S1, E20: Rooted in Purpose: How a 50-Year Garden-to-Beauty Brand Cultivates Workplace Dignity

Martina: [00:00:00] All of Sunday or it starts Saturday night ’cause you don’t get one free moment. And we’ve created that space for people to really breathe and think clearly that Dr. Heska, we’re marathoners. We’re not sprinters. We’re long game. We’ve been around since 1967, doing this for a long time. In a very crowded marketplace, yet still very successful that it allows us to pace ourselves and pause and make thoughtful decisions.

Martina: I am so grateful for that and I am allowed to lead in a manner that really serves people.

Georgi: Did you know the average person will work 90,000 hours in their lifetime? What if you could use those hours to find fulfillment and become a disruptor for good? Welcome to the Work That’s Worth It. Podcast. I’m Georgi an Tobin, and I’m here to demonstrate that an ambitious, meaningful, and rewarding career is not just a dream.

Georgi: It’s achievable. Each episode we’ll dive into conversations [00:01:00] with global change makers who crack the code on com. Binding income and impact. If you’ve ever felt like you were torn between a paycheck and your purpose, or maybe you simply yearn for more purpose, you’re going to be exposed to the ambitious humans who have done it themselves ready to make your work worth it.

Georgi: Let’s get started.

Georgi: Today I’m joined by Martina. He. CEO of Dr. Hushka Skincare, USA and founder of the Giving Garden Loyalty Program. As a visionary leader in the natural beauty space, Martina has transformed Dr. Hauschka’s presence in the American market while maintaining the brand’s 50 year commitment to sustainability and natural ingredients.

Georgi: But what fascinates me about Martina’s story goes beyond the business success as a proud Mexican American who grew up experiencing food insecurity. Martina has created a leadership style that centers on dignity, [00:02:00] authenticity, and purpose. Her passionate advocacy for food justice and her commitment to mentoring the next generation of leaders reflect how a leader’s personal values can transform workplace culture for the better for others.

Georgi: In today’s conversation, we’ll explore how Martina creates an environment where employees actually look forward to Mondays. Why having a window overlooking nature matters and what it means to lead a company that puts people before profits? Join us for a moving discussion about creating work that truly matters both for ourselves and our communities.

Georgi: Martina, great to have you on the work that’s worth it. Podcast. Thank you for being here, Georgi. Thank you so much. I’m happy to be here. Yeah. On this bright Saturday morning, and I would love to hear on a Saturday morning what

Martina: makes your work worth it. Wow. So it’s Saturday and I am so excited to be here.

Martina: Working because I believe I really have the opportunity to do work that’s [00:03:00] worth it. I work for, I don’t wanna use the word work. Really. I have the privilege and the honor of leading a company called Dr. Hushka Skincare. I am the CEO of Dr. Hushka USA, and have the privilege to really shepherd this company that is grounded in nature.

Martina: And sustainability and has a very clear mission about who we are in terms of our relationship to not only nature, but our relationship to humanity and how we care for that collectively as an organization.

Georgi: Oh, that’s beautiful. I love that you feel it’s an honor to be working there that’s so unique and inspiring.

Georgi: I wonder if you can give a little history of the brand of how long it’s been around because. Not to age myself, but I have known this brand for a very long time, and every time when I was younger and would be traveling, maybe backpacking around Europe or something, I would inevitably leave something behind and sometimes it was [00:04:00] face cream and I would go and find it on the shelves.

Georgi: And so I wonder if you can tell a little bit about how long the brand has been going for and what it stands for.

Martina: I so often hear similar stories from other people that I meet along the way. We have been around since 1967. We have been truly one of the pioneers in the natural space, and the brand really started from a medicinal garden.

Martina: We have a strong history in homeopathy. And natural medicinals and that expertise in that scientific backing. We translated into skincare about 50 years ago. So we’ve been doing this for a while. We are one of the cleanest brands. ’cause the language now for many of the younger consumers is they talk is a brand clean and what does that mean?

Martina: And we are a hundred percent natural and we have been since day one. And that I think really sets us aside in the space and in the category. There are so many natural brands out there, [00:05:00] but we have been doing it in a way that we have not changed how we operate. We still have the original medicinal garden that provides ingredients for our tinctures, and some of our tinctures can last for 10 years, 15 years, 20, 25 years, and all of that work in our garden is done by hand, which is pretty amazing and pretty powerful, and it’s not easy work.

