Women in Entrepreneurship

WOMEN in Entrepreneurship Navigating the Entrepreneurship Landscape as a Woman

by Habiba Balogun

CEO & Principal Consultant Habiba Balogun Consulting Limited

Entrepreneurship is already hard

Women, The Triple burden and the Double bind

•  Triple Burden –  Woman, Worker, Welfare Officer

–  Housekeeper, Earner, Caregiver –  Marriage, Maternity Leave, Childcare

•  The Double bind: Damned if you do, damned if you don’t –  Extreme PercepIons – too soJ or too tough

–  High Competence Threshold – always proving, never proved

–  Competent but disliked – boss from hell

Source: Catalyst – The Double-bind Dilemma for Women in Leadership

Entrepreneurial Challenges

1.  Picking the right business –  It helps people / provides a

soluIon –  You can deliver what you have

promised 2.  Financing your business

–  Start small & be creaIve –  Access seed money – saving,

borrowing, equity –  Use technology

3.  Finding paying customers –  Let your product sell itself –  Find the people in need of your

service –  Use technology

4.  When to quit your day job –  You have enough money to

survive for 12-‐18 months while it takes off

–  Knowing when to exit 5.  Dealing with Financial

Uncertainty –  Structure your biz to provide a

regular cashflow to replace your salary

6.  Managing your money –  Become Financially Literate FAST:

Budget, Save, Invest –  Understand taxes and pay them –  Get legal protecIon for your

business. Insure yourself against loss

Entrepreneurial Challenges (cont.)

7.  Dealing with NegaIvity –  Ditch negaIve people around you –  Conquer your self-‐doubt with

determinaIon to succeed 8.  Find Trustworthy partners

–  Never go into business with ‘fast’ people

–  Don’t be one of them either –  Forge strategic partnerships/alliances

9.  Dealing with compeIIon –  Don’t compete, innovate & excel –  Keep seeking new soluIons and

pioneer them 10.  Dealing with Paperwork

–  Get it done properly if you want your business to grow beyond just you

–  Use technology

11.  Hiring Employees –  Hire as freelancers or contractors

unIl the workload is too much or you are generaIng enough revenue

–  Be a teacher, moIvator & cheque writer

–  Do NOT be a babysiier or therapist 12.  DelegaIon

–  Trust someone to do it ‘well-‐enough’. They cannot do it like you.

13.  Time Management –  Organise your 24 hours minus sleep –  Set working hours / days –  ASK FOR HELP –  Looking aJer yourself

Young boys are taught to plan for WHAT they will achieve in life, young women are taught to plan for WHOM they will attain.

This does not prepare us to set life, career and/or business goals

”If you don’t know where you are going,

any road will take you there.” from Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

Quiet thinking and reflecting time �

Meditate and listen to your ins8ncts

Source: www.slideshare.net/huiguniang2/how-to-make-a-decision

What’s the worst that can happen? "

How likely is that to happen? "

Can you deal with it?"

Ask yourself 3 questions


Take two pieces of paper

and write down your options on each. Put them in a bowl, close your eyes, and pick one."If you feel disappointed with

the outcome, then you know that is the wrong decision for you to make! �


Let go of your fear

•  There is no right or wrong decision "

•  Any decision is better than indecision


STOP THINKING

SO MUCH �


Good Decision-‐makers Build their… 1.  Self-esteem (not pride)

2.  Courage •  Take calculated risks • Do the right thing •  Act even when scared

3. Honesty •  Are true to themselves and natural •  Are brutally honest with themselves

4. Love (care about their welfare and that of others)

Source: Leadership Decision Making – Professor Hossein Arsham

Personal Decisions are the Leading Cause of Premature Death

In 1900 only 10% of premature deaths were due to personal decisions

In 2008, it is up to 44.5% (smoking, not exercising, drug & alcohol abuse, unsafe sex, criminality)

Instead of relying on EXTERNAL factors to keep us alive and healthy for longer, we can (and must) learn to rely on our decision-‐making skills in order to reduce the number of stupid choices and costly

mistakes that we make

Source: Operations Research Ralph Keeney 2008

BEFORE Deciding

1.  Is it IMPORTANT to me? 2.  Does this ADD VALUE to

my life? 3.  Does this MAKE ME

HAPPY / happier? 4.  Can I live with myself

aJer this?

