Transcript- Episode 123: How Women Entrepreneurs Can Overcome Societal Barriers with PCC Women's Business Center Interim Director, Lizzy Okoro Episode 123

00:00:00 - Lizzy Okoro

I think what's special and unique about the Women's Business Centers is it really does address the difference, the unique differences and challenges that women entrepreneurs face.

 

00:00:09 - Salvatrice Cummo

Right.

 

00:00:09 - Lizzy Okoro

So when we talk about those challenges, what does that look like? It looks like 42% of all new businesses in the United States being, you know, led and started by women. It looks like they're being a $1.7 trillion funding gap with women owned small businesses versus men owned small businesses.

 

00:00:33 - Christina Barsi

The workforce landscape is rapidly changing, and educators and their institutions need to keep up. Preparing students before they enter the workforce. To make our communities and businesses stronger is at the core of getting an education. But we need to understand how to change and adjust so that we can begin to project where things are headed before we even get there. So how do we begin to predict the future?

 

00:00:58 - Salvatrice Cummo

Hi, I'm Salvatrice Cummo, Vice President of Economic and Workforce Development at Pasadena City College and host of this podcast.

 

00:01:06 - Christina Barsi

And I'm Christina Barsi, producer and co host of this podcast.

 

00:01:10 - Salvatrice Cummo

And we are starting the conversation about the Future Of Work. We'll explore topics like how education can partner with industry, how to be more equitable, and how to attain one of our highest goals, more internships and PCC students in the workforce. We at Pasadena City College want to lead the charge in closing the gap between what our students are learning and what the demands of the workforce will be once they enter. This is a conversation that impacts all of us. You, the employers, the policymakers, the educational institutions, and the community as a whole.

 

00:01:44 - Christina Barsi

We believe change happens when we work together, and it all starts with having a conversation. I'm Christina Barsi.

 

00:01:52 - Salvatrice Cummo

And I'm Salvatrice Cummo. And this is the Future Of Work. Hi, welcome back to the Future Of Work podcast. I am your host, Salvatrice Cummo. As you may or may not heard, we are preparing for our grand opening of the Women's Business Center here at PCC Pasadena City College. And if you haven't listened to our previous episode yet, you can learn a lot more about the Women's Business Center and how we were able to lead this initiative in the episode right before this one. Number 122, to be specific. But having said that, today I have the pleasure of chatting with our newly appointed interim director of the Women's Business Center, Miss Lizzy Okoro. Lizzy Okoro is an LA-based entrepreneur, consultant, and speaker. She founded and bootstrapped Bunch magazine in 2011 and now leads the Power of Play Children's Museum. Lizzy has over a decade of experience in media, consulting, and public speaking and working specifically with brands like Nike and Adidas. Today, we'll be exploring the barriers that women entrepreneurs face, how the Women's Business Center is addressing these challenges, and how the community can further support these initiatives. I am thrilled to have this conversation. So let's get started. Lizzy, hello.

 

00:03:13 - Lizzy Okoro

Hi. Thank you for having me. I'm so excited to be here.

 

00:03:17 - Salvatrice Cummo

We're excited. We're thankful that you said yes to leading.

 

00:03:20 - Lizzy Okoro

Pleasure and honor is all mine. Yes.

 

00:03:23 - Salvatrice Cummo

Yes. It's a big undertaking to start and establish a Women's Business Center, and any center for that matter. And Pasadena City College is really thrilled to have you on board and thrilled to be able to provide these services to our community and our entrepreneurs on campus and our surrounding areas. So thank you. So, you know, one of the biggest questions that I'd love to ask any entrepreneur is really how it all started. So if you can share what led you to pursue entrepreneurship, that would be wonderful. I'm always super curious about that.

 

