Women Inspiring Women Entrepreneurs [Should you start your own business?]
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Are you a woman in business, curious to start your own business, or just going back and forth with an idea? We reached out to a few seasoned and successful female entrepreneurs in Baltimore to get their insight and advice on their experience in business as a woman.
According to the VISA State of Female Entrepreneurship 2019 report, the top motivators for women starting businesses were to pursue their passion, achieve financial independence, and for flexibility. Women are continuously in pursuit of this as the number of women- owned businesses are on the rise, with over 1200 new businesses being launched daily in the US alone!
However, taking the leap to start a business can be incredibly intimidating, and those top motivators may not be sufficient for you to take the dive.
During International Women's Month, we reached out to a few women entrepreneurs and asked a few key questions to help inspire other women interested in pursuing their own business, and here is what they had to say.
"What advice would you give to any woman thinking of starting her own business?"
"Know your worth and remain steadfast in the quality of what you put out (service, product, etc). Don’t “fake it till you make it” be authentic and operate at your own pace. Do your market research but resist the urge to watch and compare your growth to others."
Melanie Kerr, Owner/Executive Chef
"You must really be passionate about it. You will work so hard in the beginning without much pay or sometimes very little pay so be prepared for that. Test it out on a small level first to make sure it’s what you want to dedicate your time to."
Kacey Stafford, Owner
"Be careful who you tie your sails to! It takes a village to make a small business work, and you’ll want to have people around you who are not only your cheerleaders, but who are interested in your long-term success."
Jinji, Owner
"Your perspective and solutions are valuable to our world! If you feel guided to start your own business, follow that instinct and take the next steps to get you closer to launching. That might mean setting aside time to dream up what your business is, brainstorming fun business names, taking classes, connecting with mentors in a similar industry, looking for office space, building a website. Take the journey one step and a time and enjoy yourself along the way."
Julie Bent, The Shopkeeper/Owner
"Prioritize yourself - take good care of your body & your mental health. Your business will not survive if you burn out, and investing in yourself will make your business sustainable."
Sarah Acconcia, Founder
What advice resonates with you? It's one thing envisioning what it might be like starting and running a small business, but getting advice from those already in it makes the process somewhat easier.
Are you a woman thinking of starting a business? Do you know any other women interested? Share this article with them and stay tuned for part 2 of this small series of Women Inspiring Women Entrepreneurs. We're here to support and inspire!
If you're a small business owner in Maryland, be sure to submit your business to be listed on this website.