How Can Women Entrepreneurs Overcome Mindset Challenges?

Leyla Razeghi, Ind Eng, MBA Strategy, Strategy Consultant and Coach, Toronto, ON

More women are starting their own businesses in Canada and now 47% of SME’s are entirely or partly owned by women, this is great news, but it is important to remember that women entrepreneurs still face a few major obstacles.

While there are tangible challenges such as difficulty in finding angel investors and venture capital, it is important to notice that many of the challenges are mindset related and are accentuated by isolation and lack of support.

As entrepreneurs, we can have difficult days in which we doubt ourselves, our businesses and our ideas. Since we tend to work in isolation, it’s more difficult to find the support and ideas we need to get into an optimistic mindset.

I believe that having a strong network of likeminded individuals can help move past mindset obstacles. The simple fact of recognizing that everyone goes through mindset challenges, and that fear will always be present, can help a lot in getting over negative thoughts. Through networking, you can find mentors and peers that can offer insights or resources to help you move in the right direction for business success.

For women specifically, it becomes of utmost importance to seek a group of like-minded ladies, that will understand our challenges better since they most likely have face them themselves. Through these groups, we can get support and share stories, find the mentors you need, plus friendships, and of course, potential business opportunities.