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Episode 38 - Mary Boryslawska, CEO & Co-Founder of Enzum
53 Plays3 months ago
In this episode, Sade is joined by Mary, CEO and Co-Founder of Enzum, where she shares her founding journey so far.
With all the highs and lows of being a founder, Sade and Mary dive into topics such as fundraising, loneliness, stepping out of your comfort zone, as well as going from having a boss to being a boss.
Enjoy!
Website - https://www.enzum.com/
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Transcript
00:00:14
Speaker
Hello everyone
Mary's Journey to Entrepreneurship
00:00:15
Speaker
and welcome back to another episode of Woman Talk Tech. Today I'm joined by Mary, CEO and co-founder of Ensign. Mary walked us through her founding journey so far, including her motivations behind founding Ensign, fundraising and her experience going from having a boss to being a boss. She also shares the downsides to being a founder, how she has they overcome these and the importance of stepping outside your comfort zone. I hope you love this conversation as much as I did. So Mary, tell me a little bit more about yourself.
00:00:44
Speaker
Um, really, really lovely to be here. Thank you so much for having me. So, um, yeah, my name is Mary and I'm the CEO of Enzan. Um, we build energy storage solutions, uh, in Europe actually just started very recently. So the journey is also kind of new for me. Uh, but it's, it's just been very exciting and I'm super happy to talk about it a little bit. Um, so my background, actually, so I studied maths, um, five years. Um, so did my, uh, bachelor's and the master's in applied maths.
00:01:12
Speaker
And then after that, I sort of went into a career in and the field of machine learning, engineering and data science. and
Motivations and Founding Ensign
00:01:20
Speaker
So I worked a little bit in financial services in London.
00:01:23
Speaker
and And then I started working for the renewable energy sector also in London. And after that, and just submit did a couple of contracts ah related to ah just optimizing how like energy companies work and doing machine learning forecasting to automate um the processes within them. and And then after that moved on to ah work in Australia as well. and for the public and energy company of the state of New South Wales, ah where I worked on and like grid optimization issues. and So that was also a very interesting experience and because yet Australia itself has got really interesting energy problems, completely different to Europe, ah completely decentralized.
00:02:08
Speaker
and And then, and yeah, while I was over there, and kind of started thinking about my own business ideas, started chatting to then my really good friend and now my co-founder, and then we just decided to give a go.
00:02:22
Speaker
Wow, wow, wow, wow. And you know, I guess take us back to the beginning, right? I guess from your side, what was the main motivation? Like, because whenever I speak with founders, there's always there always seems to be like this one tipping point, maybe a boss annoyed you, or, and you thought, like, death definitely not working for for this company again, or whatever the case may be. What was that main motivation for you to kind of start Enzm?
00:02:44
Speaker
um
Challenges and Realizations as a Founder
00:02:45
Speaker
I think to be honest, and so it's kind of difficult to innovate, you know, when you work for like public energy companies, there is a lot of structure there, there's a lot of ah red tape that you have to go through in order to get anything approved, really.
00:03:00
Speaker
and And because of that, and I just strongly felt like because of that the energy sector is ah so antiquated and and there are a lot of solutions that could be implemented that are not being implemented and would be quite fairly simple to implement. And and you know, because like, especially what's with what's going on right now, and you know, in the UK, like people's energy bills have literally quadrupled and since 2020.
00:03:27
Speaker
and People can't afford to pay for the heating. and you know There's a massive crisis going on. And I feel like the the sector is just not innovating fast enough to keep up with the demand yeah and to keep up with people's everyday problems. um So I guess um what was the tipping point for me? um I don't think there was one particular tipping point, and but I just remember you know as a woman working and kind of just waiting to get promoted and waiting to kind of just work hard.
