Tag: entrepreneurship

The best of The Tempest: Now & Beyond in 2018

Post author By Mitta Thakrar
Post date January 2, 2019

[Image description: A collage of four images, a black woman in pink with her back turned, a desk, a woman sitting on a floor and Michelle Obama speaking at a podium overlaid with the words 'Now and Beyond 2018 #bestofthetempest18]

Whether you are happily shutting the door on 2018 or gearing up to take on the year to come, now is the time to look back and remember all the good parts that got us through this year.

|t has been a year of change, resistance and innovation.

During all the political turmoil, humanitarian crises and plain shitty occurrences that 2018 gifted us. It is easy to forget that it has been a year of never seen before advances in the fields of money, tech, science, and careers. The world is changing, and it is incredible to watch.

Here is a roundup of our favorite Now & Beyond articles that helped us survive 2018.

1. “Women have always been powerful warriors and these female Vikings prove it” by Tiara Jenkins

Women have always been powerful warriors and these female Vikings prove it

Women are usually left out of our history books, their accomplishments forgotten and their existences wiped out. We’re taught time and time again about the powerful men of the past, the warriors who fought bravely. Always assuming that women have never had a place in the battlefield. This year, through recent DNA analysis, we were able to verify that not only were female Vikings an actual thing, but they were also revered in their communities.

It’s proof that there has never been anything that a woman can’t do. Read more.

2. “All the must-see sky events you don’t want to miss in 2018″ by Federica Boccoo

All the must-see sky events you don’t want to miss in 2018

It’s easy to admit that most of us at The Tempest are self-confessed astronomy nerds.

I mean, what is better than watching celestial objects and phenomena occur. It’s nice to know that there is something out there, some beautiful things that we have no power over. We humans cannot influence or ruin them. (For now anyway).

2018 was blessed with so many opportunities to stop and watch the universe around us. From the Perseid Meteor shower to the blue moon, this year has shown us the beauty that lies beyond. We cannot wait to see what 2019 brings us. Read more.

3. The science behind these 7 Desi cultural traditions will blow your mind by Mishma Nixon

The science behind these 7 Desi cultural traditions will blow your mind

As a desi, who has spent most of her life in the UK, I almost forget how clever my ancestors were.

There is a perception that the west is the bank of knowledge and my people are “backward.” I’m ashamed that I spend so much of my youth ignoring the traditions my mother tried to teach in fear of being teased about them. This listicle goes through many desi cultural traditions and explains the science behind them, because yes, there is logic and fact behind these things.

From sleeping directions to bangles and mehendi, it turns out everything has a reason. Read more.

4. Here’s how to (finally!) find the courage to follow your dreams by Arushi Tandon

Here’s how to (finally!) find the courage to follow your dreams

We can easily find a pick-me-up article on following our passions and be motivated, but then what? Well, in this piece, Arushi helps you solidify that “then what”.

Telling someone to follow their passion is great, but we tend to lack the how and an understanding of the everyday struggles that come with it. This article helps you stop and think about how to go about it, where to start, and what to do in order to actually follow your passion.

If 2018 was your year of making some groundbreaking decisions to follow your passion, then 2019 is your year to actually get things done and maybe even enjoying the journey along the way! Read more to know how you can map your path out!

5. 4 things successful people do after getting rejected by Dawn Metcalfe

4 things successful people do after getting rejected

All of us have gotten rejected somehow, whether in our careers or personal lives.

And if we haven’t, as Dawn says, we may not be reaching far enough or challenging ourselves much. And that means stagnancy and lack of growth.

Growth is amazing, but not without the struggle of rejection. And no matter who you are, rejection sucks. Taking the time to mourn it, accept it, and learn from it before getting back into it makes all the difference. Here’s to our readers becoming better with each rejection in 2019. Read more.

6. What they don’t tell you about entrepreneurship by Mashal Waqar

What they don’t tell you about entrepreneurship

The typical entrepreneur story seems to look like this: A cis-gendered, straight white man in a suit, walking into a boardroom of investors with a great slide deck. After killing that presentation and wow-ing them, he is shaking hands, kicking ass, and taking names.

