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Women in the Hot Seat: How Female Founders Can Tackle Pitching Challenges

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Hey gals! Sohuis team here –

One of our male allies sent us this article and we thought it was timely to share this with you considering our recent announcement to launch our Crowdfunding Campaign on IFundWomen – we’ve been doing a lot of pitching lately! Check out this article on how women can take lead with pitching challenges below.

 

At some point on their journey, most founders will need to ‘enter the dragon’s den’ and pitch potential investors to raise funding to scale their businesses.

Regardless of how experienced or confident a founder is, and how great their product or service is, pitching investors tends to be a nerve-wracking experience. No one likes being placed in the hot seat, and the pressure is especially high when a founder knows that their product roadway — and ultimately the survival of their company — is dependent on convincing others to invest in the potential of their company and their team.

And while pitching is a challenge across the board, experience has shown that it can be especially challenging for women. According to research by The Harvard Business Review, there are clear biases in how men and women are treated in boardrooms, which could have something to do with the fact that less than 3% of venture capital went to female-founded startups in the US last year.

Based on my experiences running the Female Founders Initiative, and my work with a global accelerator program, I have seen some pitching trends that are far more common among women. While the issues of bias and diversity in tech are bigger problems that need to be tackled on a cultural level, there are some ways that women can take steps to improve their skills as presenters, as well as push for the playing field to be leveled.

Here’s how women can get over the hurdles of the pitching tradition and push back against bias:
1. Stand your ground

Unfortunately, bias is still a huge factor in pitch rooms. A 2014 study suggests that investors favor pitches voiced by men over women, even when the text of the pitch is identical. These problems will only truly be uprooted through a deep cultural shift, and by injecting more diversity in investor firms and throughout the business industry as a whole.

Especially for first-timers, women need to be aware of some of the differential treatment they might come up against. Female founder after female founder has told me that the types of questions they get asked in boardrooms are heavy on the negatives (“What are the risks for me investing with your business?”) and hint at their personal lives (“How will you find balance in future?”).

It’s clear what your interrogators mean, but the antiquated view of women staying at home while the men bring home the bacon is their problem, not yours. If you come across those sorts of questions, dismiss them unfazed and clarify your importance and commitment to the company, without falling into the trap of discussing your personal life. Bring the conversation back to the product or service. If the person persists, be polite but resolute, but also ask yourself: are they really a good fit for my company?

These types of scenarios may happen often, but don’t be discouraged. Practice makes perfect, and there are many female mentors and role models that can encourage you to stay the course. There are a multitude of women-focused organizations out there to help you overcome those hurdles as part of a huge community that’s fighting hard to fix the same problems. All Raise is one organization campaigning for more diversity in investment, while offering mentorship to women founders. Founders for Change also pushes startups to opt for more diverse investment firms. Our Female Founder Initiative prioritizes female mentorship in our accelerator program and hosts female-centered business events globally.

2. Be  affirmative, but don’t go overboard

I’ve learned from experience that women sometimes have a recurring difficulty in driving their message home with conviction, myself included. That’s because we can be more reserved in how we present ourselves and cloak our statements in unnecessary caveats like “in my opinion”.

This tends to be something men in business are a bit more prone to – putting out information as fact, inherently telling their audience that they should believe them.

Women can follow a few training techniques to come across as more  affirmative. That can just be a mental exercise in getting rid of “I think that” from your speech (we know it’s what you think, you don’t need to remind anyone), and “ums” and “ers.”

Here are three great exercises that could help:

  1. Record yourself pitching your startup, this will make you more conscious of the language you use when you watch the video again.

  2. Practice pitching with groups of people you feel comfortable enough to give you honest feedback.

  3. Try the “buzzer” exercise. Practice pitching with a group, and every time someone uses a prohibited phrase, make a BZZZ noise. You will have a good laugh, and it will break the nerves a bit in preparation for the big day.

Another thing women should remember is to showcase their best case scenario. Women are more likely to present the most realistic forecast for their business, yet hide their ideal outcome behind a cloud of hypotheticals – “if the company makes good progress” … “if everything goes well …” We can forget the disclaimers, and show them just how successful we can be.

But remember, while it’s important to present confidently, don’t overcompensate. There’s a thin line between being confident and overestimating your capabilities, which is a danger to investors and a clear put-off.

As HBR states, women’s performance is typically less showy because they’re actually more likely to use data to support their argument. That’s far from a bad thing. It shows that you have rational expectations and that you’re less likely to be selling them a risky prospect.

3. Be bold about your personality

Most importantly, be yourself, get your personality across powerfully and convince your audience that it is a driving force of your business.

For example, if you are emotionally intelligent, don’t try and hide it because people have told you that it can be interpreted as a sign of weakness.

Firstly, that’s just not true, emotional intelligence is an increasingly valued trait in any company, and secondly, you have no way of knowing what the investors on the other side of the room value in an entrepreneur.

If you’re a perfectionist, let your audience see that you can control the situation and have an eye for detail. If you’re competitive, give people proof that you’re a cut above the rest, rather than just telling them you are.

Don’t forget to showcase the story of how you got to where you are. This is something I’ve seen female founders do less than men, but it’s a huge part of making your audience believe that you’re the right person to bring your project to fruition.

Package your strongest traits so that people can see just how much of an asset they are to the company. Ultimately, your character and personality got your business to where it is today, so that’s what you should be selling. Chances are, they’re looking for someone who doesn’t fit the same mold they’re used to seeing day in, day out.

4. Be part of the solution

Prioritize diversity in your hires, mentors, speakers, the investor firms you pitch to. Change what people expect to see in boardrooms and business spaces.

