Challenges You Will Face As A Female Entrepreneur And How You Can Overcome Them

WORKING WITH MALE COUNTERPARTS

The entrepreneurship field is male-dominated. As a female entrepreneur, there is a constant struggle to earn respect among male counterparts. They usually struggle for their voices to be heard as their ideas are usually dismissed or undermined. A lot of men believe they do not have the drive to put in the long hours and work as hard as men do. The best way to overcome this is to stay true to yourself, be open to new ideas but trust your instincts and be confident.

Female Entrepreneurs are also encouraged to join support/female entrepreneur groups as they help inspire and mentor aspiring businesswomen.

LIMITED ACCESS TO FUNDING

A report by Bloomberg showed that female entrepreneurs receive a lot less funding as compared to what men get. This is mainly because there are more Male Investors who would rather invest in startups run by people of their own “tribe”. Studies show that a lot of women do not own properties or assets and therefore, do not have access to large funds due to lack of collateral. This problem can be solved by getting more female investors to invest in female-owned businesses. These investor groups emphasize on providing financial support and encouragement to businesswomen.

BALANCING BUSINESS AND FAMILY LIFE

Even in recent years, traditional gender expectations still prevail. Work-life balance is important regardless of the gender of the entrepreneur, but a female entrepreneur is regarded as the home-maker, she has to run both her family and her business. This means putting in longer hours at work and at home which could be a huge problem. Finding ways to devote time to the family and businesses would actually help with this issue.

FEAR OF FAILURE

The number of businesswomen in the world today is still so small compared to their male counterparts, there is the perception that it is difficult to succeed. A lot of aspiring businesswomen give up before they even start their businesses. They let self-doubt creep in more so often. Accepting that there is the possibility of failure in every business is important, but that does not mean the business will fail.

LACK OF A GOOD SUPPORT SYSTEM

Over the years, the number of women in business has increased. However, there are still not enough female support platforms for aspiring entrepreneurs. There are therefore fewer role models/mentors compared to their male counterparts and this limits professional growth. Female entrepreneurs are advised to attend women-focused networking events and join support groups.