Yeah, let’s back up. Today’s entrepreneur is looking less white, still a little more cis-gender straight male than it needs to, and not always all that confident and successful.

“Nevertheless, she persisted”, right? Mashal’s incredibly honesty story speaks to many women about that gut-punching thing called imposter syndrome. Read more about what the non-traditional entrepreneur really looks like.

7. Technostalgia: Why are young people so obsessed with old technology? by Jesse Shamon

Tech nostalgia: Why are young people so obsessed with old technology?

Besides the chaos and endless stream of memes that have made 2018 what it was, another stand out trend featured nostalgia. We saw remake after remake of our favorite 80s and 90s television shows and songs, 90’s fashion trends reared its head once again, and we got a dose of technological throwbacks.

In this piece author, Jesse Shamon explores the phenomenon of tech nostalgia, and how during times of turmoil we all turned to the past for escape. Read more and explore her questions of what exactly we’re escaping from in our technological future, the answer could save us all one day.

8. Why black folk especially suffer in a for-profit, capitalistic world by Gabrielle Smith

Why black folk especially suffer in a for-profit, capitalistic world

The New Year always brings dreams of more financial stability and prosperity, but for some of us, it’s not that easy. In a capitalist world, black folk will always face challenges due to a history of slavery and our ties to our roots. Afrocentricity keeps us tied to our heritage and those old ways of life just don’t mesh well with a rigid, capitalist society. Read more on Smith’s honest and thought-provoking take on what’s normally just deemed as black laziness.

9. Michelle Obama sent me to tech boot camp and it opened up my eyes to a whole new world by Grace Wong

Michelle Obama sent me to tech boot camp and it opened up my eyes to a whole new world

I’m just going to say it, I miss the Obama’s!!! And I especially miss Michelle Obama. In this story, we hear the amazing tale of how a little encouragement pushed our author to new heights. From traveling across the world helping every community we touch, challenging gender roles in society, and taking ourselves to new heights, this piece has it all. You’ll definitely want to read more because this is the exact energy we want to take into 2019, now and beyond.

Tags The Tempest, listicle, tech, science, The Tempest fellowships, entrepreneurship, new year, black women in tech, career advice, trends, Michelle Obama, capitalism, thetempest.co, Mitta Thakrar, money & tech, Now + Beyond, following your dreams, the tempest characters, the tempest media company, The Tempest Team, Tiara Jenkins, Saba Danawala, female vikings, tech nostalgia, The Tempest sparknotes, the tempest summary, the tempest pdf, the tempest king, the tempest quotes, the tempest movie, the tempest translation, the tempest caliban, the tempest shmoop, the tempest media inc, the tempest facebook, the tempest jobs, the tempest pitch, tempest site, the tempest common sense media, the tempest shakespeare summary, the tempest shakespeare pdf, the tempest shakespeare movie, the tempest summary act 1, the tempest summary act 2, the tempest summary shmoop, the tempest inc, the tempest summary act 1 scene 2, the tempest summary act 3, the tempest summary act 4, the tempest summary video, the tempest summary youtube, the tempest summary pdf, the tempest summary act 3 scene 3, the tempest summary and analysis, the tempest company utah, the tempest shakespeare company, the tempest brewing company, the tempest trading company, the tempest royal shakespeare company, the tempest royal shakespeare company reviews, the tempest shakespeare theatre company, the tempest royal shakespeare company dvd, the tempest royal shakespeare company cast, the tempest shakespeare and company, the tempest royal shakespeare company 2016, article list, the tempest money & tech, now & beyond 2018, science 2018, careers 2018, best articles 2018, celestial events, desi traditions, girl boss, women rule, work 2018, black folk

Career Advice Now + Beyond

What they don’t tell you about entrepreneurship

Post author By Mashal Waqar
Post date May 1, 2018

Photo Taken by Verne Ho. Image Description: A woman is sitting crouched on a pink floor, with her head touching her knees. Her arms are folder below her legs, and her hair is covering her face.

I’ve started feeling like I’m not good enough. I just feel really sad.

It’s not just loneliness- to be clear, I haven’t isolated myself. I could be with my closest friends, and all of a sudden, start feeling gloomy. Today it happened while I was in a cafe, and as my friends were discussing their senior design project, I felt a heavy anchor of sadness.