00:04:00 - Lizzy Okoro

Yeah, absolutely. I'm preparing for this. I was thinking about what really started off this entire journey. And truthfully, my dad is an entrepreneur. He's an immigrant from Nigeria. He came over here and many immigrants started his own business because that was really the best path forward. My mom, she worked a traditional job that she honestly hated, and, you know, it was just something that didn't really fill her cup. And so I think in my young mind, from a very early age, I kind of got the messaging that living this life of entrepreneurship meant freedom and flexibility and that it was the way to go. And so I always knew that was the path that I was going to take. That being said, it was a very windy road. I was full of ideas and ambition, but not necessarily execution. And so it did take me a while to really identify what that thing was. But while graduate school in New York, I will take a quick step back before I even get into that. I think that because I knew that I was going to be on this entrepreneurial journey from a very young age, I saw the world as problems that I could solve, right? So it's like, oh, that's an opportunity. That's a money making opportunity. Or I could do this type of business. So I felt all over the place. But it really came together in 2011, as you said, when I was living in New York City, and I was just really inspired by all of the creative entrepreneurs that I was seeing. It wasn't just dancers. It was people who owned dance companies. It wasn't just someone who's cooking for fun it was people who were creating these hospitality groups with beautiful restaurants. And I really wanted to bridge that gap between what people thought of their creative passions versus how they actually make money with it. And so I started a magazine called Bunch magazine, which you just referenced, and I was able to grow it into a full fledged media company. And I just felt like it really, really touched on all the things I really love and enjoy, which is learning about entrepreneurship, talking about entrepreneurship, learning from other people, like what businesses they're creating, and some of the hardships that they endure and how they problem solve those hardships. And so, like I said, it's just an honor and a dream come true for me to then be able to bring that experience full circle and come to PCC and actually spearhead this initiative with the Women's Business Center to be able to talk to women who are growing, you know, these amazing businesses and really impacting our economy. So I'm just really honored and really excited because it's something that I really.

 

00:06:39 - Salvatrice Cummo

Love and enjoy that's super, super exciting. I mean, every time I'm around you, I get excited, even just speaking through the camera. It's like you just have this energy and enthusiasm and passion around supporting women entrepreneurs. And it's evident in the way you show up, and it's evident in your words, I can't. I mean, I have a big smile on my face for a reason, because. Because I genuinely feel your energy is authentic and your passion is true. You know, thinking about the Women's Business Center, I think it might be helpful to really share. Yes. You know, this is a full circle. You said full circle is a dream come true for me. How are you envisioning now that you've had your own experiences as an entrepreneur? You've had experiences as well, in support services, or maybe even a lack thereof. Right. Like, noticing some gaps. You know, what are you really kind of envisioning and supporting aspiring entrepreneurs, women entrepreneurs and existing?

 

00:07:37 - Lizzy Okoro

That's a great question, and I think, to answer it, I would start with explaining why Women's Business Centers even exist. Right. Obviously, there's lots of different resources that people could go to in order to help their business. But I think what's special and unique about the Women's Business Centers is it really does address the difference, the unique differences and challenges that women entrepreneurs face. Right. So when we talk about those challenges, what does that look like? It looks like 42% of all new businesses in the United States being, you know, led and started by women. It looks like there being a $1.7 trillion funding gap with women owned small businesses versus men owned small businesses. Right. We're talking about the fact that women are 20 times more likely to be denied for a traditional business loan than their male counterparts. And we're talking about VC funding and unlocking that money. Women entrepreneurs are only accounting for something like less than 7% of VC funding. And when you're talking about black and brown women in particular, that number is even more abysmal. So just even from like, the unlocking and accessing the money part, in order to be able to be successful in business, which is something you need, there's this deficit. And then on the other hand, there are some really awesome industries that are being led by women entrepreneurs, like in the childcare space, like in the health and wellness and beauty space. And we want to be able to come in and say like, hey, you're doing an awesome job, let's keep that up. Right? Or on the flip side, there are a lot of industries that a lot of women are not, maybe not aware of or not thinking about getting into, like construction or government contracts. And we'd love to be able to help identify those gaps for those women entrepreneurs and say, hey, if you're interested in this, let's help you learn about it. And so that's really why Women's Business Centers exist. And of course, you can go into and explore and access, like I said, so many different resources that are wonderful. But what if you had a space that was dedicated to understanding your unique challenges and tailoring an experience around what those challenges are and getting you to success? And that's really why the Women's Business Centers exist. And that is what I definitely want. That's my vision for us, right. Is to really make sure that we understand our gal, you know, our person who's coming through the doors and making sure that if she says she wants to be, or they want to be the next Uber, the next Lyft, the next billion dollar company unicorn, that we can help them get there, or down to like, you know, just saying, hey, I want to own the coffee shop down the street, and I just want to understand what my options are, and I need support with that. We're here, we're here, and we get you. So, yeah, I love that.

 

00:10:31 - Salvatrice Cummo

That's a beautiful vision.

 

00:10:32 - Lizzy Okoro

Thank you.

 

00:10:33 - Salvatrice Cummo

That vision is spectacular for the Women's Business Center. And I really look forward to kind of seeing that come to fruition and being a support mechanism to that. And our PCC communities specifically being a support mechanism to your vision. You know, you mentioned the gaps, right? The gaps in accessing funding, accessing resources. I wonder if I kind of wanted to pick your brain a little bit about that. Do you think it's a combination of access, mindset, and just overall offerings? Why do you feel we have these disparities in accessing capital, accessing resources? Why do you feel we have these disparities? Is it leaning more towards they're just not available to women entrepreneurs, specifically women entrepreneurs of color? Or are we saying that it's a combination of that and mindset or us or something else? I wanted to kind of pick your brain about that.

