RATHDRUM — The dais was illuminated with womanly wisdom Tuesday evening as five leading ladies of varying industries discussed pros, cons, advice, tips and tricks of their trades.

"I set up safeguards for myself," Ziply Fiber Director Of Operations Kay Quinn said. "My team knows if it's an urgent thing and they need me, they need to call, because if my phone rings I will answer it. I don't care if it's 3 o'clock in the morning, I don't care if I'm in the middle of dinner."

Not an emergency? Don't call.

"You have other ways of communicating with me, and I will be present in the moment with my family and get back to you when it makes sense," she said. "I've found a really good work-life balance. I adore my family and I want to be with them more than anything. But I can't do that at the expense of my job, and I can't do my job at the expense of my family. You need both and you really need to wrap people around you that support that philosophy."

Quinn shared this business practice during a panel discussion at Women at Work, North Idaho College's female-focused career technical education event at the Parker Technical Education Center in Rathdrum.

The inaugural event featured tours of the facility as well as child care for little ones and an arcade for older children. MacKay Manufacturing Vice President Katie MacKay delivered a keynote speech, followed by the Q&A panel, a speech by NEWTech Prep welding instructor Katie Johnston and another panel with NIC alumni and current students. Both panels were moderated by NIC student recruiter Tiffany Mitchell.

Another piece of wisdom was offered by Nicole Prickett of Lake City Auto Care.

"The key is the right people in the right place in the right position," she said, adding how this has allowed she and her husband to have more time for their passions, which include their faith, family and community.

Jessica Cargile, who co-owns North Ridge Contracting, Inc. with husband Dale, said it's important to participate in activities that are energizing and to know when to say no to activities that are not refueling, even if they are fun and leisurely.

She shared a way to manage calendars so nothing gets missed, including time away from work. Cargile said she recently learned this trick from a friend.

"They have color-coded calendars and they created this idea of a yellow calendar, which is their 'happy' calendar," Cargile said. "When they look at their week and everything is color-coded and they see no yellow, they go, 'That's a problem.' Their rule is then they schedule something in there to give them that time that fuels them. I thought, 'That's brilliant and I'm stealing that.'"

Women at Work was attended by roughly 100 people.

Painting instructor Ari Boesen of Coeur d'Alene was interested because her company is going out of business and she realized she was in need of a change. She said she considered updating her cosmetology license, but really wants to stay in the realm of art and teaching.

"I love school," Boesen said. "I've been out of school for a while, but I'm 33 and I really got to figure out what I'm going to do with my life."

At Women at Work, she was introduced to NIC's graphic design program, which grabbed her attention since she also has experience in that field.

She said she was about to leave, but stayed to listen to the Q&A panel because she saw such strong women on stage. Boesen said she was glad she did and left feeling inspired.

"I know that it's not too late for me to start, even if I change my mind in what I want to do," Boesen said. "It just assured me that whatever comes my way I can keep that balance in life."

    Ari Boesen of Coeur d'Alene smiles as she reacts to a panel discussion Tuesday during the inaugural Women at Work event presented by North Idaho College.
  

Morgan Doney, left, and Lila Nosler discuss what they enjoy about their trades programs Tuesday during North Idaho College's first Women at Work event, held at the Parker Technical Education Center. Doney is in machining and CNC technology at NIC. Nosler is a Post Falls High student who is dual-enrolled at NIC and is in the auto body collision and repair program at Kootenai Technical Education Campus.