My stomach starts hurting, and my throat feels like it’s constricting. I have a lot of thoughts I want to push out, but I can’t. I’m not going to make it. I’m a failure. I’m not really good at anything. Where am I heading, with my life? Am I fit for the startup world? Will I be able to successfully close the fundraising round? Will I make it?

Nothing seems to happen fast enough, and the only thing that’s flying at a pace I can’t keep up with, is time.

Time enough to answer all my emails, to send out proposals, to meet leads and clients, to close deals, to start new projects, to finalize projects, to check-in with different departments. It feels like there’s not enough time.

But there’s a lot of work to do.

I don’t know if I can make it, to the end of the year, quarter, month, and sometimes even day. At times like these, the only thing that keeps me going is one step. I need to take one step at a time. Sometimes that one step is getting through 5 more minutes. 5 and 5, till I get through an hour. Then another, then another.

Not every episode is this bad, sometimes it’s easier to get through. Sometimes, it’s a lot worse. At the lows, I’m thankful for the people that make up my support system. It’s sometimes easier to word out all my feelings of uneasiness and anxiety, and why I feel like everything is going wrong. Other times, it’s not as simple.

Some episodes I start reminiscing, and spiral down a path of should-haves, could-haves, and what-ifs. Those are the weaker moments. I know there’s no other path I would rather have chosen, but sometimes I do wish someone had told me what entrepreneurship would be like, in the most raw and unfiltered way. I know every entrepreneur’s path is different, but I had no idea what was coming my way when I entered this ecosystem.

It’s also the same naivety I see when I’m at startup events with students pitching startup ideas. They’re so hopeful and convinced they’re going to change the world, or their industry, or that their solution is the best damn one in the market. The confidence is great, and I absolutely love seeing it, but if it was that simple, every other person in the world would have “made” it, quite literally. Based on which article you read, 60% and 90% of all startups fail. There’s a higher chance of failure than success, and yet we’re all still so optimistic that we will inevitably make it to the success stat.

Entrepreneurship is a tricky road. I’m often asked to speak about my personal journey as an entrepreneur and why more students should consider it as a career path right after university. That’s where I’m wary- because I don’t want to paint an ideal image, when the reality is so far from it. I don’t want to discourage anyone (hell, I chose this for myself), but I worry about giving the wrong impression. There is a reason you see more older entrepreneurs than younger ones, especially in this region. Not everyone can afford to have a startup, when they’re right out of college. And, while there are increasingly growing resources and initiatives to encourage and build out young entrepreneurs, more often than not, there is a long long way ahead. If you want a lot of comfort and financial security, the startup life is not for you. It’s as simple as that.

Most folks glorify the “hustle”, and the “grind.”

Most people romanticize the successful fundraising rounds, and exits. They don’t talk about the breakdowns and the panic attacks. They don’t talk about the rejections in the first phase, the criticism in the second, and the years leading up to the “overnight” success.

Not as much as they need to.

They talk about starving entrepreneurs and tell you to “do what you got to do.”

But, don’t talk enough about how to survive.

Each narrative you read has probably been changed a few times (lo and behold PR), to make it seem like a gorgeous roadmap, where each failure was a milestone to success.

That’s why I’ve built a subconscious filter to bullshit, hypocrisy, the buzzwords, and the pretense.

And in the midst of it all there’s the mental battles with myself; imposter syndrome- a curse I wouldn’t wish on anyone in the world.

Gender & Identity Life

Millennial women are disrupting the traditional work world, but it’s not as easy as you’d think

Post author By Saba Danawala
Post date February 8, 2018

Via Pexels — [Image description: A zoomed out image of women around a table. The photo is taken from outside of the workplace.]

I will always remain grateful for the adversity previous generations of women endured to make sure that my life was not predetermined from birth to be solely at home. Yet, I, like many millennial women, are beginning to wonder if we really are better off than our mothers. While millennial men generally may seem more “progressive” about women holding roles traditionally held by men, it is not actively reflected in the data. As of now, trying to do everything at work in a man’s world the way a man would do it is not working.

