Companies to Watch: Five Female Founders Changing the Face of New York Tech

The challenges women in tech continue to face are well-documented, and in many ways were amplified during the pandemic — but a bright spot did appear: In 2021, female-founded startups in the New York metro area more than doubled dealflow year over year. But in the last two years, venture capital investments became higher-volume and higher-value across the board, and even with record gains last year, women founders still received just two percent of venture capital in the US, the lowest portion since 2016.

There’s still much more we can do to reach better parity, and here in New York, BBG Ventures have been on the forefront of that shift. With the announcement of their Fund III last year, the firm doubled down on their commitment to invest in female founders transforming “the collective or lived experience of the 99 percent.”

To close out Women’s History Month, we teamed up with BBG Ventures to profile five founders from their portfolio who are doing just that — and in doing so, paving the way for the future of healthcare, media, and more.

What does your company do?
Reside Health co-founder and CEO Komal Kothari: Reside Health offers primary care and wellness services integrated into your workplace. Our mission is to empower people to live their healthiest lives, and that means bringing exceptional healthcare to them, physically at the office and virtually when at home. We use what we call a “click and mortar” approach to remove the hassles of accessing care when you need it — we are always just an elevator ride or a click away.

A question we love to ask every founder: why New York?
KK: New York is home for me, and in my unbiased opinion, the best city in the world! It’s full of vibrant and diverse local communities. More than anywhere, New Yorkers love having access to just about everything right in their neighborhood — everyone has their local bagel shop, bodega, and fitness center, so Reside’s hyper-local model of healthcare is very appealing to New Yorkers.

New York also has unique healthcare dynamics and some of the largest national commercial real estate owners, so it was the ideal place for us to start. The success of our model here is a very positive indicator of our ability to scale. And what’s most exciting is that New York is now becoming the capital of healthcare innovation, so the talent pool is just amazing.

You’re a Harvard-trained physician, who is now building a tech startup — and during a pandemic, of all times. What was it like moving into a founder role during the peak of COVID-19 in New York?
KK: At the beginning of the pandemic when New York was the epicenter, I was at the frontlines delivering care to COVID patients at NewYork Presbyterian Hospital. Our emergency rooms, hospital floors, and ICUs were completely overwhelmed — it was a harrowing experience. After the first wave subsided, I moved into the founder role, while still seeing patients at the hospital part-time.

For me, the pandemic further highlighted that our healthcare system is not working for patients or doctors. We need systemic change now more than ever. More than 40% of Americans skipped necessary medical care during the pandemic, mental health issues are skyrocketing, and costs continue to go up for individuals and their employers. The only way forward is to focus on helping people get primary, preventative care and mental health in a way that works for their lives.

What are Reside’s facilities like? What services do they support so far?
KK: Reside has created beautiful, modern, clean spaces that feel like a spa, not a traditional doctor’s office — from the atmosphere and decor to the strong focus on customer service and hospitality. We offer everything from annual wellness exams and routine medical care to behavioral health, physical therapy, acupuncture and massage, creating a one-stop shop for a wide spectrum of health and wellness needs.

Reside is a healthcare startup, but in many ways, also seems like a proptech startup, because you’re partnering with commercial landlords to deliver your services. Are amenities like on-site healthcare services going to become more common post-pandemic?
KK: Yes. We’ve had overwhelming response from both landlords and employees, and we know this model is becoming crucial in the post-pandemic hybrid workplace. In just the last nine months, we’ve established partnerships with some of the biggest commercial landlords in New York City: TF Cornerstone, SL Green and, most recently, Silverstein Properties. Our model enables us to reach tens of thousands of employees in an efficient way and to proactively manage their healthcare needs.

Among the many problems with traditional healthcare is that it takes weeks to get an appointment with a primary care doctor and requires 2+ hours out of your workday — all for just 15 minutes with the doctor. This results in poor patient experience and, even worse, it puts people off of getting the care they need. When people think of healthcare, “convenient” isn’t usually the first thing that comes to mind. But for us, convenience isn’t a nice-to-have — it’s a necessity.