00:04:02
Speaker
and waiting for the some of the reward to come to me. And kind of at one point, I was just like, you know what, I think I remember I was watching Shark Tank, I think I was watching Shark Tank. And I saw people like, ah just coming up with the weirdest ideas and getting funded. And and I think that was maybe the point for it because I was like, why wouldn't I get funded, you know, I'm a machine learning a engineer, I can code, I can write software, I know how to write software, and energy related software, particularly.
00:04:30
Speaker
And why wouldn't I try? And I think, I think to be fair, probably that was the tipping point. So it was like one night just be watching Shark Dog. I'm deciding, you know, I should give this a go. yeah Yeah, but also, you found you you saw the problem when you wanted to provide a solution. I think that's also part of your journey as well. You saw that there was an issue with the regulations in certain countries, not to mention the energy crisis, like you said we have going on in the UK at the moment. um So yeah, that's really cool. And I guess from your side, describe your journey kind of since then. How have you, the ups and downs, the good, the bad, the ugly. How have you found your founding journey since the beginning?
00:05:06
Speaker
Oh, it's just, it's been a crazy ride. and it's It's like nothing else that I've ever done before. and The highs are really high and the lows are really low. So I think that's ah that's one of the things that you have to sort of get prepared for if you want to do this sort of thing. um a lot of us A lot of it is due to ah just the stakes are higher, of course, right?
00:05:31
Speaker
and the sales handle will eat a lot higher. um You are responsible for the people that you hire, which is a huge, huge thing, you know. and You have to make sure that you secure enough funding for your team to build the product.
00:05:46
Speaker
and And if you run out of funding, that's all your problem. So you have to you know find some more funding and it's like a never ending cycle. and So it's all very so time sensitive and you do have to make sure that you strategize and well ahead ah so that you can be prepared for any eventualities that come up.
00:06:06
Speaker
and And you know, like just ah really, to be honest, what I've learned is that and sometimes you gain the most from the most random opportunities that come your way. So really just talking to everyone and trying to just grab, you know, opportunities as they come. and I think it's the most important thing because you never know what might happen. You might meet someone accidentally.
00:06:27
Speaker
and And that will become like a long lasting partnership or a long lasting contract. and So I think it's important to just always be open um and always be open to talking to people, to meeting new people um and looking for those opportunities.
00:06:41
Speaker
Yeah, yeah. And I guess on the funding je on the funding side of things, you mentioned, you know, that's your responsibility. If it runs out, you have to go get more. How have you found that? Because it's interesting when I do speak with Thema founders, no matter how much they've raised, no matter how how how how it's gone so far, they seem to share similar experiences when going for funding or, you know, pitching to investors. How have you found this side of things?
00:07:06
Speaker
Um, it's not easy, right? Because it's really time consuming. And so you have to ah put everything else aside and really focus on fundraising. um And that's just so mentally draining sometimes when you have, you know, nine to 10 hours of fundraising meetings a day when you're fundraising um and then at the end of the day you you switch off and I just have to sort of like sit in my room alone and like stare at the wall for half an hour to just you know to just like sort of compose myself. It is really mentally draining and you do feel like and just
00:07:44
Speaker
it's explained like the questions are more is always the same. and But you have to always like also convey your passion for the project. and You can't really seem like you're tired or you've got problems going on, you always have to be like, you're on top of your game. and So I think that's what's so mentally draining about it. ah But when you do get it done, when you do succeed, it's like the best feeling in the world that you have people that you know, believe in you and believe in your idea.
00:08:10
Speaker
And you feel that validation from from from investors that really do believe in your project. Yeah, yeah. What do you wish someone would have told you before you started just you know raising funding? you think there was Do you wish there was a piece of advice that someone would have given you? What what what would that have been?
00:08:27
Speaker
um Do you know what, I got loads of advice, but it's really, it's so different ah when you start doing it and you really start feeling it and emotionally feeling and that the stress and emotionally understanding what's going on. But I think and just stop caring about failing because 99% of the time you're going to continue failing.