For instance, many (mostly men) in my career implicitly or explicitly have told me that women are better suited for communications, caregiving, or the softer skills for marketing and client interface. One boss indirectly hinted at this in my interview for my first real job. I clearly took the job, regardless of his bias, hoping to delve into more technical research work. After a few months of doing”coordination” tasks, I asked for more technical work related to data analysis. Each time, someone expressed resistance by telling me I did not have the proper skills. As I kept seeking mentorship and guidance to gain these skills, I found myself empty-handed.

“Do these (menial) tasks first, and then you can do work on more technical tasks. Be a team player,” yet another man or woman supporting this structure would tell me.

However, that was never the case. Women had to do these tasks. When my male colleagues were asked to do them, I or other women eventually had to take over because of their resistance. Whether those women were senior or junior, it felt like the only value women had in men’s eyes was office housekeeping. A few years into a couple of jobs where I saw the same trends, I knew something was very wrong. This backhanded compliment of what women “were good at” was a way of saying that we cannot do anything else.

This is the case, despite our academic performance and emotional intelligence saying otherwise. I kept asking myself if I was being too sensitive for reflecting upon being a woman in the workplace. Was I working hard enough? Could I never gain the skills needed because I was not good enough? Did I need to accept that I could not stomach the pressure?

The self-doubt was poisoning my mind. I finally understood what my mother was unknowingly preparing me for all these years – a man’s world.

No matter what I did this is how it would remain. Even when women jump through every hoop to try to enter a leadership position, a supervisor may tell them in one way or another that they do not deserve it or that they do not have the right qualities. Now imagine all of these generally discouraging trends for millennial women in the workplace with an extra layer of race. Women of color experience all of what I have discussed on top of the challenges that come with preconceptions and stereotypes about their race.

To verify if I was the only one feeling this, I obtained an unfiltered opinion from a successful woman of color. I spoke to my friend and mentor, an ambitious Black scientist, about her experiences. She recounted many of her own experiences of professional bullying in major scientific institutions. Sadly, many Black women do not get a Hollywood movie ending like “Hidden Figures”. She became so disillusioned that she had to reevaluate her trajectory. She eventually co-founded a food truck and worked as an independent consultant in global health and scientific programming. While she struggled financially for almost a year before any of this came to fruition, she feels no regret.

My friend’s frustrations were not so different from those of other women of color in the workplace. This is evidenced by the rise of women-owned businesses, “momtrepreneurs,” and a trend towards women making their own opportunities. More women of color are also joining this trend and trying new approaches. At this point I realized: why should all women keep waiting for approval in a system that still favors men?

While I admire those women who are close to breaking the glass ceiling in the traditional work world, it cannot be the sole option for career success for every woman. My friend’s boldness to take her own path inspired me to start paving my own. I recently concluded that the traditional workplace was not the option for me. To own that remains difficult, but working on my own ideas has helped me tackle the toxic self-doubt I developed over the years. I have created more than I ever did as a beggar in the traditional work world.

Maybe our mothers were not hoping for our generation of women to climb the traditional career ladder. They wanted us to get rid of the ladder and redefine what it means to be at the “top.”

Life Hacks Work Career Career Advice Now + Beyond

5 reasons why some people succeed (and others don’t)

Post author By Dawn Metcalfe
Post date January 19, 2018

Blonde lady in work attire looking with a straight face, in front of 2 other women who seem to be engaged in conversation, both ladies are also in work attire. — Photo by Tim Gouw on Unsplash

I’ve been an executive coach for 10 years and I’ve run my own business for 7 years. Over the years I’ve had the privilege of working with people from all different backgrounds in many different countries and in lots of different languages. I’ve worked with senior executives and the people who were being groomed at mid-level to take on those senior roles.

Because of my role, I often build lasting relationships with clients and I’ve watched them grow and develop their careers, taking on more responsibility, leading and managing more people and, yes, earning more and I’ve asked myself what these people have in common. Why do they succeed where others fail?

As I pondered this I realized that many of them have one thing in common: they see themselves as a business. By that, I mean that they understand that they are, from their organization’s point of view, a mix of skills and assets, relationships, qualities and experience and needs to be constantly managed.

