Dafne Tsakiris

“Consistency Compounds”

Dafne is one of those people who have something very special about them. You can’t quite put your finger on it at first, but soon you realize that you are sitting in front of a power-house woman who brings incredible things to anyone she knows.

We worked together in the beginning stages of her business and she has gone on to break … no, DEMOLISH, every success measure  she has set for her business. 

I hope you are as inspired by her as much as I am …

What is your secret to success? Working “on” my business as a non-negotiable part of my week. Also, time-blocking is not a word you throw around for fun, it is something you do and stick to if you really want to succeed.

When did you know you would be an entrepreneur? When at 5 years old I told my dad I wanted to grow up and be a boss – ha! Also, I realized as I entered the corporate world that I loved to figure things out, which has proved to be a very common trait among entrepreneurs.

What was your ambition when you started? To build something on my own.

Tell us all about your business. At Launch Point we are Operations Optimizers, Strategists, Project Managers, Fractional COO’s, and Process & Systems Builders that help small to mid-sized business reach their goals. We provide them with solutions to operate at the most desirable and greatest possible level of efficiency, speed and productivity. Too many small and mid-sized businesses are held back by operational bottlenecks and lack of strategic direction and implementation. As business owners and leaders we are often too close to the problem to find a solution or we are so tied up in the day-to-day operations of the company that we don’t have the time and capacity to address the issues. We are driven by finding the perfect solution for each and every business we work with. We help them optimize your operations, claim a strategic direction and ultimately reach their goals.

How has it changed, and what is your ambition today? It has evolved to also show others that they can achieve their dreams and I want to inspire as many people as possible on this journey.

What is the best advice you ever got about running a business? Consistency compounds and you really can figure anything out.

What are some of the biggest challenges you faces as a business owner so far, and how did you overcome them? How to structure your time as an entrepreneur and how to keep yourself accountable. Overcame by working with a coach 😉 [Megan: Yeah, that was Me, so proud to know this woman], surrounding myself with people that are further ahead than me and treating working “on” my business as a non-negotiable part of my week.

How do you define”success” for you? Loving what I do. Having a flexible schedule that allows me to be there for my kids. Getting to inspire and uplift other entrepreneurs, especially women.

Now, tell us a fun “secret” I was on a kids TV show in Sweden as a back-up dancer. I still cringe when I watch the tapes lol!

What great advice would you give to other women entrepreneurs? You are so much greater than you think you are and give yourself credit for. Always remember that – and charge like it!

What business or self-development books do you recommend? Everything is Figureoutable – Marie Forleo   Start with Why – Simon Sinek   The 12 week Year – Brian P Moran

Lastly, What would you choose as your walk-out song (that is, if you don’t already have one)? Currently it is Juice by Lizzo

Learn More About Launch Point Here

Love reading about inspiring women? Check out our past Success Stories!

Macey Robinson

“If you’re always comparing your losses to someones else’s wins, you’re giving up before you ever had a chance.”

Macey not only has the sights set on changing an entire industry and lives, but she also creates success for her partners and her clients.
Check out her story, and great message for all women entrepreneurs. 

How do you define “success” for you? Being happy. Wanting to go to work and genuinely loving what you do. You can make a billion dollars but if you have no fulfillment in what you’re doing, who cares what you’re bringing in. The goal is financial achievement as well as doing something that truly sets your soul on fire.

When did you know you would be an entrepreneur? When I was about 5. Haha. I never really wanted a “normal” job. I’ll give you a funny example of my kid self. My older brother played baseball and he was hard core so that meant my parents traveled all over the place for him to play in tournaments. So as a little girl that was pretty boring. So one day, I was helping my grandparents pick tomato worms off of their tomato plants. Well, I totally loved all critters and decided to keep one as a pet. This little worm made the treck with me to one of my brothers tournaments. At the tournament I walked around and charged the other kids .25 cents to touch it and .50 to hold it. For kids who didn’t live out in the country like me, this was quite the treat! At another baseball tournament it had rained, so there were a million baby frogs hopping around. You guessed it, I gathered them all up and sold those too. I just also have loved creating and being different. I have attempted a few careers and education of more traditional callings and it’s just never my thing, no matter if I was talented in the area or not.

What great advice would you give to other women entrepreneurs? Do your thing girl. Don’t look at Susie Q and wish for her life, that’s her life and you couldn’t do it like her if you tried. YOU HAVE YOUR LIFE. She for dang sure couldn’t do what you do if she tried. We are all blessed with different talents and gifts. Use yours. Not hers. And go out there and rock it.

Tell us all about Kairos. Weddings & events can become overwhelming and stressful. Finding professionals you trust for each area of your event can be daunting and exhaustive. Brides lose sight of what is most important on their wedding day because they are distracted by the details. Kairos offers clients to be able to live in their moments and breathe in the memories. Our mission is to provide the very best professionals in the industry to our clients. Each wedding is treated with intention and focus to deliver out clients only the highest of quality; and leave them with cherished memories. We are an elite company who are changing the industry’s approach and regard to weddings and events. We pride ourselves on bringing a new light to our customers experience. 

Kairos Weddings & Events, LLC is built upon every professional you would need for your wedding or event. We were crafted with the intent to make your big day extra special, and full of joy. Planning a large event does not have to be stressful and it shouldn’t be. It should be a day where you soak in every single moment. With Kairos you have found your entire team start to finish. No need to search out individual vendors, let our team handle all of your needs. Whew! That was easy. Check them out: HERE

What was your ambition when you started Kairos? Hmmmm my ambition when I started. It was to be the best in Colorado. To offer something no one really does, and in that, help people too.