Some companies try to avoid bias by playing into it, and making women sit out important pitches while men take their place. That would be an unfortunate decision – not only are you showing your investors you don’t trust your own team members, you’re undermining values within your company, and likely just shooting yourself in the foot.

Diversity begets more diversity, and if startups serve as examples by reflecting the hybrid society we live in, more will follow.

We don’t need to retreat to protect ourselves from bias in the industry. We can speak out, whether it be over a coffee with a friend who’s not getting it, or on stage speaking to hundreds. The more people are aware of the situation, the more the needle will move. There’s strength in numbers.

It’s not just up to us. If we want more women (but also minority groups, LGBTQ+) founders and executives, we should all be open to new and bold ideas. Such as replacing the pitching tradition altogether, as HBR suggests. Why keep pitching around if it clearly perpetuates bias?

One alternative is to use a data-driven strategy that just looks at an early-stage business’ metrics like traction, marketing, sales, team management, etc. to decide who to invest in. This approach has led to investment results that are far more balanced in terms of women vs men CEOs.

We can also campaign for more diversity across the sphere. More diverse investors firms are more likely to support more diverse companies. That means not just big financial institutions. Angel and early-stage investors are crucial in promoting diversity from the start of companies’ journeys.

Don’t shy away from changing the trend, whether or not it’s clear to see, this is the direction the industry is going in.

 

The original article to this blog can be found here.

The author of this article is Rachel Sheppard, the director of global marketing at global pre-seed accelerator Founder Institute and co-founder of the Female Founder Initiative, a program launched in 2016 as a means of offering support, funding, and visibility to female founders.  

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A Look at How These Brands Celebrate Women

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The month of March celebrates women: in their glory and in their strife. It is time to promote equality among the sexes as well as acknowledge how much women have overcome, as well as how far women have to go to be treated equally and respectfully.

It is also a time to remember the contributions that women have made in history today and to encourage and uplift the future women leaders.

For Women’s History Month, companies and organizations have taken advantage of being storytellers to reach the demographic with this lesson in mind. Take a page from some of these organizations content creations for your own business to highlight your business and to aid in the women’s movement:

Adobe Creative Cloud

“You’re required to post.” The company that celebrates creativity decided to take a unique approach with its branding model about the “imaginary reality” of social media influencers. Adobe filmed an 11-minute clip titled, “In the Time it Takes to Get There” where a 19th-century influencer realizes that “stars burn out” as they create a life centered around getting dressed up daily to post selfies and to uphold a certain decorum for likes and for companies. The film suggests that women should celebrate their uniqueness for themselves, not for society.

 
#LikeAGirl 

“I insulted a girl, but not my sister.”

Procter & Gamble decided to switch the narrative and show how society’s insult really looks like. In the three-minute clip, producers asked several young teens (male & female) to act out several “girls like” moves i.e. run like a girl, in which everyone acted flimsy and cared about their looks rather than the action. However, when the producers asked young girls to do the same action, they immolated strength.

When asking the young teen boys if they felt they were insulting their sister when acting this way, they replied, “No, never! I insulted a GIRL but not my sister.” This production showed how words like these can affect a girl’s confidence, and how the company wants to change the narrative into positivity.

 
#TheRaceIsOn: “The first female..”

Western Union: In this powerful video, the Western Union Federation showed how education is important to young women achieving their goals. It showed young girls running in various streets and communities around the globe, with the idea of these girls running to their goals. With the release of the video, Western Union also announced its initiative, ‘Education for Better’, which is aiming to equip 50,000 women and young people with 21st-century job skills by this year.

 
Mercy Academy: “You’re not a princess”

This all-female Catholic school’s motto is to prepare their young students for real life, and that includes for the women who set foot on their campus to not wait around for Prince Charming. This Kentucky-based school prides itself on educating young girls in “critical thinking through performance task-based curriculum.” They believe that this will help teach the students “application of knowledge through real-life situations that will help them be better equipped to overcome obstacles the world sends their way”.

 

 

Content courtesy of  Lara Ashley, Founder and Editor of Brenley Magazine, Redefining what it means to be a Southern belle; an online magazine that helps women wear their crowns with grace.

CONTRIBUTING AUTHOR, LARA ASHLEY

Lara Ashley is a multifaceted Journalist. Lara Ashley obtained her Mass Communications degree at Southern University and A&M College and is obtaining a Master’s degree in Magazine Journalism in the U.K. from Cardiff University. When she’s not watching her fav reality shows (LOVES the Real Housewives franchise), spending her afternoons watching Netflix or with a good book, she’s writing and journaling.

Follow Lara @brenleymag and connect with her on Facebook

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Sohuis Launches Membership Community to Continue Empowering Female Founders

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“If you would have asked me two years ago if I was going to quit consulting and focus exclusively on educational content and building a community, I would have thought we were living in an alternative universe.” 

This is what I said on a podcast recently when reminiscing on our journey towards building the Sohuis brand. Sohuis has always meant more to me than being an outlet for my own entrepreneurial journey and creativity. What started out as just an idea I had while my husband and I were on our way to breakfast and I was nursing my (then, 5 month old) daughter in the backseat of our car – has transformed into something much greater and more meaningful than its original intent. 

I created Sohuis because I hated pumping on the floor, under my desk, in my office at work. I created Sohuis because I quickly figured out that our society is not kind, and most of the time, unsupportive, of working mothers – much less mothers in executive-level positions. “Society expects us to work as if we don’t raise children, and raise children as if we don’t work,” and that saying hit home for me hard that Saturday morning on our way to breakfast. 

I created Sohuis to change the dynamic between my personal and professional life – to work on projects that I deeply cared about, and to have the freedom to merge my new identify with my former one. My journey to entrepreneurship has been a twisting, interesting endeavor, and I’m beyond grateful that its lead me on this path. 

