The owner, Al Howard, liked to sit at the curve near the entrance. The bar in Showman’s Jazz Club, a Harlem destination for visitors from just down the block to Japan and back, stretched from the front door to the stage. So, I want to encourage you – thought leaders, rebels, nerds, fashionistas and designers out there – look around you – at the things you love to do – and ask yourself “How can I make things better?” Your quest for improvement will open doors you never saw before and will give you the confidence to follow down a successful and meaningful path.To hear more audio stories from publishers like The New York Times, download Audm for iPhone or Android. Stay tuned – it will be published next January! I saw that many people my age were lacking knowledge or confidence around how to take care of their finances and/or how to invest for the future. So, I decided to dive into the topic myself and create a guide that would appeal to my generation, empowering them to learn how to create wealth. At the heart of this book, my goal is to simplify a complex thing. Currently I’m working on a book called ‘Moneymakers’ which is a guide for young people who want to learn how to trade stocks online. I’m always looking for new ways to solve problems that I’m passionate about. It can be practical or grandiose, but the goal is for you to bring your unique value! Look to improve every day, find solutions to problems and fill a need. While others may be boasting about past wins or vying for position, what the world really needs now are passionate problem-solvers. For example, back when Siri’s (the intelligent personal assistant from Apple) voice recognition was being developed, it worked much better with male voices because only men were testing out its functionality in the coding team.

If there’s even just one more woman at the table creating and developing, we have a more holistic view and make better products. They soon start to shed the false impressions and see that there is so much potential to create and grow. That’s why I try to empower more women to learn about tech. But it’s important that we trail blaze straight through these misconceptions, one day at a time. This could be leading many young girls to steer clear.

Women can’t seem to shake off the picture of being boyish, nerdy, bossy or ugly whenever they have something to do with tech.

The way we look at women in tech, be it in movies, TV or even in books, is problematic. I couldn’t help but wonder… why didn’t these women engage in these topics? There are an array of scholarship and funding opportunities when it comes to education and conferences.

Aya jaff moneymakers