Katie Holmes: I'm really excited

to sit down with all these women.

It's always interesting to read about a person or have an idea of someone and then get to the bottom of how they became who they became.

Kim Hastreiter: I am sort of a cultural anthropologist.

I am an artist.

I do have a magazine also called "Paper."

Jane Rosenthal: I'm Jane Rosenthal

and I produce movies and television.

Katie: Just say your name and what you do.

Christine Barberich: My name is Christine

and I'm the editor and chief of Refinery29.

Jeanne Yang: My name is Jeanne Yang.

I am a stylist and a co-designer and co-partner of Holmes & Yang, a clothing line.

Cornelia: This is my mother Jill Abramson.

She is the executive editor of the "New York Times."

The first woman to hold that position, to be in that role.

Renee Robinson: My name is Renee Robinson.

and I am a dancer.

Katie: What shapes your identity first?

Being a woman, your career, or being a New Yorker?

Renee Robinson: It would probably be

being a woman.

Kim Hastreiter: I mean New York is really important to me,

I am a New Yorker, I love New York,

but also I think the thing that I live for

is inspiration.

Jill Abramson: I think probably being

a New Yorker has had the biggest influence on me.

Christine Barberich: Definitely my career.

I always wanted to be a writer and an editor,

you know, I never ever doubted that for a second.

I think it's just like who I am.

Jane Rosenthal: I think my daughters

shape me most.

Katie: Well they're lucky.

Renee Robinson: Female leaders.

Those were my examples.

In the dance business, you know,

there are a lot of male choreographers,

a lot of male artistic directors,

but I was surrounded by all these female leaders.

Katie: What would you say was one of the most difficult times for you

and how did you get over it and how did you

believe that led you to where you are now?

Kim Hastreiter: When I tried to do amazing things in these big magazines

they always fell flat because I would come

with an amazing idea and then it would

all go away and then it would come back unrecognizable to me so I was like

the only way to do it I have to do it myself,

so I said "we have to do a magazine."

Jill Abramson: When I was Washington bureau chief for "The Times"

the executive editor of "The Times"

at that point was kind of a

domineering strong personality editor

who I didn't get along with too well.

Jane O'Connor: He would offer Jill other jobs at

"The Times" and I was "yes, yes, take it, do that,

you'll be happy,"

and Jill "No, this is the job I want,

it's the job I deserve,

and I'm gonna just tough it out."

Katie: And how long did this go on?

Jill Abramson: For about 2 years,

it didn't go on and on.

Katie: That's long.

Jeanne Yang: I started working for a department store in their management training program

because I thought that was

the only thing you could really do in clothing.

I hated my job and I got laid off

and I was really upset about it

and my older brother pulled me aside and said

"have you ever thought of actually doing something

that you want to do, that you really like doing,

because things will come easier when

you really like doing what you're doing."

Jane Rosenthal: I will say that as

a working woman I was told that

I could do anything, be anything I wanted

and I actually believed that

and I believed that for so long

and it really wasn't until

the further along I got in my career

where I realized there would be times

I felt that I would be asked to be at

the table or part of a board or something more

because I was a woman

and not because I really had

the authority to be there.

Katie: What advice would you give

a young girl, you know, moving to

a big city right now who maybe

doesn't know what she's good at yet?

Kim Hastreiter: I know that everyone can't

do this, but I always say like

when kids want to go to graduate school,

they want to keep going to school,

I say instead of paying to go to school

just go and work somewhere for

a little or free and just work for

someone that you admire.

Jeanne Yang: When you are in the environment

of a workplace you can gain more knowledge

than sometimes in a classroom.

Jane Rosenthal: I certainly have learned more

by my failures than my successes

and I probably had more failures than successes.

Renee Robinson: If you continue to learn

about life outside of the dance studio,

outside of the dance world

the richer you are as a person

the more interesting you will be as a performer.

Katie: I feel that that is a wonderful

piece of advice for everyone of quite honestly

and one of the reasons that I wanted

to do this film was to inspire

that age group that might be searching

for what it is that they want to do

and I love what you're saying

because I was raised in the same way.

Christene Barberich: There's a lot of energy

a lot of, you know, sometimes nervous energy

and insecurity, you know, when you're young

and you're starting out and I think

that you have all these aspirations

and you have these high hopes about

what you want to do with your life

and sometimes it takes a little bit longer

than you think it's going to take.

Katie: How important are female relationships

to you in your life?

How do women support you?

How do you support them?

Jeanne Yang: I read a quote recently that said

"There's a special place in hell

for women who don't help each other out."

And I really truly believe that.

Renee Robinson: I love sharing information

with young people about how to investigate

what would be good for them

to get to their best

and each person will have to find

the specific details of what they will need

to make their journey its most sparkly

so that's why I say I enjoy sharing

what I have done in hopes that

it leads them to what will be best for them.