About the Author

I have over 20 years of experience in operations spanning multiple industries. I have been the COO of a global professional services company and am currently a Chief of Staff at a publicly traded data marketing organization. Leading businesses as an entrepreneur is my passion.

I love helping people grow into their careers and find their voice. I'm lucky to be supported by my amazing family. I've been married to my husband Nayan Patel for 20 years, and I have two children, Meera and Ronak. I'm also proud that my 15-year-old daughter Meera is also a business owner!

My energy comes from spending time with my family, baking, painting, and traveling to new places.

Core Values

Integrity

Do the right thing, even when no one is watching. Don’t lie. Don’t steal. Don’t cheat.

Help Others and be Kind

The universe will take care of you. Your job is to help others.

Persistence Pays Off

Bring it, 100% Every. Single. Day. Even when you don’t want to.

Figure it out

No matter what situation you are in, most of the time, you don’t get a roadmap. You must create your own map and directions to find a way.

Take Accountability

Take ownership 100% of the time, whether it’s good or bad. Do what you say you’re going to do.

Get comfortable with being uncomfortable

This is where the best learning happens. You’ll never grow in your comfort zone.

My daughter Meera Patel is also a business owner! Here is her story:

During the height of the pandemic, at the age of eleven years old, Meera came to me as I was busy working remotely and we were all stuck at home. She stood in front of me as I was typing away at my computer and proudly declared she was going to start a business. Now as any mother would- I didn’t really take her seriously and asked her what she was going to sell. She proceeded to tell me she’s been working on making homemade lip scrubs.

I stopped what I was doing because clearly, she had given this some thought. Meera was very much (and still is) into proper skin care and she always had chapped lips. I asked her to bring me some of her scrub, and I tried it. I was actually surprised- it was good. Now I was interested. I put my business coach hat on and started grilling her a bit. I asked her how her product would be different from other products, how much does it cost to make, how much will she charge, where will she sell it, etc.

Some of the answers she had and others she said she would get back to me. I told her I would fully support and guide her, but the work would 100% be on her. Meera agreed and began her market research. She gave out samples, asked many different people what flavors and colors they liked and came to the conclusion that she found some sort of correlation between what people liked and their astrological sign. That was it. Lipology was born.

Each lip scrub has a different flavor and color all appealing to its astrological sign- 12 different flavors for each of the zodiac. She got to work quickly and created each product doing research on food safety and rules and regulations. Meera then built her website and learned how to use a credit card reader. She started selling her product online and at farmers markets. To date she’s sold over 500 units and counting. In addition to that, Meera was the youngest member of the Vancouver Chamber of Commerce and is now the youngest member of the East Cobb Chamber of Commerce.

My girl’s dream is to be a CEO one day, I think she’s kind of already there. I am so incredibly proud of her and her accomplishments. It’s now four years later and she’s still working hard at her business. Meera has aspirations of achieving her undergrad and going on to get her MBA. I can’t wait to see what she does next!