Martina: And we also have farms in Germany. And we also source, we have partners all around the world where we source ingredients from to make the ingredient batches, to bring formulations to life that you see on shelf every single day.

Georgi: Wow. And our listeners may not know exactly what your role is, but maybe you can explain what you do at your company.

Martina: What do I do? That’s a tough one. So I am the Chief Executive Officer of Dr. Hushka Skincare, USA. So I help guide and develop the North American business, specifically the US business, the US and Mexico. And I work towards [00:06:00] not only building the business in terms of, obviously it’s a business revenue, but it’s also about our bigger.

Martina: Message and really sharing the bigger organizational messages on our mission statement. And our mission statement is very simple and very clear. It is care for the earth, care for humanity, and care for the future. So my role is to make sure that everything that we are doing in the area that I’m responsible for in the US and Mexico, that we are in fact doing that.

Martina: And we do that in several different ways. We try to choose partnerships that meet not only the needs of the organization, but meet the consumer. We need to meet her where she’s at. We try, and I use the word try because nobody’s perfect. Right? And I think that’s very important to recognize that there’s no perfect organization or group out there.

Martina: And we try to always put people first and internally we have. A [00:07:00] guide. We put people before profit, and I know there’s probably a lot of people in the industry that maybe give a little bit of an eye roll to that or maybe give a little bit of a chuckle, but it’s actually true. I’d love to hear more about that.

Martina: Why don’t you tell us what that means? Help make that tangible. Tangible and in action. So we are shepherded by a foundation. So in Germany there’s a foundation that was created to ensure in perpetuity that we did not have to compromise our standards in every aspect of our business. How we farm, how we source, how we produce, how we treat our people.

Martina: So there are no shareholders. So we are not under the pressure of a shareholder and a quarterly review and a quarterly profit call or an annual profit call. We are really allowed to go at a pace that is one sustainable because we’ve been around since 1967 without any outside investment, and that’s a pretty powerful statement.

Martina: Specifically in the [00:08:00] beauty category. It is near impossible to do that. We don’t have a parent company, so this idea. Of perpetuity allows us to move in a way to make decisions that will keep the integrity of the brand, the integrity of the product, and the integrity of our mission statement. We’re not foolish.

Martina: We know that we have to be productive in order to keep this going. It’s a beautiful cycle and there’s a rhythm to it. So we know that we have to be productive and that productivity comes in. The form that I bring to the organization. Are we making the right decisions? Are we making the right decisions with our partners?

Martina: Are we launching product at the right time? And things like that that ultimately come back to the foundation in the heart of who we are, allows us to make very thoughtful decisions on a day-to-day basis, and we are able to be responsive versus reactive. Okay. And that is

Georgi: because you don’t have [00:09:00] shareholders or having to align with shareholders wanting certain financial terms that you can make.

Georgi: Mm-hmm. The best decision for your mission that does align with profit, but it’s not only profit. Correct. Which

Martina: I think is unheard of in many places. Yeah. What drew you to this brand? I have been a fan and an admirer of the brand for many, many years, and I will date myself. I used one of the original products over 30 years ago and fell in love, and I followed the brand because the brand in its formulations very much aligned to who I was.

Martina: I grew up with a Mexican American mother who really believed that there were lots of other alternatives than conventional medicine. Block Solve was her go-to for everything. My sisters and I laugh. You could have a wound on your head and she would say, put. Black salve on it. You don’t know this, but I have a Mexican

Georgi: husband, so I, so, and I have a SI have a [00:10:00] Mexican mother-in-law, so I know that there’s always a solution in the closet.

Martina: Yes, there’s always a solution in the closet, really in your kitchen. So I felt like as I was building my career, I felt that I never quite fit to be really candid with you. That I was in a space that didn’t look like me. I wasn’t reflected in the see it be it, especially for women. And now that the industry has changed so much.

Martina: But 30 years ago, that wasn’t the case.

Georgi: Yeah. Tell me about that. Not feeling like you fit or didn’t know sort of how you fit. Let’s go into that. I

Martina: love the idea of this was a business about women and that you could make women feel great about themselves and not necessarily how they looked because.