Helping women amplify their stories with branding and marketing education

While a lot of my former work involved larger brands and global teams, I have always maintained deep, rooted love for supporting women. Being raised by a single mom and having grown up in that dynamic, I have been inspired by so many women in my youth, I feel like it’s a part of my DNA. 

I set out in the fall of 2018 to test the validity of a concept that was initially sparked in me from Danielle Leslie, a well-known course creator who’s made millions teaching others how to productize their knowledge and create life-altering online courses. Prior to this, I had never created a course in my life. I loved teaching, and I was constantly asked to host workshops and share my unique frameworks with others, so naturally, an online course was an expected (yet surprising) next step branching off of workshops I was already doing. The biggest difference though, was that I was going to unapologetically create educational content to exclusively help female founders tell their unique brand stories. 

With the knowledge acquired through all my years of implementing successful brand strategies, I knew that the magic of branding lied in a founder’s ability to speak her vision, deeply understand her customer, and uniquely serve the needs of that customer in her special way. Once I validated my flagship program, the Sohuis StartupBlueprint, I launched my first beta program that had over 100 registrants with 24% of them actually completing the beta. 

It wasn’t all unicorns and rainbows after that though. From there, it actually got a lot harder. 

After a successful beta, it came to fruition that the program was way too long and required too much commitment from my ideal customer. And then, after several successful mini-cohorts, I was commonly presented with the question of, “now what?” Our conversations went a lot like this…

“Thank you so much, I loved the program it was a game-changer for my business, what can/should I do next?!” 

And here I was….

With the exception of 1:1 consulting, which was not a model I wanted to rebuild after having consulted for the past 7 years, I quickly noticed that Sohuis was ill-equipped to continue to serve the diverse needs of our founders. The Sohuis StartupBlueprint Program gave them everything they needed to know about rethinking failure, iterative growth, brand vision, mission, values, and they left having a clear focus on their ideal customers. They received the fundamentals needed to get started, but now they wanted to put those concepts into action – they wanted to grow. 

Community, tools, strategy, accountability 

Luckily, we are not the first to build a digital community. Brands like Girlboss, Create & Cultivate, Yellow.Co, Hey Mama – and countless others – have paved the way for us and allowed us to follow in their footsteps. While some would say those communities are our ‘competitors,’ I would disagree.

These brands serve the needs of their female-driven communities by covering a broad spectrum of content related to working women. We, in a sense, do that too. However, Sohuis is special in that we are building a community to empower early-stage founders with marketing and branding-focused tools, resources, and education to help them grow their business. Marketing is reported as the #2 challenge all female founders face, with funding and access to capital being the #1 challenge. We want to break down the complicated nature of marketing and cut through the noise that makes it almost impossible for ‘non-marketers’ to keep up with. 

Marketing and Branding have become a complicated (dare I say, terrifying) experience for most entrepreneurs. The women who come through our programs are smart, resilient, brilliant entrepreneurs with incredible ideas – and yet, they’re caught in this endless fear cycle of not knowing how to brand their business in a way that’s meaningful and authentic to them, while also being relevant to their audience.

Our community is set out to change this. We are going to provide the tools, principles, best practices, resources, templates, and education female founders need to break through these barriers – and we’re going to do it at an affordable price. 

Our membership is $29/month and includes the following member benefits:

  • Weekly branding and marketing strategy hour: This serves to provide our founders with consistent access to marketing-focused topics, and gives them a platform to receive answers to their specific challenges
  • Exclusive access to the Sohuis Vault: This is our entire library of marketing and branding courses and on-demand trainings that cover a wide-array of marketing topics. We also plan to add new trainings and courses on a monthly basis so that our founders can dive deep in to particular subjects.
  • Access to mentors: If there’s one thing I’ve done right over the past 7 years, it was connecting with incredible women from all walks of life and entrepreneurial paths. I’m very proud of the network I’ve built, and they are ready to give back, mentor, and pass the ladder down to those who are climbing up.
  • Private community: Like other communties, we thought it was critical for our founders to have easy-access to each other. Slack provides us a way to authentically connect with one another, share resources, celebrate wins, and push each other forward.
  • Encouragement, accountability, celebrations: The way I see it is, we are their girl-squad – the Sunny to their Cher, the peanut butter to their jelly. We’re here to encourage them, hold them accountable to their goals and celebrate every win along the way.

With future partnerships and collaborations that are in the early stages at the moment, we have the capacity to offer more and bring that much more value to our founders’ membership experience. 

So, if you’re a female founder who’s looking to build this ship at sea with us and benefit from the education and accountability we can provide, then I encourage you to join as a founding member! If you’re a potential partner who would want to help us succeed with our noble cause, please contact me at [email protected].
 
Thank you for being here and watching our journey unfold – and cheers to more women building brands, businesses, and creating opportunity for themselves and others. 

 

 

AUTHOR, JESSICA KORTHUIS

Jessica is the founder of Sohuis, and educational platform and membership community that provides marketing and branding educational resources to help early-stage founders brand and market their businesses. She has a passion for writing and educating and an obsession with teaching others how to bring their brands to life.

Jessica has been featured by Thrive Global, Girlboss, the Lean Startup Company, is a 40 Under 40 Award recipient and has been listed as a “Woman to Watch in 2019 and Beyond” by the national publication, Biz Journals. She is a contributing writer to Girl CEO Inc., proud mompreneur, and to keep up with her super inspiring and fun content, follow her on Instagram @jessica_korthuis.

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Gratitude Exercise: A Look Back On Last Year’s You

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Have you ever….
  • Researched online to figure out how old someone is… so that you can see how you stack up in terms of how well YOU’VE used your years?
  • Wondered why the hell you haven’t been a guest on over a dozen podcasts already?
  • Imagined yourself in the place of that badass presenter at that conference… only to tank your mood because of how impossible it seemed?
  • Made list after list of all the things you need to do to become as successful as everyone else?
  • Looked at your follower count or email subscribers… and felt lame because the numbers weren’t as high as your top local competitor?
I sure as shit have.

