I missed my regular post last Sunday as I was in Boston for our Women@Forbes Closing The Investment Gap Summit. This is the second year in a row that I have kicked off the annual Forbes Under 30 Summit with a one day event on moving women forward. We gather rising innovators and entrepreneurs to learn, experience and interact with diverse leaders of all ages. In other words, lots of 40:20 vision and wisdom!
Here are a few “wishes for a 20-something” I took away from the day.
“You already have your voice. Stand tall, put your shoulders back, and stand your sacred ground, because it’s yours.” — Emery Whalen, CEO and cofounder of QED Hospitality, a restaurant group based in New Orleans
“When I was raising my round I would stand in front of my mirror and say ‘Jessica, don’t be afraid to dream like a white man.’” – Jessica O. Matthews, founder of Uncharted Power, a data and tech company that generates clean and cost-efficient energy for communities in need.
Doing this mental exercise before meeting with investors helped her bring her A Game to the table. It also paid off: In 2016, Matthews raised $12 million, at the time the largest Series A ever raised by a black female founder.
“Know the difference between wishing and dreaming. Bet on yourself and take a risk.” – Wade_Davis, a former NFL player and a diversity and inclusion consultant
For more inspiration, check out the articles on Forbes.com sharing more wisdom from the day.
Own Your Seat At The Table
Scaling Young, Overcoming Rejection and Rewriting The Rules of Founding
Bumble Founder Whitney Wolfe Heard On Believing and Investing In Women
‘Insecure’ Star Yvonne Orji Shares Her 7 Keys For Success
Startup Stress Is Real
Three Lessons Feminist Icon and Founder Cindy Gallop Learned Raising Money For A Sex Tech Startup
How I Pitched This
About Three Gifts (and tell us yours):
Three Gifts for a 20-Something: What three “gifts” would you give a 20-something if you were a “Forty-Godmother”? Here 40-somethings share three wishes to help a 20-something get a head start on the confidence to make decisions that are right for them (not their parents, friends, teachers or society). No more woulda, coulda, shoulda.
You can submit your three gifts here (no matter what your age).