As of the time of this writing, the government is once again in shut down.
Even if they open before you read this, we’re still going to be so behind that the impact could still be felt.
Let’s not go too far down the rabbit hole of insanity with this irritating “get your shit together” feeling that seems to be pervasive. It’s hard enough as it is to survive the world we live without being a debbie-downer about more things.
Instead, let’s be a debbie-downer about how the world handles supporting women.
This month is allegedly National Women’s Small Business Month. I want to be excited about this, but it feels like we won’t be seeing any of the benefits that could be possible with a month dedicated to remembering people who could use extra support.
One reason is that the SBA (Small Business Association) will be shut down along with the government, and they give huge help to all small businesses, including the ones we love right here in North Carolina.
The second reason is that we should be real about how ick it is to feel like you’re a token charity moment to excuse real change. There’s a lot of advice I’m seeing from both men and women, about how women should be doing something to feel empowered or take advantage of the month, when really I think it’s important that others educate themselves on how to help and take action on boosting up those who need it.
So here’s our own list of how you can help support any women in your life who’s an entrepreneur, solopreneur, founder, or fabulous supporter of the startup ecosystem.
- Buy from them
- Take their course, webinar, workshop, etc.
- Attend an event they’re hosting
- Support programs that support women-led ventures
- Make a post about them and post on your socials.
- Repost one of their posts to your audience
- Tag at least 3 people from your network, who you don’t think they are connected to, who you think could either buy from them or get them to a connection of value.
- Give them the cold hard cash (hello, write-offs!)
- Offer your services for free (let’s get beyond the mentor/mentee generic advice business and actually offer something of yourself)
We know it takes a TON of support to get any founder/entrepreneur rockin’n’rollin towards steady success. This isn’t an exhaustive list of what to do to help women really succeed. You want more ideas? Ask the women in your life yourself!
Each Women’s Small Business is going to take something different to help them grow, and it could be as straight-forward as the intentionality of those who’ve already found success to lend a hand and lift others up. This isn’t charity, it’s sharing.
And as another woman you love (your mama) likes to say, “Sharing is caring.”
Now, you want to take an extra step and add a woman in North Carolina to your network for promotion? Tag one you love below, or if you are one, put your LinedeIn profile and let’s get supporting!