Women Of Today: In A Position To Change The World w/ Danila De Stefano, Martina Capriotti, and Tiziana Monterisi

This Women Of Today episode is a very special one.?

I am hosting fantastic women and some of my fellow finalists of the GammaDonna 2022 Award that will take place in Torino this Friday.

When I got the call that I was one of the finalists, I felt immense gratitude for being recognized for all the work I am passionate about and humbleness for sharing the spotlight with these intelligent, successful, and inspiring women.

Each of these women has shown that hard work and determination are necessary ingredients to achieve goals and how important it is to have that absolute faith in ourselves.

I invite you to share this article with the women in your surroundings so we can hopefully inspire many other women to go after their dreams despite what society has to say about it.

Meet Danila De Stefano – Unobravo | Servizio di psicologia online, Martina Capriotti – MIRTA and Tiziana Monterisi – Ricehouse Srl SB.

I hope you enjoy their answers as much as I did!

Isabelle: What was the greatest challenge you had to overcome to be where you are today? What strengths have you developed over time?

Danila: Over the years, I have been through a series of episodes that have made me the woman I am today. When you are 26, founding an Italian startup, and living abroad, it is not easy to be taken "seriously" by those in higher positions in our country. Initially, it wasn't easy to follow my path and trust my instinct and the team.?

In the world of entrepreneurship, many "people with more experience" are ready to give advice or give examples that do not always put your project at the center. I can say that I had enough audacity and perseverance to move forward bravely. As I confirmed later on, it was much better to follow my intuition rather than relying on what others may have suggested was better for my startup.

Founding Unobravo and becoming an entrepreneur allowed me to challenge myself every day and understand the business logic. And not only that, I feel proud today thinking that, through my visibility, I can spread messages of strength to other women.

Isabelle: What do you believe has influenced your career path the most? What is something insightful you've learned about yourself along the way?

Martina: I truly think I could not do what I’m doing today if I did not go through all the previous experiences in my life. Starting from helping my parents in their beach club since I was very young, to playing different sports (from swimming to volleyball), and to my years as a consultant at Boston Consulting Group. The first experiences helped me understand the importance of hard work and commitment. At the same time, my career path has provided me with the tools to frame problems and find solutions, to look at the world with different eyes, and with the willingness to change it for the better.?

Also, thanks to BCG, I had the opportunity to travel while working, which for sure influenced everything that came after, beginning with the idea of founding Mirta. Traveling allowed me to know other cultures, grow my curiosity and appreciate our country even more. It is from these experiences that I first started to shape Mirta in my mind together with Ciro Di Lanno, whom I met at BCG!

Moving from the role of consultant to entrepreneur was a big challenge. But there’s a lot I learned from this journey, especially from its ups and downs. I learned to believe in myself and accept that making mistakes is fine because there is always time and room for improvement. But I also learned to be braver - in the beginning, before starting my career as an entrepreneur, I asked myself many times if it was the right thing to do given the risk and uncertainty that a new intense experience like this brings.

But now, I would never go back because I am more conscious of my potential and my power to have an impact on the world that surrounds me.

Isabelle: What women in your life inspire you the most?

Tiziana: A few significant female figures have accompanied and inspired me in different moments of my private and professional life. From elementary school, my teacher Pinuccia to my professor and thesis supervisor at the Milan Polytechnic Anna Mangiarotti, to Charlotte Perriand, the first great woman who changed the design world in the 1930s. I still remember being in absolute awe of her energy, passion, and courage to be free and follow her own vision of the future. I like to think we are very much alike, which gives me so much life and energy.

Last but not least, my mother and sisters were always examples of consistency, simplicity, strength, humility, and goodness. We are all very different but share the same values.

The mix of these five figures has influenced me as a woman, mother, entrepreneur, architect, innovator, and nonconformist who thinks that the beauty of paying attention to the small details will save the world.

If you would like to learn more about all the GammaDonna finalists you can do it on the official Gammadonna Linkedin Page.