What more can the tech and venture capital communities be doing to make sure more female founders get the support they deserve?
KK: First, I will say I am lucky to have some amazing investors, including BBG Ventures and AlleyCorp, that are leading the way in supporting female founders. I’d love to see more VCs thinking carefully about the process by which they evaluate companies. Start by asking: What are the metrics by which I am assessing a female-founded company? Are those slightly different from the metrics I used to assess a male-founded company? Recognizing any implicit biases and being intentional about course correction is the first step. Creating transparency around the diligence process both internally and externally can help promote accountability.

What’s one top growth goal you hope to achieve by the end of 2022?
KK: We are excited to launch in the World Trade Center — our largest location to date — in May. We look forward to exponentially growing the number of employees we serve and creating a positive lasting impact on their health.

Okay, three rapid fire questions. First: where do you get your favorite pizza slice?
KK: Favorite slice: Mama’s Too in my neighborhood. Favorite pie: Roberta’s, and yes, I’ll make the trek to Brooklyn for it.

What’s your favorite remote work or productivity hack?
KK: I’m old school and often write down my daily “to do” list on a piece of paper. It helps to get it out of my head and onto paper.

What does your company do?
Canela Media founder and CEO Isabel Rafferty Zavala: Canela Media is a leading digital media technology company offering brands a complete ecosystem to connect with multicultural audiences, starting with our free streaming platform service, Canela.TV, which enriches the new generation of US Latinos with access to unique, culturally relevant content. In addition to TV content, Canela Music features a unique blend of Latin music programming, featuring various genres from Latin Pop, Regional Mexican, Classics, Romantic, and more.

Canela Media reaches more than 50 million unique Hispanics across its 180+ premium Spanish-language sites. Combined with the company's proprietary data, Canela Media possesses in-depth knowledge and understanding of how to establish meaningful and culturally relevant connections with the new mainstream — US and Latin American Hispanics.

We’re headquartered in New York and rank as the third largest Hispanic ad-focused company, as well as the only female and minority-owned certified digital company.

A question we love to ask every founder: why New York?
IRZ: New York has everything going for it –— culture, talent, ambition. If you want to be where everything is happening, you need to be in New York!

BBG Ventures co-led your seed round back in October 2020, as New York was in the peak of the pandemic. Did that timing have an impact on your product or programming plans? How did you adapt?
IRZ: Absolutely. We had not planned on launching a new product during the pandemic but Canela.TV went ahead as planned. When we launched it, nearly every advertiser we signed pulled out — many major brands held back spending on emerging platforms and technology due to growing uncertainty in an unprecedented time. But audiences gravitated to Canela because they were missing Hispanic entertainment content in their lives while they were staying home during the pandemic.

The number of streaming service subscriptions passed one billion worldwide for the first time in 2020 at the peak of COVID. Advertisers followed, and in less than three years, Canela.TV has reached nearly 10 million downloads, with wide distribution through partners including Samsung, XUMO and LG. Canela.TV has also solidified ongoing partnerships with major brand clients, including McDonald's, Hyundai, Nissan, among other Fortune 500 companies. Some brands have spent from $100,000 to $5 million a quarter on Canela.TV advertisement spots.

We’ve seen a lot of new content streaming platforms pop up — especially while folks were stuck at home during the pandemic — but not all at the same level of growth. Why has Canela.TV been so successful?
IRZ: Canela.TV has been so successful because we have focused on creating an authentic experience and we continually bring content to our subscribers that they can’t get anywhere else. We don’t just shuffle through movies and telenovelas, we have a daily news program and sports. We’re also able to offer the service for free with support from advertisers. Most of our viewers do not pay for cable, and many don’t even have credit cards. We will always give them a free service and continue to bring them content that they cannot get elsewhere.

Are US Latinos still overlooked consumers? What more should US media companies be doing to more intentionally reach Hispanic or Spanish-speaking audiences?
IRZ: Yes, absolutely. The bigger media companies think that they can add a few Spanish titles and be done, but Hispanic audiences need more. They need sports and news and children’s programming. We now offer music (with videos and original programming) they can’t get elsewhere. Bigger companies overlook that many Hispanic viewers in the US do not have bank accounts, and therefore cannot pay for a streaming service.

With your Series A last month, have become one of the largest funded Latina-owned companies in the country. What was it like doing a raise during the pandemic? And what more can the tech and venture capital communities be doing to make sure more female founders get the support they deserve?
RZ: When I first sought investors, I went to nearly 130 meetings before finding someone who believed in Canela.TV enough to invest in it. It wasn't until I started setting up meetings with female VCs and Latino VCs that I was able to make tangible progress. Every single dollar of Canela’s outside investment is from female and minority VCs. While I believe this has made Canela stronger, more authentic and more successful, it's disappointing that the greater VC community doesn’t value what we do.

