching and coaching on the numbers that are needed to continue running and making decisions in their business.
In addition, through the podcast and magazine, I support female founders, giving them a platform to share their story and their mission to inspire others to do the same. March Forth Media Company offers a collaborative network of support and resources, so we all learn and grow together. It’s not a “you versus me” it’s a “we” succeed.
This might be intuitive to you but I think it will be helpful to spell this out. Can you share a few reasons why more women should become founders?
Women are incredibly strong, resilient and creative. And the world needs more of that.
After thousands of years of the men running the show, it’s time for the ladies to have a go at it. Women tend to be really good at outside-the-box problem solving, which businesses need to day in order to stay competitive.
And, in my experience, women are also much more open to diversity and community, which are two important components in business. When you can foster a collaborative space and create community in your organization where everyone is valued and welcomed, ideas can flourish.
Can you please share 5 things that can be done or should be done to help empower more women to become founders?
1. More mentoring and support for young women to see female founders as role models.
2. Networking groups and events that focus on female founders sharing their work.
3. There’s a tremendous need for grants/funding opportunities for female founders to start a business.
4. More visibility for those funding opportunities that support female founders.
5. Reduced/Removed barriers to entry, even when funding is available. Rent can be a major barrier for a lot of businesses to get started. Business incubators that focus on female founders would be one great way to reduce the barrier to entry.
You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good for the greatest number of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.
The Power to Pivot!
You are never stuck. You are never lost. You are never, ever alone.
At any given moment, you can use your power to pivot, make a new choice, and start again.
This is what we are working on through March Forth Media Company.
If everyone started to recognize how much power they hold to transform their lives when they shift their focus off of their internal “norm”, things will radically shift in the world.
We are very blessed that some very prominent names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them.
If I could have coffee or breakfast with anyone, I would say Jennifer Aniston, Oprah Winfrey, and Simon Sinek.
These are some amazing contributors in the world today, and to be able to spend any amount of time talking with them, learning from them, hearing their stories, would be an amazing honor.
Oprah is a media icon. As a female founder herself, she has an amazing origin story that is inspirational.
Jennifer Aniston is also a female founder, as well as an actress. To be able to gain any bit of knowledge, expertise, or encouragement from her would be phenomenal.
And Simon Sinek is a great leader in the business world and is doing so much to rethink jobs, and how people are treated within organizations. This is important for the next generation’s growth and development.
How can our readers further follow your work online?
Website: www.marchforthmediacompany.com
Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/marchforthmediaco
The Power to Pivot Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-power-to-pivot-podcast/id1500480887
Photo Credit: Rachel B. Card Photography
Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this.
About The Interviewer: Vanessa Ogle is a mom, entrepreneur, inventor, writer, and singer/songwriter. Vanessa’s talent in building world-class leadership teams focused on diversity, a culture of service, and innovation through inclusion allowed her to be one of the most acclaimed Latina CEO’s in the last 30 years. She collaborated with the world’s leading technology and content companies such as Netflix, Amazon, HBO, and Broadcom to bring innovative solutions to travelers and hotels around the world. Vanessa is the lead inventor on 120+ U.S. Patents. Accolades include: FAST 100, Entrepreneur 360 Best Companies, Inc. 500 and then another six times on the Inc. 5000. Vanessa was personally honored with Inc. 100 Female Founder’s Award, Ernst and Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year Award, and Enterprising Women of the Year among others. Vanessa now spends her time sharing stories to inspire and give hope through articles, speaking engagements and music. In her spare time she writes and plays music in the Amazon best selling new band HigherHill, teaches surfing clinics, trains dogs, and cheers on her children.
Please connect with Vanessa here on linkedin and subscribe to her newsletter Unplugged as well as follow her on Substack, Instagram, Facebook, and X and of course on her website VanessaOgle.