Comparing ourselves to other people makes us feel guilty/shameful/insecure/hungry-for-chips-a-hoy. It’s the mental equivalent of picking at a zit: guaranteed to make an oozing wound out of a small flicker of a problem. Yet, like the zit-picking, we often feel unable to resist doing it, no matter how much worse we know it’ll make things.

But what if comparison itself isn’t the problem? What if the problem is the direction we’re looking when we do so?

What if we started comparing ourselves to, well, ourselves? Hear me out.

I’ve found self-comparison to be a surprising exercise in gratitude and optimism. Shifting our comparison lens from outward to backward forces us to remember how far we’ve come. By default, we begin to think it’s not only possible but probable that we’ll look back the following year and feel good about what we’ve accomplished.

When we do this, the I’m-running-and-running-and-tripping-and-falling-and-so-behind feeling starts to slow down with your heart rate. You begin to feel a warmness toward yourself. You start to actually believe the aspirational platitudes that used to make you roll your eyes like a good little cynic. Trust the process. You’re doing better than you think you are. You’ve got this.

So, let’s try it. Shift that comparison lens from outward to backward. Back one week. One month. Six months. Nine months. All the way to this time last year. Okay, stop. Try to feel the moment viscerally. The room you were in. The people around you (or not). The perspective you looked into the world with.

Where were you?

Physically, I was sitting at a desk in a hotel room in San Francisco while my boyfriend slept, frantically finishing a novel I was ghostwriting for an extremely cheap rate.

Mentally, I was fogged. I was busy, but not in control. I felt like an overworked employee, slap-dashing off every writing project because I didn’t have time to think deeply about them.

Emotionally, I was panicked. I felt incredibly alone, trapped in an online world where I was making money but didn’t have any support. And I didn’t know how to get out.

But hands down, the worst part about last year’s me is that I was embarrassed about where I was. I felt like I must have been doing everything wrong to feel like I did, to be broke like I was, and to be so alone. I couldn’t bear to have anyone look too closely and confirm it.

Honestly, I was doing a lot of things wrong. But so what? Why did I think it was expected of me to knock it out of the park my first year in business?

Really, the only truly wrong thing was the shame I felt. It kept me in that panic-stricken place for several months, because I was too embarrassed to ask for help and too embarrassed to admit that things weren’t working.

That’s why the thing I’m most proud of this year’s me is finding the courage to ask for help.

 

Looking back, here’s how I’ve asked for help this past year:

  • In January, I did a 4-week program where I learned how to create processes for my freelance business. In this program, I also got introduced to the greater world of freelance writers and copywriters, which helped me see that I wasn’t alone, not at fucking all. I took my first baby steps into networking with other writers.
  • In March, I enrolled in a Copywriting Masterclass to sharpen my professional skills.
  • In June, I joined a copywriting mentorship group where we freely ask one another questions, get feedback on client work, and attend regular coaching calls and webinars.
  • In July, I partnered with a web design friend to revamp both our websites’ copy + design.
  • In September, I enrolled in an intense SEO course so that I can offer this service in 2020.
  • In October, I hired my first regular subcontractor—a proofreader, so that my clients get error-free words.
  • In October, I reached out to a social media strategist friend to help me launch confidently on Instagram.
  • In November, I started coworking every Friday with a group of local copywriters.
  • In November, I took the leap to hire a business coach for 2020, with the goal to stop running my work life like a freelancer and start running it like a business owner.

This year, I’m still too busy for my liking. But now the projects I take on are all copywriting projects, and I genuinely enjoy each one. Most of my clients are referrals from my network or previous clients, which makes me feel more plugged in to the world around me, not lost in online obscurity. And I’ve begun developing friendships with my freelancing/business-owning peers.

Most importantly: I’m looking into 2020 with a plan, with support, with zero panic.

This holiday season, if you’re feeling “behind,” start comparing yourself to…yourself. I bet it’ll make you feel pretty damn grateful.

 

Content courtesy of Krista Walsh, creative copywriting for purpose-driven companies and passionate people

CONTRIBUTING AUTHOR, KRISTA WALSH

Krista Walsh writes website copy, blog posts, and product descriptions for small eCommerce companies and service-based solopreneurs. Her writing and messaging strategies help her clients speak to their customers’ values and emotions, for meaningful sales.

In her free time, she writes about purpose-driven business and freelance life at kristawalshcopywriter.com. On the off chance she’s not writing, she’s volunteering to walk the big ole’ dogs over at the Dog Café LA or watching (pretty bad honestly) TV dramas on Netflix.

Connect with Krista through her website, Krista Walsh Copywriter

 

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Finally Launch Your LLC on Women’s Entrepreneurship Day!

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It’s Women’s Entrepreneurship Day – a holiday to celebrate being a hardworking woman!

*All women stand up!*

So on this day, it’s good to discuss business and give tools and resources to entrepreneurs and small business owners to help them grow their companies.

One good topic to discuss is something that a lot of people do not think about when starting a business: getting an LLC.

An LLC is a limited liability company that’s a hybrid business structure that combines simplicity, flexibility, and tax advantages to merge together into a partnership for the protection of a company. A company can have as many owners as it would like, so if you’ve been itching to start your own business, today is a perfect day to do so!