00:08:50
Speaker
and you know continue hearing no, and you're going to continue ah just being put down and you have to just not care. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that that's such a good point because I think, you know, when you go into a room of investors, you think you have to win. And of course, it is amazing to get to kind of get the funding, but, you know, you don't you want to make sure that the investor is the right one for you. You don't want to kind of be pitching to people. um I guess from your side, right, you'd only really go to investors that are going to be the right fit for you. yeah really Part of the journey anyway.
00:09:21
Speaker
you You do always have to and like look them up, and do some research, um and you always have to make sure that they're the right fit for you. And if they're not, even if you have this gut feeling and that they're not, you have to you have to walk away. That's my personal opinion. Because particularly early stage founders, like pre-seed or seed, when you do commit to an investor, then that's to me more or less like a marriage, right? Because they're going to be with you for for five, seven, ten years and so you really do have to pick out the people that you truly believe that will support you and not like go against you in the future and I think that's particularly important and I really believe that and like intuition is so important and youve at these early stages for sure. ah Yeah I guess on that note from your experience what's been like the
00:10:13
Speaker
What's been that kind of intuition for you? like what What
Navigating Investor Relationships
00:10:16
Speaker
are some of the things that you look for when going for investors? Because I think there are so many women there or founders sitting out there thinking, like how do I know if this investor's right for me? I know you have that gut feeling and I think everyone's gut feeling is different. They're like a criteria that you kind of look to you know when you are going for for for that.
00:10:32
Speaker
So our criteria and normally are and they have to have some knowledge of the energy space. yeah And they have to have at least one portfolio company that would be like energy related, right? um They ah have to have some sort of and some so and network or some connections within the space that they could link us up with. And and and we really look out for like dodgy terms in the contract.
00:11:00
Speaker
Yeah. Sometimes there are some dodgy terms that you have to be careful with. Yeah. Yeah. Wow. Wow. There's so many aspects of fundraising, which I think is so is so overlooked. You know, I think we kind of, I imagine it to be, you go there, you pitch it and you get the funding, but but that's like one aspect, right? Exactly. Yeah. That's like one in a thousand maybe.
00:11:20
Speaker
Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's crazy. And I guess what we also do, you've gone from being a part of an organisation, you know, working for people to now, you know, almost being your own boss, which is incredible. What's been the main difference and how have you found adapting to that change? Because I think I'm one of those people that is is great, but I like like a bit of direction. And I think when left to decide things by myself, it could take me forever.
00:11:42
Speaker
So the the idea of being a founder and decide, I can't even decide what I want for lunch, let alone how I'm going to grow my company, right? um So how have you found going from having a boss and being part of an organization to now being the boss and and being that person that everyone turns to?
00:11:57
Speaker
um I think it certainly has been a big adjustment for sure. and There are some difficult parts of it, like you're completely responsible for everyone. You're completely responsible for people's salaries and people's careers, right? And and just keeping it all going. ah But at the same time, um i I do feel like the most important thing is having a supportive co-founder, because otherwise, like you can and you know, you can rely on each other, you can support each other. And sometimes you need someone to be your boss a little bit. Sometimes I'm her boss a little bit um a little bit. And I feel like you need someone to really keep you in check sometimes. And, you know, there are moments when you just rely on them for their support. and When you feel like it's just too hard, you need to just go and talk it through. So it's not like, you know, being on top of being completely alone, because we're well would together, we'll always be there together.
00:12:51
Speaker
And that's how it's designed, right? People like startups with one founder don't normally get funded. And I feel like there is a big reason behind it. And it's for that emotional, psychological support. ah When one person can't make it, and then the other person kind of supports them and and then we switch. And I feel like and if I was here alone, i I wouldn't be here alone, I would be able to do this alone.
00:13:14
Speaker
and So it's so important to have that other person to keep you in check. and But then, yeah, at the same time, the responsibility for people's salaries, for people's careers is is a huge thing. It's a huge adjustment. um And you have to ah you have to accept it. and You have to deal with it. And and you have to just do do your best, really.
