Woman-led entrepreneurship is higher than it’s ever been. Around 40% of new entrepreneurs are women, a statistic that speaks to today’s changing business landscape. This is great news for those who are looking to start their journey, but this doesn’t necessarily mean that the world of enterprise is easy for women.

Many women still struggle with work-life balance. Anne Leets is one of the successful women entrepreneurs encouraging other women to succeed with their own businesses.

Facts About Women Entrepreneurs

Nowadays, there are more female entrepreneurs than ever before. Here are some fast facts about women entrepreneurs that may be helpful to women who are looking to start an entrepreneurial company:

  • Since 1972, the number of women-owned businesses has increased by 31 times.
  • In 2014, women started four out of every ten new American firms.
  • In 2018, women started around 1,821 new businesses in the United States every day.
  • Women-owned startups deliver more than twice as much per dollar invested than men-owned startups.
  • Worldwide, about 6.2% of women own an established business.

Although women still tend to lag behind men in these statistics, that gap is closing. Part of the reason the gap is closing more quickly than ever before is the fact that more women know how to stand up for themselves in the entrepreneurial cycle.

Venture capital dollars tend to go overwhelmingly to men, with only about 2.7% of yearly venture capital going to women CEOs. However, the fact that people know about this problem is actually a key part of stopping it. More and more funds nowadays target women CEOs specifically, making it a little easier for women to raise the money they need.

Learning From Those Who Have Gone Before: Anne Leets

One crucial part of bringing women CEOs up to the same level as men CEOs is giving women the ability to learn from inspiring female entrepreneurs. Many men have learned from successful men, so why not women? That’s where Anne Leets comes in.

Anne Leets, COO and business partner at The Leets Consortium, is working to make life a little easier for female entrepreneurs. She’s become a helpful guiding force for many women in entrepreneurial positions, helping them to make the most from what they have.

Anne’s Background

With her BA in Psychology from the State University of New York, Anne has a great eye for people. That’s one of the reasons she’s so good at leading teams. Her ability to build your business comes from a combination of her knowledge of psychology and hands-on experience.

Before joining The Leets Consortium, Anne held a variety of positions at a number of different organizations. Anne’s experience is extensive, and she’s held the following positions:

  • Senior Vice President of Sales at Brighton Accessories
  • President and General Manager at Cosmar
  • Vice President and General Manager at St. John Knits
  • Director and Vice President at Revlon
  • Director and Vice President at L’Oreal
  • Director and Vice President at 1-800-Flowers

Additionally, Anne has certifications in the Birkman and CPI assessments, which she utilizes to help understand people more effectively.

Coaching and Communication Experience

A history of coaching is an important part of being able to lead more people to success. That’s one reason Anne is so effective. Over the years, she’s been a leadership coach in all functional areas and a variety of business sectors, including healthcare, entertainment, and professional services. Additionally, her experience as a keynote speaker has given her strong speaking and teaching skills.

The corporate world is always shifting and changing, and the necessary skills to succeed in this world shift and change alongside it. Because she has so much experience in the rapidly-changing world of entrepreneurship, Anne can help you prepare for the next change rather than dreading it.

How Coaching Can Take Your Entrepreneurship to the Next Level

What can coaching really do for you? Many beginning entrepreneurs don’t take the steps necessary to learn more about their options for coaching, assuming that they can run their business on their own. If you decide to invest in coaching, you can learn from your coach, and they’re likely to have these experiences to back them up.

Experience in Organizational Restructuring

It’s common for organizations to require restructuring at some point. Especially if an organization started as a one-person show and now has a number of people working to manage it, you’ll need to restructure things every so often.

The problem is that organizational restructuring is very difficult to do right. A high-quality entrepreneurial coach will have a significant amount of experience in organizational restructuring, whether as a member of a restructuring company or as a coach for someone who has restructured, which means you can benefit from that information.

Knowledge From Past Experiences

The popular saying is, “Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” If you don’t learn from your past experiences, you can definitely end up repeating those mistakes, which can ultimately tank your business. However, what if you didn’t have to go through those mistakes to learn from them?

A coach has already gone through some of those problems and has coached other entrepreneurs who have gone through other problems. By pointing out potential pitfalls in your business, an entrepreneur coach can help you avoid making these mistakes, putting you a step above people who haven’t gone through that coaching.

Avoiding Common Pitfalls

There are a variety of common problems that entrepreneurs often run into. Entrepreneurs often end up with common problems, typically tied to their ability to manage budgets, handle time division, and price products and services. These common issues sink many entrepreneurs before their business has a chance to get off the ground.

It’s useful to at least know what these common problems are so you can structure your business to avoid them. Sure, you can gather some of that information from the internet, but the internet isn’t going to give you personalized information. Only an entrepreneurial coach can really help you avoid these problems.

Navigating Entrepreneurship and Corporate Life

Entrepreneurial life as a whole is very different from working in an established company. You may be able to set your own hours, but how can you make sure you still get all your work done? You may be able to work from home, but how can you keep your business life and your home life separate? You might have some capital right now, but how do you apply for funding when you need more?

Answering these questions can be difficult when you have no source of information for them. However, a coach with plenty of experience in entrepreneurship will have the answers to these questions. Even if you have a super-specific question that your coach might not know right off the bat, a coach for women entrepreneurs will know how to research the topic, ask questions of other entrepreneurs, and find the answer.

Information From Successful Women and for Successful Women

The last and potentially most important element that you need for your entrepreneurial intentions is information from a woman who’s been in corporate leadership. Women often have very different experiences in entrepreneurship and established companies than men. With 65% of women feeling discriminated in the workplace, it’s not surprising that more women are trying to build their own companies and seek freedom from discrimination.

A coach for women can help you. Whether it’s just empathizing with your experiences or giving you tips and tricks to get over the gap, a woman coach will know that you’re dealing with different problems than a man entrepreneur may be dealing with. Some of your problems will be more universal among entrepreneurs, but some will be specific to the situation of being a woman entrepreneur, and it’s important to address those specific problems.

Your Next Choice for Corporate Coaching

As you can see, corporate coaching can be an incredibly important and useful tool for entrepreneurs. Whether you’re just starting out or you’ve been an entrepreneur for some time, a woman coach with experience like Anne Leeds can be very beneficial in your journey. Even if you’ve never gone through a coaching program, you’re in for a fresh perspective on business and life.

Don’t make the same mistake of many entrepreneurs. When you invest in a coach who can take you by the hand and lead you through common problems, you’re more likely to succeed in your business.

Ready to discuss your business? Contact us for a discovery call!