July Mom Entrepreneur of the Month~Ashita of Slidelane.com

I just love it when I meet another mama who is just as ambitious as me, this month I had the opportunity to meet with Ashita Trikah of a new  site, named Slidelane, easy to remember as it includes my NAME.  HA.  She greeted me at 9am with her family behind her all looking perfect, I loved it. I arrived in my sweat pants and sneakers, quite a contrast!  Here is Ashita…

Tell us about you and your business-to-be!

I’m a mom of two (3 and 18 months).  I’ve always been ambitious and hungry for challenges.  I love learning something new.   Physical, mental and spiritual balance is very important to me.

Slidelane is a social marketplace where new parents can find, recommend and share the best places and services in their neighborhoods.

The site (and soon to come mobile apps) replicates the word-of-mouth experience that parents can find chatting with other parents at the neighborhood park.  The content is both curated and community driven.  We wanted to make it a super easy and clean experience for parents to find stuff like the best baby boutique, meal delivery, music class, photographer or sleep trainer…and we have!

What was your career prior to becoming a mompreneur? 

– I was in Corporate America doing hi-tech product marketing, management and strategy.

Why do you want start your own business? 

– I have had the burning itch since business school to launch my own thing.  Even in my corporate roles, I was always most passionate about innovation.  It’s the most exciting challenge I’ve ever had.  Most importantly, I love the flexibility it gives me to focus on my kids when I need to.

What makes you unique and makes your business different from anyone else out there? 

– We are two tech savvy moms that have worked in cutting edge web/mobile stuff but also understand  and care deeply about our target demographic.  We’ve both been there, and understand the challenges that new parents face.  Having these characteristics, along with the support, ambition and luxury to take time off from our corporate jobs to thoughtfully build a company is lucky.  I think we’re in a unique situation.

What accomplishments are you most proud of in your business so far? 

Launching our invite only beta, getting our first set of users, and receiving positive feedback.  Hearing from people that they love our site and found it valuable is unbelievably rewarding.

What do you like most about being a mompreneur?

I love the flexibility both personally and professionally.    I also love that my skills as a mom are so transferable.  Multi tasking with two kids and keeping household operations moving makes you a ninja!

What advice do you have for other aspiring mompreneurs?

Lean on the support you have and follow your dreams.  It’s worth it.  Drink a lot of coffee. Sleep is overrated.

If someone knocked on your door, and it was during business hours… (assuming you work at home) how will they find you?  Kid on hip, overalls… pjs?

skinny jeans, boots, and a comfy sweater drinking tea/coffee and on my laptop or phone

Do you each lunch?  Favorite food?

I eat as I go through my day at least every two hours.  I do a lot of meetings over lunch or coffee and ALWAYS snack.

What time do you finally fall into bed at night?

It depends how tired I am but 11:30 is pretty standard.

Oh, and also… open ended question… any insight or advice for other mamas?

You cannot do everything.  There are only 24 hours in the day.  Prioritize, and it’s ok if some things slip.  I use the 10-10-10 rule.  Will this be worth it in 10 minutes, 10 days or 10 years?  It helps me figure out that a ballet class for my daughter may take precedence over a meeting.  It also helps me order out, and deal with a messy house so that I can focus on work.

Any challenges you’d like to mention…?

It’s tiring and like everything in motherhood you are torn between where you spend your time (your company vs. your family).   You work REALLY hard without a financial pay out initially, but we’re used to that as moms…aren’t we?