Here are advantages and disadvantages to having an LLC:
Advantages:
  1. It’s simple: Depending on where you live, the fee to pay for an LLC is rather inexpensive. For example, in Louisiana, it costs $100. However, in bigger states like California, it’ll cost $70 to file one, but $800 for franchise tax. It’s always important to do your research prior so to budget your money.
  2. Pass-through taxation: The owner(s) does not have to pay any LLC taxes nor corporate taxes. The company’s income and expenses pass-through to the owner’s personal tax returns as well as their personal income tax on any profits.
  3. According to NerdWallet, there’s flexibility in managing the LLC. This is good for someone who does not have a lot of experience in running a business or who does not know how to manage workers. This advantage allows the owner(s) to be managed by other owners and for them to share in the day-to-day decision making.
Disadvantages:
  1. Nerdwallet also warns about the self-employment tax that’s activated once someone gets an LLC. The IRS sees the LLC as a partnership for tax purposes. In that case, the LLC is taxed and the government considers that the owner(s) who work under this LLC are self-employed. This means that the owner(s) is responsible for paying Social Security as well as Medicare taxes, which are known as self-employment tax and are based on the business’s total net earnings. However, this could change if the LLC file forms are going to be taxed as an S corporation, where the owners will only have to pay for the Social Security and Medicare taxes based on compensation. Once again, do the research to decide what is best for your business.
  2. It’s tedious work: the owner must make it a point to be organized when filing their assets and their business’ profits. It is essential to keep those two things separate, or else you’ll end up spending more than you need to, or you might file something incorrectly.
  3. Banking: Legal Zoom made a good point in stating that banking will be a challenge once the owner receives their LLC. Checks that are made out for the LLC are not allowed to be cashed. They must be deposited directly to a corporate account. Also, check which bank you would want to bank with for some have higher fees than others for business owners.

So in celebration of this momentous day, go for it – finally get your LLC, start your business, and start building your future dreams!

 

Content courtesy of  Lara Ashley, Founder and Editor of Brenley Magazine, Redefining what it means to be a Southern belle; an online magazine that helps women wear their crowns with grace.

Contributing Author, Lara Ashley

Lara Ashley is a multifaceted Journalist. Lara Ashley obtained her Mass Communications degree at Southern University and A&M College and is obtaining a Master’s degree in Magazine Journalism in the U.K. from Cardiff University. When she’s not watching her fav reality shows (LOVES the Real Housewives franchise), spending her afternoons watching Netflix or with a good book, she’s writing and journaling.

Follow Lara @brenleymag and connect with her on Facebook

 

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How to Be a S.T.A.R. at Your Next Job Interview

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You’re in a job interview, and things are going well so far. You dressed the part, rocked the interviewer with your extensive background, and even befriended people at the front desk. Then, the interviewer hits you with the dreaded “Tell me about a time when….”

Situational questions can often throw prospective candidates for a loop. Even with adequate preparation, it can still be tricky to properly portray the situation and your relatable skills in regards to the answer that they are seeking out.

You quickly sort through your brain for any relatable situation, eventually coming up with an example that somewhat satisfies the prompt but doesn’t highlight the attributes that the interviewer was seeking. We’ve all been there. Fortunately, there’s a much simpler way to organize information to create a clear and concise answer to make the process behind these questions a little easier.

This method is referred to as the S.T.A.R Method. This technique offers a concrete way to elaborate on your previous accomplishments and skills by giving a situational example and backing it up with associated skills.

How do you know if you should use the S.T.A.R Method? Watch out for key words in behavioral questions, often beginning with:
Tell me about an instance…
Give me an example of…
Describe a time…

 

Besides thinking of the situation, the S.T.A.R Method backs it up with structure so that you don’t end up rambling for ten minutes with unnecessary details. This method provides a framework so that you can stick to the point and highlight the skills that make you a good fit….which is exactly what the interviewer is looking for. It helps you create an easy-to-follow scenario with a clear conflict followed by a resolution.

Now, what is the S.T.A.R method exactly? Let’s break it down. S.T.A.R is an acronym that stands for:
1.Situation: Set the scene and provide situational details.

This is the crucial starting point (and perhaps the most difficult part). You won’t know exactly what the interviewer will ask you, but it’s a good idea to have a few scenarios prepared in your head, so that you can adapt them for different questions.

If the question really throws you for a loop or you just can’t think of one quickly, don’t be afraid to ask for a minute so you can prepare yourself.

2. Task: Describe what your responsibility was in that situation.

After you’ve picked a scenario, it’s time to add any appropriate details. It’s tempting to include all sorts of unnecessary details, but try to avoid this as much as possible before you start going down a rabbit hole. Focus this section on a few sentences and try to keep it concise.

Your goal here is to paint a clear picture of the situation you were in and highlight any particular difficulties.

This can easily become merged with the action portion. However, this section is dedicated to your responsibilities and objectives, then to be followed by the action segment.

3. Action: Explain your actions (and the steps you took)

Now that you’ve given the interviewer a description of both the situation and your role within it, it’s time to explain what you did and what steps you took to resolve the problem. This is the section you want to add extra details. Showcase yourself and your contributions with the details of what program you used, if you worked on a team, any steps that were involved, etc.

4. Result: Share the outcome of your actions (along with the importance of those actions)

Finally-the results! This is your time to shine and explain what effects your contribution had as a whole. Make sure this part is very clear-you don’t want the interviewer to be confused as to what impact your efforts made, that’s the whole point of the question!

Interviewers don’t only care about your actions but also they want to know why it’s important. Make sure to focus on results and include any necessary details-numbers are always a great bonus!

Package all of these components together and you’ve mastered the S.T.A.R method. This process might seem a little overwhelming at first, but with practice it will become a lot more manageable. With enough practice, you’ll be a star in your next interview.

