RISING ICON #67: Lauren Atha Skinner
What name do you prefer to be called?
Lauren
What are your pronouns?
She/Her
Where did you grow up?
Ohio
What city are you currently based in?
Colorado Springs, Colorado
How do you typically introduce yourself to new people?
[Log onto Zoom, coffee in hand- brown sugar and oat milk]
Hi! It’s so nice to meet you. I’m Lauren and I founded Tap This, an AI-automated business finance management app for creative independent Beauty and Wellness Professionals, because it’s a relief to hand off at least one of the hats we wear as a business owner. [insert comment about needing someone to create a way for me to get my coffee through an IV]
I would love to hear more about you and what you do.
What’s one thing you wish more people knew about you?
I am a mom raising my teenage son by myself in this world we live in today [ SOS, now accepting any and all advice!] I enjoy playing golf and traveling when I am able to set aside the time. I balance my fast-paced business focused life with my home life where I enjoy cooking from scratch and have admittedly joined the sourdough craze with two jars of starter available at all times.
Who do you help?
I help Solopreneurs and 1099 Creatives, specifically in the beauty and wellness industries, automate their business finance management and shift their money mindset to build stability, wealth, and freedom.
What are you building now?
The first fully automated business finance management app called Tap This. We are disrupting the spreadsheet infested world of finance with AI, automations, gamification and community.
We refuse to gate-keep choosing, instead, to empower independent creatives with resources and support to make financial decisions and grow like the Top 1%.
What were you building ten years ago today?
Ten years ago in business I was a hairstylist and multi-salon owner, learning lessons through “baptism by fire,” so to speak. I was navigating the world of being a single parent to my son and my young businesses while working through details to add another location to the list.
What do you predict of yourself 10 years from now?
With hundreds of thousands of business owners having achieved freedom and stability, Tap This is the number one app for business owners to manage their finances and scale their businesses intentionally. I will be retired from the day-to-day operations but continue to focus on board meetings and investing in innovative entrepreneurs set on changing the world. My son will be a young adult by then (maybe even with his own family), and I’ll be researching and planning all the fun things we will do on our regularly planned family trips. I’ll spend my time homesteading, cooking, golfing, being creative, traveling and giving back.
What’s a fact or statistic you wish everyone knew about your industry?
That the industry is changing rapidly. The talent and the revenue produced are both far beyond what was expected from the industry, and it will just continue to grow and evolve. Be ready to add Independent Creatives to the Top 1%.
Why do you believe the work you do matters?
As mentioned, the industry is changing and creatives are bringing in as much as $500k+ annually in a community where financial education and literacy is lacking and credible resources are limited. Instilling healthy money mindset habits and implementing automated and trusted processes for our members creates a support system for Wealth Management. Giving our members access to how the other side works, they see what's possible and how they can achieve it. It’s reachable. It’s tangible. They stop trading time for money. We are changing lives for generations to come.
Who is your mentor and what is the best advice they’ve given you?
I have had multiple mentors over the years through every stage, and I am so grateful that I crossed paths with each of them at the time I did. Most recently and most pivotal for me are who I refer to as, “my two Chrises.”
Chris King, a client who entertained my love of entrepreneurship when chatting during his hair appointments every three weeks and whose response to my random “why isn’t there an app for that..” was “Why don’t you build it?” He continued to encourage me and hold me accountable appointment after appointment looking for updates asking, “Have you built the app yet?”
and…
Chris Watson, whose wife randomly came home from her extensions appointment one day asking if he would be willing to take a meeting with her hairstylist who was rambling about a new business idea, and he took that meeting and future meetings after, continuing to be an encouragement and crucial sounding board through product development and relationship building.
What piece of content about you or your company are you most proud of?
Im proud of the journey I’ve been on this last year and a half, to believe in helping others with the Tap This AI app so much that I changed my career path, dove into learning the whole new world of start-up, stepped out of my comfort zone to meet people within the start-up community and ask for help and guidance along the way, all leading up to this moment where I can say we are officially launching Beta Summer 2024!
What publication do you hope to appear in next?
I want to be featured in Entrepreneur.com. It will be my full circle moment as my mom would always bring the magazine home from her trips to Barnes & Noble and still sends them to me now that we are living states away from each other.
Who would you love to be interviewed by?
Actually, I would love to be interviewed by our users on whatever platforms they have. I want to feel connected to them and them connected to me and to the Tap This AI brand. My goal is to stay human and stay connected so I can always work hard to bring users features and resources they actually want and need to take the next step in their business, no B.S. or fluff. It would also be very cool to be interviewed by Alix Cooper!
If you had to give a TEDTalk tomorrow, what would the title be?
“Failing Forward.” Why failure is inevitable if you plan to be successful.
What award would mean the most to win?
Fast Company.com - Brands that matters
What makes zero sense to you?
People without drive to step outside of the box.
What’s a word in your industry you hope gets re-evaluated?
A phrase not a word, but ”you're just a hair stylist”.
What game are you changing?
Financial services and business foundations for creative independents, specifically Beauty Professionals. The “game pieces” shouldn’t only be available to the white collar 1%.
What’s the next thing you’re a part of that you want to invite more people to participate in?
I am the co-director of the Start-up Grind Colorado Springs and we are expanding into Denver. We are redesigning our curated events and bringing community workshops/coworking and true relationship building to the industry beyond a Happy Hour cocktail and small talk. We have events throughout both Colorado Springs and Denver monthly!
Where can we follow you online?
I am most active on instagram both personally and professionally!
What’s one thing that makes every leader better?
Integrity.
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We’re grateful to each Rising ICON for their transformative work. Thank you, Lauren, for sharing your story!
LAUREL is a media relations partner for bold leadership. For nearly a decade, we’ve helped leaders build effective strategies for scale and growth specializing in key opinion leadership and go-to-market strategy for emerging brands. To follow along with the RISING ICONS series, nominate a leader or subscribe to our weekly email newsletter. To accelerate your own rise, get our free guide to elevating your leadership profile, FIT(lite). RISING ICONS is made possible by grant funding from Knight Foundation.
“My goal is to stay human and stay connected so I can always work hard to bring users features and resources they actually want and need to take the next step in their business.”
Notice: It’s important for our readers to understand the origin of the interview content. The featured ICON contributed responses that were not edited from the original submission. All claims are made solely by the contributor and do not reflect the views of LAUREL or its partners. Thank you for supporting innovation leaders. We’re convinced, the future is bold.
