Black Women Entrepreneurship: Community Support Moves Us Forward Because It Brings Us Together

We’ve been talking about how black women, despite the structural racism and gender inequality, are thriving because of their talent, not their skin color. We brought to the light the fact that, even though 50% of women-owned businesses in the U.S. are controlled by minority women, they are still struggling to have access to capital, financial partnerships, mentoring and so on. Now, in this last post of our series, we want to talk about community.

Community is a powerful word for black people in general. When fighting against prejudice, claiming for our lives, promoting our businesses, support is all we need, given that it comes along with care, reliability, trust. Community support brings to black female entrepreneurs the strength they need to rise up. Access to social networks is as important as access to financial capital for underrepresented groups. But guess what? We don’t have to do it alone at all.

Just BE believes that connecting Black women to business programs, funding opportunities and clients can make them level up together. That’s why 8 Black entrepreneurs, who were burning themselves out with limited resources, came together in 2016 to be a network that supports their peers in sharing knowledge, honoring each other’s struggles, developing and running successful businesses. They decided to hold hands to not keep hustling in isolation.

Walking alone is also a no-go for The Runway Project, a national initiative created to provide early-stage funding and holistic business support to Black female founders. They invite women to bridge the racial wealth gap through the infrastructure barriers that try to hold us back. Going down the same path, Black Career Women’s Network offers professional growth opportunities for African American women in business with training, mentoring, coaching, resources to help them strive for career success, empowering them to work in their highest potential.

Minority women entrepreneurs community needs to meet the investor and mentoring communities to build constructive ways side by side. When a business owner has a strong support system (understand by support emotional, educational and financial help here), it is easier to survive, at least, the first five years of the business inside the predominantly male-oriented business ecosystem. 

Dealing with discrimination in all life aspects, Black women found in their innovative ideas, a way out of the marginalization, which led them to be the fastest-growing group of entrepreneurs in the United States (between 2018 and 2019, they started over 1.600 new brands per day around the country, according to the State of Women-Owned Business Report). And when they find other women on the same page, they can address the challenges they face, at the same time that they are able to open new doors while seeing themselves building up community strength. Relationships take their business interactions to a next level because they need to feel safe. More than that, they need to feel they can do whatever they want because the inspiration is right there, in this valuable social capital of real life.

Some American cities in Alabama, North Carolina, Florida, Texas and Pennsylvania are already growing Black entrepreneurial hubs, motivated by Black Girl Venture - BGV, to create safe local spaces for Black women to unify and consolidate their ideas, sharing not just what they have achieved so far, but what they’re dreaming about too. It fosters an essential collaboration between businesses, universities and local government. BGV also started an incubator to take Black and Brown founders to wherever they want to be, accelerating 100.000 business journeys through social capital that unlocks financial capital to celebrate victories all together. Besides that, BGV has a bunch of amazing programs to help Black entrepreneurs to fly higher. You can check it out here and join their Facebook group that makes the community-building visible and stronger.

Building community is our power to come to a wide-ranging change. Finding a group where you feel part of is what fuels us to fight for inclusion. Scenarios are shifting, paradigms are being broken, diversity is speaking up more than ever. But we still have a long way ahead to get to where we want to go, even though we have that steady confidence to drive us forward. It’s time for us, Black women entrepreneurs, to not just feel that we belong. It’s time to, during and after the endeavor, to be the revolution. 

Click here to find more funding and resources as incubators, accelerators, co-working spaces and communities for Black female founders.

Feeling Like A Fraud? Let’s Talk About Imposter Syndrome

Have you ever felt like a fraud? Thoughts like you don't know why you got that job or you don't understand why people like your work? The truth is nobody is 100% confident all the time but, how can you tell the difference between the standard "butterflies in your stomach” from your brain screwing you over? It has a name: it is called the Imposter Syndrome. It's a phenomenon that occurs with high achieving individuals, mostly women. People who experience this syndrome tend to believe they are a fraud or that they are fooling others. They're convinced that they are faking their way to their accomplishments, and they believe people will find out about them eventually.

It is estimated that 70% of the population has it, myself included. In college, whenever I got compliments, or even when I get a promotion at work, I would ask "why". Why are these people saying I'm smart? Why do they want to give me a promotion? I would even run away from opportunities because I didn't believe I was worth it, I thought "they will find out I'm a fraud  sooner or later.” It turns out I was wrong, not them. My past is filled with opportunities life gave me and I dismissed them because I never felt I was good enough, because I never believed in myself.

