Meet Our Newest HoneyBookers!

We Are HoneyBook
Jul 20, 2017 · 4 min read
From left to right: Anya, Yen Yen, Ashley

Q: What do you do at HoneyBook, and what’s one entrepreneurial thing you’ve done in the past (or present)?

Anya Benbarak: I’m the Wedding Spot GM. The most entrepreneurial thing one can do is start something from nothing — which I did every time I started a scene in improvisational theater. I started studying improv theater in my early 20’s and performed with the Sunday Players as well as other small troupes in San Francisco. Improv impacted my life in so many ways, including teaching me mantras that I live by to this day. My favorite improv mantra is “make your partner look good”. Instead of focusing the attention on yourself onstage, you focus it on your partners; it’s about setting each other up for success instead of worrying about being funny, for instance. It takes the pressure off yourself, and creates a truly generous and collaborative culture on stage — and that’s the only way something from nothing will ever be successful.

Yen Yen Chow: Chief Financial Officer. Prior to working at HoneyBook, I worked at a startup called Lookout as its first finance hire and had the opportunity to build up the finance function from scratch, and define what finance meant for the company. It was my first experience working at a startup, and I found out two days after I accepted the offer that I was pregnant, and then a couple weeks later, that I was expecting twins! Admittedly, when I accepted the role I was already equal parts excited and scared, since I would be responsible for areas of finance that I had never done before. Then on top of that, I was two months pregnant when I started so I had a lot to prove in a short amount of time. But it turned out being a really great experience and something I’m really proud of because I learned a lot as I developed into the finance leader that I am today and also about what it takes to succeed as a working mom. I had to force myself to be really efficient with my time at work — every hour you waste by not being efficient takes time away from your children, or sleep!

Ashley Daigneault: I’m the new Talent Coordinator! I am not sure if this counts as entrepreneurial, but right now my roommate and I run a “restaurant” in our backyard on the weekends for friends. Backyard Brunch started when my roommate and I got fed up with paying ridiculous amounts bottomless brunch when we knew we could do it both better and cheaper. At Backyard Brunch, $10 will get you bottomless mimosas (sometimes sangria!) and a bomb meal. The best part? You won’t get kicked out and can stay as long as you want!

Q: What’s one thing you plan on accomplishing this year while you’re at HoneyBook?

Anya Benbarak: When I was interviewing at HoneyBook, I was drawn to the culture and the people. One of the things that impacted me was the blog post Erica Williams wrote on how HoneyBook encourages being yourself at work, and as a result, bringing your best self to work. I want to continue building upon that and making HoneyBook a successful company that our employees love. I believe that we are going to do something really big, and am looking forward to helping my team learn and develop themselves along the way too.

Yen Yen Chow: I’m passionate about being impactful at any company I join. What really inspires me about HoneyBook is that we are truly making an impact on our members’ lives and helping them turn their dream job into a reality. I think the HoneyBook team has done an amazing job building the company into what it is today and I’m excited to help support and guide the company through this next phase of growth. Having been through this growth phase before, and having experienced both successes and challenges, I plan to leverage the best practices that I’ve seen before and hopefully save HoneyBook from similar startup pitfalls and create an even more amazing company that can continue to fuel growth for our dynamic members.

Ashley Daigneault: Streamline our recruiting process and make HoneyBook known for the best candidate experience! Also, I am very excited to learn full-cycle recruiting. One year from now at least one new HoneyBooker will be here solely because of me!

We are HoneyBook

Meet the HoneyBookers empowering creative professionals with the freedom to work with anyone. Anywhere. At anytime. www.honeybook.com/careers

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We Are HoneyBook

Written by

We’re on a mission to empower the creative economy to rise together, doing what they love. This is life at HoneyBook. www.honeybook.com

We are HoneyBook

Meet the HoneyBookers empowering creative professionals with the freedom to work with anyone. Anywhere. At anytime. www.honeybook.com/careers

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