JDC met Heather and Nicky from Women on the Move at the start of summer. Friends since 1981, they have shared successes, challenges and many adventures. As serial entrepreneurs they now join forces to bring an unparalleled depth of knowledge, understanding, experience and passion to help women start and grow prosperous businesses. Women on the Move is Heather’s third business startup and Nicky’s second. Prior to her first startup, Heather climbed the corporate ladder and was VP of Sales and Marketing for Lucent Technology before she was 35. Nicky fast tracked her entrepreneurial path within a franchise structure. She started with Arthur Murray Dance Studio as an instructor at 30, two years later becoming a sales manager and shortly after that a successful franchisee. As we learned more about these wonderful women’s individual and collective successes, we just had to share their experiences and learnings with you. Here are 4 great pieces of advice from Heather and Women;
- Best piece of advice for women struggling with sales: Invest in yourself and get some training. Sales is a skill and like any other skill it is acquired, and that takes time and training. You need a process so you can look back and see where you made a wrong turn and where you made good turns. Otherwise you are just shooting in the dark. Learn to drive sales and develop strong closing skills and excellent communication skills. Make sure you know how your product is relevant to your buyer and make sure you know how to present your product as critical.
- Women are by nature more collaborative than competitive. Community and teamwork are part of how we are wired. We thrive on community and confidence, which is a key factor in sales and entrepreneurship, that soars when women work together towards a common goal. We love to contribute to one another’s success, it is our instinct to nurture and that sets us apart from men.
- More than I have from my success! Failing forward is important. When we fail we examine where we went wrong and where we can improve next time. One rarely looks at one’s success with the same intensity. I always say that Olympic medalists have failed more than anyone else on the planet. They kept getting up when everyone stayed down. If you keep on keeping on regardless of failure, at some point you will be the last one standing. That is one of the key secrets to success….keep on keeping on.
- Never, never, never give up. It always takes more money and more time than you think it will. And always marry your passion with your skills. That is a winning combination. Never stop learning.
For more information on Women on the Move.
www.womenonthemove.club
Written by Marisol and Silvia Fornoni, Founders of JDC.
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