What’s one growth goal you’re excited to achieve by the end of 2022?
IRZ: Launching Canela Kids, which will focus on children’s programming and inspire the next generation of Latinos.

Okay, three rapid fire questions. First: where do you get your favorite pizza slice?
IRZ: Sadly, I don’t eat pizza. I’m allergic to milk.

What’s the best place in New York for a coffee or lunch meeting (remember in-person meetings)?
IRZ: The Capital Grille near Grand Central. It’s quiet and they have great service.

What’s your favorite remote work or productivity hack?
IRZ: I am obsessed with my calendar. Everything gets planned so it gets done. I recently took a productivity class that taught us to even plan for emergencies, so now my calendar has time for emergencies each day and for things that I hadn’t planned in the morning but will need to accomplish that day.

What does your company do?
Sugarbreak co-founder and CEO Scarlett Leung: Sugarbreak is a natural, non-prescription support system that empowers you to curb your sugar intake and manage your blood sugar levels so you can live your best life. One in three Americans are pre-diabetic or diabetic, with 80% of them not knowing. We want to use our products to educate customers on blood sugar and make blood sugar management easy and accessible.

A question we love to ask every founder: why New York?
SL: I grew up between Toronto and Hong Kong, and New York feels like the perfect mix of the two cities. There is always something new to discover — and it’s convenient, walkable, culturally diverse, and cultured with the most interesting people.

What’s the latest research on sugar consumption? Have we been eating more sweets throughout the pandemic?
SL: We actually did a survey over Valentine’s Day that showed that people were consuming more sweets over the pandemic. The average American consumes 150 lbs. of sugar per year! What’s even more alarming is that the average American child consumes enough sugar to fill a bathtub per year from beverages alone, which is more than adults. We need to make it easier for everyone to eat healthfully through education, tools like Sugarbreak, and better access to healthy foods.

You have a robust e-commerce operation, but Sugarbreak is also already in a lot of major retail chains like Target and CVS. Based on the business activity you're seeing across those channels, what predictions do you have for consumer behavior as we emerge out of the pandemic?
SL: I think it will be an interesting mix where consumers are used to buying a lot of necessities online and having them delivered to their homes. Actual brick and mortar will become even more focused on discovery and experience.

Sugarbreak is also a public benefit corporation. Can you briefly tell folks what that means, and why was it important for you to make that distinction?
SL: Yes, that means we are set-up with a mission statement that will benefit the public, which we are measured against. Our mission statement is to help people reduce sugar intake and reach healthy blood sugar levels. As the CEO, I am empowered to make business decisions that serve our mission first before financial returns.

You completed your seed round well into the peak of COVID-19 in New York. What was it like doing a raise during the pandemic? And what more can the tech and venture capital communities be doing to make sure more female founders get the support they deserve?
SL: It was tough, as female entrepreneurs historically already get less funding. Losing the face-to-face ability to convince an investor is a huge disadvantage. To add to all of that, I myself contracted a bad case of COVID, so I was trying to muster up the energy to look healthy and upbeat for all my pitches. I think that there definitely needs to be a mandate to support more female founders that is measurable and public. The statistics actually dropped during COVID, with less female founders being funded — and even worse for those of us who are BIPOC. I also think that we need more supporters from the top down. VCs also need to fundraise and if you look at the family offices or banks that fund them, the lack of diversity reduces at each level.

What are you excited about on your product roadmap for the rest of 2022?
SL: I am so excited for this upcoming year for Sugarbreak, as we are going into our second year of business. We are expanding our product line to include a pre-exercise electrolyte powder, a sugar-craving curbing gum (building on our Resist line), and the first saliva glucose swab available in the United States. Our goal is to make healthy blood sugar levels accessible and easy for everyone because most people are struggling with it. If we can get it to be front of mind for more people and have them both feel and measure the benefits, we will have more success in reducing the diabetes epidemic.

