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What do you know about life as an entrepreneur? Here are some truths about entrepreneurship that every aspiring entrepreneur should know!
I am on a high; the high that comes not just from doing something well, but from knowing that something you did impacted others’ lives in a meaningful way.
Just a couple of days ago, we held our very first event this year in Bangalore, #BreakingBarriers To Growth, where women entrepreneurs in sectors as diverse as manufacturing, retail, luxury, education, publishing, design, apparel, technology, home and children’s products came together to share their learnings and challenges, and support each other over the entrepreneurial journey.
The idea was to get together to push ourselves harder, and move faster towards our goals, and the enthusiasm of the entrepreneurs who met was infectious.
#BreakingBarriers is coming to Mumbai this Saturday, 21st March, and I am looking forward to another such experience. (Mumbai folks, get your passes here!)
The warmth and camaraderie between participants, even meeting for the first time, was palpable, and I believe the “charge” we all received from the sessions as well as the interactions will stay with us for a while.
As an entrepreneur myself, the #BreakingBarriers event reinforced these truths for me.
Especially for small businesses with 1-2 founders, and a small team, it can be a lonely path. Connecting with other entrepreneurs helps us learn and look beyond our own ‘wells’, but it also provides that electric spark we all need from time to time – to renew ourselves and feel energized again to take on new challenges.
Personally, I am resolving to get out more often to connect with other entrepreneurs.
A participant presents the group’s work as part of an interactive session on business models
One of the reason businesses with potential to grow don’t fulfill it is because we get comfortable. Our products are doing well or our existing customers are happy with us or we know this market really well. Things look good – until our products stop doing well because they’ve become irrelevant in a dynamic market, or we get complacent and make mistakes precisely because we know the market.
It is important for us to consciously evaluate if we are getting into a comfort zone, and push ourselves to explore new avenues for growth – before we get into a zone of discomfort!
Apurva Purohit, CEO, Radiocity and Author of Lady, You’re Not A Man, exhorts women to go out and work for what they want!
We hide our fears as entrepreneurs – we may be afraid of failure with a new product and stick to our known repertoire, afraid to seek funding, afraid to let go of a business we know is wrong for us; one of the learnings from the #BreakingBarriers workshop was how normal it is to be afraid! In the feedback we received after the workshop, one entrepreneur after another spoke about how it resonated with her to hear that others too faced such challenges. The fear of the new is normal, and acknowledging that is the first step to moving forward.
As one entrepreneur put it, “My demons are not to be ignored but can be used as a springboard.”
Bhavna Toor, Leadership Coach and Founder, Shenomics takes workshop participants through confronting their fears and moving ahead
I believe that all of us need to drink deep from such a well of refreshment from time to time, and sharpen our minds as well as renew our spirits.
Come and join the Women’s Web community in Mumbai – #BreakingBarriers is meant to help us all network, learn, grow!
Images courtesy Pinky Gandhi
Founder & Chief Editor of Women's Web, Aparna believes in the power of ideas and conversations to create change. She has been writing since she was ten. In another life, she used to be read more...
Women's Web is an open platform that publishes a diversity of views, individual posts do not necessarily represent the platform's views and opinions at all times.
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UP Boards Topper Prachi Nigam was trolled on social media for her facial hair; our obsession with appearance is harsh on young minds.
Prachi Nigam’s photo has been doing the rounds on social media for the right reasons. Well, scratch that- I wish the above statement were true. This 15-year-old girl should ideally be revelling in her spectacular achievement of scoring a whopping 98.05% and topping her tenth-grade boards. But oddly enough, along with her marks, it’s something else that garners more attention – her facial hair.
While the trolls are driving themselves giddy by mocking this girl who hasn’t even completed her school yet, the ones who are taking her side are going one step ahead – they are sharing her photoshopped pictures, sans the facial hair, looking nothing less than a celebrity with captions saying – “Prachi Nigam, ten years later”.
Doctors have already diagnosed her with PCOD in their comments, based on photographic evidence. While we have names for people shamed for their weight – body shaming, for their skin colour- racism, for their age- age shaming, for being a female- sexism, this category of shaming where one faces criticism for their appearance has no name. With that, it also has zero shame attached to it.
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