They may not use the metaphor I have chosen but they do tend to all 5 of these areas.

1. Skills

man sat at desk gesturing with the caption "I have people skills: I am good at dealing with people. Can't you understand that? What the hell is wrong with you people?" — giphy.com

This is probably the most easily understood. Clearly, we are hired because we bring certain skills to an organization. It’s probably not the only reason or even the most important as we’ll see but it remains true that all else being equal, the more highly skilled you are the more likely you are to be able to find employment.

Of course, this means the successful invest time, energy and money in learning new skills and keeping those they have honed. If you’re a business then it makes sense to invest in the future.

2. Assets

Rihanna giving interview in pink suit with caption "I got tons of work to do honey" — giphy.com

The great thing about having assets in a business is that it gives you choices. You can leverage those assets in different ways and you can have different asset classes. Your IP or your portfolio, your little black book might be an asset depending on the job you want.

Similarly, your marketing collateral e.g. your CV or LinkedIn profile can be a poor or well-performing asset! Again, depending on the organization and industry you’re in, your title may very well be an asset.

The winners in the workplace realize their title is an asset and use it wisely. They use this power for good where possible, thinking deeply about their decisions and questioning their decisions. They do this because they know the importance of the third area.

3. Relationships

The Office clip with many in suit and caption "Sorry I annoyed you with my friendship" — giphy.com

If you think of yourself as a business then of course relationships are important to you. Businesses contract with other businesses. This means that employment contracts are just that: contracts. You owe the organization hiring you your very best work and they owe you a number of important things but they don’t owe you loyalty. The best understand this and work hard on building relationships with others outside their organization. They do this because they realize networks need to have both depth and breadth. They don’t think of networking as an ability to promote themselves. Instead, they try to help others. Perversely, thinking of themselves as a business probably makes them kinder as they realize you never know where people are going to end up.

4. Qualities

lost and found clip of man shaking his head with caption "My reputation precedes me" — giphy.com

If you think of yourself as a business, you understand how important your reputation is. Yes, you could argue it’s an asset but I prefer to think of it as a bundle of all the qualities you show others.

It’s how people feel about you – do they like you? trust you? Your character is important, it’s a small world and as we become ever more connected your reputation will precede you. People talk. You talk, right?

So, of course, people are talking about you. What are they saying? That’s who you are.

5. Experience

The hills clip with man on phone in office and the caption "You need to have a lot of experience" — giphy.com

Experience is only experience if it’s relevant.

You can be the best tomato juice in the world and I won’t care. But if you’ve been fishing before and know how it’s done, and I’m hungry on a lake, then I’m all ears.

The people I see succeed are those who take the time to understand the other person, so that they can then frame the experience they recount in a way that makes sense. They hit the right tone and get the level of detail correct. They understand that different people need to hear things in different ways.

What do you think? Does the idea of thinking of yourself as a business appeal to you? fill you with unease? disgust? Even if it does, can you see the merit in considering these 5 areas?

the office Dwight shaking his head in agreement with caption "It's True" — giphy.com

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Money Career Advice Now + Beyond Interviews

Meet the homeschooled entrepreneur who started her business at 18. Now, she’s publishing her first book, “Dear Millennial.”

Post author By Katherine Kaestner-Frenchman
Post date October 18, 2017

I sat down with Chelann Gienger to talk about her new book, “Dear Millennial: A Compass To Defining Your Unique Purpose, Pursuing A Life Of Fulfillment, And Building A Legacy,” in which she outlines her advice garnered from her upbringing, as well as the last two years she’s spent running a juice bar and hosting the Entrepreneur Before 25 podcast, in which she interviews young entrepreneurs.

At 18, while simultaneously getting her high school diploma and BA, Chelann, her brother, and his business partner set out to open NUYU juice bar in their hometown of Yakima, Washington.

The Tempest: Dear Millennial is about more than business, it’s written as a self-help guide that aims to help readers find their true passions. Where did you encounter the life-lessons you drew upon and at what point did you decide you had enough information to turn it into a book?

Chelann Gienger: So, my entrepreneurial journey started at 15.

