Women are making the moves and how!
They are stepping into the hugely challenging field of entrepreneurship and raising the bar for competition while at the same time, setting precedence for many many more who’ve secretly aspired to build their own business domains.
This surge, this movement of self-discovery needs to be celebrated and what better way than to assign a day which is all about these fearless entrepreneurs.
What is Women’s Entrepreneurship Day and when is it celebrated
Women’s Entrepreneurship Day (WED) is a global movement that is celebrated annually on November 19th to recognise and support women entrepreneurs. On this day, the work of women entrepreneurs is observed and discussed at length across the globe.
Wendy Diamond, the founder of the Women’s Entrepreneurship Day Organization (WEDO) decided to initiate this day back in 2014, in response to the challenges faced by women entrepreneurs like lack of education, cultural inflections, limited access to capital and mentorship, among others.
What is the objective of Women’s Entrepreneurship Day
Some of the objectives of Women’s Entrepreneurship Day include:
1. Increasing visibility
The day is to celebrate achievements of women entrepreneurs who lead big and small businesses. The motive is also to sensitize people to the hardships faced by them like lack of education, cultural influences, lack of capital and mentorship, and tackling gender discrimination.
2. Promoting gender equality
This day is a reminder to promote inclusivity in entrepreneurship, and promoting a diversified business landscape. It is time to acknowledge their business acumen and treat them with parity. The business world out there is still a lot indifferent, intolerant of them and doesn’t miss one chance to malign or undermine and question their competence. Gender diversity is something that needs to be worked at.
3. Supporting women
Skepticism around women running successful businesses is rampant. Oftentimes they are refused a fair chance and good capital because of who they are. It is important to give them that foothold and leverage them to rise beyond the doubts that surround them. Getting together on a day to celebrate their journeys is also giving them a ground to mingle, network, speak their cause, find their investors, and brainstorm with other believers and achievers like themselves.
4. Empowering women
The world has moved on and it’d be a shame if a dream dies because it didn’t have the funds to make it take shape. When women meet on a day such as this, they share their visions and they look for ways in which they can add each other to their steadily growing tribe.
How to celebrate and support Women’s Entrepreneurship Day
Here are some ways in which you can proactively support Women’s Entrepreneurship Day and fuel the dreams of women across the globe:
1. Participate in events
So, everyone reading this blog, make it your business to attend local or virtual Women’s Entrepreneurship Day events. Every one person who joins in or signs up is another one added to the tally of those who see women as this formidable force who will make their presence felt through grit and determination, and an unmatched resilience.
2. Support women-owned businesses
Support women wherever you can. There are many who have forayed into the world of entrepreneurship with their strengths in technology, handmade stuff, food, book reading and reviews, creating virtual shops to name just a few. It’d be nice if we start to support small business owners by shopping locally or online.
3. Mentorship and networking
There is just nothing that moves without hobnobbing with the right kind of people who share your vision and can come up with a million ways in which to take it further. Such days help with bringing them all in one place to know each other and learn from each other. There is every chance that fledgling entrepreneurs are taken under their wings by those established and groomed better, to grow better. Alternatively, several online platforms offer mentorship programmes that one can subscribe to, usually at hugely competitive prices.
4. Social media campaigns
Social Media is a superpower. It reaches out to millions of people and starts what can well be called a revolution of ideas. The best entrepreneurial agencies have started to use social media extensively to broadcast their programmes, get subscribers, and offer certifications. It is here that people gather their knowledge of upcoming events, trending subjects, keynote speakers, motivational stuff, to list a few.
Conclusion
Everyone is joining forces with women who’ve decided to be their own masters. They don’t need bystanders cheering them from the sidelines. They need people who have faith in them and give them the strength to go after their dreams.
For every woman who chooses to be an entrepreneur, she chooses for herself a forever seething battlefield. The need of the day is to call a truce and bring in the calm so she can also build herself without the fear of being razed to the ground by things, absolutely irrelevant but nagging that hold her guilty of nurturing a dream.
Want to proactively become a part of the growth of women?
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