Shanti Hodges, Founder of Hike it Baby
Parenting a young child with a partner who works in Alaska 50 percent of the time can be challenging and even lonely sometimes, but Shanti, mom to Mason (3), wasn’t about to sit around the house all day so she started Hike it Baby, a nonprofit focused on getting families with children ages 0 to 5 out into nature. Since its inception in 2013 Hike it Baby has grown from a Portland-focused startup to now serving 160,000 families in 304 cities across the nation.
Shanti currently helps manage 600 women around the world while making sure to get regular adventures in with her son Mason. When asked about how she manages work/life balance, Shanti admits that she feels like she could use some advice in this area herself, but says that at the end of the day when work gets stressful she remembers that “It’s just hiking and family comes first.”
Words of Wisdom: "It’s easy to get caught up in drama when you have 600 women you are helping manage around the world. When I see something starting I try to take a deep breath, step back and focus on my family first and then the big hubbub usually passes."
