Briles speaks to women.

• Author: Schwab, Robert
• Position: Pulling the Strings - Judith Briles on women in business - Brief Article

JUDITH BRILES NEVER STOPS. THE ECONOMY MIGHT SLOW DOWN, the Sept. 11 tragedy might put a dent in her travel plans, or the death of a beloved pet may set her back on her heels.

But Briles doesn't stop.

She is a public speaker and the author of 23 books, most of which address women's workplace and management issues.

An entrepreneur who started her firm, The Briles Group Inc., 15 years ago in California, moving it to Aurora in 1990, Briles has built a home-based career that places her at No.95 on the ColoradoBiz list of top women-owned businesses, with $304,000 in revenue. Her calendar involves about 70 speaking engagements annually, mostly outside Colorado.

In March, one of those engagements was at home. And it was a freebie.

Briles spoke about confidence to 75 women who are trying to launch a Colorado chapter of eWomenNetwork.com, a Web-based meeting place for women in business.

She hosts chat rooms on the site covering three topics: women and their money; parenting and money; and women in the workplace.

She said she works for free only when she can identify two specific aspects about making the appearance: her own personal interest in the cause or event, and the chance to meet and speak to a large number of potential clients who may seek her services sometime in the future.

The eNetwork is both, she said. The site started up with 300 members in Texas in January of 2001, and has grown to host about 1.5 million visits a month.

In such hard economic times, what is so important to women in the business world that they would take another few minutes out of busy days to check into a new network?

Conflict, Briles says. Conflict among women at work.

Briles started talking about destructive workplace...