Would you say your career is an adventure? For these 8 women, all of whom will be joining us at our Eddie Bauer pop-up next week, are doing just that. Why? Because adventure drives us forward. It's at the center of every great story; the beginning of every leap. And it's why Create & Cultivate teamed up with Eddie Bauer to bring you a three-city tour of change-makers, record-breakers and radical women who have dreamed big and dared bigger, and are willing to share their tales with you. They live out loud. They unapologetically follow their dreams. And they're sharing how they do it.  

Lauren McGoodwin, Founder of Career Contessa

I live my adventure in my career every day as an entrepreneur. I come from a more corporate (i.e. safe) background and I'm very risk averse so going out on my own to launch Career Contessa has been one hell of an adventure! Of course, the more risk I take, the more I learn from them—either as successes or failures— and the more inspired I am to add, or sprinkle in, the adventure into other parts of my career. That might mean agreeing to be a keynote speaker in front of hundreds of people or directly reaching out to a brand I love or launching a new service like online courses on Career Contessa.

Lee Tilghman, Founder of Lee from America 

Every single day is different. I'm inherently a planner and nothing gets me more excited than crossing items off my to-do list, but my career as a blogger and lifestyle persona keeps me spontaneous and always on the edge of my seat. It keeps me balanced. I like how my job pushes me out of my comfort zone every day- whether it's speaking about issues that are close to my heart or getting vulnerable about my past, I'm always putting my heart on the line. 

Claire Smallwood, Founder of She Jumps

This question evokes my personal responsibility to always be an authentic leader of my organization, and more often than not, that doesn't mean being the fastest, most gnarly, or highest-achieving person. It means having some non-negotiables: try at least one new activity per year, teach at least one new thing to a new friend, and think back to the person I was 20 years ago—would my 12 year-old self be impressed with what I am doing now?

"We have to be willing to always come back to the original call of adventure."

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Basically it all comes down an existential mindset—none of us get into a career to find out it's more about emails and networking than blisters and sweaty backs, but we have to be willing to always come back to the original call of adventure that brought us there in the first place.

Ruthie Lindsay, Influencer, Stylist & Motivational Speaker

I feel so fortunate because most of my work is on the road. Oftentimes I get to travel and work with some of my best friends but I also love when I don't because I tend to make even more new friends than I would have if I had my pals with me. I love seeing new cultures and meeting locals. I love waking up in new towns or new countries and anticipating all the beautiful things and humans I will meet that day! It's a constant gift and thrill to get to live that adventure as part of my work! I feel so incredibly thankful for every opportunity! 

Rachel Schwarztmann, Founder and CEO, The Style Line

I live my adventure by remembering that my career is an adventure! I know the last thing anyone wants to hear is the cliche “it’s just as much about the journey as it is the destination” but in a lot of ways embracing the unexpected experiences that comes with being an entrepreneur has provided me with so much perspective. Now more than ever, I’m understanding that’s what makes the adventure all the more rewarding. 

Tara Sowlaty, co-founder of How You Glow

I live my adventure in my career because I have centered my career around exploring and finding new and amazing places to share with others. A big component of my site is my travel guides, where I curate and highlight my favorite spots both popular and off the beaten path from around the world. It's not just traveling around the world where this magic can happen though, it also occurs at home too. I really try everyday to find the adventure and new excitement in daily life, no matter where I am. 

Noel Russell, Community Organizer at Covenant House & Hope Slanger 

John Muir says that when we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the Universe.

I would venture to say, that based on his social action and engagement, humankind was a big part of this entangled community he's referencing.

My daily adventure is helping trace these connections between us in plain sight.

Helping us see ourselves in the person sitting at the table across from us, the person in line ahead of you, the person living in a tent in the park.

Helping us push back the lines we draw around the things we're comfortable with, the spaces familiar to us.

Helping us reflect our interconnectedness back to one another, see value and beauty in that,

And then helping move us to action.

This is my exploration into the unknown.

My job challenges me, and those I engage with, to stretch our self-imposed limits of hope, our personal cap on care, and carefully structured sense of identity to include those across every spectrum of demographic, experience, culture...it challenges us to love wildly, recklessly and without abandon.

Day after day, the topography of my journey is marked by the growth of new heart muscles, the action of advocacy, and the fierceness of newly formed kinship.

"The topography of my journey is marked by the growth of new heart muscles."

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My everyday adventure is found in envisioning a world where everyone is seen and known, where there is no “other,” where everyone belongs to everyone - then waving people over to catch a glimpse for themselves. 

Also, spending time with a shelter full of teenagers always calls for a spirit of adventure - even when it's just dinnertime…and especially when its chore time.

Becca Skinner, Photographer 

Adventure is (luckily) a regular part of my career because my work is based around it! Being an adventure photographer means I get to regularly be outside and capture images of places and people recreating and protecting parts of our landscape. That usually means spending many days and nights outdoors.

Top photos left to right: Noel Russell, Tara Sowlaty, Lee Tilghman

Bottom photos left to right: Ruthie Lindsey, Rachel Schwartzmann, Claire Smallwood 

The list for our adventure pop-up is closed; you can join the waitlist here. 

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