By Amber Van Schooneveld
Megan Tamte was a stay-at-home mom when she started feeling the tug to follow a dream. After a dressing room disaster left her in tears, she was inspired to reimagine women’s shopping experience.
Now, 20+ years later, she is the cofounder, co-CEO and Chief Brand Officer of EVEREVE, a fashion retailer with over one million customers, 100+ stores and a successful e-commerce business. EVEREVE is known for cultivating a warm, relational shopping experience — a culture built from Megan’s personal journey.
Here are a few of her top leadership lessons that have helped her stay grounded and sane amidst the leadership hustle.
Lean into who you were in fifth grade.
Early in her journey, Megan read a book that encouraged her to explore who she was in the fifth grade — what she loved and wanted to do before the world got hold of her. She remembered that when she was in fifth grade, she started businesses, complete with business cards. She would sell things so she could buy clothes.
But that didn’t fit the life Megan had built around her — or what she saw modeled.
“I had a moment of panic because I was trained to be a teacher. I was a stay-at-home mom,” Megan says. “I didn’t have anyone in my life that was an example of being a Christian in the marketplace, so that felt very scary.”
Growing up, Megan was surrounded by teachers, nurses and social workers. She admired them, but knew, deep down, that it wasn’t her path. So, she found great confidence and comfort realizing that God created her to be an entrepreneur:
“It all clicked: This is who I am. I am that girl who loved to start businesses, who sold things, who hustled.”
Get your confidence from God.
When Megan and her husband launched their business, she was terrified. She worried she didn’t have the experience or knowledge to pull it off.
“I felt like I was not enough,” Megan admits. “That’s where I leaned into God, my faith and lots of prayer.”
No matter how busy she gets as the leader and Chief Brand Officer of a successful retailer, Megan prioritizes time every morning to pray, read Scripture and dive into leadership books. It helps to reaffirm her calling.
“I just trust and stay on the path. I tell God, ‘If you ever want me off the path, I’ll get off,’” Megan says. “I approach it day by day — and each step of the way with God.”
Don’t root your identity in success — you will fail along the way.
Megan believes it’s important to have a Plan B — because things won’t always work out. But you can still thrive because your identity doesn’t depend on the success of a particular venture.
“Know that your identity is not rooted in whether you succeed or fail,” she says. “Your identity is rooted in Christ and His love for you.”
Knowing this has helped Megan be resilient and lead with stability and confidence — because her identity isn’t rooted in outcomes.
“Believe that God is for us, not against us, and whether something works or doesn’t work, you’ll still be fine because God is for us,” she says. “Just continue working on your relationship with God and continue to lean into Him for your identity — not your success or failure.”
Pause each year to consider your leadership.
As EVEREVE has grown, so has Megan’s understanding of what it means to lead with purpose and intention. One of the things that has made EVEREVE so successful is its focus on values. Megan has invested in scaling a culture they call HEART — Humility, Empathy, Authenticity, Relationship and Tenacity — across all their locations and with all their employees.
She credits leadership insights she gained from the Global Leadership Summit, amongst other influences, with helping her and her husband, Mike, co-founder and co-CEO of EVEREVE, cultivate a values-driven culture. Each year, they prioritize the Summit to recalibrate their leadership.
“We have grown to love the ritual and the yearly break where we take time at the end of summer to pause and think about our leadership,” Megan says.
“It’s a ritual, a pause, a chance to just breathe. Every time we show up, we feel inspired, we feel excited and we feel energized for the next year.”
Want to pause and reflect on your own leadership? Get your tickets to the Global Leadership Summit this August.
Megan Tamte’s leadership journey has been shaped not just by business metrics, but by identity, faith, and reflection. Her leadership is a reminder that God has created each one of us for a unique calling — and will equip us along the way.
Amber Van Schooneveld
Senior Copywriter | Global Leadership NetworkFrom Stay-at-Home Mom to CEO: 4 Leadership Lessons from Megan Tamte, Co-Founder of EVEREVE
By Amber Van Schooneveld
Megan Tamte was a stay-at-home mom when she started feeling the tug to follow a dream. After a dressing room disaster left her in tears, she was inspired to reimagine women’s shopping experience.