Okay, three rapid fire questions. First: where do you get your favorite pizza slice?
SL: Paulie Gee’s in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. They have a Neapolitan style pizza with sesame seeds on the bottom that have this crunch you can hear when you bite into it. My favorite pizza there is the “Hell Boy” — it’s basically a pepperoni pizza with hot honey. My stomach is grumbling just thinking about it. Of course, I take our Stabilize product before I eat it to minimize the blood sugar spike and crash and to reduce bloating!

What’s the best place in New York for a coffee or lunch meeting (remember in-person meetings)?
SL: Devoción or the coffee shop at the Fotografiska. The decor is beautiful and the coffees are great. If I’m going to meet someone in person, I might as well introduce them to a new place that I love! I rarely take lunch meetings because I am not good at speed eating and talking at the same time.

What’s your favorite remote work or productivity hack?
SL: I am a member of Chief, a private club for senior female executives that has a clubhouse in Flatiron I often work out of. Working from home is great, but as an entrepreneur, with the long hours I work, it starts to feel like I am just at work 24/7, so I find it helpful to have somewhere else to go to for work. I also carry around a trusty notepad titled “Today’s Hit List” that’s made by a female-owned printer called Risotto, and it keeps me organized.

What does your company do?
Norby co-founder and COO Sam Safer Valentine: Norby is a community success and marketing platform that arms creators, small business owners, and emerging brands with simplified tools to activate their community and grow their business.

A question we love to ask every founder: why New York?
SSV: I grew up in New Jersey and spent a lot of time in the city. It was love at first sight (as it is for so many) and I always knew one day I would live here. I also met my two co-founders Nick Gerard and Steven Layne in New York, and Nick is a native New Yorker so for us it was natural to build our business here. The tech community is super close-knit and through that we’ve been able to build an incredible support network. Beyond that, NYC is super diverse, which reflects our user base, but also presents different schools of thought and perspective that help with innovation.

Let’s start at the beginning — which wasn’t that long ago! When you launched Norby, we were already a few months into the pandemic. But did the idea exist earlier? And did COVID-19 force you to totally retool your business plan?
SSV: Nick, Steven, and I birthed Norby during the pandemic, almost by accident. After our businesses were each affected by COVID, we had some extra time on our hands and started a side project with a few friends we met in a Slack group. It was the height of the pandemic and IRL events were all going virtual, so we built a curated consumer-facing culture calendar that featured online events happening in art, fashion, design, wellness, and lifestyle. You could get a text when an event was starting, everything was beautifully designed, and we had a daily newsletter going out with all the coolest events. It took off and suddenly we found ourselves building a community around it.

As we built more tools to grow and manage the community, the creators and brands we were partnering with started asking us about our tech. And we had this “aha!” moment where we were like ‘okay, there is a business here and the opportunity looks huge. Let’s go for it.’ We eventually wound up shutting down the culture calendar, taking a beat, and then building the Norby MVP.

For organizations or brands where events and live activations were important before those were forced to shut down, how has Norby kept them connected over the past two years?

SSV: Audience engagement has changed dramatically over the last two years; it’s gone from superficial content marketing and top-down communication to actually knowing your audience and building personal relationships at scale. Brands and communities really understand the value in owning their own lists and building independent channels to reach their audience, so they are actively collecting information, holding events virtually, creating relationships, and adding value with things like conversational SMS and DM campaigns. There’s been a growing recognition that social audiences are rented, not owned, and people are looking for tools that protect them from being overly dependent on the social media giants.

We’ve heard a lot about “Zoom fatigue.” Are you worried about that extending to online communities more broadly? What are you excited about in Norby’s roadmap that can consider growth outside of the constraints of the pandemic?

SSV: Zoom fatigue is real! I think people are definitely hungry for IRL and hybrid experiences, and we’ve seen a lot of our customers starting to experiment with those. But we’re not worried about it as far as the business goes. Marketing has changed now and it’s not going back. Online activations, drops, workshops, DM campaigns, private text message lists — these are the tools of the trade now.

Our customers are experimenting with platforms like Geneva or scheming about how they can cut down on the time it takes to manage their community answering email, DMs, and text messages all day. There are just so many unsolved problems in this new world and so many ways to add value as a creator-oriented platform.

That brings us nicely to what Nick, Steve, and I are super excited about on our roadmap: Inbox by Norby. It’s still in Alpha and we’re testing it with a pilot group of customers, but it’s moving into Beta next month. It’s an omnichannel messaging inbox that allows users to reach their people over text message, Instagram, and Twitter DM, or email all from one place, cutting down on the time it takes to switch between dozens of apps and tabs. We couldn’t be more excited.

