Gwyneth Paltrow says this is the hardest part of being in charge of her 40-person company

Getty Images/Craig BarrittGwyneth Paltrow at a Q&A session with Katie Couric at New York University during the Fast Company Innovation Festival this week.

Actress and food writer Gwyneth Paltrow recently opened up about the rewards and challenges of running her own business - the weekly lifestyle publication Goop - at Fast Company's Innovation Festival in New York.

During a Q&A session with Katie Couric, Paltrow, 43, said the biggest challenge of being in charge at Goop, which she launched in 2008 and now has about 40 employees, is having workers who tend to "bring their unhealed personal stuff to the workplace without knowing they're doing it."

Paltrow said she worked mostly with creative types at Goop, who tend to be "more emotional" people. Therefore, she said, she always tries to be wary of the underlying factors behind an employee's work demeanor. "You just have to keep an eye on people and where they're coming from," Paltrow told Couric.

The signs an employee is dealing with something outside of work can be very subtle, she said, so the best way to deal with the matter and manage people is "to see their strengths and their vulnerability, and know how to help support them."

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