Legendary
Cokie Roberts. Photo by Lionel Delavigne.
Last week 17 women founders raised over $1 billion dollars for their companies. Precisely, $1,165,715,000.
Also notable, four companies raised $100 million and above:
Reshma Shetty at Gingko Bioworks
Eva Shang at Legalist
Jennifer Parke at Fair
J. Jean Cui at Turning Point Therapeutics
Deal flow is following growth opportunities in artificial intelligence, biotechnology, software as a service, and consumer food, health and beauty. The past two weeks have also seen investments in value-based health care technology. View the week’s funding update. And be sure to sign up for Underwire’s weekly newsletter to get deeper insights into the funding founders and companies.
Last week also brought news of the death of Cokie Roberts, journalist, author, political correspondent and commentator. Her deep, raspy voice comforted me for as long as I've been paying attention to news and politics. Her commentary was always objective, no-nonsense and illuminating.
I first heard it in a blip on NPR. Cokie Roberts had died from breast cancer. I was in my car, driving to catch an early train. My chest and sinuses tightened. Tears welled in my eyes. Done in by the boobs.
Cokie Roberts was among my circle of Baba Yagas, wise women who've seen shit and know the way the world works. Women like Nina Totenberg, Terry Gross and Krista Tippett. These are a few of the high-profile women who help me process events and better understand humans.
In reading quotes from The Washington Post and The New York Times obituaries, I saw how Cokie's journey through politics and media paralleled that of other professional women, myself included.
Cokie was a lifelong mentor to female journalists. "Duck and file," she advised aspiring female reporters. "Just do your work and get it on the air."
Cokie worked for competing new organizations ABC News and NPR at the same time. She was a true professional, avoiding stories where there might be a conflict of interest. When The Post asked her about this in 1993 she said, "I think it's a woman's talent. Being able to do two things at once."
In 1992, on record for The Los Angeles Times, Cokie talked about the impact of sexism in the workplace:
"We had people tell us all along the way that we weren't qualified to deliver the news, that we weren't authoritative enough. We would have meetings with men in high positions and find their hands on our knees. We would have invitations from those people to hotel rooms. All kinds of propositions. Insults they didn't consider insults."
She added, and this is what's still true today, "Those assaults make a difference in terms of how you think about yourself. Maybe they're right, you begin to think. Maybe I'm not authoritative. Maybe I'm not smart enough. And then you say to yourself, 'God, I went to the same schools as those guys. I have the same education as they do. What's the problem? Why am I asked how many words a minute I can type when the guy next to me can't type at all?'"
That was 27 years ago. At that time, I was a young woman in advertising. My boss used to come into my cubicle without asking and massage my shoulders while I worked at my desk. On more than one occasion he asked if I'd like to go camping with him. Or would I like for him to teach me how to fly-fish? Another male superior, my creative director, once mentioned in a hallway conversation that I should wear a tight turtleneck to the next creative review so my ideas would be taken more seriously.
I never reported those incidents. Like Cokie said, you begin to think. My ideas aren't good enough. I don't deserve to ask for more. Or for improvements to the way we work.
Fortunately, I didn't let these bastards grind me down. I found a better job in a new city. But that early experience did contribute to an ongoing battle with anxiety.
So, legends. Rest in peace, Mary Martha Corinne Morrison Claiborne Boggs Roberts. What a glorious name. What an epic role model.
Duck and keep doing the work.
Shoulders open, firm grip on the microphone. Cokie Roberts owns the room.
Also legendary...
If you're in the Seattle area, block out the evening of October 17.
Onstage at Seattle Center's PACCAR IMAX Theater, you can witness a beautiful thing: an entire accelerator cohort of women-led companies. Brought to you by the Female Founders Alliance and their Ready Set Raise national startup accelerator.
This is a fun event where you get to see eight women or non-binary founders pitch their business models to a sold out crowd. How often does that happen?!? Don't be shy, last year's event featured an open, friendly crowd and great food.
Here's the 2019 lineup:
It's time
You see that stick figure yogini above? She's doing a balance pose. I don't know the name of it. I just know that it rattles my confidence unless I'm totally grounded and in the moment. It's not easy to stand on one leg, hold the other leg up in the air, out to the side, and keep your balance. Kinda like how I feel right now about the Fall yoga retreat.
I'll be real, I'm wobbly. We're one month out. Sign ups so far are making me go hmmmm. It could be that I suck at event promotion. Which I do. I'm not on Facebook and barely on Instagram.
So I'm asking for help. Use this link to share the event on your socials. If you're planning to come, please sign up now.
This is the real deal. Awesome yoga teacher, food, location. All women, so you can skip the makeup. Throw you hair in a ponytail and pull on your rattiest yoga pants. Just come and be the real you. Let's make this happen. Hugs and love.
Fall Female Founders Yoga Retreat
Sunday, Oct. 20, 2019
8:30 am - 5 pm