It may not seem like it but having a podcast is a big deal. Yes, Cheryl and I are funny (hysterical, actually.) And we interview fabulous people doing amazing things. What you might not know is that with each episode we are transforming the entrepreneurial ecosystem. Seriously. See how I stepped outside my comfort zone in my other blog post.
By choosing to focus primarily but not exclusively on women and entrepreneurs of color, often early on in building their ventures, the Entrepreneurially Thinking podcast gives voice to underestimated entrepreneurs. This is incredibly important. First, it makes their stories and experiences legitimate. Being featured in the media, being asked to tell your story and speak your truth makes it/you real. It’s documented. Citable. On the record. That makes it/them undeniable. When there are hundreds of such stories it makes their potential and reality replicable and repeatable. No one can claim our guests are the rare exception to the rule. We are normalizing their exceptionalism.
Being known also means they can be found. Often, investors, lenders, purchasers, boards of directors, executives, etc. say they can’t find women, people of color, LGBTQIA, people with disabilities or other non-majority group members with whom to partner, invest in, hire, mentor or lead. We’ve found them. They are here. Aggregating plentiful examples also makes it easy for aspiring entrepreneurs, solopreneurs and growing businesses to find role models to follow. We need to know the stories of people who look and sound like us in order to know what’s possible. To know that we aren’t alone and that we have every right to dream big.
One day, telling these stories won’t be remarkable. We won’t have to have a #facesoffounders campaign to remind us that businesses are built and run by people other than white men. We won’t lament that women and entrepreneurs of color receive virtually no venture capital funding and often build companies with less than $1m in assets. And a venture fund specifically for black women founders won’t be newsworthy or needed. Until then, we will elevate and celebrate the stories of the underestimated, transforming the system one episode at a time.