How has it changed, and what is your ambition today? Not much has changed. I still want to offer a unique approach to planning and executing weddings and events. I love our personal approach and truly being there in this beautiful season our clients are going through. I mean, not many careers can say they help start people’s forever…. we want to be sure we do our very best in that area.

What is the best advice you ever got about running a business? To not care or compare. It’s one thing to see success and be driven by it. But if you’re always comparing your losses to someones else’s wins, you’re giving up before you ever had a chance.

What are some of the biggest challenges you faced as a business owner so far, and how did you overcome them? Colorado has a crazy saturated wedding market. So, being a brand new company it’s definatley been trial and error with what works in getting our name out there.

What is your secret to success? It sound cliche but seriously no matter how many times something fails, you always have to keep going. You see your vision, you know the dream you’re chasing. You always put one foot in front of the other and you keep on moving.

Now, tell us a fun “secret”. So this isn’t really a secret. But it is something that most people in my season of life don’t know….. I am a member of a world champion hip hop dance team. We were without a doubt the underdogs. From a tiny town. No one had heard of us before, up against the big dogs in dance. And none of that mattered. WE worked out butts off and didn’t care if no one knew our names going in, everyone sure as heck knew our names going out. Humble roots. Hard work. I am and always will be a cheerleader for the underdog. Entrepreneurs have to work for what they have just like we did. It doesn’t matter where you start its how you finish. Here’s our championship routine. Watch Here: Enjoy! 

What business or self-development books do you recommend? The Promise of a Pencil, Business Boutique (these are links to amazon where you can get these books)

Anything else you would like to shareto inspire and uplift other women entrepreneurs? We only get one shot at this life. Do whatever you’re doing with a genuine heart, and love. This world despite all the negative is a pretty amazing place. WE have crazy opportunity. Don’t let that slip away. Regret is some painful stuff, don’t regret never chasing your dreams. You were given the idea of them for a reason.

Lastly, What would you choose as your walk-out song (that is, if you don’t already have one)? Remember the Name – Fort Minor

Love reading about inspiring women? Check out our past Success Stories!

Kaleigh Canavan

“Don’t forget that we get the honor of being trailblazers.”

Kaleigh is the lady in charge at Canavan, Syddall & Associates, They provide professional Accounting, Bookkeeping and Consulting Services for businesses large and small, as well as tax and other accounting services for individuals. When I met her I was immediately impressed. I could feel it in the air – that this was someone special. No matter why you find yourself in the same space as Kaleigh, you know that she is incredible. She is a great success story, and I am so pleased to share it.

When did you know you would be an entrepreneur? I think I kind of always knew. When I was really young, all I ever wanted to be was “in charge”. I was 13 when I started my first company, which was a secret shopping service. It took way longer to figure out that Accounting would be such a significant facet of my entrepreneurial journey, which didn’t really click for me until my early 20s.

What was your ambition when you started? When I first started my company I wanted to make accounting approachable and accessible to people who were disinclined to work with a “good ol’ boy” accountant but still had needs. I wanted to change the way that accountants treat their relationships with their clients. I wanted to empower people to feel like they could understand their financial picture as well as why that understanding is important.

How has it changed, and what is your ambition today? A lot of what I was passionate about has remained true, but the scope of our services has expanded pretty significantly. When I started my company I only offered bookkeeping and payroll. Now we also offer services that include income tax prep and planning, business management and consulting.

What is the best advice you ever got about running a business? There have been a few gems along the way that still resonates with me today. “You’re not in the everyone business” was pretty powerful, because when I first started my company I was willing to work with just about everyone in the interest of growing my firm (which lead to some pretty ugly and stressful client relationships). “Hire the right people and get out of their way” was also incredibly helpful advice because I have a tendency to want to be very controlling and micromanage, even when I know the team that I put in place is incredibly capable. I’m much happier when I step back and let them do their jobs, and nobody likes to be micromanaged.

What are some of the biggest challenges you faces as a business owner so far, and how did you overcome them? Managing a growing team is really hard. I try to maintain a positive work environment, but there have been times when changes to our office have upset certain employees or made them feel insecure or frustrated. It’s tough to know how to mitigate that without caving to their desire for things to stay the same. It’s also a challenge to listen to everyone’s feedback and try to be accommodating to everyone’s needs without compromising anyone else.

How do you define “success” for you? Success can take a few different forms. Taking clients from a place of fear or anxiety about their taxes to a state of comfort and understanding is awesome. Putting my team in a position to feel proud of themselves is also great. The feeling of financial stability and freedom for my company and myself is amazing.

What is your secret to success? A fantastic support network. There’s a lot of behind the scenes cheerleading that goes on, which helps to keep me motivated.

Now, tell us a fun “secret” I freakin LOOOOOOVE karaoke. I’ve been told I’m somewhat good.

What great advice would you give to other women entrepreneurs? Be kind and gentle with yourself. I find that we have a tendency to be really hard on ourselves or push ourselves too hard or (insert unhealthy behavior here). Treat yourself the way you treat other people and go out of your way to make sure you’re being kind, generous and loving to yourself. You can’t be your best for others if you don’t take good care of yourself.

What business or self-development books do you recommend? ‘The Hard Thing About Hard Things’ was powerful for me, because sometimes running a business is gonna suck and you gotta learn how to deal with that. ‘Profit First’ is a game-changer and ‘The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck’ is pretty important.

Anything else you would like to shareto inspire and uplift other women entrepreneurs? Don’t forget that we get the honor of being trailblazers. Dudes have to live in a world where most things they would think about doing have already been done by other Dudes before them. We, as women entrepreneurs, get to change the game, flip the script and redefine normal. This is a big responsibility but is also a freakin’ bad-ass privilege! What a time to be alive.

Lastly, What would you choose as your walk-out song (that is, if you don’t already have one)? Rhianna – Bitch Better Have My Money

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