Be Empowered and Inspired: Read a Book

Ask yourself these three questions:

1. Do I want to read books that inspired successful women entrepreneurs?
2. Am I curious to see what key learnings other business owners get from their reads?
3. Do I want to start my own business, but there’s something holding me down and I’m not sure what it is?

If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, you’re in the right place. 

Each book in this collection comes with its own recommendation because it’s important to understand why that title was important to its curator, to determine if it might be important to you, as well.

And once you start your business, visit the Women Presidents Organization to get even more inspired.  Reach a million-dollar mark in annual revenue and membership can be yours.  A dream come true. 

As a Business Owner, How Not to Make These Top 3 Mistakes

When companies are just getting off the ground, there are many stressors and opportunities. This is an exciting time in the life of your company, and there are some common pitfalls that you can avoid.

Here are three.

Thoughts, Prayers and Love to Our WPO Sisters in Turkey

We are reposting the LinkedIn post our WPO CEO wrote about the horrific event that happened in Turkey.  

From Chicago to Peru to South Africa – no matter where the WPO chapter is located – we are with our Turkey WPO sister in spirit, love and support.

If you want to help support Turkey, our WPO chapter chair, Gaye Goker, has suggested two trusted organizations:

1. https://lnkd.in/exA4kyrD
2. https://lnkd.in/edvBvqrN

Read CEO Camille Burn's entire post here.

New Pattern of Self-Empowerment Among Women Business Owners

Women business owners and top executives of small and mid-size majority-women-owned businesses have an optimistic outlook about the near-term future of their businesses, according to a recent survey.

The PNC Bank [PNC is a long-stand WPO national sponsor] survey found that women business owner (WBO) expectations for their own companies remain strong, with 41% feeling highly optimistic -- up from 29% in the fall of 2020 but down from 67% in the fall of 2021 – while the share of those feeling pessimistic has held constant at just 1%.

“We are seeing a new pattern of self-empowerment among women business owners that are very encouraging,” said Beth Marcello, director of PNC Women’s Business Development. “Their own hard work to survive the pandemic is the source of their confidence and optimism today.”

The survey suggests that women have a take-charge, can-do attitude. 

Read more here.

Perseverance Matters

Set your soul on fire.

WPO Member of the Moment: Teri Sharp, President at American Precision Supply, Inc.

Congrats to WPO Chicago member Teri Sharp (pictured) for this beautiful feature below on her business.  We love her answer to the first question in the interview.

How has being a WPO member helped your business?

Being a WPO member has helped me grow my business and given me the confidence to keep moving forward. I use the ladies in my chapter as a sounding board for new ideas or things I need to change. They are a support group of women who understand the issues we all face and that helps me when I am in a very male-dominated industry.

Read the entire interview, including the challenges she has faced, what inspired her to start her business and what her favorite WPO event is.

MLK, a Supporter of Women's Rights

Martin Luther King, Jr. marched with women who were underpaid and overworked.  He spoke out for women who were denied equality. He organized for women who were victims of oppression. He knew that women’s rights are civil rights, and helped shape many of the movements in which we participate today. 

Along with NOW, let's all of us honor the memory and the legacy of Dr. King on this holiday.

Trends That Will Shape the Creator Economy in 2023

The creator economy has surprisingly held strong, even with a looming recession, increasing pressure from lawmakers to ban TikTok in the U.S., and Elon Musk being Elon Musk at Twitter, so Fast Company says.

According to Influencer Marketing Hub, the creator economy is currently valued at $16.4 billion, a 19% increase from 2021.  Will that energy carry over into 2023?  

In the latest episode of Fast Company’s Creative Control podcast, KC Ifeanyi spoke with a few experts to get a better understanding of where the creator economy is heading next year.

Here's what they said.

Kickstart the New Year with 5 Reflective Questions to Ask Yourself

Dr. Richard Osibanjo says it's the time of year to reflect on the past 12 months and plan for the new year. When things get tough, remember what Henry Ford said: "When everything seems to be going against you, remember that the airplane takes off against the wind, not with it." 

Here are five questions to ask yourself to make 2023 a meaningful year.

