A powerful reflection on embracing multiple identities and continuous personal growth. Discover how one creative leader balances professional ambition, motherhood, artistic pursuits, and community building while inspiring others to redefine themselves.
Her Story
About Candice
Candice Chadwick is a graphic designer and certified birth doula whose career reflects an unusual blend of corporate creative leadership and deeply human care work. She began her design career more than two decades ago as an intern at Henry Schein while still a student, and has since risen to a creative leadership role at Henry Schein, a global healthcare distributor, where she now oversees a team of five art directors and designers responsible for the company's worldwide branding — from logos and brand guidelines to packaging, trade show displays, and advertising. As Creative Manager, she has spent recent years guiding her team through the industry's shift toward artificial intelligence, approaching the technology as a creative partner that enhances efficiency while preserving the human-centered identity at the heart of good branding. Alongside her design career, Candice also serves as designer and customer experience lead for a Here Hot Yoga + Strength studio on Long Island, and roughly a year and a half ago she completed her birth doula certification through MaternityWise International. Her interest in birth work traces back to childhood fascination, which grew over time into a genuine calling to support families through labor and delivery. In this role, she draws on the same calm presence and empathy that define her design leadership, helping parents feel empowered and cared for during one of life's most vulnerable and transformative moments. A Long Island native, Candice holds a bachelor's degree in fine arts and graphic design from Adelphi University, where she graduated summa cum laude. Across both of her professional paths, she is guided by a consistent set of values: steadiness under pressure, deep empathy, and a belief in the power of human connection. Whether directing a design team or holding space for someone in labor, Candice sees her work as fundamentally the same act — helping something new come into being with care, courage, and intention.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Candice
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute a lot of my success to staying curious and being willing to evolve. I’ve never been afraid to learn something new, change direction, or step into something that feels a little outside of my comfort zone. I also genuinely care about people and relationships. Whether I’m leading a creative team, building community at HERE, or supporting a woman as a doula, I try to listen, collaborate and make people feel valued. I think success comes from working hard, but also from staying open—to new ideas, new people and new versions of yourself.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I’ve received is that you don’t have to feel completely ready before you take the next step. Some of the biggest opportunities in my career came from saying yes, figuring things out as I went, and trusting that I was capable of learning what I didn’t already know. I think women especially can sometimes feel like we need to check every box before we put ourselves forward. I’ve learned that growth usually happens when you’re willing to step outside your comfort zone and trust yourself a little more.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would tell young women entering the creative field to stay curious, keep learning and don’t be intimidated by how quickly things change. The tools will always evolve, but your creativity, your ideas and your ability to connect with people are what make you valuable. Don’t compare your path to someone else’s, and don’t be afraid to speak up and bring your perspective to the table. Find people who inspire you, surround yourself with people who support your growth, and then do the same for other women as you move forward.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
Right now, I see the integration of artificial intelligence into creative workflows as both the biggest challenge and the biggest opportunity in my field. The task is to use these new tools to work more efficiently without losing the distinct, human-centered identity that makes a brand feel authentic. I choose to treat AI as a collaborator rather than a competitor, which has allowed me to embrace it productively instead of fearing it.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
A calm, steady presence, a deep well of empathy, and an unwavering belief in the power of human connection are the values that matter most to me. I bring these same qualities whether I'm guiding my design team through a complex project or supporting a family through the experience of birth — for me, both require the courage to embrace something new and the wisdom to honor the process.
Her Content Hub
Articles by Candice
Who are you becoming?
Embracing the freedom to evolve beyond one role, one career, and one version of yourself.
You Are Allowed to Keep Becoming
I have never believed that a meaningful career—or life—has to follow one perfectly straight line.
For more than 25 years, creativity has been at the center of my professional life. I began as a graphic designer and grew into creative leadership, where today I have the opportunity to lead teams, develop brands, mentor other creatives, and help turn ideas into something people can connect with.
As a Creative Manager at Henry Schein, I've learned that leadership isn't about having every answer. It's about recognizing people's strengths, giving them room to grow, and creating an environment where they feel confident bringing their own ideas to the table.
But my professional title is only one part of my story. I'm also a mother of three, an artist, a certified birth doula, and part of the team behind Here Hot Yoga + Strength, where I've helped build the brand, marketing, and community.
HERE has become an incredibly meaningful part of my life. I'm surrounded by strong, inspiring women who support one another, celebrate each other, and show up for each other. Being part of that community has reinforced how powerful women can be when we create spaces where we lift one another up rather than compete.
Becoming a doula may seem completely separate from creative leadership, but I've realized there is a common thread running through everything I do: helping people feel seen, supported, and empowered.
Whether I'm mentoring someone on my team, helping build a community of women, or sitting beside a mother during one of the most vulnerable and powerful moments of her life, I want people to feel confident in their own voice and strength.
I've also learned that we don't have to define ourselves by one role. We can be creative and strategic, ambitious and compassionate, leaders and caregivers. We can change direction, discover new passions, and continue reinventing ourselves at every stage of life.
If there is one thing I hope other women take from my story, it's this:
You are allowed to keep becoming.
Some of the most meaningful chapters of my life have begun when I stopped asking, "Does this fit with who I've always been?" and started asking, "Could this be part of who I'm becoming?"
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