The importance of community for working moms:
A chat with Heather Odendaal of WNorth
In today’s episode, I am chatting with Heather Odendaal, founder and CEO of WNorth, a conference and membership community for working women. Heather shares the origins of WNorth, and how the organization serves working women.
Heather shares the challenges and experiences she has faced as a working mom and entrepreneur, and emphasizes the importance of creating a safe space for women in business. She is passionate about the power of community in supporting and inspiring each other.
If you haven’t connected with WNorth yet, it is a very cool organization and community for any woman in business.
Heather’s bio:
Heather Odendaal is an accomplished Canadian entrepreneur, brand builder, and event producer whose experience in corporate environments inspired her to found WNORTH, an award-winning membership network dedicated to bridging the gender power gap by elevating women in the leadership pipeline.
WNORTH has over 1,500 members with Chapter Cities throughout North America and the U.K., where members can network and uplift each other through Roundtables, Dinners, and Forum Groups. WNORTH will host its 8th Annual WNORTH Conference at the Four Seasons Resort Whistler, May 8-10, 2024.
WNORTH was named Innovative Business of the Year 2021 at the Whistler Excellence Awards, and the 6th WNORTH Conference was recognized by BizBash as one of the top 10 Most Innovative Meetings 2021. Odendaal was included in BizBash’s 2021 and 2020 roundup of Canada’s Most Influential Event Pros, and in last year, she was named by Globe and Mail’s Report on Business as one of the Top 50 Changemakers of 2022.
Heather has worked on some of the world’s largest and most prominent events, including the Whistler Film Festival, Crankworx Mountain Bike Festival, YPO’s Global Leadership Conferences and the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics. She is consistently featured in a variety of top-tier publications and podcasts, and sits on the Forbes Business Council.
In her spare time, you can find her judging local food & wine competitions, paddleboarding on the local Whistler lakes in the summer and skiing Whistler Blackcomb mountain in the winter with her husband Mike and their two children.
Website
Social links
Key episode takeaways
- WNorth is a conference and membership community for working women, with a focus on serving working moms.
- Creating a safe space for ambitious women is crucial, as many women feel shamed for expressing their desire for career advancement.
- Finding companies that prioritize and support working moms can make a significant difference in their career progression and overall well-being.
- Job sharing can be a great option for working moms, allowing them to fulfill their workload while maintaining a better work-life balance.
- Self-care for working moms can be as simple as taking time for oneself, such as going to bed earlier or doing a face mask.
- Children are always watching and absorbing what their parents do and say, so it’s important to model positive behaviors and values.
- Giving oneself grace and recognizing that it’s okay to make mistakes as a parent is essential.
