Going into Business - The Woman's Way
If you are a woman who wants to live a profitable and rewarding life, then go into business ... your own, not someone else's.
Even though I'm fully aware of the benefits of 'running your own show' and made the decision to do so long ago, I'm still inspired by the stories of others who have done the same.
So, having very proudly been included in the recently published UK Edition of 'Successful Women In Business', I was keen to read the stories of the 14 other women who have been chosen for their influence and impact on the contemporary business world.
And after reading their behind the scenes stories, it struck me very clearly that it doesn't matter what field of endeavour or sector of industry you're in - technology, fashion, retail, property or something else entirely - it's perseverance, determination and a refusal to accept second best that are the core requirements that eventually lead to success.
Very rarely is life like the X Factor, where you're suddenly catapulted to fame and stardom.
That's particularly true if you're a woman trying to make it in the corporate world, where you have to fight your way through glass ceilings and 'old boy networks' (neither of which have gone away unfortunately).
Admittedly, these days only the most hardened of misogynists is likely to say it to your face that you can't make it in business because you're a woman, but that doesn't mean the thought isn't just below the surface.
Women in Business
The reality of course is that those old misguided beliefs about women in business are simply wrong, and even more so today than they were in the past.
As a woman you don't know anything about going into business.
Who says? Countless businesses, even ones run by men, have been set up by someone with little knowledge or experience, but in possession of an idea that they needed to 'scratch'. With so many resources now available on the internet, not being able to find out what you need to know is not an excuse for not trying.
In business you need to be ruthless and that doesn't suit women.
Again, who needs to be ruthless? For every brusque Alan Sugar, there's another successful boss who's taking a more 'touchy feely', collaborative approach. The even better news is that this is the way the business world is turning. It's moving towards win:win and away from macho win:crush, and that's great news for women. What is regarded as their natural talent for cooperation and collaboration is just what the world is looking for after the recent (and on-going) excesses of big business.
You can't go into business because you've got a family.
Twenty years ago, this could have been a 'knockout blow' for many women trapped in their homes by domesticity and children. Nowadays, the rise of cheap new technologies has blown this argument out of the water. If you're a woman who feels her path is blocked in her chosen corporate career, the ways and means exist for you to get out and set up successfully on your own.
So why plan to stay in the corporate world when you can succeed outside it ... on your own terms and in your own way?
Less Then £3000 to get off the Ground
Research suggests that it takes on average less than £3,000 to start a new business - enough to get the good laptop and phone you need to begin creating a viable online business that isn't just local, but international.
You're too old go into business. It's hard enough when you're young, but at your age you've missed the boat.
No. Age should be no deterrent to setting up your own. In fact, if you're a mature woman, there are real reasons to feel positive about life outside the corporate environment. According to The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), there are now 200,000 more women aged 50-64 in work than there were before the recession. That's due in large part to the substantial rise in numbers setting up in business or becoming self employed.
Better still, age could be to your advantage. Research by Aston University reveals that nearly half of 50+ women are still succeeding in their business five years after setting it up. That compares more than favourably with the far more modest 29% of those aged 18 to 49 who are still going strong five years down the line.
There are rewards to be reaped too. Research by Barclays Wealth & Investment Management of their global clients shows that women in business earned 17% more on average than their male counterparts.
So don't let your gender stop you going your own way when, as a woman in business, you can achieve so much and have so much to gain.
As a first step, download your two free chapters of 'Corporate Escape: the Rise of the New Entrepreneur'.
© 2014 Maite Barón. All rights reserved. If you'd like to use this blog for your ezine, newsletter or website please feel free, but do include a live link to my website and the following attribution: "Maite Barón, 'The Corporate Escape Coach™', enables 40+ executives and professionals to break free of the corporate rat race by helping them find out what is next for them in their professional life. For some that is to help them understand what work they were born to do. For others it is to help them find a better job in a more suitable corporate culture. For more and more, it is to help them transition from employee to self employed, to ultimately start a business as 'New Entrepreneurs'. You can find useful resources, sign up for free reports and read more articles at www.TheCorporateEscape.com
This Article was first posted on the Corporate Escape Blog