Martina: Makeup, skincare, fragrance. That’s kind of like an essence, that’s a feel, and it’s not the whole woman or the whole person, but I never felt like I fit all the companies I worked at. I looked to my right and I looked to my left, and [00:11:00] nobody really looked like me, and I felt like, wow, there is a space for me here.

Martina: There is a social moral compass that I had. That wasn’t being met as well because I worked for companies, amazing companies doing really great work, but they didn’t really fit into my social moral compass and they didn’t fit into the visual DNA of who I was. Yeah.

Georgi: And just to pause there for a sec, I think some people don’t actually know that that’s what they’re missing is sort of the moral compass part of work ’cause they haven’t experienced it.

Georgi: But it sounds like you were craving something. Extra. Yeah. That you hadn’t, that

Martina: I wanted community. That’s really, I think the best way to describe it was I was looking for community and I was looking for a sense of purpose, and I think what fed into that was I’m a really just naturally curious person. I like to understand how things work.

Martina: I like to understand how people think and the wise of things. And you know, I got to an inflection point in my career where I had such a gift [00:12:00] to work at a brand called Carol’s Daughter. It was founded by Lisa Price, a black woman who was creating formulas for women with highly textured hair. Originally for African American hair and ultimately African American Latina hair and textured hair in general.

Martina: And to see a woman of color in that space. And just on one hand this powerhouse, and on the other hand, this just like a mom, like this. Incredibly grounded, kind, loving. Person. I thought, wow, there is another way to be doing business. And that really sparked was a little bit of an inflection point in my career of to what’s next?

Martina: Where do I go from here? I knew from day one that I wanted to, and I could lead a brand. But what was equally as important, I wanted to be in a space where I could create community for other people and be responsible for other people. And when I say [00:13:00] responsible, I don’t mean I’m gonna sign the checks and I’m gonna make sure the orders get paid for and everybody gets health insurance, but really create space and care for people in a way where they loved coming to work.

Martina: They had that passion and that fire. I love going to work. We have this insanely cool office. We bought a church in 2018 and we fully gutted it and we used all of the materials and really created a sustainable model of a property that was in disrepair, and we made this beautiful space. What an incredible thing.

Martina: What city is this in? It’s in Hatfield, Massachusetts. Okay. In the woods of Western Massachusetts. And the first part was create a space that people wanna come to, right? Because so much of that is when you look at this beautiful space filled with light, I. And we also did some things. We made sure everybody has a window, everybody can look out into nature.

Martina: Everybody gets a little bit of that beautiful [00:14:00] sunlight on any given day. So that was my first idea, is I wanted to be able to create a space when I had the opportunity where people would really wanna come to work and find a sense of contentment in the way that contentment with now I’m not just content with what I’m doing.

Martina: That moment of this feels good. And your soul and

Georgi: your heart. Yeah. You’re touching your heart right now. And I just. I completely relate to what you’re saying and I love the idea that everybody gets a window because that’s just a level of dignity that we often, yes. Don’t get in work. It’s to be, you know, I was, this whole project got birthed when I read that the average career is 90,000 hours and it’s such a large portion of your life, of your life, and to just be going through it in a mundane.

Georgi: Oh, I have to go to work. Here I go again. It’s not what I wanted. And I’ve met so many other people who don’t want that either. So I love that you envision a place that people can feel excited to come and that they are connected with nature. And the space is [00:15:00] interesting because that all adds to what you can contribute as well.

Georgi: I

Martina: have an open door policy, so I think that’s a big part of it, everybody. I mean, and I love the fact that people will come in and they’ll share snippets from their weekend, or if they had an important milestone in their life or an inflection point, I. That they’re so comfortable and they’ll come to my door and they’ll share it.

Martina: And they’ve watched my son grow from a high schooler to a college graduate to a full grown adult as I’ve watched their children have children in some cases. And there’s a sense of community that we all share and that we are all responsible for. And when you think about the idea of dignity, I wanted.

Martina: People to be able to go home from work and not be stressing out. Like I didn’t get that one thing done. So we don’t work on the weekends unless we’re traveling. A lot of times we have to travel to Germany, which is amazing. But in general, when the company closes at five o’clock on Fridays, I have the [00:16:00] respect that, and it’s a very known thing.

