Identity & Purpose on Your Startup Journey

Join us for a Wellness Workshop: Identity and Purpose on Your Startup Journey with Marsha Prospere, Wellness & Development Coach at Embarc Collective, on Wednesday, August 6 from 2:30–4:00PM in the VFF Conference Room and virtually over Zoom. In this interactive session, we’ll explore what happens when your role as founder becomes your entire identity—and how to evolve into a more sustainable, values-driven version of yourself. This is not about abandoning the founder identity—it’s about expanding it, so your company grows, and you do too.

Who This Is For: Founders whose identities are deeply tied to the companies they’re building—and who are looking to lead in ways that are more grounded, purpose-filled, and human.

Why It Matters: For many founders, building a startup isn’t just work—it becomes who you are. Your calendar reflects only business needs. Your company’s performance shapes your self-worth. But when “founder” becomes your only identity, it can start to limit your leadership and your life. We’ll talk about the real consequences of this dynamic: micromanagement, decision fatigue, pressure to perform, loss of joy outside of work, and fear of what comes after an exit.

What To Expect: This interactive 90-minute workshop combines peer conversations and guided reflection to help you:

• Explore what happens when success and identity become too tightly linked
• Reconnect with the parts of yourself that don’t show up in a pitch deck but deeply shape how you lead
• Create space to clarify who you are outside of your role—and why that matters

What You’ll Walk Away With:

• A deeper understanding of yourself
• Clarity around your evolving leadership identity
• Space to reimagine your legacy—not just your exit