What’s the engagement tool creators are most bullish on right now? Newsletters, “link in bio” on social accounts, direct-to-text?
SSV: Creators are still very bullish on ‘link in bios’ for their top top of funnel coming off of various social channels. Widgets that can capture passive followers and have them sign up for email and SMS lists or sign up for an event are super valuable, and SMS marketing (whether that’s campaigns or two-way SMS conversations) is still just starting to take off.

You closed your seed round last summer. What was raising during a pandemic like? What more can the tech and venture capital communities be doing to make sure more female founders get the support they deserve?
SSV: Raising during a pandemic was in many ways more efficient, as it cut down on a ton of travel, so time wasn’t taken out of the day to day running of the business. But it can be really challenging pitching virtually versus IRL, and there are subtly different skills needed for each environment. Ultimately you have to adapt!

To answer that latter part of your question, I’ve been thinking a lot about how to talk about this, because although I am a female founder, I find myself at an intersection. I have two male co-founders, and I have seen first-hand how that has opened a few more doors for us versus a female founder-only team. That’s honestly unfair, as we have all worked our hardest to get our businesses off the ground. VCs can support more women founders and founders of color by taking cold meetings, tracking female founders they are excited by, proactively opening doors for them, making intros, and most importantly, taking more chances on them and putting their dollars behind their ideas and businesses. They could also expand their investing thesis and carve out dollars specifically for female entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs of color. (Some, like BBG Ventures, already are, and we’re incredibly proud of their commitment and happy to partner with them.)

What’s one top growth goal you hope to achieve by the end of 2022?
SSV: Launching our V1. Right now we’re still in private beta mode and users need to request an invite. We’ve been working to scale up and we can’t wait for our official launch this summer, which will include a free tier and self-serve onboarding.

Okay, three rapid fire questions. First: where do you get your favorite pizza slice?
SSV: Going with two neighborhood spots because they are tied. First, Gotham Pizza on York Ave. and 77th St. for a classic cheese slice, and then Williamsburg Pizza for the Cup & Char Grandma pepperoni slice. Drooling.

What’s the best place in New York for a coffee or lunch meeting (remember in-person meetings)?
SSV: Ha! I do remember those. Honestly, nothing beats a swanky hotel lobby.

What’s your favorite remote work or productivity hack?
SSV: I have a bit of ADD, so making lists combined with the Pomodoro technique is my jam. Pomodoro basically uses a timer to break work into intervals typically 25 to 30 minutes in length, followed by short five minute breaks. I usually do three to four rounds.

What does your company do?
Oova founder and CEO Amy Divaraniya: Oova is the first and only product on the market that tracks, predicts, and confirms ovulation, pinpointing the user's fertile window with unprecedented accuracy. Oova measures these hormones quantitatively, differing from all other tests on the market, which provide a binary high/low result, and our tests are accompanied by a personalized smartphone app. This enables users to see all results in comprehensible terms, along with personalized daily action plans, and share it with a patient’s clinician in real time.

All of this engineering is carefully encapsulated in a consumer-first hormone monitoring tool designed for ease of use, with a look and feel that creates user engagement and adherence. Oova has redefined the category of at-home testing, pulling it away from in-office or at-home sample collection with backend analysis by labs.

A question we love to ask every founder: why New York?
AD: Outside of the unmatched energy of the city, it’s also a hub for some of the best talent in the country. There’s this “go get it” mentality that is in the veins of the entire city, and that’s why we’re seeing so much innovation coming out of New York. There is no shortage of opportunity, whether it be with potential partners, collaborators, investors, or employees. The community is also full of early adopters and provides a powerful feedback loop for startup companies before they even begin to market outside of NYC. This type of critique and support is invaluable for a budding business.

What’s the origin story of Oova, and why did you think it was important to hone in on fertility specifically?
AD: I founded Oova because I went through a difficult time trying to conceive my son. I expected that I wouldn’t get pregnant in the first few attempts, but I never expected my journey to be as heartbreaking and devastating as it was. My husband and I wanted to avoid going through invasive treatments and decided to try naturally. I did everything I was supposed to do. I used ovulation sticks, took my body temperature each morning, and tracked everything. And yet, I still had negative pregnancy tests each month. The apps I was using never seemed to understand me. I came to realize that all of these “smart” tools were designed for women who had perfect cycles, and that wasn’t me. I didn’t fit that mold.

