Every March, as part of Women’s History Month, we are offered a special opportunity to celebrate women around the world as an embodiment of power, success, and positivity. Women entrepreneurs are a perfect example of these characteristics, and have proven over time that they are capable of achieving limitless heights of success. They have shown that anything is possible as long as they have the passion and perseverance to overcome any hurdle that might come their way. This unrelenting persistence is needed as it’s not an easy feat to stand up to stereotypes and outdated societal norms, while at the same time being loving mothers, daughters, wives, friends, and strong role models.
Over the last few decades, women entrepreneurs around the world have proven that there is no glass ceiling or gender bias that can stop them from charting their own path. This new generation of female entrepreneurs are not just running highly successful business ventures, but also generating new opportunities for countless people and families. These bold and fearless women are at the top of their fields and charter territories at levels that were once considered unattainable.
While the list of inspirational women entrepreneurs may seem endless, here are few who have made notable strides in advancing their roles in their respective fields include names such as:
· Anita Roddick
o The famous British businesswoman and human rights activist, once said, “Whatever you do, be different”. There can be no better advice for a woman entrepreneur. If you have the resolve to be different, you will stand out and will make a significant difference in the world.
· J.K. Rowling
o Being a successful author takes a lot of effort, failures, and trials. J.K. Rowling is a perfect example of being an inspirational leader in her field. She overcame her fears and solidified her place in literary history. Explaining her mindset on taking risks, she was quoted as saying: “It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well have not lived at all-in which case, you fail by default.”
The sphere of women’s influence is not only limited to beauty and literature, but has expanded to business, technology real estate, architecture, and sales. We are living in a time that women from all over the world, not just developed nations, are now able to get the opportunity to achieve their full potential. Microloans are enabling opportunities for women in many third-world countries to be self-sufficient and to open businesses. Technology platforms like Kiva (https://www.kiva.org/) enables the dreams of countless women by jump-start their business with access to start-up capital. These types of opportunities were just simply unheard of few years ago. Moving to the United States as children, we are personally both living testimonies that women can start a real estate business, succeed in it and add value to people's lives by helping them find a place they can call “Home” in the Big Apple.
Women entrepreneurs not only fuel economic growth, but they also help bring about social change. They break social taboos and encourage other girls to follow in their footsteps and break free from the invisible fetters that are too often placed upon them. We encourage all women to continue doing what they love, and to set their goals even higher in the fields they are passionate about.
So while International Women’s Day may only come around once a year on March 8th, we should appreciate and support the progress of women every day!
Stay empowered, support each other, and continue charting your own path. The world is proud of you!