The seven most inspiring TED Talks for female entrepreneurs

While there are more women than ever starting and leading businesses, female entrepreneurs still face some unique challenges. Fortunately, there are lots of supportive, inspirational women around the world who share strong, empowering wisdom to help aspiring female entrepreneurs push through and succeed.

So, no matter what challenges and obstacles you’re dealing with while trying to start or grow your business, we’re here to help. In this post, you’ll find seven inspiring TED Talks to support, delight and motivate you to keep going, no matter the daunting setbacks you may be facing now or in the future.

Editor’s note: Looking to launch a new online business but don’t know where to start when it comes to getting a website?  123 Reg will be explaining how to create a business website at this year’s Women In Business Expo. The event takes place virtually on the 14th and 15th of October 2020. Head here to book your Women In Business Expo ticket. You can learn more about the event and the other exhibitors here.

1. Never, ever give up

At age 64, Diana Nyad became the first person to swim from Cuba to Florida. It wasn’t her first but fifth attempt. And it was a dream 30 years in the making that she never gave up on.

In this talk, Diana talks about persevering, never abandoning your dreams, and finding ways to power through obstacles, no matter what they are.

Hear her story as she shares three key messages you’ll want to remember: one is you should never, ever give up; two is you are never too old to chase your dreams; and three is it takes a team to succeed so don’t go it alone.

2. Why do ambitious women have flat heads?

If you’ve never watched Dame Stephanie’s Ted Talk, you’re in for a real treat. She is a British information technology pioneer, businesswoman and philanthropist, and one of the most successful tech entrepreneurs you probably never heard of.

In the 1960s, she founded an all-woman software company in the UK, which was ultimately valued at $3 billion. In this amazingly inspirational and fun talk, she tells her story and explains why she went by the name of “Steve” as well as why it’s critical that you partner with the right quality people.

3. Embrace the near win

In business, the journey is often more fulfilling than achieving a goal because of the mistakes you make and learn from, the knowledge you gain, and the experiences you have along the way.

In this talk, art historian Sarah Lewis explains how not every piece of artwork from great masters was considered a masterpiece at first. So she asks everyone to consider the role of near failures or near wins in our own lives and journeys.

No matter where you are in your entrepreneurial journey, don’t forget to also celebrate the process as you move one step closer to success. And that process include both the small wins as well as the small failures you can learn from.

4. To reach beyond your limits by training your mind

Marisa Peer is a world-renowned speaker, Rapid Transformational Therapy trainer and best-selling author. She has also been named Best British Therapist by Men’s Health magazine, and if you watch this talk you’ll see why.

Marisa has an amazing ability to empower women by sharing practical strategies for succeeding, and not just the theory behind it. Watch this talk as she walks you through a few strategies to train your mind to achieve higher success levels, an essential skill for any female entrepreneur.

5. Why 30 is not the new 20

If you want to start a business but are always finding excuses to put it off another month or year, or waiting for the “perfect moment” or the “right” thing to happen to get started, this is the Ted Talk for you.

In it, clinical psychologist Meg Jay has a bold message for twentysomethings: contrary to popular belief, your 20s are not a throwaway decade. Just because marriage, work and kids are happening later in life, that doesn’t mean you can’t start planning now. Watch this talk to learn how to bring about the success you want in life starting now.

6. For women in pursuit of motherhood and a career

Balancing motherhood and a career is not easy but it can be done, and successfully. In this talk, Irene Mora, a part of Tommy Hilfiger’s Spanish merchandising team, credits her mother – who was the CEO of a multinational pharmaceutical company – for her ambition and drive.

So whether you’re a new mum, a seasoned veteran or years away from motherhood, you’ll find lots of useful advice and inspiration in this talk.

7. How to succeed? Get more sleep

Entrepreneurship is time consuming, which means you’ll likely find yourself working relentlessly hard and sacrificing not only family and social life but also sleep. At least that’s the picture that’s often being portrayed as entrepreneurship.

In this talk Arianna Huffington explains we may have it all backwards, and why the key to success is in fact working less and getting more rest.

Wrapping up

Starting a business can be tough and scary. There are many challenges and obstacles you may have to face along the way. So whenever you feel stuck or need a little inspiration and motivation to keep going, watch these TED Talks to help you push through.

Now, if the thought of quitting your 9-5 job and going all in is just too scary, there are other options too. You can always start small, with a side hustle that’ll give you the chance to try out entrepreneurship and see if you have what it takes to become a full-time business owner.

And don’t forget, when you’re ready to start a new business 123 Reg has everything you need to build your own website.