 

00:11:27 - Lizzy Okoro

Yeah, that's a great question. And I mean, it's so varied. Right. I feel like a lot of people have different answers for it, and I think they're usually all right. They're all the right answer. Because it's not just one thing that is plaguing women entrepreneurs as they're seeking funding. Sometimes it is a mindset thing. Sometimes it's. And when I say mindset, I mean sometimes we don't know how big something could get. We don't really know the opportunity that's out there. You can't be what you can't see. So if you don't have other, you don't see other women entrepreneurs out there raising funds or, you know, things like that, or your own professional network, you don't see those women building big businesses. You may not even understand what the opportunities are. It's also very overwhelming when you don't have mentors or a network, and these networks are tight. Right. It's definitely still a little bit of the old boys club. I know we're changing that, but it's still slow to change and it really is who you know. So if there's not a lot of resource sharing, there's not a lot of friendship happening or professional networking happening across genders, then it can be really hard for women to access those things when they are ready to go out there. I have seen it, too. Where, because we don't know how big something an opportunity can be, or we don't know how to speak the language of venture capitalists or angel investors, we tend to shrink ourselves as well. And that comes from, again, it's not just like, oh, I decide I'm going to play it small because that feels good, to play it small. It just comes from a lot of different things. So I think it's a lack of awareness. I think it's a lack of access. I do think that it, it's primarily those two things that are happening with women entrepreneurs. And so again, that's definitely one of my goals is just to bring awareness and say, like, if you want this to be big, don't be afraid to say that you want it to be big. And let's get you the resources that you need to build this to be as big as you want.

 

00:13:29 - Salvatrice Cummo

So, and it sounds like to me you're also saying, look, Salvatrice, we need to also help foster the mindset of empowerment that we as entrepreneurs, specifically women entrepreneurs, we should have access, we should have the resources available, readily available to us and that we still have a long way to go culturally, I think, within the entrepreneurial space and women. And to your point, you know, venture capitalism and all that good stuff, right? Like there's so many things and so we have a long way to go. But I feel like what you're sharing is this central theme, empowerment and paying it forward, right? Like doing what we're doing here today and sharing and discussing not only the possibilities but perhaps maybe the barriers as well and how do we address them. And so with that thought of empowerment in the empowerment mindset, I'm kind of curious to hear from you about what you think or what strategies or initiatives that you have found really effective in empowering entrepreneurs and more specifically women entrepreneurs.

 

00:14:37 - Lizzy Okoro

Yeah, one is for a little bit more context as well, prior to coming into this role and having my own business as well, I did some advising for the SBDC for years. So in terms of my counseling and advisor style, I would always assign homework. And the homework that I would always give was always a mix of, you know, strategies and tools to get organized, but also to really work on that mindset. So I would send podcast episodes, I would share YouTube links. I would recommend reading just so that, you know, entrepreneurs of all various backgrounds, typically a lot of black and brown, a lot of low income, just to say like, hey, you know, here's a north star for you. Here's an example of someone in your industry that built a really, really big business. So again, not everyone wants to or can build a billion dollar business. That's not always the goal. But if you want this to be something that retires you or something that you work on for the next ten years, 20 years, whatever your goals are, you're going to have to make sure that your mindset is strong, that your confidence is strong, that, you know, the lay of the land and how to speak the language so that you build up that confidence. It can't just always be, hey, execute on the business because it's an emotional journey, as we all know. So we have to address that, the mindset first, for sure.

 

00:16:05 - Salvatrice Cummo

I love that you said you assign homework. We're saying that, you know, it just to explain the interactions and what you said. I literally wrote it down and I'm going to circle back to it because it speaks to what you were just sharing about with empowerment. You can't be what you don't see. I wrote that down and I'm going to put it on my wall somewhere, but it's true. So the homework you were assigning is that you were trying to. My perspective when I'm listening to you is that you're saying, look, I am showing you what is possible so that you could build your own dream about and your own identities and your own pathway about how you would like to see yourself through this entrepreneurial journey, supported by advisors and entrepreneurs like yourself who have walked many, many trails of the entrepreneurial journey and have seen the good, the bad, the ugly, empowering, all that good stuff. So I love that. I love that theme. Right? That one quote, it's embedded in everything that you are envisioning and everything that you actually do, not just as now a leader in this space, but also as a day-to-day entrepreneur who is mentoring other entrepreneurs. So I love that. That felt so good to me right now when you shared that.

