Women In Business
Every day, hundreds of women go out and start their own businesses - at twice the rate of men. And these businesses are growing revenue, profits and jobs faster than business as a whole. Women now own around 50% of private businesses, demonstrating just how tough, innovative and commercial women can be.
As I talk to female business owners, I hear three consistent themes:
1) It was hard to be taken seriously in the corporate world;
2) I wanted more control over my life; and
3) I want to make a contribution to society.
Women invariably work very hard, they just don’t necessarily want to work a rigid schedule. Many successful female business owners sustain double and triple-digit growth. Also, many of them also have families. What they have worked out is that it doesn’t really matter which 80 hours you work. And while they may work weird hours, they are highly productive. We now have all the technology we need to free people to work more flexibly.
In the business world we find many people whose true potential has not been allowed to bloom, perhaps because of age, experience, circumstance, education or even gender. But one thing is becoming more evident - women are taking a greater leadership role in business, and even in our societies. There are massive gains to be made by adopting a more rounded, holistic and balanced way of doing things. Women and their inherent creativity are uniquely positioned to do this.
Closely aligned to this is my observation that successful women in business are generally more enlightened, more in touch with their soul, spirit and emotions and are able to converse openly about them. As Emotional Intelligence is seen increasingly to be critical in a leadership role, women have a natural advantage.
I find that most business owners love what they do. They provide amazing services. But they don’t necessarily fully understand how to run their business and they think something must be wrong with them personally. Nothing’s wrong with them! It’s just that no one has ever taught them what to do! Women business almost always owners find it easier than men to ask for help and to seek out appropriate learning.
The old model of business is “work hard and get people to buy your stuff.”
The new model is Authenticity, Service and Wealth. This new model is typically easier for women. And when you learn to create your business in the new model, people thank you for being successful. They thank you for who you are and what you’ve created. (You get to thank them too!)