 

Content courtesy of Michelle Finn, Founder of Pop Design Shoppe

Contributing Author, Michelle Finn

Michelle has a strong marketing background in a versatile set of roles including social media, events, and field marketing. She fell in love with design and combined it with her skills to create her business, Pop Design Shoppe. In the future, she hopes to continue her work within design or the arts (including interior design, fashion, the visual arts, and event design). She wants to continue working on projects that create impact. Her perfect day includes a morning workout, sunny day at the beach (preferably with her dog joining) followed by an evening out with friends at an event.

Connect with Michelle on Instagram @michellekatheriine and follow her business @popdesignshoppe

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5 Female-Driven Sci-Fi & Fantasy Novels to Empower Your Inner Heroine

Strong and independent females are becoming more mainstream in today’s media and entertainment. Here are five novels that features awe-inspiring female protagonists in the sci-fi/fantasy genre who demonstrates that gender is just a word, and when a woman sets her mind to do something, she usually succeeds.

The Broken Earth Trilogy

by N.K. Jemisin

The first book of the series, The Fifth Season, opens upon a scene where Essun comes home to find that her husband has murdered their infant son and vanished with their daughter. As the novel and series progresses, we discover that Essun possesses powers that could stabilize catastrophic effects caused by climate change. This complex novel is rich with powerful female characters, laced with the intricate use of the earth as a reimagined literal and metaphorical form, and introduces a provocative perspective on social issues that are both timely and convincing. Jemisin’s intriguing use of multiple point of views, especially the daunting use of second person point of view, “you”, this trilogy is a masterpiece and bound to become a classic for avid fantasy readers and realistic feminists alike.

The Power 

by Naomi Alderman

Selected by President Obama as one of his favorite books in 2017 and endorsed by Margaret Atwood, the legendary multiverse author best known for her novel “The Handmaid’s Tale”, Alderman presents an alternative reality where teenage girls develop a new physical power that could electrify people and capable of awakening that same power in other women. The novel explores the question of “what happens when women become the default and dominant gender of society?”. This is both a provocative and timely piece of work that has been applauded as “one of those essential feminist work that terrifies and illuminates, enrages and encourages”. With brilliant writing and intriguing premise, The Power has been awarded the Women’s Prize for Fiction, which is one of the most prestigious literary prizes in the UK.

A Shade of Magic Trilogy 

by V.E. (Victoria) Schwab

This trilogy is written in multiple point of views, whose protagonist, Kell, is a powerful Antari who uses blood magic to travel between the four Londons: red, white, grey and black. We are being introduced to Lila Bard as a main character Kell meets in Grey London on his travels. First branded as a thief, then contestant in a magic competition in Red London, and finally becoming captain of a ship of pirates, Lila Bard is a badass and empowering character that sets every feminist heart on fire. Most interestingly, Lila Bard is said to be one of the few gender-fluid characters in the genre of fantasy, which adds more color to an already spectacularly beautiful story.

Throne of Glass Series 

by Sarah J. Maas

Six books in the series (excluding the novellas), this Cinderella-inspired young adult high fantasy is one worth binge reading for any age. The story follows the journey of Celaena Sardothien, who is known as a trained assassin but takes multiple roles throughout the series, including the King’s Champion and Fae Queen. The author introduces many other strong independent female characters throughout the novels, including a witch, a shapeshifter, and a Lady, who all makes difficult decisions and learns to fight for the freedom to choose their own destinies.

Tuck Everlasting

by Natalie Babbitt

Although a children’s book, this piece of stunning literature is apt and entertaining for all ages. 10-year-old Winnie Foster discovers the Tuck family, who became immortals by drinking from a spring in the back of her house. This bittersweet story explores the issues of life and death, right and wrong, morality and ethics. It allows us to ponder the effects of cohabiting with nature, and that every person has the power to make their own decisions in life. A short but profound read that leaves an everlasting impression.

These novels are tributes that remind us as women that what doesn’t kill us can only make us stronger.

 

Content courtesy of  Betsy Kwong, the Lead Instructor for Boon Yoga and managing director of Boon Tea!

Contributing Author, Betsy Kwong

Betsy is the managing director of Boon Tea, a California lifestyle brand dedicated to inspiring life through the celebration and appreciation of the arts and culture. She is also the Lead Instructor for Boon Yoga, a yoga method that advocates for the concept of slow living and self-expression with an emphasis on the teachings of Hatha Yoga. Her goal is to help others find the means to lead a purposeful and conscious life. In her free time, Betsy likes to go on hikes with her goldendoodle Bailey, read, and do pottery.

You can follow @boonteala and @boonyogala on Instagram. You can also follow them on Facebook @boonteala – @boonyogala , or visit their websites: Boon Tea and Boon Yoga.

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Channeling Beyoncé: BEYiness That We Can All Learn From

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September 4 was a National Holiday: It was Beyonce Knowles-Carter’s birthday.

Even though we know Queen Bey as being a world-renowned singer, actress, and songwriter, the now 38-year-old has accomplished so much more than being an inspiration on our Pinterest boards.

Beyonce owns multiple businesses through her company, Parkwood Entertainment. Parkwood produces movies, music as well as fashion brands. So the movie that had us gushing over Idris Elba, “Obsessed” and the activewear Ivy Park all came from the same company. The wife and mother is definitely making money moves! According to Forbes, she raked in $60 million in 2018, hitting the number three spot on the outlet’s highest paid female musicians list.