 

00:17:25 - Lizzy Okoro

I didn't come up with that quote. I wish I could remember who, who said it, but it was like, it just resonates. And that's also always been my style, too. Like, as soon as I would have, you know, a crazy idea for something, I would go and immediately readdezenhe it and try to figure out, like, who's in the space? Who are the competitors, who's killing it? Is this something that people want? And I think that I have noticed a lot of times with some small business owners or just entrepreneurs in general, they're afraid to see what else is out there because they don't want copy or feel like they're stealing someone's idea or feel bad if their business isn't as big as what exists in the world. And I always say, no, it's just an opportunity for you to see how big something could be for you to dream big and for you to understand that you're on the right path. Like, think of it that way. So, yeah, just to elaborate a little.

 

00:18:19 - Salvatrice Cummo

Bit more on that, I like that. Thank you for sharing that, because I'm hopeful. I mean, everyone who's listening right now, our listener is going to be able to take that and apply it to their own journey, whether they're in a specific professional career track or they're on this entrepreneurial track. But that is the most solid piece of advice, not just for existing professionals and aspiring entrepreneurs, but also to our students, our students who are listening. It's okay, all that, what you just said, it's okay to do that. And in fact, it's really the formula. It's really the formula to either the professional journey or entrepreneurial journey. I'm thankful that you shared that and elaborated on it. I want to shift gears just a little bit and talk about some of our realities. And that realities is we're still seeing the effects of this post pandemic. And you and I both saw that during the pandemic is really kind of what piqued a lot of startups, and it was kind of a good ugly. I don't even know how to explain it. You know, it was a terrible moment in time in our history that allowed for some opportunities to foster and grow, and that being the entrepreneurial ecosystem really took off during that time. And so this concept of work has evolved because of it. And so I'm curious about how do you see these changes really impacting women entrepreneurs and what can be done to adapt these new dynamics as we continue to cultivate our ecosystem here?

 

00:19:51 - Lizzy Okoro

Yeah, I love this question so much. As you just said, there are a lot of negative things that have come out of this post pandemic world. Inflation being one of them. Right? And so a lot of people are being forced into this kind of hybrid work situation where, or not even hybrid necessarily, but this work situation where they have to take on multiple jobs, they have to become entrepreneurial and get scrappy just in order to make ends meet. But on the flip side, there is a significant number of people, and just this is kind of in the zeitgeist. I'm sure that we'll start to see more data and statistics as time goes on. But you know, I'm hearing so much about descaling, de laddering, declining the corporate ladder, right? Like coming off the corporate ladder and just saying like, you know what? My job is just my job. It doesn't have to be my passion. It doesn't have to be the thing that fills my cup. It can just be the place, place that I go and I do my job, I do it well and I get a paycheck and that's it. But I'm going to supplement that with maybe a side hustle or, you know, an Etsy store or bartend on the side or, you know, something like that. Right. So, like, my point really being that not every story where somebody's working two, three jobs is a bad story. I'm hearing some people just say, like, actually, I like having multiple streams of income. I like having, you know, my job just kind of stay in this box and be the thing that I do. But I'm also able to make money doing the things that I'm passionate about or excited about, and I can have those two things exist. I'm thinking of a friend of mine, actually, from years ago who I worked with. I met her while working on my magazine, and she ran a very successful video production company while also working a traditional nine to five job. And she was really one of the first people I felt like it was very adamant, and this is years ago, before the pandemic, she was very adamant about the fact that, like, that's what she likes. She's not overworked. She's not run down. She gets to do her passion. And if her passion isn't always paying the bills, that's okay, because she has the safety net and comfort of her, you know, her traditional job where she gets paid on the first and the 15th, and that feels amazing. And seeing that happen, I do think that is really the Future Of Work, right, where you don't even have to choose one. You don't have to go all in and quit your job and struggle through the entrepreneurial journey. You can have your safety net, your nine to five, or vice. You know, they're just not in competition with each other. So I think that that's, to me, that's what I'm seeing. I think it's really exciting to see what this next wave of entrepreneurship looks like.