Now, 20+ years later, she is the cofounder, co-CEO and Chief Brand Officer of EVEREVE, a fashion retailer with over one million customers, 100+ stores and a successful e-commerce business. EVEREVE is known for cultivating a warm, relational shopping experience — a culture built from Megan’s personal journey.
Here are a few of her top leadership lessons that have helped her stay grounded and sane amidst the leadership hustle.
Lean into who you were in fifth grade.
Early in her journey, Megan read a book that encouraged her to explore who she was in the fifth grade — what she loved and wanted to do before the world got hold of her. She remembered that when she was in fifth grade, she started businesses, complete with business cards. She would sell things so she could buy clothes.
But that didn’t fit the life Megan had built around her — or what she saw modeled.
“I had a moment of panic because I was trained to be a teacher. I was a stay-at-home mom,” Megan says. “I didn’t have anyone in my life that was an example of being a Christian in the marketplace, so that felt very scary.”
Growing up, Megan was surrounded by teachers, nurses and social workers. She admired them, but knew, deep down, that it wasn’t her path. So, she found great confidence and comfort realizing that God created her to be an entrepreneur:
“It all clicked: This is who I am. I am that girl who loved to start businesses, who sold things, who hustled.”
Get your confidence from God.
When Megan and her husband launched their business, she was terrified. She worried she didn’t have the experience or knowledge to pull it off.
“I felt like I was not enough,” Megan admits. “That’s where I leaned into God, my faith and lots of prayer.”
No matter how busy she gets as the leader and Chief Brand Officer of a successful retailer, Megan prioritizes time every morning to pray, read Scripture and dive into leadership books. It helps to reaffirm her calling.
“I just trust and stay on the path. I tell God, ‘If you ever want me off the path, I’ll get off,’” Megan says. “I approach it day by day — and each step of the way with God.”
Don’t root your identity in success — you will fail along the way.
Megan believes it’s important to have a Plan B — because things won’t always work out. But you can still thrive because your identity doesn’t depend on the success of a particular venture.
“Know that your identity is not rooted in whether you succeed or fail,” she says. “Your identity is rooted in Christ and His love for you.”
Knowing this has helped Megan be resilient and lead with stability and confidence — because her identity isn’t rooted in outcomes.
“Believe that God is for us, not against us, and whether something works or doesn’t work, you’ll still be fine because God is for us,” she says. “Just continue working on your relationship with God and continue to lean into Him for your identity — not your success or failure.”
Pause each year to consider your leadership.
As EVEREVE has grown, so has Megan’s understanding of what it means to lead with purpose and intention. One of the things that has made EVEREVE so successful is its focus on values. Megan has invested in scaling a culture they call HEART — Humility, Empathy, Authenticity, Relationship and Tenacity — across all their locations and with all their employees.
She credits leadership insights she gained from the Global Leadership Summit, amongst other influences, with helping her and her husband, Mike, co-founder and co-CEO of EVEREVE, cultivate a values-driven culture. Each year, they prioritize the Summit to recalibrate their leadership.
“We have grown to love the ritual and the yearly break where we take time at the end of summer to pause and think about our leadership,” Megan says.
“It’s a ritual, a pause, a chance to just breathe. Every time we show up, we feel inspired, we feel excited and we feel energized for the next year.”
Want to pause and reflect on your own leadership? Get your tickets to the Global Leadership Summit this August.
Megan Tamte’s leadership journey has been shaped not just by business metrics, but by identity, faith, and reflection. Her leadership is a reminder that God has created each one of us for a unique calling — and will equip us along the way.
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About the Author
Amber Van Schooneveld
Senior CopywriterGlobal Leadership Network
Amber Van Schooneveld is the Senior Copywriter for Global Leadership Network. She loves using words to inspire, challenge and equip people to find the unique ways they are designed to transform the world around them. She is the author of five books, including Hope Lives: A Journey of Restoration.