00:13:34
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. Wow. So many things to unpack there, but I guess my my question is like, you know, that that feels like a lot of pressure. if It feels like a lot of stress. It's a lot to kind of take on. how how do you how How have you found yourself to be dealing with it? You know, everyone's got their kind of different stress mechanisms. How have you found that aspect of it? um How I deal with stress. i I've got therapy. I've got a very good therapist festival. all And I feel like that's the number one thing that you need really.
00:14:02
Speaker
like in life like I'm not even talking about starting your own business just just in life and and and i well I guess I do a lot of sports and you know just hikes and I love being and outdoorsy ah so that definitely helps. There are a lot of periods of time when I definitely overdo it and I just like sit at home and just get really into the zone and and don't leave the house and so probably that's probably not the best thing but definitely like keeping it healthy and active and just I mean I think they always say even a YC they always say you need to just work and exercise once a day at least so work eat and exercise once a day
00:14:46
Speaker
That's how you push for the first two years. is it Easy peasy. Yeah, yeah. I asked because, you know, what you mentioned there, you know, the emotional support, all of that's great, right? and And everything about being a founder seems incredible, but parts of it, I imagine it to be super stressful. And parts of it, I do imagine it to be like you said, being in a room by yourself, having a laptop, literally being stuck to your screen, um little daylight, and just really being in the zone of, like you said, because at the end of the day, it's your own company. And I think we all need to know why.
00:15:13
Speaker
Yeah, yeah, no one's going to work as hard for your own company than yourself. But I can imagine the downsides of that being, oh my gosh, I've not left the house in days, I am, you know, wood I'm exhausted, I'm lonely. So there's, you know, there's it's kind kind of like the pros and cons, right? There's so many cool aspects of it. But I can imagine the downsides to be also quite hard to deal with as well.
00:15:35
Speaker
Of course, no. And like, you just really need to take care of your mental health. Like, there is nothing more important than that. Because people do neglect that aspect. And I've heard of loads of loads of great founders who, ah who unfortunately, you know, went down because and they just, they just were too stressed out and they couldn't handle it. And mentally, they just got so burnt out. And so for us, like, we always just keep in mind the fact that, you know, we can't, like,
00:16:02
Speaker
you know, doing it 1 million percent right now means that we're probably going to get burnt out at some point. Right. So it's better to take some time off now, even though it feels like you must work, it feels like you can't step away from your laptop, because this is just the most important thing. But you but even though you know, you have to sort of fight it and you have to step away because if you do get burnt out, like, what's the point of all of this if you get burnt out, you know, in into three months?
00:16:28
Speaker
Yeah, yeah. I imagine the kind of guilt that you get when, you know, taking a break and the same when you're when you've kind of got a child. It's like that mum guilt, right? you Your baby company. So I imagine it to be very similar. But you're so right, mental health is so important. And you can't give 100% if you're not 100% yourself. um And if you're not burnt out today, you'll be burnt out tomorrow. So you do have to have yourself.
00:16:50
Speaker
Just do it consciously, you know, because it's so tempting to never take a break. and It's so tempting to just push as much as you can. and It's kind of counterintuitive, but taking even, you know, like an hour break to go for a walk, and to go for a run, and just to break up your day it is just so important. And then you come back and you've got so much more energy to keep pushing.
00:17:15
Speaker
Yeah yeah yeah definitely and I guess you know when we spoke previously a lot of being a founder and a lot of I guess for you was kind of just getting outside your comfort zone. um
Encouraging Women in Entrepreneurship
00:17:24
Speaker
I guess from your side why has that been important and and I guess why would you encourage others to do the same because I think we talk about it a lot um and I think it's incredible that when people do take that leap but it's that kind of taking that leap that feels like it's a big step to kind of do get out your comfort zone. How have you found that and why has that been important to your journey?