Martina: If I send an email, it’s just ’cause my mind’s going, I’m just, I gotta get it off my desk. I don’t expect any responses. I don’t expect anybody to do anything. Because people need to recharge. Yeah. People need to take a step back. People need to do the things in their life that are important to them, and I don’t see anybody’s important as more important than somebody else’s.

Martina: Yeah. So some

people

Georgi: have

Martina: children, so

Georgi: how do, how do you come to this? How has Martina come to this stage? Because so many companies are trying to make their employees. As close to robotic as possible. So produce, produce, produce, tracking their hours, tracking when they go to the bathroom, tracking. So how do you come to this

Martina: other space?

Martina: How boring would that be if we were all robots? Well, I come to the space. I think when you talk about the full circle conversation of how I really came to Dr. Hka and doing the work I’m doing in the dignity of people. I believe it’s really reflected in the Giving Garden. I’ll tell you a little bit more about that.

Martina: [00:17:00] But it comes from a very personal story of, I shared a little bit of like, I didn’t look like other people. I didn’t feel like I fit in as a child. I was on the free lunch program, which comes with tremendous stigma and talk about a lack of dignity in the United States. 35 years ago, if you were getting free lunch, everybody knew it.

Martina: Mm-hmm. Your lunch ticket was different and you were kind of that kid. And growing up I always had that deep sense of empathy that I don’t want other people to feel out of place. I don’t want other people to feel that they don’t have space or they can’t hold space for themselves or other people. And I think it comes from a place of just honest compassion and, and it comes from a place I think of self-love, that when people are really grounded in who they are, they’re able to give everybody else.

Martina: The best of them. And if you create a space where people can feel really comfortable in who they are and comfortable in their old skin, it creates this [00:18:00] really interesting dynamic of this give and take and idea generating and creativity. And nobody’s afraid, like, ’cause you know, people go to places where, gosh, if I say that, they’re gonna think I’m stupid or they’re gonna think, I don’t know.

Martina: And we’re a place of. We know what we know. We know what we don’t know, and there’s nothing wrong in not knowing. The wrong comes in not asking. And I wanna create that space for people to really ask for what they need or ask questions ’cause they’re just curious or I. Ask questions ’cause they need guidance.

Martina: And I truly believe that we have that space at Doctor Skincare USA. And then I wanted to translate it to our consumer. And I know that sounds like a little bit of a reach and when we were building the business, our direct site is our largest business in the organization. And it was very obvious to me that we have a like-minded consumer.

Martina: She sees the world in many ways the way we see it, and she’s. [00:19:00] Concerned about the planet. She’s concerned about sustainability. She’s concerned about what she’s putting on her face or her body. And the idea of the Giving Garden came from the fact that we are gardeners at heart. We’re farmers. That’s what we did.

Martina: That’s how this started. You don’t get the ingredients unless you garden or farm. And the idea that we would create a loyalty program connected to nature and that it would also be connected to doing good work within the community. And the idea was really formed from how can we put into action literally every single day.

Martina: What we believe in, and that action comes in the form of if a consumer makes a purchase and she’s part of our loyalty program, we make a donation into the Giving Garden, you know, pot of monies, if you will. We make a donation into the Giving Garden, and that donation ultimately goes out to organizations that we work with, and the organizations that we work with are really on the forefront of trying to mitigate [00:20:00] food insecurity and hunger in the United States.

Martina: That does come from a very personal place. Yeah.

Georgi: That’s

Martina: so amazing

Georgi: that you’ve been able to connect that. So your own desire for impact aligns so beautifully with the company you represent and honored to lead, so that, yeah. I can see how you can weave in your own story that fits so beautifully with the

Martina: overall brand mission.

Martina: I don’t think I could have done this anyplace else. I really don’t. I think, you know, people say the universe moves as it should, and I believe it does. And October is gonna be nine years that I’ve been here enjoying every minute of it, and we’ve now taken the next step with the given garden and we’re trying to have a bigger conversation with like-minded organizations so we can really help people understand.

