Entrepreneurship is already tough, even more so for women. There are many obstacles that women entrepreneurs face in this male-dominated world, such as struggling to be taken seriously, lack of funding, and low self-confidence. Society is not as discouraging toward the idea of women in the workforce as it used to be; however, female entrepreneurs are still in the minority. 9.5% of men own established businesses worldwide, while only 6.2% of women make up the world of entrepreneurship. The road to success is vastly different for women compared to their male counterparts.
Who Are Entrepreneurs?
Entrepreneurs are innovative individuals who bear financial risk and reap the rewards from their decisions. They work in all types of industries and have widely varying backgrounds. They either focus on pushing a physical product they have built or choose to market a service they can provide. Becoming an entrepreneur takes a copious amount of grit, determination, and passion. They must be able to stick with it through all of the ups and downs and see opportunities where others are perceiving danger and instability.
Entrepreneurship means being your own boss. There is a lot of independence and flexibility that accompanies this position. For instance, entrepreneurs have the ability to establish their own work environment. Many companies offering the typical nine-to-five jobs are known for being discriminatory or having a toxic work culture. People of color are often accused of having unprofessional hairstyles while simply wearing their natural hair. To ensure your curly hair stays lively and lustrous for job interviews, during work, or other occasions, check out The Best Oils To Keep Your Hair Healthy And Hydrated. As your own boss, you can create different and more inclusive standards for what is acceptable and prevent people from getting in trouble for no reason.
Some examples of big-time female entrepreneurs in today’s society are Oprah, an American household name, and Sheryl Sandberg. Lesser known small business owners include Jaclyn Fu, co-founder of the bra brand Pepper and Tina Chow Rudolf, founder of the wellness brand Strange Bird. Fu is a first-generation Chinese American woman who designed Pepper to address the struggle that small-breasted women go through to find properly fitting bras. Strange Bird was partly inspired by Rudolf’s grandmother’s homemade facials, the ingredients of which are incorporated into the skincare line’s products.
Believe In Yourself
It is important to maintain confidence and embrace your status as a woman and a leader. The world needs more role models for young girls who don’t see themselves represented enough in the media. This means training yourself not to seek approval or acceptance from anyone, especially men.
By choosing to believe in yourself, failure becomes less of a dreaded fear and more of a learning experience. No one likes failure, but it is all part of the job. Rejections of your business ideas, of loans, or from potential partnerships are essentially just feedback to help you improve your brand and effectively serve your customers. Feedback, whether it happens to be positive or negative, is critical because it can assist in determining the strengths and weaknesses of your business. Entrepreneurs never stop acquiring more knowledge. The most successful entrepreneurs are constantly keeping themselves up to date through reading the news or continuing higher education.
Believing in yourself and developing thick skin is one of the hardest parts of being a woman in business. Driven and assertive women defy social expectations and are often met with cold disapproval, while men are praised for the same traits. Remind yourself that this kind of behavior and mindset is through no fault of your own, and continue being the strong, understanding leader that you are!
“As a female entrepreneur in a male-dominated industry, earning respect has been a struggle…To overcome this, I have had to learn to build my confidence and overcome my negative self-talk.”
Alison Gutterman
Alison Gutterman, CEO and president of Jelmar, struggled to be taken seriously by her coworkers. Jelmar is an industrial cleaning products company that had been in her family for generations. Gutterman needed to work twice as hard to prove her worth and remove the reputation that her employees had already given her.
Learn How To Say No
Learning how to say no is an extremely valuable tip, especially for women entrepreneurs. Don’t be afraid to turn down offers that simply do not work for you. In general, women are raised to be submissive and cooperative. Men might try to play into this stereotype and keep pushing until you finally decide to give in. Make sure to hold your ground and remember that just as being rejected is not the end of the world, doing the rejecting yourself is okay too.
A female entrepreneur must also know when to say no to herself. Not saying no enough can cause you to become your own worst critic, tire yourself out, and lose the passion and drive you once had for your work. It can be detrimental to the foundation that you have worked tirelessly to build because spreading yourself too thin with numerous commitments will cause a decrease in productivity. Without setting any boundaries, women can create overly high standards for themselves and try aiming for total perfection, which is just plain unrealistic in the working world. Ensuring that you have some time to yourself will put your mind more at ease.
Recognize Your Achievements
The deeply rooted stereotypes that encourage girls to be modest and deem women as more community/family oriented, are instilled in women at an early age. This can cause women business leaders to minimize their efforts and accomplishments. In order to properly acknowledge your value, it can be helpful to use the word “I” instead of “we” when talking about all that you have achieved. If you never acknowledge your accomplishments, your growth as a professional will be stunted.
“Using the first person to discuss successes feels to me as if I’m bragging…As I grow the business, I am making an effort to own what I’ve accomplished.”
Molly McDonald, CEO of The Mobile Locker Co.
Take the time to celebrate your successes, no matter how small. You can treat yourself to a pint of your favorite ice cream or even keep a journal listing all the details. Recognizing your wins in such a manner cultivates positive emotions like confidence, inspiration, happiness, and self-respect. If you keep these tips in mind you will be well on your way to becoming a successful female entrepreneur!
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