
Meet Kena Paranjape
Kena is the founder of All You Are, an empowerment platform and community for women.
In addition to founding All You Are, Kena is the co-founder of recently acquired BRIKA, an innovative retail concept focused on highlighting and supporting emerging artisans and designers.
Kena has 20 years of experience in retail at brands like Indigo, Joe Fresh, and Gap, as well as a high-end eco-friendly boutique concept. She was most recently the VP of Merchandising at Houseplant, Seth Rogen’s cannabis company where she was responsible for bringing to market their award-winning cannabis accessories collection. Kena is originally from the east coast, and now lives with her six year old daughter in Toronto. She has a BSc from McGill and an MBA from the University of Toronto.
Kena, you speak about the idea that patriarchal societal rules are not made to help women. Do you believe that this is why women are seeking community, growth, and self-awareness more than ever before? How can women best create their own rules, and path?
Yes, I believe that we take the progress our mothers made and try to evolve and expand from there based on the freedoms we now have. But what we don't realize is that we carry the beliefs around what we think is possible for us from generations of women before us. So while it appears that we have freedom and equality, when it comes to feeling free and equal we still have a ways to go. Our mothers and grandmothers were often in survival mode. But many of us now have the luxury of being able to self-reflect and be aware of the beliefs that are holding us back. Once we've come face to face with those beliefs, the desire to release them becomes strong. That's when the journey towards true freedom begins. I have learned that the best way for us to create our own path and set our own rules is by finding women on a similar journey, linking arms, and doing it together.
What do you believe is the biggest difference in mindset between women in their 20s and women in their 30s who are approaching ‘midlife’?
There is that saying, you don't know what you don't know. In your 20's and 30's we're often on a track that someone else laid out for us (although that is changing with the most recent generation). Someone else has defined for us what success looks like in all aspects of life - family life, career, home, etc. Most of us weren't encouraged to uncover and explore our unique gifts and abilities and to create a life and career from there. I think when women are approaching mid-life and have checked all the proverbial boxes they start to question if that's all there is. It feels like discomfort at first, a longing for something more, to be more. But that's when the self-discovery journey begins and those who choose to go down that path find a lot of joy and fulfillment on the way. My hope and mission is for women to start on that path a lot earlier.
Throughout your career, you have been in both corporate spaces, and entrepreneurial spaces, and have founded All You Are, an empowerment platform and community for women. What is one aspect of entrepreneurship that came as a surprise to you?
I've come to realize through my own experience and through my relationships with other entrepreneurs that we don't choose entrepreneurship because we have a great business idea. The real reason we choose it is because there is a part of us that wants to see what we're made of. We crave the feeling of standing on our own two feet. Of making our mark on the world. Of using our voice to send a powerful message. Of creating beauty. Of being of service while using our highest gifts. This is why all entrepreneurs start their businesses whether they realize it or not. Self-actualization is the greatest gift of entrepreneurship.
When you are providing women with guidance at All You Are, what are the most common issues they are facing? Have you found that many women face similar issues? If so, how do you tackle that and get them to a place where they can overcome those obstacles?
Most women come to All You Are because they are feeling a sense that something is missing in their lives and aren't sure which way to turn. They have families, careers, a home, vacations and wonder why all those things aren't providing them with the joy and fulfillment they expected. Some are questioning their future career paths, some are contemplating entrepreneurship, some are evaluating their intimate relationship. At first they are almost afraid to admit it but once they realize they are not alone, then there is an immediate sense of relief. We begin by learning to tune into our inner voice so we can get clear what it is that we really WANT. Not what we think we need, or what we should want, or what we think others want for us. Once we get clear on our hearts desires, overcoming challenges to get there becomes much easier.
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