8 Empowering Tips You Should Know As A Female Entrepreneur
As if women aren’t underrepresented enough in the business world, most females have the extra burden of juggling entrepreneurial challenges with the challenge of simply being women.
Fortunately, the trend has been changing steadily since 2007, with the number of female entrepreneurs increasing by at least 30%. And even though the female millennial tends to be more passionate, dreamy, and ready to take risks, there is still quite a distance to go, as far as tapping the full potential of women in the entrepreneurial world.
Today we’re talking about the steps towards empowerment as female entrepreneurs.
Research, Research, Research!
Passion is not enough to make a successful entrepreneur.
The key to innovation, growth, and success lies in acquiring the right knowledge. Almost every successful entrepreneur takes time to learn and conduct the right research. Knowledge, as far as entrepreneurship is concerned, comes in two forms.
The first one is through the lessons we learn through our experiences on the job. The problem with this is that such knowledge can be very costly sometimes, especially when we learn on the back of avoidable mistakes.
The second comes through the research. And this is very important as it equips us with the right information we need before taking a particular action. Fortunately, technological advancement has made it less difficult to conduct research from the comfort of our homes with tools like the ux research tool and many more.
Don’t be afraid to fail
The entrepreneurial world requires you to get out of your comfort zone.
Most often, women tend to be more affected by the experience of failure than their male counterparts. Perhaps, it could be as a result of the suggestion that most women tend to be more emotionally involved in their entrepreneurial ventures than men. But that is not proven.
Whatever the reason is, failure should not be the reason to give up. In fact, failure should be expected (even embraced) at some point. Almost every entrepreneurial success story is punctuated by at least one event of failure. Thus, failing, itself is not the problem. Instead, the lessons we may fail to learn could be the problem.
Always remember that failure is an inevitable part of success.
Don’t Be Afraid Of Feedback
I already made mention of the importance of learning. And receiving feedback is one of the most effective ways of knowing whether we are doing the right thing or not.
When you are able to couple effective research with a healthy attitude for receiving feedback, you will be able to set your business on the right road to success. Feedback will come in all forms (good and bad), and from all manner of sources including reviews.
These are not meant to dampen your passion. Instead, they are supposed to throw light on what your weakness and strengths are, and thus, areas to need to change or improve. Pay particular attention to the negative reviews and criticism and build a healthy attitude towards them. Also, create avenues to find out what exactly your customers want and how to provide them.
Become an expert
Although the marketplace is shifting, the value of expertise and authenticity is still very well esteemed. You can exhibit the knowledge you have acquired in your field through several means or platforms.
You can use blogging, public relations, social media, and public speaking to showcase your knowledge and expertise and establish visibility. The big idea behind all these is to help you gain the exposure you need.
Say no to negativity
One thing you may not be able to avoid completely is negativity and negative people. But you have it within your power to control any effect it may have on you.
You will meet a lot of doubters and naysayers who do not understand your dreams or get your vision. Do your best to avoid such people.
If avoiding them is too difficult, you should at least avoid having conversations with them that border on your business. It is one thing being open to constructive criticism. However, it is also a completely different thing allowing doubters, naysayers, and people with negativity to completely discourage you from achieving your goals.
Make big plans
It takes a lot of guts to decide to become an entrepreneur. And for a woman, your gut-level is expected to shoot right through the roof to be able to not only decide to become an entrepreneur but to actually act on it.
So, do not limit yourself to small goals and moderate plans. These are good for the beginning stages of your business. But you need to have big long-term plans. Aim for the very top and believe that you are capable of getting there no matter your gender, age, or background.
There are numerous inspirational female role models to look up to, no matter what your dreams are. Let them inspire you to greatness.
Get a mentor
Since we’re on the topics of taking inspiration from successful female entrepreneurs and leaders, it is important to have mentorship and accountability.
Having a female mentor can help shorten your journey to success. This is because not only will a mentor help to keep you accountable, but she will also equip you with the knowledge you need to avoid certain beginner mistakes.
Sometimes, it is possible to get stuck in the overwhelming amount of info currently available on the internet. A mentor or a coach will help you sift through this info to access only the important ones you need.
Be confident
You are going to need a pot of confidence both in yourself and your dream.
So, believe that you are capable of achieving your goals, and you are already halfway there. Not only will you need it to start your journey but also maintain that confidence through every stage of the journey.
Expect the process to get rocky and very challenging at some point - in fact, at a lot of points. But believe that you have something unique to contribute to the world. Keep moving on, be confident, and believe in yourself.