Martina: That food insecurity is not a fault of the person. Food insecurity and hunger in America is a challenge that a surprising number of [00:21:00] Americans face every day. A good portion of those Americans are elderly people and then children, and there are incredible people doing such incredible work. What we’re doing is, is so small compared to what people are really doing, but this is the way as a company that we can impact the world that we live in on a daily basis.

Martina: Yeah. And I do like the idea of we are truly trying to do good while doing well. So the healthier the company is in terms of our revenue, the more good we can do in the world. Yeah. And they’re not exclusive. You can do both. And that is, I think. The fundamental part of this is that it’s not binary, it’s not one or the other.

Martina: You can do both.

Georgi: Yeah.

Martina: I love

Georgi: that you say that. ’cause often in the work that I do, people think you can either have make a great salary or you can have a great impact. And even on college campuses, they’re still sort of selling their career paths as sort of, which one are you? Impact or income, which ladder do you wanna climb?

Georgi: And [00:22:00] I really wanna show people you can do both. And often it’s not even at the cost of compromising because the two actually enforce each other. And so I love the story that you’re sharing that is you are not choosing between income and impact.

Martina: And I think when you choose yourself, and I think that’s the starting point, when you choose yourself in a space of authenticity, I think it allows you to make the choices professionally easier in terms of is it finances, is it impact?

Martina: And we all have, to be honest, we all need financial resources to live. ’cause that’s just the world. As it is, but it’s how much do you need to be truly happy and what does happiness look like for

Georgi: you? So asking those deeper questions, not chasing the ladder, but continuing to ask yourself those questions of is this making me happier?

Martina: And then being able to define success on your own terms. That has been my mantra. [00:23:00] When I took the role at Dr. Hka, a lot of my industry colleagues were like, what are you doing? You’re going to the woods. You know, you’ve been at these really big brands and I really felt like I was choosing life. I was choosing this space.

Martina: I’m thinking opposite. How did you do it? You’re going to the woods, not, what are you doing? I’m like, and I’m like, I’m sprinting. I’m running. And I think when I look at my son who’s 29, almost. 30. You know, I am so truly grateful that I’ve been able to create this space for him being a young professional, that he’s not having to make such tough choices.

Martina: That they come naturally and he’s feels that, I’m gonna say quote unquote, he’s allowed to make choices that are really. Leading him to doing great work, more aligned with his soul, with his soul and his passion and who he is. I think young people are under so much pressure societally, whether it’s parental pressure, [00:24:00] friend pressure, grandpa, technology, pressure technology.

Martina: When you look at social media that everything is bigger and better, and you have to have all of these things to be considered successful. I think being able to define success in your own terms. And there’s no real playbook, but the playbook that you’re creating for yourself, and there’s no timeline. You know, I think when I was younger, people were like, you have to be a director by the time you’re 30, and you have to be in all of these crazy benchmarks.

Martina: And I think if you can pause and allow yourself to pause and say, those are not my benchmarks, those are some benchmarks. Somebody I don’t even, I don’t even know who created them and what is it that I want? In what would I need in my wheelhouse to get there? What do I need to actually do in combination with that?

Martina: To start making movement towards where I wanna go.

Georgi: Yeah.

Martina: Versus where other people believe I [00:25:00] should go.

Georgi: Yeah. Martina, it sounds like you are a great mentor and nurture of employees. Can you talk a little bit about. Your thoughts on mentorship for the younger generation and what they may want to be looking for in a boss that actually cares about them and sort of their whole self.

Georgi: Because I think the younger generation, especially having to work remotely often are missing out on leadership training. And what I am hearing a lot in Silicon Valley is. Young people are having to hire their own coaches in order to get promoted because they haven’t had mentorship and been taught how to lead, but that’s the next step in their career.

Georgi: I

Martina: think you said the most critical word coach. I think that is such a great way to frame it. I. Um, coaching for me happens every day and it’s through conversation and that’s why it is important for people to be in an office if they have the [00:26:00] opportunity. I would encourage people to not say, oh, no, I. If there’s the option, go in or stay home.

Martina: I’m gonna stay home. But I think you’re creating an obstacle for yourself in terms of that engagement and just looking, how is somebody physically, how are they handling a situation that may not go well in a meeting? How are they responding to some tough feedback or. A disconnect. So much of what happens is really in that connection, and I love the fact that we have this idea of fast feedback where it sounds like shortsighted, but fast feedback in our organization.

