The Female Entrepreneurship Problem: How to Achieve Equity
Weilyn Chong (Princeton 24’) and Ali Debow (NYU 24’) are the founders of The Entrepreneurs Network. In this article, they discuss their new initiative and why female entrepreneurship is so important to them.
(1) What do you think is the main goal of the Entrepre女rs podcast? In what way(s) do you think your podcast has helped and will continue to help alleviate issues female entrepreneurs face?
Weilyn: The Entrepre女ers Podcast is a podcast for and by female college entrepreneurs. Ali and I see this podcast as the first stepping stone towards creating a community of female college students that embrace the entrepreneurial spirit. With the podcast, our goal is to make these stories of female founders accessible to everyone and to shed the spotlight on upcoming female entrepreneurs. When you think of the word entrepreneur, you often think about the 22 year old man in Silicon Valley with his tech startup. At the crux of our mission is redefining what entrepreneurship is. We want to show the world that entrepreneurship can come in many different forms whether it be a five-year-old selling lemonade in a small town, or a 60 year old creating a co-work space in Beijing.
(2) How have the podcast episodes impacted your own respective journeys as female entrepreneurs in college?
Ali: To be completely honest, before creating this podcast I didn’t consider myself to be an entrepreneur. I had such a specific image of what an entrepreneur looked like that it didn’t even cross my mind that I could be considered as a female college entrepreneur. The podcast has completely changed that for me and has broadened my perspective on career paths. I now look at entrepreneurship as a word of constant flux- with every new episode and interaction, the word is redefined.
(3) Having listened to and learned from some really notable, intriguing and successful entrepreneurs, are there any skills you think are key to being a business person?
Ali: Here are some of my main takeaways and you can find some of our favorite quotes on our Instagram page!
There isn’t a linear path to success or to entrepreneurship
Your relationship with failure is your success
Sometimes it's better to have a finished product than to have a perfect product
People want to support you and see you succeed
It’s impossible to give energy to others if you aren’t nourishing yourself
(4) Where do you guys see the future of entrepreneurship? What do you think it will look like?
Weilyn: I think the future for entrepreneurship will be more diverse on all axes. Whether its age, race, ethnicity, income, or gender, the future of entrepreneurship will be one focused on diverse founders with diverse solutions. We hope that our organisation contributes meaningfully to the shift from traditional entrepreneurship to a more modern, innovative and inclusive global business ecosystem.
(5) Is there anything in particular we can look forward to for season 2? What does the future of the EntrepreNUers podcast look like?
Weilyn: Yes! Look forward to more amazing guests.
The Entrepre女ers Podcast is really just the start of a bigger community we are working on called The Entrepre女ers Network. Reflecting on Season 1, we are excited to share that we have onboarded a fantastic team of young global entrepreneurs to help build upon our massive vision of supporting female entrepreneurs at college. With many goals and energy, we are excited to share our season 1 which includes inspiring stories and conversations.
We are also working on projects and campaigns with some exciting partners that we cannot wait to release soon! Be sure to follow us on Instagram: @theentreprenuersnetwork and on Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts.
Please reach out to us if you’re looking to partner, intern, invest, or chat.