Entrepreneurship is a long journey that requires a lot of patience, hard work, and perseverance. Success doesn’t happen overnight or without any effort. Nobody has turned into a successful entrepreneur without the dedication and hard work. Even though many people strongly desire to become successful entrepreneurs, most of them do not know how to pursue it.
Building a successful business can be even more challenging for women entrepreneurs. Compared to a man, a woman might face more difficulties proving herself right. The endless problems faced by women entrepreneurs in India are the main reasons for the reduced number of successful women entrepreneurs in India.
Problems Faced by Women Entrepreneurs
Even though we have been fighting for gender equality for decades, gender disparities remain. This discrimination affects the professional lives of many women. Also, in many cases, it even affects their mental health. Gender inequality results in unequal opportunities.
Women are still restricted from many business sectors in India. The high-profitable sectors such as manufacturing and construction still need to be considered women-friendly. Not only that, even the businesses where the customers are mostly women, like the cosmetics or fashion industry, are now headed by men.
So, basically, a man decides what is to be used and worn by women in India! Why is it so? Why are many women unable to reach the top management level of many sectors? Or what is stopping a woman from taking up a major responsibility, such as starting a business?
Lack of Financial Freedom
Lack of financial support is one of the major problems faced by women entrepreneurs. Our society or family hesitate to invest money in businesses suggested by female family members. Even though a majority of men accept that women are hardworking and persistent, they are worried whether they will quit the business in the middle as they have to take care of the family. Also, some parents do not encourage their daughter to start a business or invest in her business as they fear she won’t return the money after her marriage. So fundraising is a major challenge faced by Indian women.
Lack of Family Support
A major part of society still expects women to be fully responsible for taking care of their families. Even though many women earn more than their husbands, they are not exempted from the daily chores. They expect the women to cook food for all the members, clean the house, and care for the children and the older people in the family. Asking a man to cook food or take care of the other daily chores is still unacceptable by many people. Most men also feel ashamed or degraded to say they cook food for their families.
The attitude of society must change. We should encourage our men to take up more responsibilities at home and give more freedom to women to go behind their dreams. A wife or a mother can achieve success in her career or dreams only if she has an understanding husband.
Safety Concerns
To become a successful business person, one might have to travel faraway places to meet different people as part of the business. This travel is another challenge for women entrepreneurs. Even today, our women cannot be assured of safety wherever she goes. The crime against women is increasing day by day. So, the constraints in mobility refrain many women from pursuing their dream. So, safety concerns are other problems faced by women entrepreneurs.
Lack of Social Acceptance and Access to Professional Network
In a male-dominant society, it is difficult for women entrepreneurs to getting accepted. It will take a little longer for a woman than a man to get accepted by society. Moreover, a business will be successful if you have good connections with professionals who can help you. Many women also lack such connections. Advice from experienced people might help a person to avoid many problems while starting a business. Enter into a business only if you are ready to handle the problems faced by women entrepreneurs.
How to Become a Successful Entrepreneur?
To become a successful entrepreneur, you need to challenge yourself to face all the difficulties that come on way. As a woman, you might face even more challenges to get accepted by society.
Also, be passionate about what you do. You won’t feel burdened if you love what you do. Moreover, if your intention is only to make money, you might get bored in the middle of your business, and there are chances that you will stop it.
Believe in yourself and follow your dreams without fear. There may be times when you have to make risky decisions. If needed, you can ask for help or advice from people you trust. It will help in doing your business in a better way.
If you do not want to invest a huge amount of money in business initially, consider starting a direct-selling business. A good direct-selling business, like the one QNET offers, allows you to become a successful entrepreneur without the need for huge investments. It is also a good business opportunity if you do not want to compromise on your family time.