As business women, we can learn a lot from the entertainment mogul in our own practices today. In celebration of the United States’ undocumented queen, here are some lessons that every business woman should practice in their own workplace:

Social media is the free press that you’ve always needed:

Beyonce is known for her surprises, and album drops that there are several social media accounts that have been created just to send alerts to the BEYhive members. In 2013, she dropped a visual album without any prior announcement or declaration of a new project. The Beyhive was on full alert; the social media accounts did the work for her and made live posts and campaigns of the album dropping. Within the first three days over 800,000 downloads of the album were downloaded-just because of social media. Never forget the power of the Internet, and use it for your own advantage. Still have doubts? Before the release of her 2016 visual album, “Lemonade,” Beyoncé posted lemon-themed pictures on her Instagram page. Of course, the Beyhive speculated for weeks of the meaning behind it, and Beyonce was trending on Twitter. ”Lemonade” debuted exclusively on Tidal for its first weekend and reached the number one spot on the Billboard magazine charts.

Be personable:

In the September 2018 issue of Vogue magazine, Beyonce showed her vulnerable side and opened up about being pregnancy for the second time with twins. She talked about the beauty and pains of a mother’s womb, and her fears of leaving a legacy for her children. It was the first time that the accomplished magazine allowed such a personal and open book piece to be featured in the magazine, but it was a smart move. It was a different side of the megastar that the audience rarely witnessed, and it was something that Vogue knew would grab people’s attention. Plus, it was relatable. Beyonce acknowledged that she is having problems just like every other mother, which opened another genre of fans.

She listens to her customers:

In 2015, husband and rapper Jay-Z bought Tidal; a subscription-based music streaming service that offered songs as well as music videos exclusively to its audience. Beyonce, and other famous artists such as Rihanna and Madonna, were co-owners of the company. In the first year of its release, there were 540,000 subscribers that were mixed between happy with the services, and with the ones who are not content with the pay. According to Investopedia, critics of the service complained about the initial service fee, which was $240-per-year subscription rate. The owners listened to the complaints of their customers, and decided to appeal to their audience. The current rate is $9.99 per month for the premium subscription and $19.99 a month for the Hi-Fi option including with lossless High Fidelity sound quality and high definition music videos. There are also less expensive options for students, family plans and for military members. Currently, Tidal has over 3 million subscribers. It is always good to listen to the needs of the customers, and to make changes to a company to appease everyone.

 

Content courtesy of  Lara Ashley, Founder and Editor of Brenley Magazine, Redefining what it means to be a Southern belle; an online magazine that helps women wear their crowns with grace.

Contributing Author, Lara Ashley

Lara Ashley is a multifaceted Journalist. Lara Ashley obtained her Mass Communications degree at Southern University and A&M College and is obtaining a Master’s degree in Magazine Journalism in the U.K. from Cardiff University. When she’s not watching her fav reality shows (LOVES the Real Housewives franchise), spending her afternoons watching Netflix or with a good book, she’s writing and journaling.

Follow Lara @brenleymag and connect with her on Facebook

 

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Our State of Inequality: In Honor of Women’s Equality Day

Women’s Equality Day commemorates the amendment that gave women the right to vote.

So why is it still important today? As a female empowerment advocate, I get this question all the time. Aren’t we alright now? Why are we still pushing for equality?

I, myself, used to believe that we’ve made strides and that our society was just fine. I didn’t understand the push for women’s rights. Don’t we all have the same rights? The unspoken truth is that there are still a lot of disadvantages that women face. We still have distorted ideas for the roles of men versus women in society.

When I entered the corporate world, I quickly realized first hand that women and men still don’t get paid the same. I remember being at a director position and head of my own department and truthfully being happy with my pay because I felt I was young and ‘lucky’ I was able to grow s0 quickly within the company. Then a new guy came in and got hired as a director, he was five years younger than me and got paid 45% more than me. I knew all the other male directors made more but, hey, they were a lot older so I had justified the discrepancy in my mind. That’s another problem, that even women don’t realize the biases sometimes.

Anyway, I decided to ask my boss for a raise. I remember thinking, well, maybe this guy just asked for more so I’ll do the same. I knew I had the results and numbers on my favor, I knew I deserved a raise. So I went in, prepared to answer almost any questions on my performance, numbers, time with the company, accomplishments, etc. But nothing prepared me for the answer I was about to receive.

The initial answer was no, I couldn’t get a raise, but of course, I followed it with a ‘why?’ My boss praised my work but said, “You are a young woman, you don’t have any kids, you’re not the head of the household. [Insert new hire name] is going to be a provider one day. He’ll get married and he’ll be the head of the household so he needs more money. You don’t need the money. You make a lot of money for a woman. What you need to do is find yourself a husband. You don’t want to be working forever and you don’t need the money.”

I know, I know, you may be thinking I’m making it up; sadly, I’m not. I had seen a lot of small things, like getting interrupted in the boardroom or other men taking credit for my work or ideas, but I always tried to justify it. I didn’t want to be the “emotional” person in the office. I always tried to brush this off. But this?! How do I justify this?!

I proceeded to remind my boss that salaries are based on experience, performance, and results; not on how many kids I have or don’t have or if I’m the head of the household. I remember joking that if I wanted to use my money to buy a hundred shoes that was my prerogative and I deserve to get paid what I have earned through my performance. I ended up getting a raise, but I had to be persistent. The problem is that most women wouldn’t have gotten that far. The problem is that I shouldn’t even have had to go that far. The problem is that this is even a story. The problem is that millions of women experience these things every single day in the workplace, in entrepreneurship, and everywhere really.

The problem is that this is just one story, but I could tell you so many more! When we get to the place where these discrepancies don’t exist or when they are an outlier and not the norm, then, I’ll digress. When women don’t have to explain why they are asking for a raise, but rather how they’ve earned it, then we’ll take a break. I am looking forward to the day when this day is just a celebration and not a reminder that we still have a lot of work to do. But until that day, we need to unite more than ever and support women. Remember, women’s rights are human rights.

 

Content courtesy of Jessica Medina, founder & CEO of a global female empowerment community for Latinas @femlatinas and feminine branding agency @femgency. 