I open the juice bar at 18, started the “Entrepreneur before 25” podcast at 19 and wrote this book at 20, so everything was built on top of each other. Because basically, I was 18 and running a brick and mortar.

To this day, I don’t know anyone else in Yakama who was this young and running a brick and mortar. I was so lonely, apart from my family, who are all entrepreneurs. I lost the ability to see eye to eye with a lot of my close friends.

Their biggest struggles were passing a test the next day that they hadn’t studied for. I thought there had to be other entrepreneurs out there who were like me and were struggling with the same kinds of things I was, so I launched the podcast.

I interview inspiring entrepreneurs who started their journey at the age of 25 or younger and the main niche of the podcast; our primary topic was how do you chase your dreams and not only make those dreams happen but live a fulfilled life in the process. A lot of people mixed up fulfillment with achievement and we think if we achieve a certain goal, we are all of a sudden going to be fulfilled and happy. That’s only going to last for a certain amount time; we’ve all experienced that.

To date, I’ve probably interviewed close to 200 young people, and so through the process of the past year, I’ve seen patterns in the millennial generation. They were problems that I felt needed to be addressed by a peer.

I’m not asking people who read my book to do anything that I’m not already doing myself or trying my very best to do myself. This book is meant to basically call the millennial generation to a higher standard of greatness in every sphere of their life. The book walks them through finding their unique purpose, we each have a unique purpose that only we can fulfill.

I look at our lives as a movie, and if we don’t show up on production day, the movie isn’t going to exist.

We then take that unique purpose, and we mold it into how you can accomplish this and still live a fulfilled life. Then we work through how to take those components and build a legacy that will last generations beyond you.

It’s raw and authentic. I get into the details as I talk about boys and business, all of it. Every one of these experiences has either reinforced or showed me how to live out what I’m talking about in that chapter.

The self-doubt was real; these are struggles that I worked through sometimes on my own and often through my family. I was raised with these principles, but the way I’m carrying them out looks different than it did for my parents and grandparents.

I have seen things in my generation where it’s like, “If somebody doesn’t address these, we will literally wipe ourselves out,” and I decided to address them by explaining what I’m doing to get to the goals and the world impact that I have and I want to have in my life and 500 years from now.

You say you see patterns and traits that threaten to “wipe us out” as millennials so if you were to choose, what is the primary thing you would want to impart on this generation?

Chelann Gienger: I would say, “Are you truly taking ownership of our life? Do you understand that you are exactly where you are today because of the decisions you have made for yourself, or you have allowed other people to make for you?”

We sit in our lives, we don’t like where we are, and we blame everyone but ourselves. I’m not saying blame yourself, but I’m saying recognize that you’re here today because of the decisions you’ve made.

So, do the hard work to change that and change your life to what you want it to be.

This interview was edited for length and clarity.

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Press

Laila Alawa speaks to Entrepreneur Before 25 podcast about the story behind The Tempest

Post author By Mitta Thakrar
Post date September 30, 2017

The Tempest’s CEO Laila Alawa spoke with Chelann Gienger from the Entrepreneur Before 25 (EB25) podcast. EB25 interviews inspiring and empowering entrepreneurs like Laila who began their journey whilst aged 25 or under.

[bctt tweet=”I found that I started being put in situations where my people pleasing hurt me. ” username=”wearethetempest”]

Laila talked about her background, her family, why she started The Tempest, and life as an entrepreneur.

Whilst explaining the realities of chasing your dreams, Laila also divulged some gems of advice for budding entrepreneurs. She dived in deep and discussed why being a people pleaser has the potential to destroy freedom.

“I used to live my life very afraid of hurting others, I found that I started being put in situations where my people pleasing hurt me.”

Listen to the entire podcast here.

Tech Now + Beyond

ASK SAMAA: How do I get my start-up off the ground?

Post author By Samaa Ahmed
Post date February 11, 2016
No Comments on ASK SAMAA: How do I get my start-up off the ground?

Women get start-up advice from our resident expert Samaa

Dear Samaa,

I’m writing to you because I’ve recently been approached with a business opportunity (of which I’ve already said yes to) by a former classmate and friend of mine from university. We’d be working together along with another young woman whom we are also friends with, and is also a fellow alumna. It is still very early days in the process of starting our organization (which is leadership based), but since I have no background in business, do you have any recommendations for a beginner?

