Ivo Lukas, 24Notion’s CEO/Founder, was sought out by ASU/STEM/WISE leaders for an exclusive interview opportunity with ambitious, technology-minded high school girls. With a mission of supporting and understanding how women entrepreneurs/STEM leaders can make it to the top and then providing mentorship for young girls who want to follow those leaders’ footsteps, Lukas was a natural candidate to be interviewed. Our trusted leader at 24Notion jumped at the opportunity to reach out to young girls and reminisce on her journey from being a math-savvy high school student to top female STEM entrepreneur.
Dr. Robyn McKay, professor and mentor of a group of motivated, STEM/WISE-minded high school girls, acted as moderator extraordinaire during a casual question and answer interview style with Lukas. The questions were created and presented by fifteen high school girls, who were participating in a daylong career fair, STEM workshop, and day-in-the-life conference, and each one were fun, personal and focused on advice and personal experiences. The virtual and online interview was conducted over Skype video conference call – a fitting medium for a STEM-based discussion – and was then featured in Dr. Robyn McKay’s article, “3 Strategies for Increasing Self-Worth, Net Worth: Women in STEM” and made into a podcast, where you can listen here.
We picked the best take-aways from the interview and drafted a list of Ivo Lukas’ top advice in leaving your stamp in the STEM/WISE world. Below, you will find fundamental lessons and personal experiences from Lukas herself. For more helpful words of wisdom, listen to the whole podcast.
1. Personal strengths – creative, innovative, and math-minded. Even in High School she worked hard to make the things that she enjoyed her strengths and then utilize them in the technology world.
2. What makes a good mentor – a good mentor breaks you out of your comfort zone. There will always be people around to comfort you (i.e. parents, teachers, siblings) but a good mentor is one that encourages you to keep improving and pushes you to new experiences.
3. Vision for the future – keep pushing the envelope. Lukas plans on keep building 24Notion, the business she built from the ground up, and taking on new challenges with the company. She also plans on mentoring more with women and girls in STEM careers and donating her time and skills to philanthropic endeavors. Proving she is a women of her word, Lukas has already kick started the Girls in Tech Mentoring Program (GITm) and has been a huge player in the continuing development of Girls in Tech, a non-profit social enterprise committed to engaging, educating, and empowering like-minded women to enter technology fields with confidence and a capacity for success. Check out more about Girls in Tech and the mentorship program and stay ahead of the loop with Lukas’ Huffpost article on the next generation’s leaders in STEM.
4. Biggest challenge/achievement — 24Notion. She started the company by its bootstraps and has been able to gain the funding needed to become a full global integrative creative marketing and lifestyle agency with a list of impressive clients. She remembers when people told her that she was crazy for not only starting a business, but also giving so much back to philanthropic efforts. 24Notion has been ranked as #23 by Portland Business Journal on their list of most philanthropic companies, which shows that staying to your core values and listening to your own instincts is always important.
5. What did you want to be in high school — Everything. Lukas disclosed that she dreamed of being a mathematician, scientist, flight attendant, CIA agent, and the list goes on. Even with so many passions and work ambitions, everything that Lukas wanted to do came down to technology, creativity and art.
To hear more from Ivo Lukas, check her out at @MsSonicFlare
To learn more about 24Notion and the company that has launched Lukas into a top female entrepreneur and leader in STEM-careers, follow us on:
