For a long time, women have the disadvantage of being, well, women. Business was always done a certain way by certain people and big business wanted to uphold the status quo. However, female entrepreneurs having been coming out with both hands gloved, ready to fight for their business ventures.
When you are fighting what seems like an uphill battle, remember that you’re fighting the good fight. Yes, women entrepreneurs are like boxers busting their way through the business world. No one sees that powerful left hook. All around the world female entrepreneurs are taking the world by storm and changing at the same time.
Powerful Left Hook: Equality in the Numbers
We all know that women make up over half the planet, but now the numbers in business and education are starting to reflect that. Women are investing in education and with that education comes more women in the workforce and more business owners. According to The Atlantic, for every two men who earn bachelor’s degrees, three women are doing the same.
Pow! Women also earn 60% of Master’s degrees, 50% of law and medical degrees, and 42% of MBA’s. Pow! Pow! With just under 50% of PhDs earned by women, it seems that, finally, education numbers reflect society.
Also, for the first time ever, women make up over half of the U.S workforce. We’ll call it the old one-two. First, we get educated, then we show up to work. Not only that, but the United States ranks number one for the best business environment for female entrepreneurs. (Of course, that doesn’t mean it still doesn’t have a long road ahead of it. The U.S. only scored a 71 out of 100 across the categories analyzed.) Female entrepreneurs represent 48% of the market and 40% of new entrepreneurs are women. Thank you foremothers for fighting for equality!
Surprise Right Jab: Women-lead Businesses are More Valuable
When it comes to women and entrepreneurship, women are a proven better investment. I can see you nodding, ladies: you knew it all along, and here’s why.
Successful U.S. venture-backed companies had twice the number of women on the founding team. In a study of 1,500 companies, it was found that those firms with the most female executives also tend to perform better. Companies with more women at the top are more innovative and offer a wider set of influences on decisions. More diversity leads to better decision making across the board.
Ready for the jab? Not only are women important to have on the decision-making team, but it’s proven that women-run businesses are an overall better investment. Data from 350 micro institutions showed that lending to women was associated with lower write-offs and lower portfolio-at-risk.
In Kenya, for instance, it was found that women are trusted in their communities and therefore, their businesses are more successful. When you add to it that women-owned businesses created or maintain 23 million jobs and perform twice as well as those led by men, investing in women is just a smart option.
Now we’ve done a blow-by-blow of stats and numbers at you, let’s talk about how all of this leads to female entrepreneurs fighting for the heavyweight title.
The Uppercut: Reinvesting in the Community
When women are successful, their community is more successful. Their kids are better educated, their families are healthier, and the society they live in begins to thrive. Working women reinvest 90 cents on every dollar back into their community, wherein their male counterparts only invest 30 to 40 cents. Working women are like a strong uppercut to boosting the economy. By supporting working women, we are supporting the community, the world, and our futures.
The Haymaker: Creating Jobs
With women owned businesses creating a platform for success, it only makes sense that their new ventures would create jobs. In the U.S., more than half of the 9.72 million new jobs created in small and medium enterprises were by female-led companies. In the next ten years, there are 15 categories that are expected to grow the fastest. 13 of those are jobs held in majority by women. More jobs spur the economy, which means local and country economics do better. Like a haymaker, women are desperate to create new niches and new opportunities which knocks out unemployment and gives hope to the community.
The Bob and Weave: Innovation
All over the world, women are finding niche businesses created from necessity. They are innovating and inventing, filling voids and finding ways to fix problems in their communities. For example, Fereshteh Forough has founded the first all-girls coding school in Afghanistan, arming young women with in-demand skills to solidify their futures. Elena Shkarubo founded MeetnGreetMe, a place for global travelers to find concierge and lifestyle management services delivered by locals.
In Estonia, a hub of entrepreneurship in Europe, Kristel Kruustuk formed Testlio, a company that connects enterprises to software testers which leads to amazing customer experiences. These are just a few of the rockstar women seeking out problems, finding their niche and owning it. When problems come to from the left, women bob right and find solutions. Female innovators and entrepreneurs are turning around the economies in their communities and contributing globally.
So, what can we take away from this? (Besides, of course, that women are killing the game right now.) Female-led businesses are the future of our local and global economies. If you are considering starting a business or already have one, this is your time to take action and go for it. Women entrepreneurs are proven good investments who create jobs, innovate, and make their communities better. Fight the good fight and help female entrepreneurs secure that title!
