In the world of small business ownership, leadership isn’t just a skill – it’s the lifeblood of our success. For women like us, leadership means embodying a mindset that can propel us forward, help us navigate challenges and encourage us to seize opportunities.

Here are a few of my thoughts on how developing our leadership skills can help us achieve our goals – whether we lead a team of 1 (ourselves) or many!

Leadership Powers Our Vision

Leadership skills help us to not only visualise our goals but also to articulate them so that we can create a plan to bring them to life.

We Lead By Example

As small business owners we often demonstrate our leadership skills not necessarily through our teams’ results but by BEING a great example and influence. We do this through our work ethic, our transparency and our dedication. We inspire others through our example.

Communication Lies At the Heart of Leadership

Our ability to inspire, share our vision and connect with others is the key to our professional longevity. Building and nurturing relationships with other small business owners, suppliers, and potential collaborators is a hallmark of effective leadership. These connections can open doors to partnerships, collaborations, and shared resources that can propel us forward.

Leadership Skills Support Effective Decision-Making

Without a large team around us, we often make critical decisions on our own. When we develop our leadership skills, we improve our judgment, our risk assessment, and our ability to make decisions confidently. Building our leadership skills also helps us to navigate the constant changes that seem to come with the territory of business ownership.

Leadership Development Is A Journey, Not A Destination

A true leader recognizes that learning is a lifelong journey. As leaders, investing in our own growth is not only an act of self-improvement but also a strategic move for our businesses. Whether it’s staying updated on industry trends, refining our relationship-building or technical skills, or seeking coaching, our commitment to personal development is a key to our success.

Leadership Extends Us

As female entrepreneurs, we’re part of a vibrant community of women shaping local and national economies and industries. Our buying power and influence as a collective is massive. Developing our leadership skills enables us to advocate for change, share our experiences with the next generation of entrepreneurs, and contribute to the overall empowerment of women in business. Our collective ‘voice’ then becomes a catalyst for driving equality, gender diversity and inclusion, and a different way of doing business. What amazing ripple effects we can have simply by levelling up our leadership!

As female entrepreneurs, we are the embodiment of leadership in action. Our vision, resilience, adaptability, and commitment set us apart. I encourage you to embrace your leadership potential. Cultivate it, nurture it, and let it shine. You are not just running a business; you’re leading a movement. Your leadership is the secret sauce that propels your small business to thrive in the competitive landscape, creating a legacy of success for yourself and inspiring a new generation of female entrepreneurs.

I’m Jennifer Myers. I own Gener8 Leadership Solutions and 90 Day Divas, Ltd. Through GLS, I help leaders and teams enhance their effectiveness in leadership, communication, and sales by creating customized training solutions that increase individual impact and drive greater profitability for the wider business. Älong with my fellow 90 Day Divas, I support women to launch new businesses.

Let’s get acquainted. Feel free to book yourself in for a chat here: https://calendly.com/jennifergener8/chat_with_jen