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Women of Influence Evening Series: Toronto – Manjit Minhas and Michele Romanow

“I need to be around people where I can be unapologetically ambitious.” – Michele Romanow

On March 1, 2016, we welcomed Manjit Minhas and Michele Romanow to the Women of Influence Evening stage for a fireside chat with CTV’s Marcia MacMillan to discuss the challenging but rewarding road on the entrepreneurial journey.

Powerhouse entrepreneurs in their own right, Manjit and Michele are also the newest female Dragons on CBC’s hit series “Dragon’s Den”, now in its 10th season. The revelatory discussion provided a ‘behind-the-scenes’ look into the best and worst pitches from the Den, as well as the personal struggles and successes of entrepreneurship at a young age.

Check out some of the key takeaways from the keynote address:

  • How do Michele and Manjit feel about their incredible success? “The profession keeps you grounded”, said Michele, “I don’t feel that successful, I feel like there is still so much to do.”
  • A new take on work-life balance: “There is no such thing as the perfect balance”, says Manjit, “You have fun as a kid, work your butt off in the middle of your life, so that hopefully at the end you can enjoy the fruits of your labour.”

Providing the official thank you for the evening was Elspeth Murray, Associate Dean at the Smith School of Business, and also a key mentor of Michele Romanow in her early days of entrepreneurship. Elspeth also announced the exciting launch of the Masters of Entrepreneurship & Innovation Program at the Smith School of Business, for those in the crowd who were inspired by Manjit and Michele to start their own businesses.

Congratulations to Crystal Macklin of First Insurance Funding of Canada, who walked away with our VIP giveaway. Thanks to the generous contributions from our sponsors, Crystal will be enjoying $1500 worth of prizes, including two tickets to the movies courtesy of Scotiabank and a spa gift basket courtesy of Captivate Networks.

In addition, congratulations to Erin Cowling on winning our first-ever Social Media contest! Erin won two tickets to the next Women of Influence Evening Series event on May 4th featuring Lesley-Anne Scorgie. For more information on upcoming events, please see here.

For more information and insights from the Dragons, read here on how Manjit built her empire at the age of 19, and here to read about Michele’s boldest moves as a Tech Titan.

Photography by Clix Visions Photography