The idea for this article came from a chat with a friend. She told me she was diagnosed with this syndrome after seeking help for her anxiety. She would faint or have stomach aches every time she had to go to a job interview, or any other time she needed approval from others. Discovering her condition and getting treatment was "life changing," she said. And that's how I learned about the syndrome, and how important it is for all of us to be aware of it.

The symptoms may vary, but the most common ones are negative self-talk and constant feelings of self-doubt. That's how it starts, the syndrome  strikes in you a cycle of self-sabotage, and it is serious enough to trigger psychosomatic signs in those who have it, like panic attacks for example.

If you struggle with Imposter Syndrome, you probably credit your achievements to "luck" constantly, rather than give the credit to yourself and your hard work. As the name of the syndrome itself, you feel like you are an imposter, you don't believe you are capable of those achievements, or you believe you don't deserve recognition.

Here are a few more signs to pay attention to:

1 - You have difficulty accepting compliments (not even "You're beautiful");

2 - You feel a compulsion to be the best;

3 - The fear of failure can paralyze you (red flag!);

4 - You're convinced you're not enough - and this speech goes on and on inside of your head.

Another friend of mine agreed to share a little about her own experience, and how she felt when she found out about the Imposter Syndrome:

“I didn't know I was suffering from Imposter Syndrome. Actually, I didn't even know it existed. I am very communicative, and I was always very convincing. Usually, everyone around me would get influenced by my ideas and suggestions. But instead of being proud of myself, I thought they were enchanted by my silly and fun way of speaking. I thought I was lucky.

"I'm lucky. That's why I got this job.
But I shouldn't be here..."
"I'm not as good as they think."

I’d have never thought that I have been sabotaging myself for so long. Being aware of the syndrome made me pay closer attention to my behavior in a way I’ve never had before. And that was when I realized that if I didn't prove to myself that I was capable, I’d keep on losing opportunities, not appreciating recognition, and worse than that, I’d be losing my self-confidence more and more over time.”

To overcome Imposter Syndrome is not easy, but it's possible and necessary in order to own your future and be successful. So here goes a few tips:

Identify it

If you are experiencing these feelings, it's ok. Apparently, most high achievers are. So start recognizing them, and remember that it is just a condition, not a life sentence.

Share

We are never alone (especially in this case). By sharing your experience, you might be surprised by the amount of support you can get from people who either are currently in the same situation as you are or who have been there before.

Reaffirmation

Let's replace these negative thoughts with empowering ones. Shall we? You are capable, you are smart, and you are good at what you do. It is crucial though to be kind to yourself and to understand that you are unique, and the world needs your skills!

Look for Help

Look for expert help - either support groups, a therapist, or a coach, but it is extremely important that you find help and don't allow this condition to take over your life! 

~ Accept your accomplishments, don't fear failure, and embrace opportunities.

Black Women Entrepreneurship: The Struggle Is Real, So Is The great Outcome

Oprah, Chimamanda Ngozi, Madam C. J. Walker. All these women have not just the color of their skin in common, they’ve struggled to get to where they wanted to be. They are Black women entrepreneurs that faced many challenges and have a lot to inspire us, despite our race. But why, year after year, minority women are being shut out?

Racial and gender-based biases can be one answer. Fortunately, not the reason to make us give up on our dreams or the demand to increase our income. When it comes to access to capital, a simple “no” can be another answer to stop black-owned business to come to life. Even though 50% of women-owned businesses in the U.S. are controlled by minority women, they are still being denied by banks and fund companies - Black women have even more problems to receive the financing they asked for, besides paying higher interest rates for no reason. But there is still hope: resources to support Black women entrepreneurs are growing – Black Girl Ventures is an outstanding example helping to change this reality: they provide Black/Brown woman-identifying founders with access to community, education, and leadership development.

Networking is another major barrier that leads black entrepreneurs to a disadvantageous place. How can you have good connections if you weren’t given the chance to be in the same space of people who can help you get through financial or mentoring issues? Following Madam C. J. Walker aspiration, we have to find our own ground to build up outside the idea field. Bringing a business to life is, for us Black women, also fighting against discrimination.

A work-life balance, strengthened negotiation skills and a need for a powerful support system are other challenges Black women have to overcome. At all business stages, networking and counseling are critical even for emotional support during a lonely undertaking for the main part of the 2,681,200 Black women-owned companies in America. Remember: a new business can result from poor treatment and undervalue in the workplace, not to mention family economic problems, which are big triggers to mental health issues. The American dream of “skill + creativity + hard work = success” may not be the case for women of color. Our fair share is unfair even when we are hungry for prosperity.