I began to learn that having irregular periods actually affected a majority of the female population. This made me realize that women didn’t have the tools they needed to understand their cycle. But the technology existed — it just wasn’t being applied to women’s health. Outside of IVF, the innovation in the fertility sector seemed to end at a blinking smiley face. Women deserve better.

This is when I decided to create Oova — an experience that starts with data and ends with a woman being empowered with information about her fertility. The product had to be accurate, non-invasive, done at home, and completely personalized. My team has delivered on this vision. We built the first and only at-home test that quantitatively measures two hormones, informing a woman of her fertile days and confirming ovulation. We’ve designed the perfect tool for the irregular woman.

Did the pandemic force you to pivot some of your roadmap? Is that how the at-home kits were created?
AD: When I started Oova, I set out to build a direct-to-consumer product that could be accessible to any woman whether she was working with a clinical team or not. The pandemic provided us with a really unique opportunity. In April 2020, fertility clinics were being forced to shut their doors because fertility treatment was viewed as an elective procedure. This left patients in a horrible state because their treatments were being put on hold, indefinitely. Clinicians were struggling because they had no way to monitor their patients while they were in this holding pattern. That’s when clinicians started reaching out to me to see if they could utilize our technology to do remote hormone monitoring.

We quickly pivoted our model and built a HIPAA compliant web dashboard that enabled clinicians to receive their patients hormone measurements completely remotely and in real time. This became a huge game changer for the industry — and our primary business model. We ended up launching a year earlier than planned in a channel we had on our roadmap for five years down the road. Currently, Oova’s technology is being utilized in over 90 clinics across the US.

Right, your product is an alternative to making constant in-person trips to a doctor or fertility clinic. Do you think the COVID-era rise in at-home and virtual care will have staying power beyond the pandemic? What will healthcare look like at the end of the decade?
AD: Absolutely. The pandemic significantly shook healthcare. It brought to light just how out of date our entire system is. The pandemic allowed telemedicine to become a critical part of all practices. It exemplified how much of our checkups and treatment protocols can be done without having to go into a clinic, and there’s no going back now. In fact, there is now an expectation from patients and consumers to get lab quality results in the privacy of their home and be able to seamlessly share that information with their healthcare team. Oova is at the forefront of this pivotal moment.

You raised your seed round in the summer 2021. What more can the tech and venture capital communities be doing to make sure more female founders get the support they deserve?
AD: There is a big discrepancy between the metrics female founders need to prove out versus what their male counterparts need to in order to secure the same amount of funding. In order for the playing field to be leveled, there needs to be less emphasis on a female founder versus a male founder. Does the idea make sense? Does the business model look enticing? Is there a solid market for this product or service? Is the team building this company with the right team to do it? In my experience, funds in NYC have been really good about evaluating the business versus evaluating my company as a company founded by a woman.

It is also important to support female founders more holistically. For example, oftentimes women are the primary caretakers of their families — they may need support with childcare in order to build their business. In the past, this may have been seen as a liability, but it actually showcases the resilience and determination women have. If we’re passionate about what we’re building, we’ll figure out a way to get it all done. I want to hope that the community is shifting their view on female founders and embracing that we have lives outside of our businesses. These choices should not be held against us.

What’s one top growth goal you hope to achieve by the end of 2022?
AD: A major focus for our company this year is to continue to build out our clinical offering and are expanding our clinical partnerships. We are actively bringing on new partners and are excited to grow this out further in 2022.

Okay, three rapid fire questions. First: where do you get your favorite pizza slice?
AD: I’m gluten free and love the gluten free pizza at Two Boots.

What’s the best place in New York for a coffee or lunch meeting (remember in-person meetings)?
AD: This seems like such a foreign concept now, but pre-pandemic, I loved meeting up at The Bar Room. Their Bar Room fries are amazing!

What’s your favorite remote work or productivity hack?
AD: Every night I make a list of my accomplishments for the day (no matter how big or small). We often forget the small wins that we achieve throughout the day and instead hold on to the things we didn’t get to, or the things that went wrong. Being remote, it’s easy to lose sight of your why. I find myself flipping through my notebook on those days, and it provides a quick reminder of why I am still running this marathon.