 |
In the past year I’ve traveled extensively for speaking engagements, workshops and other events (yes, I do A LOT of speeches.... and, YES, I will gladly present to your group, too.) And in my travels I discovered something I did not expect: women are taking over.
Everywhere I speak women fill the seats. They outnumber the men in my own network. And they are not just talking about starting businesses; they are leaders at the forefront of the next entrepreneurial wave. It’s not exactly what I expected to find when I set out to inspire the growing TPE movement.
Don’t get me wrong; I’m an equal-opportunity guy. It’s not that I was surprised that women could do it. It’s just that in my experience, men are the majority in the business world. Strike that. Men were the majority. When it comes to starting new businesses, women are definitely leaving men in the dust.
According to the Center for Women’s Business Research women own more than 50% of U.S. businesses, employing more than thirteen million people and racking up almost $2 trillion in annual sales (2008)! AND, one in five companies with $1 trillion or more in annual revenue is woman-owned.
Not million. Not billion. Trillion.
And the trend is not specific to the U.S. In the U.K., for instance, women are expected to surpass men in terms of personal wealth, representing 60% of all millionaires by 2025. (Source: BBC News Online.)
So why are women entrepreneurs on the rise? Why are they so successful, even in this tough economic climate? I believe it’s because they are doing what comes naturally to them, which as it turns out, is also a better way of doing business.
The old way of doing business was to compete and destroy, excluding the competition and even other businesses in your industry in order to achieve an elite status. All of this played in to men’s natural inclinations. The new way of doing business is about inclusion, to compete, but to also cooperate and therefore, grow. Women still achieve elite status, but they achieve it together. This way of doing business comes more naturally to women.
Coming together enables entrepreneurs to maximize resources, discover more opportunities, and leverage better deals. Who doesn’t need a little of that action? Strike that. Who doesn’t need A LOT of that action? The new methods just make sense, which is why the reason women are at the forefront of entrepreneurialism is NOT a surprise to me.
So ladies, I’ll see you at my next gig. I’ll be the guy down front. Or maybe just the guy.
P.S. Check out the photos I included in this post. All these women are amazing Toilet Paper Entrepreneurs. Collectively, and individually, they are changing the land scape of entrepreneurship through innovation, ingenuity and raw passion.
By Mike Michalowicz, Author of The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur
Pingback: Women Entrepreneurs, The Next Wave Of Leaders
Pingback: - Writers of The Round Table
Pingback: Women Entrepreneurs, The Next Wave Of Leaders at Strategy Stew
Pingback: Women Entrepreneurs, The Next Wave Of Leaders | Long Island Business Blog