New Year, New Start Up
Tradition dictates that the New Year is the time to make a new start. Statistics suggest that whilst more than half of us make a New Year’s resolution, very few end up continuing with the good intentions.
Our top resolutions tend to be negatively framed such as losing weight or stopping smoking – rather than starting something positive. However, New Year is also a time when people consider making changes to their career – in fact surveys show that at this time of year, some six per cent of us decide to go into self employment.
The New Year could be a good trigger point if you are one of those women who have been considering self employment to take the next step.
Here are a few words of advice from women entrepreneurs...
- Penny Bailey advises “One key
thing I have learnt is that I don’t always have to have all the answers
myself; you can seek the expertise elsewhere. Get as much help as you
can from government agencies but also through networking and talking to
other business people. I have used consultants for sales, marketing
and HR.”
- Dom Oliver suggests “You can pilot your idea and slowly grow the business alongside a day
job and/or motherhood. This removes the risks associated with capital
investment and giving up existing income streams.”
- Anya Ledwith says “Someone who already has experience of setting up a business can prove
invaluable as a sounding board for ideas, to challenge thinking and
share information. It is also reassuring to have someone who has
successfully set up a company backing your business proposition and
encouraging you to go for it.”
- Sonia Blizzard explains, “I use the technology I sell in order to work from home when
my son is not at school, at hours that fit in with family life. I
communicate mainly by email, meaning I can work from home while my son
plays noisily in the background. I then work from the office when my
son is at school or at holiday club.”
- Alyson Howard, former Chairman of
the Institute of Directors, Kent Branch says “Often women are under-represented at the top levels of business because they
don’t feel able to compete in a seemingly hard headed, confrontational
male environment. However, there are ways of managing the hard edge of
a macho culture, of being direct while taking risks, encouraging a
culture where people aren’t losing their tempers and banging fists on
boardroom tables.”
- Chris Parker concludes: “When starting up a business, you have to believe you can do it. If your heart is in it - you can do it. Gender does not come into it but you have to be determined to succeed. In the early days it was harder than I expected but you manage. It is very rewarding being your own boss and as a woman multi-tasking comes naturally.”