In this scenario, determination and passion win though. Black women are known by being self-learners, regardless of all hard-lifetime-things. We turn exclusion into motivation and faith, and to make a business succeed, we need to learn from a wide variety of sources. That is how we can keep striving instead of letting fear keep us struck. In our history, we have a fear-of-not-being-capable chasing us nonstop, but we overcome it because we take the risk to encounter our place in life. It took a moment for us to realize how good we are in everything we want to do. We battle our inner selves to find the courage to say “we can do it”.

Oprah’s entrepreneurial life has a lot to teach, but one of her most valuable takeaways is to listen to your own voice, following things in your unique way. You need funding, but perseverance has a lot to do with investing in yourself first, making a plan you really feel passionate about to show the investors how valuable you are. Chimamanda uses her words as her powerful business to tell us that whenever we wake up, that is our morning for a fresh start to shine, to change the world beginning from our own world.

Black women represent the fastest growing subsegment of entrepreneurs. So why aren’t we in the same positions of all the rest of the business ecosystem? We need to raise awareness of why it is still so difficult for Black women to build their entrepreneurial careers when they are so competent. We need to find people to fight for our businesses with the same strength we are doing it. We know how hard it is to change our social structure, where POC are on the margins since forever. New challenges appear every day to get the better of. The journey can be daunting, but we always see brighter days ahead. Our purpose as Black women entrepreneurs will drive us forward, and when it happens, the whole market wins.

PS: next month, we will have the last blog post of our series to talk about the importance of community support for Black female entrepreneurs. See you then!

Black Women Entrepreneurship: We Need to Rise Because of Our Talent, Not Our Skin Color

I am a black woman entrepreneur myself, and I know how we are struggling to get to all the spaces we deserve to be in. Here in America, the scenario is not different than Brazil or most of the places around the globe, but what needs our attention is how black women are thriving as being their own bosses. More than that, how their success shows their potential to contribute to economic growth in so many ways if they are given the power to accomplish that.

From 2007 to 2018, the U.S. saw an increase of 164% in the number of black women-owned companies. There were 2.4 million African American women opening their own business (State of Women-Owned Business Report - American Express). According to the Federal Reserve, black women are the only racial group with more businesses ownership than their male peers. However, companies run by non-minority women still have higher revenues compared to women of color brands, whose income dropped from $84K in 2007 to $66,4K in 2018. 

In 2020, even more after all the protests happening outside to change our history, we need to ask: why is this disparity still happening?

While diversity should be the key to society’s development, it seems like it is the fact that burns bridges between successful women and minority acknowledgment. But names like Alexandra Winbush, Aziza Handcrafted, Dorcas Creates, Golde, The Wrap Life and so many others are trying to prove they are wrong. Those are great examples of women of color who overcame stats to bring creative ideas to the market.

The gap between revenue is just one problem. Black women endeavor to get bank loans and credit and battle to be valued when they decide to dive into the entrepreneurship universe. But guess why they normally choose to change their careers? Because of the gender and pay gap, high unemployment rates, frustration in the workplace, racism. For black women, opening a business is a matter of survival.

All those difficulties are, in many cases, the answer why black women-owned businesses remain small, with annual sales way below the average number of white and Hispanic women-owned companies. One of the solutions black females found to make their ideas come to life was spending personal savings and retirement accounts, which is a high risking their future. Adding to that, some women are breadwinners and find no support even from their families, who cannot be blamed because they were taught to believe minorities cannot go big, that failure is easier than victory.

Besides financial problems, they can also encounter educational-training-mentoring issues considering that black people have less access to good schools, aggravated by the fact we have less business role models we can relate to. I say “we” because, in my journey as a freelance copywriter, I couldn’t think about more than one example in my family I could connect with: my people have been working as someone else’s companies’ employees for decades to this day. And it doesn’t mean they didn’t want to work for themselves, it means they didn’t have the opportunity to do so.

For me (and for a lot of my black sisters), resilience spoke louder, and I realized when I had the nerves to quit my job to work for myself, that fear cannot stop us from being what we are meant to be. On the other hand, it can make us persevere despite all the prejudice problems we may face. The decision to become an entrepreneur is hard, but the outcome can be beautiful.