00:17:41
Speaker
Do you know what, that's a very interesting question because I do feel like and it was probably the hardest thing for me getting out of my comfort zone. I feel like, to be honest, as women, we are really just conditioned to stay in our lane.
00:17:57
Speaker
um So what ah what you have to do is you have to switch lanes, but it's so difficult at the beginning because and you have so many thoughts that prevent you from doing it. um And I feel like and one centre's definitely stuck with me. ah One of my first bosses like years and years ago and told me always question everything. And I think it was a very it was a very smart thing to say, and that's definitely stuck with me up until now.
00:18:23
Speaker
even though we've not worked together there for for years. and Because as women, we really just don't question, you know, we just assume that everyone around us is smarter and has more experience. and So you get intimidated. And at the beginning, I got really intimidated. I spoke to people, I had meetings, I read meetings, and I was like, Oh, my God, this person, you know, has got so much experience. Surely, you know, I'm nowhere near smart enough to even be in the same room as them.
00:18:52
Speaker
But then you realize as you go, that that person is exactly the same as you, right? Yeah, you're exactly the same. yeah And that you also have enough experience. And, you know, just to mentally grasp what what's going on. And I don't know, I feel like I just always assumed that everyone was just so much smarter than me. and And then you start working with with people and start realizing that that, you know, you're good enough, you can do it. You can and you have an enough Qualification has got enough experience. And if you don't, you'll probably just learn on the job. yeah And that's one of the things that like women never think of. Because i don't know um i've I've read some statistics somewhere that women usually are overqualified for the jobs they apply for.
00:19:37
Speaker
And men are usually under qualified. Yeah. and Exactly. And men just assume that they can learn it on the job. But women never assume that. And they really, really should. Because, ah you know, so many of my female friends are, like, they want to change their careers. ah But they feel like, you know, they're not good enough. They need to, you know, two, two, three more years of experience to even start applying.
00:20:00
Speaker
And it's so not it's like so not true. You just just go for it, just apply for the job, just go to the interview. And and like even from my experience with my co-founder, we've been recruiting recently, and it's so true, women are normally overqualified for the for the position.
00:20:18
Speaker
ah But interestingly enough as well, and the women that apply later in the interviews often say that, ah you know, they feel like they wouldn't be able to make it because it's too much responsibility. And the men are under qualified, but they're happy to do it and they're happy to try.
00:20:35
Speaker
And it's such a such a crazy thing to even see happening to you like in front of your eyes, you know? Yeah, I think it's crazy as well because I think a lot of what I found, especially for me, you know, just being in my role and and speaking with women and men, I find that men men sometimes are not even, not I'm not saying all men, but I find that sometimes when speaking with a man, they tell you all the great things they've done and what they can do, even if they've not done it yet, and they don't plan on, they're just going to do it when they get to it.
00:21:02
Speaker
ah where they think women require a lot more. They want to be the best they can be. They want to train themselves before they even go for it. And I think that's the main difference. that When I speak to, him say, a male and female in an interview process, the man can do it or he's lying about doing it and he will just do it when he gets to that point. Whereas a woman, if you ask, can she do this or has she got experience doing that, she'll be like, no, let me go back and train and then I'll apply again. or exactly And it's like, why is that even the case? like yeah you know it's crazy when you think about that and there are so many women that i think that are just sitting not sitting literally but are in roles are that they can be doing so much more uh and they're just not ready for yet exactly so i feel like
00:21:46
Speaker
They just need to go for it. Men go for it and women don't. And that's the thing that I feel like we have just been conditioned to do, to just strive for perfection before we give a ourselves a shot. yeah And you need to give yourself a shot and you need to give yourself credit first. And then everyone else will also give you credit. You know what I mean?
00:22:06
Speaker
Yeah, I think that's why it's so important for for for people in decision roles that they do just kind of not take the risk, but even if they know that this woman is kind of underselling them themselves, just kind of giving them that chance to to sell themselves better in the role. 100%.
