On the occasion of International Women’s Day this week, I wanted to take the opportunity to share the story of GNW: Global Nomad’s World, founded by two women from different worlds. GNW was co-founded in 2016, by Daniela Tomer, an Argentine/Israli and myself, Lisa Travella-Murawsky a Canadian/Belgian. Not only did we come from different parts of the world with very different rich cultures and languages, but from very different professional disciplines. Daniela is a Clinical Psychologist while I am an International Sports Consultant. Some may suggest that it is a business marriage of opposites; however, we would suggest it is a business marriage that brings together diverse perspectives and supports the unique needs of female leadership.
Advantage of an Interdisciplinary Partnership
Bringing specialists together from different disciplines to work as a team on projects is desired in the incredibly fast changing business world. The products and services topping the business market are the results of talented professionals cut across many different disciplines, bringing diverse views to the project. Although it can be challenging to bring these different minds together as much patience is required, the final products are worth the efforts. Following these successful business models, schools all over the world, from primary age all the way up to University/Colleges are embracing the need for these partnerships and encouraging interdisciplinary thinking through all their systems. We have embraced this at GNW and thrive by offering each other different viewpoints and an objective lens for our projects. Also, in some instances our areas of expertise overtly overlap as in the case of the multitude of recent studies looking at mental challenges of elite athletes.
Challenges of Female Entrepreneurs
As more and more women continue to make leaps into the business world, there is a growing awareness that the needs of female entrepreneurs and the characteristics of their leadership have their own unique qualities and challenges. Various research and publications are beginning to communicate these differences and trying to better understand them. The Business News Daily published an article entitled: Challenges Women Entrepreneurs Face which include among other things: defying social expectations, owning your accomplishments, building a support network, balancing business and family life, and coping with a fear of failure. Evidently, not all women will relate the same to each of these challenges, but part of the process is to identify your challenges and seek help to overcome them. Daniela and I share some of these common challenges but also have unique challenges as well. But, we work together to help each other to first, identify the challenges and to support each other through this process.
Changing of Systems
Recently, the United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres, stated the following in his speech on Women in Power: “It is time to stop trying to change women, and start changing the systems that prevent them from achieving their potential.” It is important to understand that there is no prototype of the female entrepreneur with a standard list of their needs and challenges, everyone has their differences. But, it is critical to understand that there are important differences between the traditional codes of business and women entrepreneurs. Together, with Daniela and myself at GNW and our interdisciplinary ablities, we are helping to identify our unique professional needs. We are working together to support each other and to reach our full potential; Daniela, in raising awareness and supporting the globally mobile, and myself in supporting projects of sport for development. Together we hope to inspire other women entrepreneurs to follow their passions and dare to dream and create as women for women in every corner of the world.