A while back I read an article in the BRW called ” Missing In Action – where are all the female entrepreneurs?�? It was about the supposedly low number of female entrepreneurs in Australian business. Now to be considered a successful female entrepreneur, by this article’s standards, you needed to be running a big, competitive, fast growing company. It made me stop and think … How many men, let alone women, were running big, competitive, fast growing companies? Given that over 95% of all businesses in Australia are small to medium in size and many are run successfully by men and women alike, you could be fooled into believing that by the article’s standards there weren’t too many entrepreneurs in the Australian Business arena. Which as we know is not true.
In my opinion the article suffered from the ‘big is better’ syndrome and focused too narrowly on what constitutes business success as it did not give merit to other areas such as:
- Effective Strategy and Sustainability
- New ideas and innovations
- Values and culture
- Diversity and equal opportunity
- Team work
- Employee retention
- Work/ Life balance
- Community participation
- Profitability and quality just to name a few.
This list, I feel, provides for broader definitions of success which allows for the inclusion and recognition of those female entrepreneurs and business women who are defining success on their own terms.
Given that women are a vital part of our community on so many levels it got me thinking about the definition of success and how often we find ourselves bound by the very narrow paradigms of other’s definitions of success. I have met many women (including myself) who are or have been trying to live up to these narrow paradigms of success for years whilst juggling multiple roles everyday. What I have found is that we are often left feeling exhausted, unsure of ourselves and disconnected at best and even angry, anxious or depressed at worst.
Not a good situation to be in if you ask me. I believe we need to continue to voice our ideas and actively contribute to the debate on what constitutes success for each and every one of us, especially as women, whether it be in our professional or personal lives. There should be greater acceptance of the belief that persons pursuing multiple goals (usually women) have a lot to offer society when compared to single focused business people. So if nothing else let’s have a go at redefining business success for each and everyone of us here today if it helps us lead happier healthier and more enjoyable lives.
Watch this space for more on this topic. I am just getting started.
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