It is unfortunate that regardless of their efforts to demand their place in entrepreneurship and business, discrimination against women still exists. Sure, it is safe to say that there has been a significant reduction of female discrimination today compared to several decades ago. Nevertheless, as you strive through entrepreneurship, there’s a likelihood that you’ll face some disadvantages because you’re a woman.
We’ll let you in on some of the signs you can look out for to know if you’re experiencing discrimination as a woman.
You’re Offered Lower Loans
Most entrepreneurs rely on loans to serve as capital for their startup businesses. Unfortunately, you may get offers of lower loans compared to your male peers, even when you have similar qualifications.
Moreover, you may realize a biased difference in loan terms like collateral requirements, where you’re required to submit more collateral requirements if you are a woman.
You are also likely to pay higher interest rates because you are female, which could be discouraging
Such and other loan disadvantages can easily discourage women who want to start their businesses but lack enough capital.
You’re Treated as Less Competent
There have been cases where employers and clients assume that women are less competent. For instance, a client who needs help may request help from a man and ignore you, a woman.
On the other hand, people funding your business may hesitate to give you what you need fearing that you are less likely to profit for lack of entrepreneurship skills. As a result, women may land lower positions where not much competence is necessary. This can quickly kill their morale to learn entrepreneurship skills, pushing them to lag behind men in entrepreneurship.
The need to Prove yourself
If you have to work extra hard or harder than your male counterparts to prove you can make it, you are likely in a female-discriminative environment. In such a place, men work to earn a living while women work to earn a living and prove that they are more than meets the eye.
Additionally, you may miss out on benefits such as loans or investors until you prove that you are worth investing in. Moreover, if you sell products or services, your customers may demand a trial period before believing that what you offer them is of top quality. If you face some of the issues, you survive in a discriminative business environment.
Your Clients Fail to Trust You
This is likely to happen, primarily if you work in a male-dominated industry. Say, for instance, you run a business selling car spare parts, and some clients fear that you lack quality products or the knowledge and skill since you are a woman. This sadly forces women to invest only in women-related industries to avoid losses.
The sad truth is that when these sectors become overpopulated, making a profit becomes extremely challenging, causing many women to give up.
The Complicated Process of Getting Government Services
To start a business, you need government services to get official documents such as business permits, among others. In a discriminative situation, those in charge may fail to give you what you need or make it harder to access them because you are a woman.
In such cases, you can seek help through channels that fight against gender discrimination and get the services you need.
Can women entrepreneurs make it in a Gender Discrimination Environment?
Men stand ahead of women in entrepreneurship for several reasons, and gender discrimination is one of them. Identifying signs of gender discrimination in entrepreneurship will help you survive and achieve your goals. Working with other successful women entrepreneurs will also help you overcome gender discrimination challenges.
Sources: Research Outreach, Wikipedia, Entrepreneur, Gender Economy, Gender Economy, WeForum, FT
