255 episodes

The work advice you need, from women who’ve been there. Every week, join the co-founders and co-CEOs of theSkimm, Carly Zakin and Danielle Weisberg, as they help you get what you want out of your career by talking to the smartest leaders they know.

9 to 5ish with theSkimm theSkimm

    • Business
    • 4.5 • 1.8K Ratings

The work advice you need, from women who’ve been there. Every week, join the co-founders and co-CEOs of theSkimm, Carly Zakin and Danielle Weisberg, as they help you get what you want out of your career by talking to the smartest leaders they know.

    Debra Lee on Stepping Into Her Power

    Debra Lee on Stepping Into Her Power

    Debra Lee was the chairman and CEO of BET, where she worked for over three decades. But even though she was a leader in the entertainment world, Debra said her biggest career weakness was being “too nice”. This week, we sat down to talk about Debra’s new memoir, I Am Debra Lee, and how she stepped into her power as a leader – from taking back control of her senior staff meetings, to literally finding her voice. 
    In this episode, Debra shares…

    How she dealt with getting denied a raise

    Why men are promoted based on potential, and women are promoted based on experience 

    How she took her power back as an executive 

    The celeb who left her the most starstruck 


    And PS: There’s so much Debra shares in her new memoir – including some things we weren’t able to get to in our interview. You can find her book here. 

    • 32 min
    Bozoma Saint John on Navigating Grief and Work

    Bozoma Saint John on Navigating Grief and Work

    Bozoma Saint John is one of the most celebrated marketing execs out there. She’s worked for Apple, Uber, Endeavor, Pepsi, and Netflix…just to name a few. But while those big names are on her resume, Boz told us about the other titles that have influenced her and her career. Like ‘single mom.’ And ‘widow.’ This week, Boz explains how her story of love, loss, and survival has made her live “urgently”, especially when it comes to work.
    In this episode shares: 

    What it means to live urgently at work 

    Why you need to take the credit for what you do   

    How we can better show up for our colleagues that are grieving 

    Why grief has made her a better leader

    The hardest part of writing her memoir, The Urgent Life

    • 33 min
    Chantel George on Seeing Opportunity Everywhere

    Chantel George on Seeing Opportunity Everywhere

    Chantel George had a plan to go to law school. Then, she found out she was good at sales. Really good. In fact, she became one of the best sellers in the tech world. Chantel’s experience learning how to turn a ‘no’ into a ‘yes’, asking tough questions, and challenging the status quo convinced her she needed to start her own sales community. So in 2017, she started Sistas in Sales, the largest global organization for women of color in sales. In today’s episode, Chantel told us how she saw opportunities everywhere – even when they seemed out of reach or hard to spot. 

    In this episode, Chantel shares: 

    The earliest lessons she learned about entrepreneurship

    Why she’s not afraid of having tough conversations 

    The advice she got that made her a better manager 

    Who would play her in a movie

    • 26 min
    Amy Griffin on Stepping Back Into Her Career

    Amy Griffin on Stepping Back Into Her Career

    For Amy Griffin, being one of the most successful venture capitalists actually has a lot in common with being a college athlete. Amy played volleyball at the University of Virginia, and now as the founder and managing partner of G9 Ventures, she helps early-stage startups perform their best in a different kind of arena. And some of the companies she’s coached include Goop, Athletic Greens, and Bumble. This week, we ask Amy about the secret to her coaching magic. Which, spoiler, is all about relationships. 

    In this episode, Amy shares: 

    How her mentality as a college athlete stayed with her throughout her career

    Her experience stepping out of, and stepping back into, the workforce 

    How she supports founders through the good times – and the bad 

    Her approach to relationship-building 

    How founders can prepare for an uncertain economic environment 

    • 29 min
    Emily Hikade on Going from CIA Officer to Entrepreneur

    Emily Hikade on Going from CIA Officer to Entrepreneur

    From navigating war zones to negotiating with affiliates of terrorist organizations, Emily Hikade lived for the thrill of working as a CIA officer. But a near death experience at work made her realize: it was time to try a different kind of adventure. While in East Africa, Emily worked nights to start her luxury sleepwear brand, Petite Plume. Today, Emily shares how working in diplomacy prepared her for the challenges of being a founder and CEO.

    In this episode, Emily Hikade shares:

    Why she knew she’d have an international career from an early age

    The moment she started feeling vulnerable in her CIA career 

    What a near-death experience put into perspective for her

    How she started her business while working full-time and being a mom of three 

    Advice on how to know which investors are worth working with 

    • 25 min
    Pinky Cole on Helping Others Win

    Pinky Cole on Helping Others Win

    Pinky Cole came up with her business, Slutty Vegan, in her apartment in Atlanta. She started by taking orders through Instagram DMs and eventually expanded to multiple locations outside of ATL. Now, her company’s worth $100 million. But she says: she wouldn’t have gotten there without hitting rock bottom first. Today, how Pinky found her success, and why she wants to help people in the Black community find theirs too. 

    In this episode, Pinky shares: 

    Her favorite recipe from her new book, Eat Plants B*tch

    How a grease fire that destroyed her restaurant was actually a blessing

    Her philosophy on success – and why it’s not about being the only one winning

    Why giving up entrepreneurship and returning to a 9-5 job was the hardest thing she’s done in her career

    • 30 min

Customer Reviews

4.5 out of 5
1.8K Ratings

1.8K Ratings

RieslingM ,

Amazing podcast

I LOVE this podcast! I often find that my podcast feed is filled with male voices, stories and perspective, and it’s so refreshing to have 3 women each episode talk about business! I learn something new every time.

I often send friends and colleagues this podcast, and want to send them quotes from the episode to get them hooked. I wish you all provided a transcript so it was easy to quote and search in the episode to give better recommendations to friends!

reparish11 ,

Great Podcast

Great podcast, however I wish they would have some women that are not extremely liberal. I love to have a mix!

BethLmLJobCoach ,

One of the Best Podcasts on Career

What makes it so good is the fact that the hosts are brilliant at asking the right questions and pulling in the right guests. The women I listen to on 9 to 5ish each week are inspiring my journey. Absolutely a highlight of my week!

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