00:22:22
Speaker
you know, men will get there all just by based on what they said in in an interview, um but then not be able to perform on the job, vice versa, right, women will not get the job because they've not performed well in the interview, or they've not said all their amazing achievements. And then look, I think who, who's worse off that the women and also the companies because the companies are are not accessing the best of talent that's actually available.
00:22:41
Speaker
Exactly. And also like even on their CVs, they don't put everything down on their CV because they think it's not important or you know, it's like unfinished and related. But then you start talking to them and you realize there is so much more to uncover and they have so much more going for them than they, you know, present themselves with. and And it's just, it's crazy. And I have no idea how to support women. I would love to support women more for them to be able to change that. I try to do that with my friends right now.
00:23:09
Speaker
And sometimes, you know, even just, I don't know, for myself, even I also do it for myself, ah try to just convince myself that, and you know, you're qualified enough, right? You're good enough and just take the shot because what what what what could go wrong? What, they're going to say no? You know what I mean? How many times have we heard no? A million times. Yeah. I actually, I'm just thinking about a scenario that happened very recently and I had an an engineer who was and interviewing for a role that I was working with and some of the feedback from an interview was like too confident, potentially a bit arrogant. And I was like,
00:23:45
Speaker
really like I was like why is it a bad thing for a woman to be too confident? oh like god If that was a man they'd be like you know so you know really celebrating that he was you know really confident and he knew what he was doing or you'd even use the word or he knew what he was doing he's very confident in his skill set whereas when when a woman sells herself in the best way possible it's it's deemed as a negative and it's like how do we switch that and and make it just equal for all Oh my God, that's such a good point. Because actually, like, I don't know how many times I've been called like aggressive or emotional as a woman. And and I felt I just always feel like if I was a man, no one would ever call me that. and
00:24:23
Speaker
but but all i was likeing Yeah, all I was doing was asking for like asking for what I needed from a customer or asking for what I needed from someone that I you know hired or an investor. um And then I hear, oh, yeah why are you so emotional? and And it's just your emotional, as a woman, I feel like you're emotional just and for expressing your own opinion. Yeah. um often times. So yeah, that's one of the what one of the difficult things that we have to go through. I have no idea how to change it, to be honest with you. and I don't know what what else we could do. ah Because really, it's just you need to probably just
00:25:04
Speaker
educate the men? I don't know, I don't know if that's that's the right thing to say or is there a horrible thing to
Gender Bias and Overcoming Challenges
00:25:09
Speaker
say? No, no, I think it just kind of links back to kind of like having to talk their language, like you know there's that there's science in the fact that women tend to be, andt I don't even really like to use the word emotional, but women tend to be more emotional and men tend to be a bit more logical and rational and that's kind of always been the difference I've heard between men and women. Not a bad thing at all, but that's just kind of how we're biologically wired. um But I think when women get and get into rooms where they're in front of male execs or they're in front of investors that are all male, having to show emotion is seen as a bad thing. was If you were in a room of female investors or female execs, showing your emotion and power and kind of passion would not be a bad thing.
00:25:46
Speaker
And I think having to talk the language of men, but also having just to talk the language that means you're not deemed as a negative or, you know, I always think and night when I, if I was to go into ah an investor's pitch, I would like come across way too passionate and way too confident. And I would like have a cross against my name, you know, whether that was maybe in a room full of female investors, I would have loads of ticks because they would see the passion or they would see the the kind of fire in this. so Yeah, it's kind of like, how do we learn how to talk this language? And and also, is it right that we have to talk the language of men? like Is that even right? Well, i you know for me, I feel like it's often the same language, but it's perceived differently yeah because they see you as a woman. and So one of the things that really struck me right at the beginning is that the first five to 10 minutes of a meeting and is spent on me
00:26:38
Speaker
proving that I know what I'm talking about. And it's a it's a very sad, sad and uncomfortable thing. I kind of got used to it by now. But and it's because you've got this young woman in front of you, you know, talking to you about some kilowatt hours. And and what does she really even know? um So you have to spend the first like five to 10 minutes, and as opposed to when I and go to meetings with a man.