Happy Holidays From WPO Chicago!

©2022 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

Ho Ho Ho Happy Holidays!

©2022 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

Oh what fun it is to celebrate the holidays (and successes) with WPO Chicago I chapter members!  Yes, we are serious and focused about growing our businesses, but we also know how to have a blast.  

Happy Holidays from Chicago I chapter members! 

The Holidays Are a Time to Eat Healthy!

Yes, you read that right:  the holidays are a time to eat right.  Fueling with healthier choices enables us to enjoy the celebrations more, and bounce back more easily.  Allows us to run our businesses more efficiently then, too. 

Here’s how to keep the holiday cheer alive while making balanced meal choices.  

Top Female Founders 2022 According to Inc. Magazine

Here are 100 reasons women business owners rock.

One of our WPO Chicago members, Valarie King-Bailey (shown above) is featured in the list!  Congrats!

Photo credit:  OnShore Technology Group

Women Who Want to Lead

For the past 25 years, Nina Vaca has been running Pinnacle Group, an IT and staffing firm in Dallas. While she's seen the industry evolve from the birth of the internet to the introduction of the metaverse, she still hasn't seen a clear path for women who want to lead. 

Today Vaca runs PG on the foundation that people are the asset, and providing service to them is the goal. She applies this mindset to both her clients and her employees -- and anyone who wants to learn how to create a successful business. "My purpose is to improve lives through entrepreneurship, and Pinnacle's is to connect them with opportunity," she said. 

Learn more here.

Are You Quiet Firing?

As companies face tightening budgets, many may be considering trimming their workforce. But of course, outright layoffs are expensive and risky. That’s why some have turned to a subtler strategy: quiet firing, or intentionally creating a hostile work environment that encourages people to leave “voluntarily.” 

The HBR authors’ new research sheds light on how employees can tell if they’re being quietly fired, including changes to work responsibilities, compensation, and communication, and offers ten tactical steps workers can take before throwing in the towel.

Happy Halloween From WPO Chicago!

©2022 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

Do What You Are Afraid to Do

©2022 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

"Courage is doing what you are afraid to do.  There can be no courage unless you are scared." – Eddie Richenbacher

Just Like That: Our WPO CEO Is On the Front Cover of Enterprising Women Magazine

We salute our Women Presidents Organization CEO Camille Burns, and WPO Zenith member, Asma Ishaq, CEO of Modere North America, on their induction into the Enterprising Women Magazine Hall of Fame!

https://libraryenterprisingwomen.com/fall2022/

Congratulations!  We are so proud of you both!  And kudos to Enterprising Women Magazine for the great feature.

2022 Women of Color Achievement Awards (Houston)

The 100 Black Men of Metropolitan Houston Chapter, in partnership with the Women Presidents Organization (WPO), are proud to announce the honorees of the 2022 Women of Color Achievement Awards. 

A total of fourteen women were recognized for outstanding professional achievement and demonstrating exemplary community service. 

Sponsored by JPMorgan Chase Commercial Banking, the event took place on October 6, 2022, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., at the Texas Southern University-Jesse H Jones School of Business, 3800 Sampson St, Houston, TX 77004.

Congratulations to all honorees, especially our very own Ramal Taylor, former WPO Chicago member who recently moved to Houston.

Read the news and see the full list here.  More can be found via LinkedIn.

Screenshot source:  LinkedIn post

Turning Empathy Into Compassion

As Arthur Brooks for The Atlantic says, "In contemporary culture, empathy seems like a fairly unalloyed virtue. As virtues go, however, empathy is overrated. Used excessively and on its own, it can bring harm to empathizers and empathizees alike. Instead of striving to be more empathetic, we should all try to build on empathy to cultivate its superior cousin: compassion."

Empathy is not feeling sorry for someone in physical or emotional pain—that’s sympathy. Rather, it is mentally putting yourself in the suffering person’s shoes to feel their pain. It’s the difference between “Get well soon” and “I can imagine how much discomfort you must be feeling right now.”

As business owners who lead, learning to turn empathy into compassion is a virtue in and of itself.  Read the full article here.