Also, how do I maintain good boundaries both personally and professionally during this process? I’m both excited and nervous about the outcome of this and sometimes my confidence wavers a bit about it all.

Sincerely,

Just starting out

______________

Dear Just Starting Out,

First of all, congratulations! This sounds really exciting! Good on you for taking on something new like this!

Second, thank you for this question! I’ve been working on developing my own business (ARTBOX Toronto) for the past few months, so this is something that I have a bit of personal experience with, and I am glad to be able to share what I have learned. Of course there is a lot to say on this topic, but I think these are the seven most crucial things you should do:

Most importantly, make sure that your organization’s goals and aims are properly defined. Write them down, let someone else read them, redraft them, repeat this process until your business objectives are absolutely clear to anyone who reads them. You will also have to give your elevator pitch every time anyone asks about what your organization does: make sure it is succinctly and accurately articulated, and make sure everyone you are working with is on the exact same page. This is part of setting boundaries.

By that same token, make sure that you truly believe in the values of your organization, and if not, figure out why there is a discrepancy. Try to solve it, but if it cannot be solved, do not force it: accept that this may not be the project for you.

Make sure your role in the organization is clearly defined and articulated. This is also crucial to maintaining healthy boundaries with your team members. A good rule of thumb is: if it’s important, write it down! It’s great practice in general, but absolutely essential when it comes to task delegation or making any big decisions!

Make sure that there is some sort of documentation of what your role is, and if you are going to be paid, make sure that there are contracts that that explicitly lay out how much, when, and by whom you will be paid. If you do not have a lot of money, you can Google “contract template” and use stock templates to base yours off of, and use a service like Hello Sign to store and sign your contracts. I would recommend asking a lawyer to look over your contracts before you sign anything, especially if discussing ownership or intellectual property.

If you are committed to this organization and/or project, you will need to invest some time learning more about business, leadership, and innovation. Subscribe to a few key mailing lists: Entrepreneur, Young Entrepreneur, Forbes Woman, Harvard Business Review, and Knowledge @ Wharton are great for starters. They have wonderful articles and listicles with tips on how to be more productive, and very insightful interviews with thought leaders across different fields and industries. Take a relevant course (online or in person) related to your business: Coursera has some great free ones! Really know your field inside out and back to front.

Invest wisely in your start up “toolkit.” Pretty much every business will be drafted on the classic Business Model Canvas, but I would recommend the Lean Canvas model – it’s a lot more relevant to how businesses are set up and run today. If you are pitching your idea/organization to investors, you’ll need to work on your pitch deck as well. You do not have to be an expert in every single area of your business; it’s okay to outsource some things. Set up a Slack or Trello account to communicate with your team members. Learn how to manage your time effectively! Create a shared Google calendar.

Have regular team meetings where you can communicate openly with one another, and try to get to the root of problems while they are budding, rather than when they are fully blown. Practice active listening and supportive and respectful discussions. Make sure you check in regularly with each other, and plan your meetings with an agenda, so that you do not veer off topic. (This can be a real issue when working with friends!)

Create a network and support system for yourself. Join a professional organization. Join “women in business” Facebook groups. FIND A MENTOR! (This is so important! Strong female mentors have been so transformative in my personal and professional life! Read my simple guide on how to find a mentor here.) Ask for help when you need it. It’s okay to not know what to do or to feel overwhelmed – you do not have to carry that burden by yourself. Asking for help is the healthier and more sensible thing to do, rather than flounder and/or cause yourself undue stress.My dad likes this quote, he thinks it’s funny: “Having lost sight of our objectives, we redoubled our efforts!” It’s nonsensical because when you’re lost you can’t just “try harder” to stop being lost. Sometimes you need to step away, ask for external support, and reassess from there. Also, reflecting with others (parents, teachers/professors, friends who are older than you) can help prevent groupthink.

I hope this helps! Good luck with your project, and let us know how it goes! Feel free to send me more questions!

I hope that helps!

Love,

Samaa

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