Heather Eaton was a consultant at Deloitte when she received a proposal from the office of the firm’s CEO to spend six months as a stint for a nonprofit in Los Angeles. The company, called XPRIZE, specialized in giving prizes for whoever came up with innovative and impactful ideas, like cleaning the oil spilled in the Gulf Coast.
At the time, Heather had been seeking a deeper purpose for her work as a consultant and dealing with the frustration of not always being able to make a concrete impact through her work. After joining that nonprofit, she found the motivation she needed. She enrolled at Stanford to pursue her MBA, got a certification in public policy and social management and eventually became an entrepreneur focused on innovative apparel such as bra-less clothing and clothes and accessories for adults who experience difficulty getting dressed so they feel comfortable and confident.
Heather and a classmate from Stanford launched a bra-less clothing brand after she graduated from business school. They closed the company in 2023, but she never forgot the lessons she learned from the experience and the meaningful connections she built. Her own business didn’t prosper, but she made herself available to companies in need of a better product strategy.
She was connected to Joe and Bella, a brand that offers adaptive apparel to older adults and people with special needs related to health conditions or medical procedures. As Heather said, most people have a Joe or a Bella in her life, and hers experience accompanying her grandmother as she aged made it easy for her to connect to the brand and deeply care about their mission.
Heather’s trajectory can be a lesson to entrepreneurs and people who want to make an impact through innovation. Throughout her career, she learned to pay attention to the opportunities presented to her, deeply considering if that path would lead her to the impact she wanted to make.
Another thing, no less important: Heather believes entrepreneurs must find a healthy balance between ambition and collaboration. In her case, at the time she owned the bra-less company, she preferred to be less secretive about her business in order to be able to collaborate with others. She doesn’t regret that, and encourages entrepreneurs to see the connections they make as an opportunity to bring community.
“Diversity of thought is such an overlooked realm of possibility,” she told host Amy Boyle in the latest episode of the Speaking of Phenomenal podcast.
And as Heather shows, entrepreneurship is more than starting a new brand. To be an entrepreneur is to embrace the plasticity of our lives. To love and improve the world. How could collaboration be out of it?
Tell us: what would you do to increase collaboration in your everyday life?
Joe & Bella stylish, easy-dressing clothing for adults who are experiencing difficulties when getting dressed, whether due to age, a disability, chronic condition or recovering from an injury or procedure. Their clothes make dressing easier! If you have a Joe or a Bella in your life you can Save 15% off your order with Joe & Bella with code AMYBOYLEPHOTOGRAPHY (Not sponsored, just raving fans!)
Carolina Baldin is a freelance journalist from Brazil. Having worked in law, policy and regulation, she is passionate about everyday stories that illustrate larger issues. She graduated from a master's program at Northwestern University in 2023 and became a guest blogger on the "Speaking of Phenomenal" podcast blog in March 2024.
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