Many of you have already met some successful entrepreneurs, however, take a moment and think back: how many of them were women?
Statistically, nearly 76% of German executives are men and in Europe, only 10% of business owners are women; globally, only around 30% are women.
That’s why, on March 21st, I participated in an all-female exclusive forum called ”Being my own boss- Female Entrepreneurs”. Brigitte and Kristina- both successful female entrepreneurs in Germany- shared their career experiences and personal tips they have for us- women of today.
1. Why start your own business?
- Brigitte quit her job at a private bank and started her company because she needed flexibility after pregnancy. She mentioned that “stay at home moms” are often preferred in Germany since according to German tax law, the greatest income tax saving is created if only one partner is earning. Therefore, women often become full-time housewives.
- Although due to make partnership in a consultancy, Kristina was told to wait another 2 years before making partner. Consequently, Kristina decided to quit her job where she worked for over 10 years and started her own business.
2. What it takes to be self-employed?
- Organization and Persistency
To progress and keep the business running, it’s critical to be organized and persistent. Remember the stress you had when reporting to your boss? It won’t happen when you’re the boss, but the business will crash if you don’t perform.
- Be confident. Especially women!
When facing a challenge, women often sell their stories short but eventually outperform while males are able to sell good stories but in reality might underperform. “Ultimately, it doesn’t matter how you perform, if you sell your story short, people think you can’t do a good job even if you could.“ Thus, women are encouraged to think and speak positively of themselves!
- Business Plans
“If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” The very first thing both founders did when trying to start their company was writing short term and 5-year business plans. Kristina still refers to her financial projections today. Planning is KEY.
- Listen, listen, and listen!
“Listen to your customers, the market, your competitors and innovations.” Both entrepreneurs think observation and open-mindedness is essential to constantly adapt to new price, product or management style.
3. How to find the right business idea?
- Your Unique Selling Point (USP)
Brigitte loved yoga and eventually brought the concept of yoga studio into Germany; Kristina’s consultancy is the first to provide financial advisory to family businesses owners in Germany and is not the biggest market player in both Germany and Austria. They both found their USP, irrespective of personal interests or professions, and turned it into feasible businesses. Hence, be curious about your thoughts and experiences, sometimes that might just be the right idea you’re looking for!
- Job Experiences
“ Work for 2-3 corporations to see what it takes to run a company. But don’t lose focus on starting your own business if that’s what you really want to do.” During Kristina’s employment, she acquired the skills needed to start a consultancy. She learned where to find customers and had contacts ready. So after teaming up, her company started working out well.
4. Things to beware of as entrepreneurs in Germany
- Employment
Once, Brigitte’s employee mistakenly transferred €30,000 to a fraudster, however, due to strict German labor law, not only did the employee not have to compensate her loss but instead, she had to pay the employee full wages for long leaves. Therefore, she advises us to always beware of employment regulations.
5. Conclusion
Though statistically, there’s space for women to breakthrough in business and entrepreneurship, however, the number of female entrepreneurs has risen significantly in recent decades. Successful females such as Kristina and Brigitte have proven that women could be confident, ambitious, skilled and courageous enough to be extraordinary at the career they’re most passionate about. Just as the saying goes, “Everyone has their own cross to bear.” Whether it’s inequality between gender, nationality or other controversies; instead of comparing between battlefields, we should focus on sharpening our skills, improving our personalities and shaping an organized way of working in order to be successful warriors no matter which battlefield we’re fighting in.