Insights for Women in Business and Entrepeneurs

I'm thrilled to be launching my women in business and entrepreneur blog. After 10 years in the workforce both in corporate and as an entrepreneur, I want to share some insights I've learned, give the opportunity for other women in business and entrepreneurs to share their stories, and create a community that people can learn from one another. (Men can also participate in this blog :), but some of the insights shared will be more pertinant to women at varying stages of their career or new business journey.)

Here is some background on me:

I graduated from The University of Arizona with a Bachelor of Science in Marketing and International Business. I did everything in my power to stay ahead of the curve by joining business organizations, taking extra classes, studying abroad, and, most importantly, having an internship every year. 

After college, I took a job in Operations at a global healthcare company. I thought I was prepared for what was to come, but I had no idea how difficult it would be to be a woman, right out of college, working in a predominantly male organization. In this role, I made the common mistakes of:

• Not setting boundaries and working evenings, weekends, on vacation and more.
• Being a perfectionist and always putting in too much effort on my side to help overcompensate for other people’s weaknesses.
• Using the phrase, “Sure, no problem” far too often.

You can download a copy of my recent book chapter to learn more about how I eventually overcame some of these challenges, and how I also work on these every day.

Once I quickly realized operations was not my forever career, I found a job in healthcare marketing.  In this job, I found myself taking more responsibility for highly visible projects, and putting more value on the work I was doing. I started to find the balance between being respected and professionally pushing back, while still going above and beyond so my work was valued. This role began to shape my career because I was on a small team that had a great deal of flexibility. It also allowed me to showcase my talents and use my skills in a way that had more meaning for the company and for me.

After that, I took on a Marketing and Sales Director position at a global non-profit organization. This opportunity allowed me to direct my career giving me the confidence and expertise that laid the foundation for my career today. In this role, I finally overcame the “little girl syndrome,” even though it took 4 years out of college to build my confidence level (and I’m still working on that every day).  In this role, I was given the flexibility to communicate with senior leaders, manage a team, and develop campaigns and programs to drive the business. 

It was in this role that I decided I wanted to help other businesses with their marketing and sales strategy. Some may call me crazy for starting a business at 28, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. The previous experiences and roles shaped my thought process and work ethic to start my current business, Prism Global Marketing Solutions, an inbound marketing and sales agency.  At Prism, I have also learned quite a bit on this entrepreneurial journey, and continue to learn from my successes and opportunities each and every day. I hope this blog is helpful to other individuals starting on their new business venture.

I hope you'll subscribe to stay updated and also let me know what you want to hear in this new blog series. You can reach me at elyse.meyer@prismglobalmarketing.com. 

In the meantime, you can check out my recent chapter in the book, The Female Factor: A Confidence Guide for Women.