Women have a pleasing element of humility to them, they like to give back, share and create a better environment for everyone. There remains a need for greater access to practical support when it comes to women entrepreneurs, because while there is a lot of talk about them no one lifts a finger to guide them. Starting from the scratch in a male dominated world, women embraced the gender difference by daring to be different and by experimenting.
1. Think big
Perhaps the most underrated thing but this should be the mindset before entering the business game. When you start an entrepreneurial venture, you set a goal and execute your way to achieve that goal. After deciding your field of interest, look at the big picture, than look at what is the bigger thing, and do that instead. It will produce far more amazing results.
2. Balance your work & home
Women have come a long way from being just homemakers. They are bold, they are decision makers and they are not afraid to step out of their comfort zone to achieve something they want. But they are still considered to be the ones that primarily manage their home & family. It gets challenging and overwhelming when there are no boundaries between your work space and family. Clear boundaries adhere to protect your work from the distraction of family, as well as protect your family involvement from the obligations at work.
3. Trust your intuition
A visionary sees opportunity where others don’t. Women generally labelled as ‘mother’ or ‘homemaker’ leveraged on that label to be more efficient and effective in their work because who else is better at multi-tasking than them. It made them more receptive to stereotyping and other cultural barriers they faced in the corporate world. Intuition is often labelled as a feminine trait and business is all about recognizing what the customer wants – women who take care of everyone in her family is much more intuitive to the needs of those at the receiving end.
4. Relationship management is the key
A vital ingredient for success in business is maintaining relationships. Women have this gift to manage people and to empathise with them. Whether it is caring for a co-worker who has family problems or understanding the needs of the customers rather than just delivering a product, women are much better at networking which helps them flourish at work.
5. Find your vision
Anyone can start a business, what is hard is to sustain it. If you don’t have a vision for your business, everyone can sense it: your customers, team, advisors and investors. So it is of utmost importance that you choose something that you not only like: but are passionate about enough to survive the roller coaster ride. One way to recognize your passion is to think back on your life, the habits you developed, the games you played, the books you read, and map out a path in your life and career. The more aligned your thoughts and beliefs are to your purpose and passions, the easier it becomes to make decisions, set and achieve goals. There are no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ choices when it comes to making decisions in business, and your choices will change according to different stages in your family’s life.
The pressure to conform to societal norms is hard to ignore in India especially for women. They are wired from the start to live in the safe bubble called family (first own than husband’s) and conforming to their needs that it is hard for them to consider a life outside of that bubble. It took a little time for Indian women to look beyond that bubble and look for avenues to satisfy their urge to make a mark in the corporate world previously dominated by male. But they did and that too spectacularly!!! Men aren’t out of the picture, but they’re no longer defining the parameters of success.
