Celebrating Women's History Month

As we bring Women's History Month to a close, we celebrate the achievements of women across the country. The month of March is designated as Women's History Month by Presidential proclamation each year. The month is set aside to honor women's contributions to American history.

As a business owner, I'd like to take a moment to highlight a few statistics as it pertains to women in business.

According to the Census Bureau data, found at USA.org :

1. The total number of females in the US grew 5.8% from 2011 to 2021, from 158.3M to 167.5M.
2. Hawaii had the highest share of women owned businesses in 2018. Women owned 24.7 of all businesses in the state. Virginia was in 2nd place with 23.7% of women owned businesses. California had the most woman owned businesses in total numbers at 149,927. However, due to the large numbers in the state, it was not ranked in the top 10 as far as percentage.
3. Women earned 276,429 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics degrees in the 2020–2021 academic year, up from 143,018 between 2008–2009. Despite this increase, women were 35% of all STEM degree recipients in the 2020–2021 school year.
4. A total record breaking 129 women are serving as House representatives and delegates in the 118th Congress. A total of 25 women serve in the US Senate. In total, 154 women members serve in the 118th Congress. ?Virginia’s Rep. Jennifer McClellan was sworn in after winning a special election in the state’s fourth Congressional district in 2023. She is the first Black woman elected to Congress from Virginia.

As the data shows, in the last few decades women have come a long way not only in population but also in business, education and politics. Yet there's more work to be done for women to have equity in many areas of like the workforce, culture and society overall.

The goal is to be a part of the solution. The question is for us all, (even the women) is simply this.

How can we/you empower women?

1. Be open and honest about the inequities women face as it pertains to all areas of society, particularly the workforce.
2. Advocate for women's issues and rights.
3. Lead by example in social and professional settings.
4. Mentor a young woman who is newly emerging into the workforce
5. Support women run businesses.
6. Support women run non-profit organizations.
7. Show appreciation for the women in your life, both personally and professionally.

FINALLY, remember...we are stronger together!

Leave a comment below. Tag a woman you admire.

I'm sure, she would love to hear from you.

##########

This article was written by Dr. Lori A. Manns, President of Quality Media Consultant Group LLC. Portions of this article originally appeared on the blog found at www.qualitymediaconsultants.com .

Join our newsletter list, and get a gift, to help you learn the critical mistakes you could be making in the sales process. www.qualitymediaconsultants.com

Did you find this article helpful? If so, hit the bell next to my name on my profile to be notified of when I post on LinkedIn. I work with purpose driven entrepreneurs and small businesses to help them attract more clients, gain brand visibility and increase sales and revenue.