This article is part of our Create & Cultivate 100 List created in collaboration with KEDS, you can view the full STEM List Here.

Giving a dental damn.

Brush up for a minute on Claire Burke, co-founder of Goby’s career trajectory. After graduating from NYU’s Stern School of Business with a dual BS in Finance and Accounting, she worked at investment bank Lincoln International for six years. Simultaneously, she pursued her personal passion for film and media by co-founding a production company. In 2013, Claire left investment banking to pursue an MBA at Columbia Business School. While at Columbia, she immersed myself in media and technology, working for The Raine Group, Hearst, theSkimm, and Female Founders Fund, each of which expanded her interest in startups and exposed her to the value and power of brand.

Take a breather. 

Deemed “Cavity Claire” by her family growing up, Claire was inspired by her own struggles with good oral care. Determined to enhance consumers’ oral care experience by creating a value-driven oral care product with a relatable brand personality, Cavity Claire (and co-founder Ben) got to work, hoping to change the experience of oral health care. 

And now, the founders current largest challenges include filling roles at her company, not in her mouth.

More from Claire below. 

What is the best piece of "real talk" advice you've received? 

A close friend recently bought me the book "You are a Badass." The gift, and the advice, was self-explanatory. Reading it has transformed the way I look at myself and interact with the world.

What is your favorite life advice?

“Who you hang out with determines what you dream about and what you collide with. And the collisions and the dreams lead to your changes. And the changes are what you become. Change the outcome by changing your circle.” -- Seth Godin

Is there a time in your life when you thought, ‘I can’t do this?’

I tend not to think this way. I try to breathe through any challenge, see the bigger picture, and move forward.

What’s next?

Continuing to build Goby into a lasting brand. 

What’s a habit or routine you swear by?

Daily mantras. You control your thoughts and your mood, and mantras help to ensure you're in the right mind-state throughout the day.

International Women’s Day is coming up. It's a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. If you could steer the conversation around International Women’s Day, what would that dialogue be about?

The first step in removing disparity, is recognizing that the disparity exists. Encouraging men to participate in the conversation and admit that there is inequity is a goal of mine on IWD.

How has your relationship to you career changed in the last five years?

In the past five years I decided to pursue what I was passionate about, even if it came with significant sacrifice in the near-term, as opposed to pursuing what provided short-term benefit but wasn't fulfilling.

How has your relationship to yourself changed in the last five years?

Significantly! I think positively, support myself and don't fret the small stuff. I definitely used to beat myself up a lot, and I've stopped doing that in the last five years.

What does female empowerment mean to you?

"Feminism is the radical notion that women are people." Female empowerment to me means that women are able to lead self-actualized lives, regardless of the life they choose to live, and regardless of the fact that they are women.