I had the great pleasure of attending the Entrepreneurial Exchange Annual Awards Dinner last week, and was truly inspired by the stories of the award winners as well as by the amazing people at my table. Whilst each business was successful in its own way, one thing that they had in common was their good luck in business. I thought it might be a good idea, therefore, to share some of their luck with you.

1. They were lucky enough to work very long hours to develop their product, often  working at home until late at night, whilst their children slept

2. They were lucky enough to identify the right market for their product, and all they had to do was speak to rather a lot of potential customers to make sure people would buy it

3. They were lucky enough to have experienced a lot of knock-backs, learning perseverance

4. They were lucky enough to be able to think outside the box, and reject proven  business models that would only allow for modest growth, going for the really big win instead

5. They were lucky enough to share their good fortune with others, helping them to be lucky too

6. They were lucky enough to have worked extremely hard for years in order to become lucky in business.

So there you have it! Easy, isn’t it? Of course, there are more than 6 ways to be lucky in business, so please share your ways to be lucky via the comments section of this blog.

Thank you 🙂

I’ve just read a blog by @tartancat which rants against positive discrimination of women in business, and I felt that I  had to comment.

OK, I will admit that I agree with much of what you say, but hey, I love an argument, so here’s a slightly different perspective.  Women-only events and support is not aimed at the likes of you and me.  We are confident, educated women who are not intimidated by any man. My Dad is ‘old-fashioned’ in many ways, but he always has and always will encourage me to be ambitious, in education and in business. He thinks that I can do anything I set my mind to, just like him.

But some women (and I mean some, not all) are not so lucky. Some have never been supported by their families, have never had people encourage them and tell them how good they are. And yet something inside them has made them decide to create a business. Maybe its small, maybe its ‘lifestyle’. Maybe it has to be, because they don’t have the self-belief to aspire to anything bigger. Or maybe they are content with a small business, because of all the other things going on in their lives.  What’s wrong with that? And these women need a place where they can be secure, and gain the support of other women. Lets face it, women are usually more nurturing and supportive than men (I know that’s a generalisation; want to make something of it?). So lets create a safe space where these women are helped to make a success of their small business, and build their self-esteem.  Let them inspire their daughters (and sons) to become strong, self-reliant individuals with great role model mothers.

I know that men create ‘lifestyle’ businesses too, and that some lack confidence and self esteem, and are deserving of extra support.  But there are far more women that fit that description, and if that means there is a market for women-only support, then why knock the people that service that market?

Finally, I go to a lot of networking events, but you know which one I enjoy the most? The one that never feels like work, the one that I feel like I am amongst old friends, even though I’ve only just met them? That’s right, its women-only (‘Scottish Women in Business‘).

P.S. For a fabulous post about the need for long term action to change people’s attitudes to women in technology, read this!
http://shefaly-yogendra.com/blog/2010/08/30/women-in-tech-what-gives/