Contributing Author, Jessie Medina

A playful creative and curious intellectual, Jessie Medina likes to defy stereotypes and shatter glass ceilings. She climbed the corporate ladder in her 20’s working as a digital marketing and PR executive. She is now the founder & CEO of a global female empowerment community for Latinas @femlatinas and feminine branding agency @femgency. She is also a crisis communication and workplace equality consultant, speaker, business strategist, and podcast host. Jessie loves traveling, dancing, and cooking at home! She enjoys the beach and doing anything creative. Jessie is an avid advocate for female empowerment and helps women design their dream life.

 

Keep up with Jessie on her personal Instagram as well @jessiemedinaofficial.

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Secure Your BHAG

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How to successfully achieve your biggest goals

Whether you’re a solo entrepreneur looking to make an impact, a blogger wanting to stand out from the crowd or a career professional trying to make it happen in the office, I’m sure you know how hard it can be to get where you want to be in life. Big goals can be intimidating and confusing, especially when you’re trying to move forward in your business or career.

So, how can you turn this intimidation and confusion around into something positive? Let’s talk about how you can secure your BHAG when it comes to your goals. These could be goals in the workplace, business or personal development. Whatever it is, you need to secure that BHAG to get to your next level up.

What is a BHAG?

First things first, you may be wondering what BHAG actually stands for? BHAG simply means big, hairy, audacious goal. This basically refers to any sort of intimidating, ambitious goal that you might have in your life; whether that’s starting a business, hitting your sales targets or reaching out to your dream influencers. It’s all about aiming for the stars and not being afraid that any goal is too large to attain.

How to start securing your BHAG

Now that we’ve learned what BHAG actually means, let’s take a more in depth look at what you can do to start achieving these big, hairy, audacious goals in your own life. It will come with time, dedication and practice, of course, but there are some immediate steps that you can start taking to overcome your worries and start seeing results.

Break it down into manageable chunks

One of the main, most important steps that you need to take is to break down your BHAG into bite size, manageable tasks. Something that often stops people from achieving their goals and dreams is the feeling that the task is simply too big to deal with or impossible for someone to do alone.

This is why it’s so important to break down the goal into smaller, more achievable goals to focus on. Sure, looking at the big picture is important- but taking baby steps is one of the quickest ways to ensure that you start seeing results. 

Build a strong support network around you

Another important step that you need to take in order to achieve your goals and dreams is to build up a strong system of supportive people around you. This could be co-workers, friends, family members or even people online. One of the best ways to meet people for your tribe is to go where the people are. Find networking events, workshops and conferences that attract the type of people that you want to hang out with, learn from and share information with.

Humans are inherently social creatures, and it’s vital to have people around you who’ll help keep you grounded and on the right track in terms of your BHAG. 

Take breaks from work and let yourself breathe

Something else that can often stop people from achieving their dreams is simply pushing themselves too hard. This may sound counterintuitive, but it’s really important to give yourself the right amount of break time when you’re working hard. 

Giving your mind time to rest will only ever have positive effects on the quality of the work that you’re putting out. Make sure you’re taking real breaks too- that means really closing your emails…like seriously.

Furthermore, taking the right breaks can also help prevent you from getting burnt out from what you’re doing. Even if you’re spending every day dedicating yourself to a business that you adore, burn out is still a very real threat, so you need to give yourself time to breathe and relax after a hard day at work. It may be hard at first, but you’ll thank yourself for it!

Don’t beat yourself up for failures

This is one step that can be tricky to take, but it’s incredibly important to not give yourself grief over failures that may come with aiming for your goals. Failure is a natural part of life, whether you’re looking at starting a business, promoting a product or building an audience. 

What’s important is that you work on your ability to take your failures in stride and view them as lessons instead of punishment from the universe. It may sound cliché, but once you’ve mastered this mindset, you’ll be unstoppable.

Celebrate the small successes

In a similar vein, it’s very important to give yourself time to celebrate your successes and appreciate how far you’ve come. Even if you haven’t accomplished your BHAG yet, make sure to take time out and appreciate the time and effort that you’ve dedicated to your working goals so far. Doing this will only make the achievement of hitting your BHAG even sweeter!

Look to your peers for inspiration

A final point to help you achieve your BHAG and feel accomplished is to look to those around you for inspiration. Looking to your fellow peers and colleagues can be a wonderful way to keep yourself motivated and inspired. Help them celebrate their successes and encourage them to get involved in yours. 

To sum it all up

Overall, setting out to achieve your goals can be an intimidating task- but with careful planning and a good network of people around you, you’re sure to achieve every goal you focus on achieving. Keep your mind focused on the BHAG and success has no choice but to follow.

Content courtesy of Afenya Pongo Montgomery. 

Contributing Author, Afenya Pongo Montgomery

Afenya took a leap from being a nurse focused on healthcare consulting to becoming a ladyboss determined to help women and people of color leap into entrepreneurship. She’s founder and Chief Innovator behind The iCAN Collective, a professional development platform that connects diverse entrepreneurs to resources, information, business partnerships and collaborations through live events.

Since long walks on the beach at sunset are few and far between, she mainly enjoys spending her time as a business strategist, helping new entrepreneurs create, launch and scale viable businesses. When she’s not working with other Girlboss CEOs on building brands and businesses that they can be proud of, she’s juggling le struggle of being the ultimate momboss at home with 3 junior girlbosses and a law-enforcing hubby.

You can keep up with Afenya on her website here.

You can connect with Afenya on her Facebook page and follow her work on iCAN Collective Facebook page too. This Ladyboss also has an Instagram page for herselfand her business! Go give her a follow you won’t regret it. 

 

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I’m Jessica Korthuis, a branding and marketing expert with a passion for teaching female founders and aspiring entrepreneurs how to market and brand their businesses.

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