7 False Descriptions of Female Entrepreneurial Excellence

Business women are often misunderstood – mainly due to the unique traits they possess as women. These qualities that make them successful can be misread or misinterpreted. Nonetheless, today’s business woman is strong, focused and determined.

Being a successful female entrepreneur requires women to, as Ginger Rogers said, “Do everything a man does only backwards and in heels!” So it is the same in business. Women often have an uphill climb to be taken seriously. They deal daily with double standards and contradictions in the business world.

In the grand scheme of the business world, women are courageously bringing unique traits and qualities that are often misunderstood excellence.

Here are 7 false descriptions of female entrepreneurial excellence:

1. ADD Galore. Women entrepreneurs have hundreds of ideas making it look like they lack focus. This is mistaken for ADD or the inability to concentrate. On the contrary, their flood of ideas is their strength. The more creative she is, the more productive her business.

2. Careless With Details. The successful female entrepreneur sees and values the big picture, but that doesn’t mean she dismisses the details. It’s just that the details bog her down. She is often skilled at details, but her preference or strength lies in seeing the effects on the big picture. It’s all about relationships, whether between people, things or situations.

3. Looking Odd. When the female entrepreneur is highly engaged, centered and entrenched, people see her as unusual or strange. This makes them stay away, afraid of approaching her. She isn’t odd. She’s alone – embedded in thought. This is contrary to the role society has placed her in, which is to be outgoing and approachable. High engagement is what it takes to succeed in a greatly competitive business environment.

4. Never Finishing. Women entrepreneurs, because of their free flow of ideas and tangential thinking, are great at starting things, but that doesn’t mean they don’t finish them. It simply points to their lack of desire to micromanage what they create. Managing it all creates stress, distracting them from their creativity. They recognize it is best to hire someone who can successfully manage the "big picture."

5. Always Chaotic. The female entrepreneur thrives during what may look like chaos to the "average Jane." Others fear these situations, but the female entrepreneur understands that chaos can breed solutions, ideas, and opportunities. As a woman, she is used to large amounts of activity happening all at once. However, she structures her business so that it can support the chaos.

6. Continuous Failure. This is no different than the kid who has to fall several times while learning to ride a bike. The female entrepreneur is invested in minimizing failure, but she’s not afraid of it either. She is a risk-taker, believing in what she can do. She picks herself up when things are less than she expected. She isn’t accustomed to saying, "I’m done."

7. Polly Anna. People often criticize her optimistic outlook. They see her as exaggerating reality. On the contrary, exaggeration and thinking big are as important to the female entrepreneur as believing is to Christians. Her spark is the real source of her profitability. She is great at delegating, outsourcing, and learning new skills.

Today’s female entrepreneur is no longer held hostage to traditional expectations, distorted role-placement and playing the supporting actor role. Rather, she is making strides in the business world, using her innate intuition and new-found sense of empowerment to make a lasting mark.