Martina: It’s happening in real time, like we’re talking through things, we’re talking about what’s going really well. Where do you see yourself in terms of that situation? Young people are missing out on that. I do believe young professionals are struggling with that, and I think it is our responsibility as leaders.

Martina: I think that is fundamentally where the responsibility comes [00:27:00] from. It’s our responsibility. If somebody has a gap, how do we fill it? That’s right for them. It should not be formulaic. From my perspective, we have some interesting. Programs in our organization and they’re all customized. So we have some people right now who have gone out and gotten some digital education because there was a little bit of gap and they didn’t quite understand it, and sometimes it shouldn’t be your manager only helping you.

Martina: We have other people who are in this incredible public speaking. Program where they’re really learning. And when people say public speaking, it’s not ’cause I’m asking them to go out on a stage of 10,000. It’s how do you have command of audience in a meeting? How are you navigating through all of the information you need to parse through in a way that the receiver is, is getting it?

Martina: So when we look at development and coaching, we really try to personalize it and we take ownership for it. And we are really candid about. Where people are at. We [00:28:00] operate in a place of transparency. So we have a culture that being transparent and honest isn’t offensive. ’cause some people do get offended of being direct, but we are direct with empathy because being direct without empathy.

Martina: Is just cruelty from my perspective. So if you can bring empathy into the conversation and compassion when you think about some of the best coaches. I love that analogy ’cause I was a division one athlete in college. That’s how I was able to go to college. I was an athlete and I’ve had some amazing coaches along the way and I’ve had some amazing bosses along the way.

Martina: So when I look back at my professional growth. And things were hard at D different stages, especially when I became a new mother. I remember that and say, when I have a new mother on my team, I’m gonna make it easier for her. I don’t believe in that mantra of it was tough for me, so it’s gonna be tough for you that you gotta toughen it up.

Martina: That to me is insanity. [00:29:00] Like it’s, it’s when you are given the opportunity to have a voice. I think you really need to think long and hard about how you use that voice and you use that position. Yeah. ’cause you can really affect people positively and you can affect people negatively as well.

Georgi: Yeah. That was beautiful.

Georgi: I am thinking about, I. Your confidence and you were a girl who grew up and needed to stand in a different lunch line, and you are now leading this company and you have such a beautiful ethos of how you do it, and I’m wondering if you can share that confidence switch or when did that happen that you could really settle into yourself and believe in who you are?

Martina: I have an amazing father. He’s 88 years old and he had five girls. And I think that honestly made a fundamental difference, that he’s always been the voice in my head. When people say no, I’m hearing yes, [00:30:00] which is fine when it’s in your head, but when you’re actually out in the world by yourself trying to make it, you know, I’ve been at brands like Chanel and Bobby Brown and where all of these executives seem somewhat out of reach, you know, I think.

Martina: The inflection point for me, truly and honestly was motherhood. I had my son and something shifted, like deeply shifted in me and that I said I wanna be better, not only for myself, but for my son. And so when I think about where I’ve come from, it’s a very emotional space. You know, free lunch to having a Yale graduate.

Martina: So for me not to do good now would be a disservice to myself. Yeah. And to try and create that space. For other people who don’t feel like they fit.

Georgi: Yeah, I have goosebumps. I what a beautiful story. And thank you for being that kind of human. I’m so honored [00:31:00] to have you on the podcast and also to be able to share the story ’cause so many people experience pain.

Georgi: I think that’s sort of a universal human experience, but not everybody uses that to build their beauty and their greatness. Thank

Martina: you. I also think in this industry it’s tough to be authentic and honest and just be who you are. Everybody who’s in my circle, if you will, my professional circle, they know I am who I am, right?

Martina: And all of this is what has gotten me here. I think allowing people to just be human. We’re not robots. And for me, being at Dr. Hushka has truly allowed me to be authentically who I am and the mindset, not just in the US but in my German colleagues. I have an incredible board of directors who has embraced the very different.

Martina: Way that I operate, whereas in mainstream, conventional beauty [00:32:00] would’ve not have embraced it to the level that has been valued here.