00:27:02
Speaker
and then I don't have to do anything because they just assume because the man is already working with me and that I know what I'm talking about and the difference actually the difference is crazy the difference is crazy between ah you know me going into a meeting with a male business partner and me going into a meeting just by myself and that's a really sad thing.
00:27:22
Speaker
And hopefully, you know, they will just assume that women know what they're talking about from the skills and the experience and the presence that they have, and rather than just having them and prove themselves and at the beginning. Yeah, but I think it also that that is so true. And I think it also then links back to I think, you know, not talking the same language, you're right, I think it depends how it's perceived. But I think I know that men like, not men, but when you go into those sorts of environments, they like to hear data, they like to hear numbers, they like to hear all of that sort of thing. And I think, you know, women tend to show their passion through other aspects. And and if we were made to use all this numerical language, maybe we would be heard more. Like, I'm not saying that would change anything. But yeah, it's interesting when you said you bought your male business partner, does and you'll perceive different or you'll perceive better.
00:28:09
Speaker
I wonder if there's a difference in and kind of not how you're speaking, but you know it's crazy when you actually think about that and and you're having to analyse it in that was that kind of depth to see what the difference is, other than the fact that I am ah i'm physically a woman or I'm visibly a woman.
00:28:25
Speaker
I don't know, for me, it's just it's going to sound bad, but I feel like for them, it's just like I've been verified by a man. So it's fine. You know, yeah, he's checked what I've been saying, you know, exactly. Right. So now I can be trusted. But I don't know, just going back to the language that we speak, I do feel like it is often the same. Honestly, it is often the same language. It's just the person that's speaking is different gender and And that's what that's what the problem is, because really, what does it mean to even be emotional? Like, what's, you know, you get angry, something goes wrong, and you get angry, and I'm not talking like aggressive angry, but you just get irritated. And if you're a man, like, oh, that's, you know, respectable, because they care and they get angry. And if you're a woman, you get angry because something went wrong, and you're immediately emotional.
00:29:16
Speaker
or on your period, yeah right? I mean, that's how it's mental. Yeah. So are men more concrete and more like, I don't know, numbers relate based in meetings? I am not sure, because I have seen so many amazing pitches and presentations, ah you know, performed by women. And I honestly do not see much difference. They're often better. They're often more specific.
00:29:45
Speaker
and they're often ah were better researched as well. ah Because I think also that ties back into what we talked about earlier, men just have more confidence generally. So they're more likely to just show up with something, you know, maybe less prepared or less research and have but have more confidence to them while presenting. and So that gives you the impression that and they know more to talk about or you know have more reliable numbers or have had done more research ah but I feel like that's completely the other end because the best pitches I have seen so far have all been done by women. Yeah yeah wow wow and I guess for me also just to kind of end on on ah on a more positive note, not positive. I guess you know when speaking with your with your friends or when speaking to other female founders what would be the one piece of advice you would give to them um that you maybe wish someone would have told you or just in general what do you yeah what would this be?
00:30:41
Speaker
I feel like it's probably going to sound like a bit of a cliche cliche, but just do it. Just don't think about what anyone's going to think about you. and You know, just take the risk. ah Just stop caring about how you're perceived and just keep doing your own thing because you're going to hear a million no's.
00:31:03
Speaker
yeah You're gonna hear a million times that your idea is the worst idea I've ever heard. It makes no sense. But just keep doing what you're doing because eventually ah you're going to be the one to succeed if you just continue being persistent. And then you're going to ah pave the way for all of the women you know trying to do similar things.
00:31:25
Speaker
but not having enough confidence. And I i think also, honestly, what Rihanna said, like fake it until you make it, and is the most important thing of them all.