4 Important Questions

How We Avoid Making Serious Decisions

EVADING •  Recourse to someone or something else

e.g. religion, horoscopes •  ShiJ responsibility – e.g. spouse •  Toe the line – follow others •  Set up a commiiee (no person to blame) •  The Ostrich – don’t think about it •  Pray for a miracle / False Hopes POOR CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS •  False alternaIve •  Failure to Reflect •  Sunk Cost Syndrome •  Seek Confirming Evidence •  Failure to understand the problem •  Oversimplify the problem

SELF-‐SABOTAGE •  Be overconfident •  Be too prudent •  Succumb to failure •  MisrepresentaIon of facts •  Reasoning by analogy •  Purely symbolic decisions •  Post-‐decision anxiety / Have

second thoughts


DON’T When you are: •  Angry •  Hurt •  Depressed •  Desperate •  Frightened •  Jealous / Envious •  Being persuaded To get… •  Revenge •  Harm someone else

DO When you are… •  Under the influence

of drink or drugs •  Sleep deprived •  Deeply sad •  In the grips of grief •  Being coerced/

pressured •  Impulsive

When to make Serious Decisions

•  When you are: –  Calm –  Thoughrul –  Focused –  Informed

•  Find a way to perceive your problem as an opportunity

•  Use decision-‐making tools -‐  Decision trees -‐  10-‐10-‐10 -‐  Cost/Benefit, Pros/Cons -‐  Grid Analysis


1.  Set a clear goal. What do you want to accomplish? and how it relates to your values / prioriIes

2.   Iden8fy the Op8ons/Ac8ons. Consider a wide range of possible alternaIve courses of acIon

3.  Evaluate the Consequences. Weigh the costs & risks of possible negaIve and posiIve consequences. Especially the worst case scenario

4.  Gather Informa8on. Search for new relevant informaIon to further evaluate the choices

5.   Process the informa8on. Take account of any new informaIon especially ones that do not support your preferred opIon

6.  Assess the Ac8on. Re-‐examine posiIve and negaIve consequences including some previously unacceptable choices before making a final decision

7.   Implement your decision. Make DETAILED provisions for implemenIng and execuIng the chosen course of acIon including conIngency plans and flexibility to adjust

Making Good Decisions

Japanese proverb

"Thinking without acIon is a daydream.

AcIon without thinking is a

nightmare."

Proverb

“Hell is full of good intentions, heaven is full of good works”

The difficulty in life is the choice George Moore

There is a big difference between making a choice and making a decision. The difference is

IMPLEMENTATION

Take yourself seriously as an entrepreneur

1.  Know yourself –  Your business & personal goals –  Interpersonal skills

2.  Educate yourself –  Your Business Environment –  Financial Literacy

•  Finance •  AccounIng

–  Business Skills –  Entrepreneurial Skills –  MarkeIng Skills –  TECHNOLOGY

Read Great Books by Female Leaders

1.  Tell your stories 2.  Find your life’s mission 3.  Take charge of change 4.  Overcome crisis 5.  Wield your power 6.  Never stop learning 7.  Leverage technology 8.  Nurture your network 9.  Find a mentor. Be one, too 10. Give back 11.  Juggle 12.  IdenIfy your next step

Inspiring Ourselves

“Define success on your own terms, achieve it by your own rules, and build a life you’re proud to live.”

– Anne Sweeney (President of Walt Disney)

Inspiring Ourselves

“I always did something I was a liile not ready to do. I think that’s how you grow. When there’s that moment of ‘Wow, I’m not really sure I can do this,’ and you push

through those moments, that’s when you have a breakthrough.”

-‐ Marissa Mayer (CEO of Yahoo)

Inspiring Ourselves

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, ‘Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?’ Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure

around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own

fear, our presence automaIcally liberates others.”

– Marianne Williamson (Author)

References

•  PowerTools for Women in Business – Aliza Sherman •  Catalyst – The Double-‐bind Dilemma for Women in Leadership

•  Leadership Decision Making – Professor Hossein Arsham

•  www.slideshare.net/huiguniang/how to make a decision

•  2TinyBuddha.com

Thank You!

Habiba Balogun Consulting . [email protected] . 0709 318 8812 . www.hbalogunconsult.com