Georgi: Yeah. And I’m sure that goes up a ladder. It’s like they give you confidence and said, okay, we like what you’re doing, and so you lean into it more and you go up that next step and they say, great, this is interesting.

Georgi: Bring yourself to work. You know your full expression and it happened sort of in stages. And then I’m

Martina: allowed to do that and then I’m translating that to other people because if you looked at our executive leadership team, we are completely different people. We are so opposite. Yet there is this powerful red thread because we all care, deeply care.

Martina: We all come from a place of. Passion and compassion, and then the work ethic is just unbelievable. I, I talk about this all the time, that the team that I work with, their work ethic is unmatched, and I do believe it’s because they love the brand so deeply and they also feel [00:33:00] like they can come to work and they can breathe.

Martina: I know so many people who go to work and they’re, so, Sunday night is the stress out night. Like it’s, yes, they’re getting ready and they’re getting wound up. Lucky if it’s only Sunday night, not all of Sunday. All of Sunday or it starts Saturday night ’cause you don’t get one free moment. And we’ve created that space for people to really breathe and think clearly that Dr.

Martina: Heska, we’re marathoners. We’re not sprinters. We’re long game. We’ve been around since 1967. We doing this for a long time. In a very crowded marketplace, yet still very successful that it allows us to pace ourselves and pause and make thoughtful decisions. I am so grateful for that and I am allowed to lead in a manner that really serves people.

Martina: I.

Georgi: I love what you said about the employees having different perspectives, but there’s a thread in common, and in my book I write about, it’s very important to be in a team with diverse perspectives, but when it comes to [00:34:00] values, you want common values. Yes. And so it’s an interesting combination of the two.

Georgi: And we’re out of time, but I would love to hear one last question. Sure. If you could go back to your younger self in your twenties, what would you tell yourself?

Martina: One line comes to mind. Do not be so hard on yourself. It’s okay to make mistakes. Yeah. Biggest success comes from mistakes. I would never have believed that when I was 20, but I absolutely believe that today.

Georgi: Yeah. Yeah. So it’s okay for iterations. Try something, make mistake, figure it out, and then go back and try it again. Try it again. Yeah, exactly. And being in an environment where you can do that truly. Yes. Yeah, and I think that’s especially important because young people today are the such a narrow funnel for success that’s being imposed on them, and the feeling that you’ve gotta have your act together by ninth grade or 10th grade in order to, yeah.

Georgi: Oh my gosh. Yeah. Get a career later is absurd. It truly is. It truly is. Yeah. Yeah. Well, Martina, it’s been wonderful [00:35:00] to talk to you. Thank you so much. I appreciate you sharing all your wisdom and giving your insight on this beautiful way to work, and I look forward to being in touch. Thank you so much,

Martina: Georgi.

Martina: Have a great Saturday.

Georgi: I hope you enjoyed that conversation. I’ve got two thoughts to talk to you about. First is fulfilled. People are magnetic multipliers. Martina exemplifies how genuinely fulfilled leaders can create ripple effects. You are indeed the average of the five people you spend the most time with.

Georgi: So level up by seeking mentors and employees like Martina, who radiate purpose and authenticity. When job hunting, look beyond compensation packages to find workplaces led by people who visibly enjoy their work and create environments where others can thrive. Also the marathon versus sprint mindset transforms everything.

Georgi: Dr. Hushka foundation ownership structure enables a fundamental different approach to business decisions [00:36:00] Without shareholder pressure, they can prioritize sustainability and employee wellbeing while still achieving business success. Their marathon not sprinter. Philosophy means work is fulfilling and mistakes become learning opportunities rather than career killers.

Georgi: And that’s a wrap for today’s episode of work That’s Worth it. Remember, every conversation we share is designed to empower you to build a career that’s truly worth your time and energy. There are future disruptors out there just like you, who would appreciate the conversations in this podcast. Please support me by spreading the word and sharing this episode with a friend or two, or visit my [email protected].

Georgi: That’s spelled G-E-O-R-G-I-E-N-T-H-O-V-E-N.com. Until next time, ask yourself, what problems am I solving and are they worth my valuable time? Your intentional choices today can lead to exponential impact tomorrow. Thanks for listening. [00:37:00]