EVOLve_15: Candace Chisholm [5/11/2022]

Candace Chisholm, CEO & Co-Founder of He Changed It

Gender norms have men historically putting their mental health and wellness to the back burner. Men typically suffer in silos, therefore our model has to be reflective of a self improvement approach. With the community and support to follow — typically accessed through growth, understanding, but most of all trust.

Twitter: @CandyChisholm

This interview is part #EVOLve Series with one of our @posi2ive community members. Interviewees have been active in our weekly *VC Impact* community roundtables on Twitter Spaces [each Friday 3:30pm PT] and community. In each self-paced and self-authored interview, we ask impact Founders / Investors what they are doing to change the world, and why they’re motivated to focus on their area of impact. Hope you all enjoy!

The Interview

Top Sustainable Development Goals (SDG):

1: No Poverty

3: Good Health / Well Being

5: Gender Equality

Impact verticals your venture focuses on:

• Health and Wellness
• SocialTech
• Web3

Please share what you’re building, your professional background, and what inspired this venture.

He Changed It is a mobile app supporting men to pursue practices that support their physical and mental wellbeing. He provides workable tools, tracking and resources for self improvement, moated by an anonymous community to propel and reward participation; building in web3. A ‘Balance Before Burnout’ thesis for an under-resourced demographic, using 5 fitness categories: physical, mental, emotional, soul and social.

My professional background is as an integrative practitioner working in Applied Kinesiology and biofeedback. I have had my own practice for 23+ years, balancing body, mind and spirit, and know the benefits to having gender solutions. Evolution is the answer to everything: mental health, and wellness should be no exception.

What’s the impact focus of your venture? And how do you plan to measure impact?

Impact focus: reducing mental, emotional and physical harm to men created through stress, burnout, depression and anxiety. Resulting in balance, self improvement to themselves and subsequently their families, work, and humanity.

Measure impact: incentivizing self care through ICO. Value will increase with active participation and users (monetary impact). Commerce for service will help measure the impact both on an individual and community driven aspect. (social impact)

What’s driving your impact focus?

Research into different behavior models, modality structures, accredited professionals, -> knowledge transfer: building in the application for easy access, teaching, disruption -> application into practice. An eco system built from self improvement/practice to community and peer transfer, incentivized participation.

What are some obstacles standing in the way of the impact you have planned?

Gender norms have men historically putting their mental health and wellness to the back burner. Men typically suffer in silos, therefore our model has to be reflective of a self improvement approach, with the community and support to follow — typically accessed through growth, understanding, but most of all trust. That being said, studies are showing upwards of 60% increase in self awareness and the need for prevention from men.

How do you stay motivated?

Through my team, all who are working tirelessly on this project. Through my peers. They are generally a large group of ‘overcomers’. Through my family: my husband is my biggest fan and supports me unconditionally. Many days I drive harder for him than anyone. But mostly through our users. Receiving messages of hope, thanks, suggestions, appreciation…. those usually come at the best times.

Tell us about your market, customers, and team.

Global and Alternative health care market 2020: $82B USD, Self Improvement market: $56 B USD, Health Niche Market Apps: $64 B USD
Our customers are men (currently, however plans in the roadmap for a women’s app as well), that are working on improving their life in all areas. Our men see the need for growth from past trauma, addictions, relationships and more, in order to fully express their performance levels in their families, work and themselves. Our users use the community as a virtual support group while working through various struggles.

Team: I’m Candace. With my background in complimentary medicine, I have the vision to see the alternative market reach masses. Drew Hawken is our CTO. He brings over 25 years experience as a technology architect, having worked with 2 previous start ups. He spends his free time coaching men through addiction (he’s a low flying angel). Joel is our UX/UI designer. Also over 20 years experience in design, he has previous start up experience with a children’s app, and is also developing his own ticketing app in Web3. His personal connection to this project came after losing his cousin to suicide 2 years ago. No one saw it coming….. And Kris keeps us all together. Her background is in corporate system implementations, previous work in oil and gas, but specializes in culture. She makes sure we walk the walk and talk the talk.

How do you keep yourself healthy — e.g., mentally, physically, emotionally?

I personally have a team of practitioners that I have worked with for over 2 decades. I use biofeedback for a nutrition regimen, body talk for my emotional support and yoga and outdoor activities for my physical (albeit mental and physical as well) fitness. I make sure to take time to recharge my batteries by getting into nature, especially near water, and adequate sleep.

What are you currently educating yourself on?

Blockchain; ICO; DAOs; NFTs; as well as continuing education for behavior disruption models: such as self CBT, Brain Gym, SIPS, EFT, etc.

What books, podcasts, or newsletters should our community read — to better understand your area of impact?

Our own podcast: he.cast: https://open.spotify.com/show/2Qm3q3eX16rJsgKemGrTPj

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Made Simple: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/1939754852?ots=1&ascsubtag=[artid%7C2139.g.38393341[src%7C[ch%7C[lt%7Csale&linkCode=gs2&tag=hearstmagazin-20

Man Enough: Undefining my Masculinity: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/0063055597?ots=1&ascsubtag=[artid%7C2139.g.38393341[src%7C[ch%7C[lt%7Csale&linkCode=gs2&tag=hearstmagazin-20

What do you do outside of work, that you like to brag about?

I’m a Grandma (MiMi) and a pretty kick-ass one. In 2019 my then 18-month old granddaughter was diagnosed with cancer. Using my knowledge of complimentary medicine, combined with allopathic medicine through oncology, she came through it like a beast. She’s 3 and 1/2 now, and the light of my life. She keeps me grounded. As you know, building a start-up is no joke…but hey… it ain’t cancer. So, I keep going. She sleeps over every week. I ‘brag’ about that because I don’t know if everyone gets that so I’ll never take it for granted!

How can the @posi2ive community support your efforts? (*Not public solicitation, nor securities offerings)

Continue to be a safe space to work out ideas, and challenges. Spread awareness of what we are doing and more importantly, why. Keep the conversation hot on social impact start-ups, social-impact-investing and improving standards and practices for both.

Copyright 2022, all rights reserved. If you’re a Founder / Investor focused on VC Impact, we’d love to invite you to share your story here (#EVOLve) with the posi2ive community. If you’re an LP or GP in venture, we’d also love to have you apply to our private VC Impact Capital Community.