Now, with all the attention protests brought to the black entrepreneurs community, maybe it’s time for the real change we are expecting. I say real because, for years, my people have been trying to succeed in their business overcoming privilege. And getting tons of followers and customers now will be great only if this support is genuine. In a month or two, black women-owned brands need to keep the good numbers they’ve got recently. It cannot be just a black-lives-matter-temporary-wave. Our businesses need to survive not because we are black, but because we are good in whatever we create. We need to be authentically valued by that, despite protests or trends.

Black women want to grow sustainably, want their brands to speak up their truth as successful entrepreneurs, regardless the color of their skin. We need to change stats, we deserve visibility, equal funds, and we are waiting for people to show up for our businesses because they truly believe in us.

PS: next month, we will go deeper on this topic, talking about challenges black women entrepreneurs have been facing and why they do not give up. See you soon!

Embrace your Wellness: Mental Health Issues Need to Be Addressed in the Workplace

There is no way to deny that most of us spend more time in our workplaces than at home. And, at the same time that it can be good for your professional career and success, it can also increase your chances to be affected by the stressful atmosphere you are working in. But how can we deal with that, besides the fact we are women fighting, day after day, to occupy spaces we deserve in our fields?

Just to contextualize before we go deeper in our topic, take a look at some numbers about women in the American workforce, important data to understand where part of the stress comes from. There are 75.9 million women in the civilian labor force (U.S. Department of Labor), and even with more than half of management occupations held by women (51.5%), we are less represented the higher up we go inside the companies: female workers make only 5% of CEO positions, and 11% of the top earners in the country (Catalyst Women in S&P 500 Companies). 

Now, speaking about mental health, the numbers are also worrisome: 58% of people are unmotivated at work, 50% engage in unhealthy behaviors to cope with workplace stress (Mental Health America); and 37% said their work environment contributed to their symptoms (Mind Share Partners Mental Health at Work). For us, it’s even worse: around 5 million employed American women deal with depression each year, and 54% say they couldn’t discuss mental issues at work without fear of discrimination (Good Housekeeping Institute). All the statistics have shown us that, even though mental health is still a stigma, we really need to talk about it since who’s struggling needs to be seen. It means we need to urge for companies to create safe spaces for disclosure because we all need an open way to communicate about our problems.

Mental health has everything to do with wellbeing, not the opposite as some people may think. When you work for a company that fosters motivation and engagement, you’ll be more likely to be in a healthy workplace. Also, it will strongly encourage us to not remain silent anymore. Talking about behavioral health is challenging but necessary, and it can save lives. Women are dealing with equality issues in their jobs all the time, and sometimes it is impossible to avoid that it will have a negative impact on their mood, productivity, relationships inside and outside the workplace and, of course, their health.

Stress from work can increase the risk of chronic diseases and heart attack, so we need to accept the idea that stress is a big part of the job. Besides stress and anxiety, it’s important to pay attention to symptoms such as deep sensation of sadness, loss of interest in activities, difficulty to concentrate, trouble remembering and making decisions, feeling of worthlessness and guilt, energy loss, irritability, and procrastination. Simple daily events can pull triggers, the main point is when or if you or your colleagues are ready to identify them.

In a recent Time magazine’s article, specialists said that the Millennial employees (24-39 years old) are getting companies to rethink workers’ mental health in a radical way: depression and anxiety are changing the business scenario with different needs from the young workers, especially female ones. Burnout is the new emotional-physical-mental state of people who work under excessive and prolonged stress, which makes them feel totally overwhelmed, drained and unable to be productive, motivated, and satisfied as they could be. Depression is now the fastest-growing health condition between them, but fortunately young people are more likely to share their struggles with their bosses compared to people ages 54 to 72 (American Psychiatric Association). It’s a fact companies have a lot of requirements to hire people, but as professionals and human beings, we need to require environmental wellness from them too. 

We deserve to be in a work environment that inspires us. We need to feel safe, seen and valued in the place we are spending most of the time in our daily lives. Nowadays, more and more companies see mental health as crucial for everybody’s success. They are already aware about the challenge to address mental health correctly, and we believe hard times like the pandemic can help the market to see that they need to work closer to their employees, even more when they cannot be close physically. 

When you share, you feel empowered. If your company doesn’t have a mental health support group/counselor, you can suggest them to create one. You may not be the only one dealing with issues, but can be the first one to change your workplace for the better!

If you or someone you know needs help:
https://www.samhsa.gov/find-help/national-helpline

Suicide Prevention Hotline: 1-800-273-8255