Surely, women have gone a long way in the business sector. Lady bosses are filling up boardrooms, making executive decisions for an entire company, and thriving in many different industries. Still, there’s a lot of work to do, given that there are several unique challenges women entrepreneurs face. The following are some of the roadblocks that keep women from embracing the business life, and the ways you can overcome them:
Fear of Failure
Despite the fact that there are more female leaders today, the business world is still a male-dominated realm. It’s difficult for women to see themselves succeeding. In fact, some quickly assume that their business endeavor would result in failure sooner or later. They abandon the idea of becoming entrepreneurs altogether.
If you’re struggling with this lack of self-confidence, take comfort in the fact that failure is part of doing business. In fact, it’s essential. It’s what would test your character and passion, preparing you for a lifetime of business risks. Moreover, there are many ways to reduce the likelihood of failures.
One of which is the basic principle of adequate preparation. When you’re armed with a solid business plan and sound advice from your mentors, there’s a high chance of achieving success. Dive into entrepreneurship, along with the inevitable risk of failure.
Need to Prove Their Worth
When women do dive into being entrepreneurs, they tend to overexert their efforts. For the most part, it’s to prove that they can make it. Working hard is good, but if it’s taken to the extreme, you will easily experience burnout — the last thing you need when you’re trying to grow a business.
Change your perspective about entrepreneurship. Focus not on proving your worth in the industry, but on establishing your organization, which is the primary goal of your endeavor. Learn the art of working smarter, not harder. Distribute the workload and work with experts.
Take a cue from what most starting fashion entrepreneurs do — getting a franchise. Explore a jewelry shop or a clothing store franchise opportunity, and you’ll be able to take a sustainable brand reputation and business model that doesn’t need further approval of anyone.
Difficulty Finding Funding
As mentioned, business is much male-dominated. When you think of successful enterprises, you immediately think of Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg. Venture capitalists relatively have the same thinking. When choosing to invest, they then tend to gravitate toward male-led companies, instead of those that are of women’s.
Furthermore, business loan approval rates are less likely for women entrepreneurs. One approach you can do to overcome this roadblock is to expand your professional networks. Getting investors is still a matter of relationship-building, so if you’ve built great rapport with professionals, it’s impossible that you won’t find even a single one to believe in your vision and invest in it.
It’s good news that more women are going into business. The entrepreneurial journey for them, however, isn’t without challenges. Overcome these roadblocks as you dive into the world of business and further solidify the girl power in entrepreneurship.