By Kimberly Johnson

Anxious to enter the workforce, Brittany K. Earls finished her undergraduate education in English and sociology in just three years.  She went to work and found herself beginning to resent being told what to do, when to take breaks and when to go home.  After a bout of depression, the tipping point came one Monday morning when the elevator she shared with a middle-aged woman stopped.  Before the woman got off, she let out a long sigh and said, “Another week . . . ” Brittany’s life flashed before her eyes. She decided to make a change. “I’m very independent and I didn’t want to live like that . . . live for the weekend.”  After applying for writing jobs she really didn’t want, she realized the idea for Genesis magazine.

At 22 years old, Brittany woke up at 7am to write articles before reporting to her full-time gig at 10:30am.  After work, she waited tables, sometimes as late at 10pm, before going home to work on the fledgling magazine until 1am.  There was no business loan or budget so Brittany lost sleep, ate oatmeal for breakfast and peanut butter sandwiches for dinner until business picked up.  Today she has a staff of writers who report to her as Editor-in-Chief.

Genesis-Mag.com is an online social publication that highlights heroes who set the record for being first in their area of accomplishment.  People in the world around us who manage to do what most say can’t be done, but who often go unrecognized or uncelebrated by pop culture. “I usually get a lot of pushback when people find out the content is non-sexual and not geared toward celebrities,” Brittany says.  Although the company has only been in existence since 2009, it has offices in New York and Atlanta and juggles 30 advertisers.

When asked about her work ethic, Brittany says, “My parents raised me to finish what I start.”  Brittany’s mom, also a talented writer, never fulfilled her dream of writing for Hallmark and her father closed his business after two years in order to focus on the family.  “It’s easier to be an entrepreneur when you’re single.  I feel I am picking up where my parents left off.”  Earlier this summer, Brittany participated in a 60 second live business pitch contest in Atlanta, hosted by 100 Urban Entrepreneurs. The best ideas were awarded with one-on-one mentorship, an eight-week business course and $10,000 in capital.  Among the three winners, two were women.  One of those women was Brittany. She plans to use the $10k to create an app for Genesis-Mag.com and increase distribution.

Just six short years ago, Ofelia de la Valette decided it was time to do what she had always wanted to do – dance.  At age 42, she was a married mother of two and the owner of de la Valette & Associates insurance brokerage.  Not many would have taken the leap, especially if they, like Ofelia, had no formal training in their desired vocation.  Nothing could stop her.

Cuban-born Ofelia came to the U.S. with her family at the age of three.  Since her family’s financial situation left no room for dance lessons, the young dreamer spent hours creating choreography at home for friends and family.  She danced at school and eventually took Flamenco lessons.  However, becoming an adult and starting a family of her own caused a shift in her priorities.  She focused on business and family, but remained unfulfilled.  As time went on, Ofelia eased back into her area of passion by taking dance classes.  She went from taking dance and performing locally to teaching dance at Emory University. The first day she taught at Emory was the day she closed the doors of de la Valette & Associates forever.

Ofelia combined her drive for business with her desire for dance and opened the first Dance 101 studio in Atlanta’s Miami Circle design district.  The unusually elegant studio attracted so many interested clients that Ofelia quickly outgrew the space.  She relocated to the current 10,000sf location and set the record for being the largest dance studio in the country.

Still hands-on, Ofelia teaches classes and manages the business.  She boasts over 13,000 registered students and 38 instructors who teach 110 different classes.  She has been featured in Creative Loafing and on CNN Small Success Stories.  Most recently, she was honored by Mayor Kasim Reed with the Phoenix Award, the most prestigious award a mayor can bestow.  By exercising the courage to live her dream at a time in her life when many would have settled for mediocrity, Ofelia’s story is a source of inspiration.

Chantana Adams has no advertisers or a team of writers who work for her.  She hasn’t set any records or taught any classes either.  Although she did not win an award, she, like Brittany entered the 100 Urban Entrepreneurs 60 second live business pitch contest. Having just made the submission deadline to enter, Chantana almost missed the opportunity to gain exposure for Sitting Pretty, her start-up intimate apparel business for petite women with large breasts.

Until she was laid off, Chantana worked for an engineering firm and considered the bra design/manufacturing problem a personal one – not something she wanted to share with the public.  “I decided to fill the need because the problem is so great.  My boyfriend called me selfish for not thinking of others.”  He was also the one who talked her into entering the pitch contest.  Although it received positive feedback from the judges, Sitting Pretty did not come out on top.  Since then, Chantana has intensified her research, worked on bra designs, begun the patent process and attracted the interest of an investor. “It was scary, but entering the contest taught me to know my business thoroughly and recognize the competition.”  Chantana has no regrets about participating and now pursues Sitting Pretty with greater motivation.

It’s no secret that Georgia has a lot to offer the female entrepreneur and business owner.  Through Mayor Kasim Reed’s leadership, the city of Atlanta provides opportunities for women doing business in the public and private sector.  The Minority/Female Business Enterprise (M/FBE) offers certification through the Office of Contract Compliance which makes minority-owned and female-owned firms eligible for the Equal Business Opportunity (EBO) program. In addition, the 2010 Census and the American Express Open State of Women-Owned Business reports women in Georgia employ more than 231,000 people and generate close to $42 billion dollars in annual revenue.  Georgia also leads the nation with 97.5% growth in the number of women-owned firms since 1997. The national growth rate is only 50% since 1997. Georgia hosts more women-owned businesses than any other state in the country.

Although growth in historically male dominated industries has increased overall, the fastest growth rate among women-owned firms has been in education services.  Maybe that’s why the other female pitch contest winner, Kwanza Fisher of Neighborhood Mathematica, was recently chosen to go to the White House as a part of the weekly Champions of Change panel. Neighborhood Mathematica is a math education initiative that supports students in first through eighth grade by helping them gain greater competency in math. By providing them with ten weeks of free math coaching, students are prepared to meet grade level requirements and participate in math competitions.

Atlanta is open for everyone, but for women in particular, Atlanta is open for business.  To learn more about the information in this article, please visit them online: Genesis magazine; Dance 101; and Neighborhood Mathematica.