Tory Burch on female ambition and motherhood in the age of #MeToo

Tory Burch on female ambition and motherhood in the age of MeTooTory Burch on female ambition and motherhood in the age of MeTooTheres no denying thatTory Burch, Designer and CEO of the Tory Burchempireand Founder of theTory Burch Foundation, is a woman with fiery ambition. Last week, her Foundation hosted its first ever Embrace Ambition Summit, where female (and a couple of brave male) entrepreneurs, entertainers, and thought leaders spoke about how they embrace ambition and thrive in a world where stereotypes regarding race, gender,and sexuality all too often plague the trajectory of a womans career. Burchspokewith Thrive Global about ambition, motherhood, and self-care.1. Youre known for championing women to embrace their ambition. While the message of follow your dreams is important, whats a piece of advice you wish someone had given you as a young woman starting her career?When I started a company, one of the first things that my parents said to me was thicken your skin, and als o to think of negativity as noise. That idea has really kept me in a frame of mind where Ive been focused on the task at greifhand and not necessarily on the naysayers. I let my work speak for itself. So, thats the advice Id give to a young woman Let your work speak for itself.2. Youve spoken a time in your past when a journalist asked if you were ambitious, and how that question represented a pivotal moment in your career. Today, what does ambition mean to you?Oh, when that journalist asked me if I was ambitious - I thought it was a very rude question. Ambition had, and still does, have negative connotations when associated with a woman. After the journalists article came out, my friend Jane Rosenthal called and said, nice article, but you shied away from the word ambition. She was right, and it struck me as unfair in many ways. Since then, I knew that I wanted to change the conversation around the word. For me, equal rights for women should not be a favor, it should be a given. Its an issue of humanity.3. In the context of the Tory Burch Foundations mission and as a mother of three young men, what does motherhood mean to you?I mean, its been the joy of my life having three children. I have a lot of children, actually. I have three stepdaughters, three boys, and then my fianc has three boys. I always wanted to have a lot of children, though I dont know if I knew Id have this many Its so important to expose children to different ways of thinking and enlighten them to different cultures and to show them the beauty of diversity and show them that thats what make our country beautiful and its what makes my company beautiful. I also show them that of course, diversity is whats right for humanity, but its also whats right for business. Different perspectives is additive and its just like how we needed men at this conference You can be at a womens conference, in a room full of women, and we all agree. So, I think you have to have those difficult conversations, and certainly Ive tried to teach my boys how to respect women. My dad used to say, being a gentleman is not a part-time job, and I think authenticity is at the core of everything.4. What advice do you have for a young woman who wants to embrace her ambition, but doesnt have access to capital?Be resourceful. Im a big fan of cold calls. Have your thoughts together, keep it short, have a unique idea and then learn how to present yourself. We work with our entrepreneurs very closely on confidence and how to sell their concept, but theres many places that you can look to for capital. For example, at our Foundation, we are giving women access to low-cost capital, affordable loans, mentorship through education, and of course our fellowship program. There are definitely ways to get that access that you need.5. Finally, whats one well-being habit you wont sacrifice?It has to be sports. I love playing tennis and being active - thats why I started our sport line because it was such a natural for me. I grew up outside basically so living in the city is a new experience for me. Im definitely a country girl.This article first appeared on Thrive Global.