the pride of Africa's women entrepreneurs
Photo courtesy of Mercury News
I am a basketball fan. Yes, I am that woman! I watch the NBA religiously. I love the Golden State Warriors and was so happy when they beat the Cleveland Cavaliers to win the NBA Championship and even streamed their Victory Parade in their home town. I am a fan, period!
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by Evashnee Naidu, founder of enablED
How important is it to identify your target market? The old adage of create a product and customers will come has definitely gone out the door. In today’s world we are exposed to products, brands and services with a global reach. No more are we limited to what is within our radius, no more do we have to be brand loyal. Yes there are brands that have established themselves, but how often have we seen a fall from grace by big brands, and how easy was the consumer switch.
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by Marjón Meyer
Recently, I’ve talked with many delegates, friends and family about the differences between being an achiever or a competitor. It might seem, at first glance, like the two are very similar. However, there is a huge difference!
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by Phildile Ndlovu, founder of Bhekizenzo Foundation
I was about to complete my degree when I realized that I had no idea what to do with it. I was applying for jobs frantically and I was not getting called back for interviews. So, instead of entering a state of panic, I went back to my core and rekindled my passion for social justice which has been a common thread in everything I have been involved in. Social justice and bringing social change has always been a passion. Being in a leadership academy, I just knew I had to start something and not wait to be employed in order to change lives.
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by Zainab Ashadu, Founder and Creative Director of Zashadu (Nigeria)
I dislike fads, for their transience and the sheep-like behaviour it induces in people. Furthermore, my ego is involved in this dislike, for no matter how I love and have loved a thing, should it become a trend, I drop it with immediacy and harbour an almost hatred for the trend. It is for this reason that I failed to identify with the term Entrepreneur.
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by Eldari Visser, Managing Director, Picketfence.Life
Daily we get bombarded with information on almost everything the human mind can think of. One central and very real aspect of our existence is that we all need money in any way possible to exist. Without the power to buy any goods and food, let alone shelters, we have to resort to caveman tricks… and who wants to do that in this day and age of going forward faster than ever?
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by Lori Milner, author, entrepreneur, thought leader and founder of Beyond the Dress
“Busy is a decision.” Is a well-known quote by renowned graphic designer and author, Debbie Millaman. Here’s why: Of the many, many excuses people use to rationalise why they can’t do something, the excuse “I am too busy” is not only the most inauthentic, it is also the laziest.
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by Deborah Hartung, founder of Pivot PeopleTech
Take some advice from those clichés you know are true! --- We’ve all heard the sayings and tend to make fun of the instructions like, ‘put the oxygen mask on yourself before attempting to help other passengers’ or, my personal favourite, ‘you can’t pour from an empty cup’. We can make fun of these and other clichés about rest, but they are true and we all need to pay a little more attention to finding that balance between work and life – especially as women entrepreneurs – in order to avoid burnout and to be better versions of ourselves.
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by Eldari Visser, Managing Director, Picketfence.Life
In recent weeks I had to experience very sad moments with people close to me. Beautiful lions were killed for traditional medicine and a very young girl passed away after a fatal accident. Life happens to all of us and the deep hurt cuts more than a cliff’s sharp edge.
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by Brigette Mashile, founder of Roka Roko
The other week I spent an entire day sorting out traffic tickets while I was meant to be working in the business, making clothes. I did not expect this, I just thought it was a quick thing and would be sorted literally quick, quick! I mean, my car licence disc is expired, you go to have it renewed, you pay and leave. In my head it should be around or less than R300 each car. Ok cool, lets go.
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by Sylvia Walker, author of SmartWoman
Don’t be fooled into thinking that just because you are bestowed with brains, you will make great investment decisions. In fact, it could be quite the opposite - many a clever person has made some really bad decisions over time.
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by Karen Wessels, co-founder of VA Connect and co-founder of SnappSales
Recently I had the privilege of speaking to a roomful of successful businesswomen about the importance of sales. These business owners required ideas on how to build sales confidence and also practical tools to implement in their business to assist with scaling and growing their enterprises.
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by Lizl Naude, founder of Lilly Loompa
“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over, expecting different results,” someone once said. We are all familiar with the phrase “Out of the box thinking”. According to Wikipedia it is a metaphor that means to think differently, unconventionally, or from a new perspective. This phrase often refers to novel or creative thinking.
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by Zakiyyah Bhamjee
Back in the day, not so long ago, I was a bean counter (auditor) at one of the Big 4 firms and it was during this time that I quickly learnt that to obtain a true understanding of a business/organisation one needs to spend time in the kitchen, i.e the place where the operations occur, product is made, etc. Fast forward to 2018 and this auditor now finds herself as an entrepreneur applying these practices taught to her through bean counting.
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by Lori Milner, author, entrepreneur, thought leader and founder of Beyond the Dress
After giving a talk to a group of female entrepreneurs on personal branding, I was approached by a woman who currently has a successful Physiotherapy practice. She has a niche expertise focusing on post pregnant moms and wants to capitalize on this.
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by Eldari Visser, Managing Director, Picketfence.Life
On our journey through life we meet an array of interesting people - some fascinating and others unique. We learn a great deal about ourselves on how we interact with these personalities. In our financial wealth world we often find that our behavior reflects some typical personality and behavioral patterns.
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by Deborah Hartung, founder of Pivot PeopleTech
Life gets hard, that’s for sure! And when times are tough, we could all do with a little help in surviving those tough times and getting ‘back to good’. For the most part, none of us like admitting to others when we are facing a tough time in business or in our personal lives. We tend to ‘grin and bear it’ and convince ourselves that the burden is ours to bear. You are NOT alone, and in your darkest times, don’t listen to your fear, listen to hope!
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by Brigette Mashile, founder of Roka Roko
It is no secret that the entrepreneurship life is challenging; in so many ways, especially in South Africa with an economy like ours. The problems are many but all linked to cash flow. If this is not managed it can result in health issues you never had before or worsening ones you already have. Getting sick or ending up in ICU because of an illness due to stress is the norm for those with stressful jobs and huge amounts of responsibility. As a woman, well, you are just adding to your already hectic life when you decide to become a CEO of your own business.
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by Lizl Naude, founder of Lilly Loompa
Oh, the life of a start-up entrepreneur can be extremely challenging. Juggling a myriad of balls, usually with the smallest of resources! A few months ago I had a conversation with a friend, who generously helps me with my business branding and corporate identity. We spoke about the plans I had for the business and I had so many deadlines looming that I started to feel worn out. He reminded me of how big my plate had become.
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by Paula Quinsee, Relationship Expert
Difficult conversations are an inevitable part of the workplace, however many of us have had bad experiences with these kind of conversations in the past. The key is to learn how to handle them in a way that produces a positive outcome for all involved.
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