7 Pieces of Business Advice Women Passed On to Me
A Conduit for Positive Change
“A conduit for positive change for female entrepreneurs” - That’s how I sum up the purpose of Founding Females®. A free flow of business advice to be shared by all is what we’re making accessible in our female entrepreneur blog, female entrepreneur online mastermind, and female entrepreneur events we call “Meet Ups.”
It also means the small business advice other women have poured into me instinctively flows into other female entrepreneurs with the aim of helping them reach new levels of success. That’s what we mean by uplifting, up-leveling, and “clearing each other’s paths,” together.
Surrounding yourself with a female community is powerful because of the agency we as women naturally take to pave an easier road for others. For example, Rachel Rogers in her book, We Should All Be Millionaires: A Woman’s Guide to Earning More, Building Wealth, and Gaining Economic Power describes this perfectly when she talks about how when women have money, we tend to use it to create more opportunities for other women. For more on money mindset for female entrepreneurs, read 10 Money Mindset Shifts All Female Entrepreneurs Need.
The same goes for advice about business. When women find something that works, I’ve noticed we feel a sense of urgency to pass it along to others. At least that’s how it is in the tribe I roll with.
Meaning, your success will never detract from mine. In fact, I believe we can build more success together than either of us could alone.
That’s the precedent we’ve set for the vibe inside the Founding Females® women’s business mastermind.
How to Be Successful in Business
For a while I believed successful business owners took some magical course that I somehow missed.
The truth is, there is no magic. You find business success in two ways:
through your direct experience and
connection inside a community.
That’s right, either you earn wisdom through experience (the long way), or you soak up wisdom by surrounding yourself with a community you can learn from (the much quicker way).
Since I started my business in 2015, other female entrepreneurs have passed on seven important pieces of business wisdom to me that I'll pour into you today.
7 Pieces of Business Advice Women Passed On to Me
Let’s dive into the seven pieces of business advice other female entrepreneurs passed on to me.
Create assets, not paychecks. Many people find a way to pay themselves and call it a “business.” The well-known book, E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What to Do About It says: “If your business can’t operate without you, you don’t have a business, you have a job.” Creating an asset means building a business that pays you and becomes more valuable over time. We talk about this often inside the Founding Females women’s business mastermind.
Market early and often. Marketing is the engine that propels your business forward, yet some believe "if you build it, they will come." As an entrepreneur, you must actively build avenues into your business starting with where your ideal audience already spends time. If your business is struggling to get started, drive customers, or generate revenue, start by looking at your marketing strategy, which is way more than just posting on social media. See: 5 Essential Steps to Create a Marketing Plan that Turns Leads into Paying Customers.
Aim for A-. In school, you get rewarded based on having the right answers, so naturally many entrepreneurs bring an inflexible mindset about how to achieve success into building a business. But there need to be a mindset shift into one of more versatility. In business, there are diminishing returns for perfectionism. In other words, perfectionism will sabotage your success and potentially your profits. Ask yourself, "How can I accomplish this task with a solid ‘A-minus or B+ quality’ and move on to other revenue-generating tasks?" Very few things in business ownership require perfectionism and the key is to develop discernment about which ones are important.
Find your flock. It's okay to not know all the answers. That's why you have a female entrepreneur community. Many of us start and run businesses solo, so having a business community (I call them my "Board of Directors") to ask questions, celebrate wins, and share disappointments with is crucial for going the distance in your business. Trust me, you’ll be much more successful if you don’t try to do this alone.
Automate, delegate, eliminate. Ask yourself about each responsibility it takes to run your business, "Am I the person who MUST perform this task?" If the answer is "yes," see how you can do it most efficiently. If the answer is "no," automate it with a process, delegate to someone else, or eliminate it completely so you can focus time and brain power on tasks in your business that generate more revenue.
Good habits and self-discipline are good enough. You don't have to know everything about business to be successful. Having good habits (i.e. doing what you say you’re going to do, having a “give first” mentality, delivering quality results, having discipline to tackle the “not fun” tasks) and being a good boss of yourself will get you through even the stickiest of challenges. Trust your instinct. You ARE capable of success. If you’re trying to find your footing as a business owner, one good place to start is this list of important business terms.
Fall in love with planting seeds. Entrepreneurship is not for the faint of heart. Many times, we plant seeds we don't see bloom for many months or years. In other words, delayed gratification is BAE in business. Be willing to invest time, energy, and money (with a solid plan for your return on investment - ROI - for the cost) upfront to reap the benefits down the road.
Share your Business Advice
What business wisdom have others poured into you? Share in the comments. It would mean so much for you to pour into me, and I’ll turn around and share it with our Founding Females® family so we can all grow together.
Cheering for you!
Francie, Founder of Founding Females®
PS If you’re looking for business and marketing guidance to align you on the right track, I’m your girl. Click to learn more about how we can work together.
