Ann Shoket, CEO of TheLi.st
For my next interview in The Tiny CEO series, I spoke with Ann Shoket, the CEO of TheLi.st, a community of high-impact women and under-represented leaders.
What is your favorite part of your job?
When I was the editor-in-chief of Seventeen Magazine, I worked for a really big company, and I had worked my way up to being the boss. Even when I was the boss of the magazine, I still had a boss above me. Sometimes that was great. And sometimes I would come home and think, I don't know why we're making this decision. Now that I’m my own boss, if I'm mad about something, I'm the only one to blame, and I have to figure out how to change it. I love that part. I love the freedom to make decisions, to trust in myself, and to believe that I'm doing the right thing. I love being the boss. I love being in control of my time and my energy. Even when I was your age, I liked being in charge. Be in charge of something!
What is your least favorite or the hardest part of your job?
Part of being an entrepreneur is that you never know what the day is going to bring. You have to be able to move fast, and if something’s not working, you have to pivot and start all over again. Sometimes I find that exciting—the ability to move fast. But sometimes I wish we had greater security in our business. And I'll tell you one other thing that I find hard. I don’t have a lot of people on my team. But it's still fun. When you find people who believe in the mission, who believe in the same thing you do, it's like magic.
What inspired you to write your book The Big Life, and what was the best part of that?
I was editor-in-chief of Seventeen Magazine for almost a decade, and this entire generation of young women grew up with me. I still had something I wanted to say to them in the next phase of their lives—as they were graduating college, as they were thinking about their careers, as they were building their partnerships. And I had something to say about the way that they were changing the world. I could see that the way they thought about power, success, and money was different than the way the previous generation had seen it. I wanted to give them some guidance. I wanted to say: You are game-changing, rock star pioneers, and you are changing the world.
It's hard to convince people to see the world the way you do. I met this amazing, brilliant human being named Christina Blacken, and I told her that one of the biggest challenges in my career has been convincing people to see things the way I do. I felt like it was my job to convince them. Christina said something that I really found important that I hope you'll find important too. She said, “Stop trying to convince people to see the world the way you do. Just find the people who already see the world the way you do and join forces with them.” I hope that you hold on to that. If someone doesn't believe in what you believe in, go find the people who do. Find the people who believe in the Tiny CEO.
What is TheLi.st?
TheLi.st is a community of high-impact women and underrepresented leaders who are devoted to helping each other and to unlocking opportunities to realize potential together. I'm not the founder of TheLi.st, but I was a member for 5 years, and then I acquired it because I saw so much potential and opportunity. When I was talking about the next generation, who were game-changing rock star pioneers, the women of TheLi.st are paving the way for the next generation to step into power and success. I really loved the human beings that are in the community. I feel I have always been the person who likes to gather people and bring this idea of the power of connection and community. And now it's a business.
What advice would you have for any other woman entrepreneurs who are looking to change the world?
That is a big question. You have to do a lot of work. You have to know who you are and what you can offer the world. What is your special sauce? What is your magic that you can bring to the world so you can have the greatest impact?
My advice to young entrepreneurs like you is to be fearless. Try everything. Don't plan too much. The road has a lot of twists and turns, and you just want to go where feels amazing. There are always going to be changes along the way. Be empathetic and curious about other people and for other people. That’s how you’ll find out what you want and where you want to put your magic.