The secrets to success have been attempted to be found by researchers and professionals for years and years. Personality traits, family relations, education, and degrees have been recognized as important, but these are spread amongst generations. But what if we tell you there is one particular generation that has proven most successful? Moreover, not is this article about one generation, but about one particular gender too – women.
Milliennipreneurs is the term to describe entrepreneurs coming from the millennial generation, and it’s not just out of nowhere. Statistics show that 60% of millennials consider oneself to be an entrepreneur, and 90% regard entrepreneurship as a mentality.
Andrea Loubier, co-founder of Mailbird had started her company at the age of 26. Through networking with her colleagues, she started to notice a pattern of behaviors and ways of thinking among them, which is also what led her to her quest for what makes milliennipreneurs so successful.
Confidence is key – even in business
Comforts in one’s skin stretch further than just physical features, we must all be comfortable and confident in our abilities too. Particularly when it comes to women, if confidence is not there, it ruins their chances for success. The women of the millennial generation have been found to exhibit the highest level of confidence as opposed to previous generations.
This may be very well due to their awareness of equality and that it’s a must in the business world. Due to such awareness, they have made conscious efforts to improve equality in pay as well as promotions. In a 2016 survey by BNP Paribas Global Entrepreneur Report, 90% of the surveyed women claimed an anticipation of their gross profit to at least remain stable, but definitely to increase in the upcoming year.
They were also found to be more ambitious in regards to their career, expecting increases in profit by a margin of 35% in 2015. Proving it is indeed a generation-wide accomplishment, Millennial women were found to be 22% above revenue averages, in comparison to women from other generations who were a mere 9%.
Keep on going
When it comes to education, we are so used to hearing about men earning their Masters and PhDs and being more successful than women in this regard as well. As according to recent results by the OECD, women in the G20 countries have not only advanced enough in terms of academic achievement and closed the gender gap in this aspect, but they have reversed the roles!
Although we may have surpassed the struggle of earning a degree and landing a job, the C positions are yet most difficultly attained by women. Despite the obstacles, women of the Millennial generation have not accepted negative answers but kept pushing through until they achieved desired results.
The glass ceiling in corporate culture has been these generations most difficult struggle, but through perseverance, during times of adversity, they have managed to prove so many stereotypes wrong. Elle Kaplan of LexION Capital supported this idea by expressing her admiring views of women of this generation.
How women learn from each other
Education is important – but never the whole story. When asked about the development of their leadership skills and styles in a Workplace Trends survey, 53% answered through mentoring, 68% through online classes and a small 4% through university courses. Apprenticeship has been famous and successful ever since Ancient Greece, so the importance of mentoring is clearly invaluable.
Not only do they bring about stories of success, but they also serve as fountains of inspiration for the motivations to come. Kay Walker, who is the writer of How to Be Unstoppable, shared that his mentors and coaches he has had throughout his life are his secrets to success.
He makes the analogy of a business leader with an Olympic athlete, claiming that the latter would never be successful without a coach – and same about the business industry. This way of passing along information brings about an everlasting circle of improvement and empowerment.
Among Milliennipreneurs, mentorship is just as much about inspiration and encouragement as it is about success. More women from this generation have made it their life mission to support others, and therefore resulted in a larger group of successful entrepreneurs. By joining industries traditionally dominated by men, such as technology, those women set examples to be followed.
All for one – and one for all
A characteristic which stands out among this generation’s women is the desire for collaboration. This industry provides for a channel for the encouragement of each other and is much less about competition. They have proven to take an inclusive leadership style, particularly when it comes to decision making and problem-solving.
An interesting comment is that by Donna Fenn (author of Upstarts! How GenY Entrepreneurs are Rocking the World of Business and 8 Ways You Can Profit From Their Success.) who believes these women are a lot less protective when it comes to intellectual properties.
They play their cards out in the open, pitching ideas and completing each other’s gaps in thinking. The feedback received has only brought about more success. This team-oriented leadership style has been a stand out characteristic of the group, with persistence in embracing diversity.
The Baby Boomer generation certainly brought with it some of the most brilliant people, like Adrianna Huffington or Richard Branson. While their characteristics may be slightly different, those above are most likely to be found in their personalities too. Entrepreneurship has its arms open to anyone and everyone, but its key to be motivated and determined, in addition to the above-mentioned characteristics.