 

00:22:40 - Salvatrice Cummo

So, yeah, I love that because oftentimes I use this phrase, you know, our work is what we do. It's not who we are. And so that supplemental piece that you're talking about helps us fill the cup, as you said, of who we are, of what ignites us, of what makes us happy, what kind of fuels our soul. You know, I'm the first one to say I enjoy thoroughly what I do. I love it. I love everything about it, the good, bad, the ugly. Right. But there's also an. There's also an element. There's another side, right. Of just myself. And I'm sure you feel the same way, too. Right. But there's just that one thing that's missing. I have that one idea. I have that one passion. I have that can and will supplement not just financially, but also emotionally, spiritually. You know, our souls are kind of tied to our work. I mean, we have to work, unfortunately, here in the US, you know, there's this. How often do we hear that in the United States, we have it all wrong, you know, we live to work versus work to live as they do in Europe, you know, but I love the fact that we. I'm not gonna say it's new. I think it's just more embraced approach to entrepreneurship that we can do both. And when we're ready, we take the leap either way, whether we stay within our own respective professional fields or we take the leap and go full throttle in our entrepreneurial journey. You know, you and I have both heard stories, right? We've heard stories of our network of women entrepreneurs saying, like, hey, I just took the leap. Like, I felt good enough and confident enough where I had the structure and I had everything in place, or I can just do that full time. So it's beautiful. It's truly an empowering moment in an entrepreneurial's life where they could feel like, I'm going to do this 100%.

 

00:24:36 - Lizzy Okoro

I agree. I think it's very exciting, for sure.

 

00:24:40 - Salvatrice Cummo

You mentioned this new wave or this wave of entrepreneurship and how we're seeing it now and how we're seeing it show up for us is really the Future Of Work. And speaking of the Future Of Work, this obviously is a podcast of Future Of Work. What is one thing that you would like our listener to understand about how women entrepreneurship impacts not only their future, but also how they can contribute to the solution of the future work?

 

00:25:10 - Lizzy Okoro

I think that knowing that women are so, I was gonna say aggressively, but that doesn't feel like an appropriate word. Just thinking about the way that or the number of women who are starting businesses. And also, I think what's calling into question is that women have a different work style as well, right? In the past, it's been demonized, but I've been reading and hearing from a lot of people that women leaders are more nurturing, are leaning in to creating environments that feel better, safer, healthier for their employees. Right. And so just really understanding that women entrepreneurs are not just starting new businesses, but they're also changing the work culture is so exciting to me. I think it's really in tune with the way that, like, younger generations are wanting to work and show up as their full selves, authentic selves. And having a leader who was, like, supportive of that is really, really awesome. I can already say that, like, working with you, Salvatrice. I'm like, this is amazing. Like, I love working under, you know, a woman, a woman leader. It's a really nice, awesome, comforting place where I can feel. I feel like I can show up as my authentic self. And it makes me want to work harder. It makes me me not want to let you down or let anybody else down. It makes me really excited to show up. And so I think that if there's anybody out there listening to it, to this podcast and wondering, how can I get involved? How can I support, how can I make sure that the businesses are thriving? It's really understanding. Like, when you see something being led by a woman, go and support her. You know, tell her about the resources that are available to her to continue to be successful. When you see that label of a woman owned business, shout her out and say, you did that. And also director to some funding opportunities, director to some counseling opportunities through the Women's Business Center and beyond. So I think that that's probably the easiest thing that can be done to really support women entrepreneurs. So I love it.

 

00:27:26 - Salvatrice Cummo

I love it. Thank you. That is true. That is true. We tend to, and this has just been my experience, maybe I shouldn't say we in general, but it's been my experience through my own professional journey that as we continue to rise in the workplace, it feels very isolated, even in entrepreneurship. Right. It feels isolated because for me, it was hyper competitive versus hyper nurturing and collaborative. That's right. That's right. Competitive versus collaborative. So I was really intentional, and this, I mean, gosh, this happened a long time ago. I was really intentional throughout my professional journey where I didn't want to cultivate that kind of culture. I didn't want that kind of culture in the workplace. And I think as a community, to your point, as a community, celebrating, bringing awareness, showcasing resources, having that support, collaborative mechanism just naturally built into what we do day to day, is going to amplify every aspect of an entrepreneurial journey. And so I'm really, really thankful that you said that, because, Lizzy, this could be a whole other episode, because we don't talk about as women entrepreneurs or as women professionals in general. I should just say sometimes it feels competitive versus supportive and arms wide open. Like, let me share with you what I know so that you could be successful, too. I love that you have that mindset that's going to take this Women's Business Center. It's going to scale it up, and I'm really excited about it.

 

00:29:02 - Lizzy Okoro

When one wins, we all win. That's how I feel.

 

00:29:07 - Salvatrice Cummo

That's beautiful. That's actually a really awesome way to sense have this conversation. Yes. When one wins, we all win. That is absolutely true. That is absolutely true. Lizzy, I'll tell you what. But it's been a pleasure talking to you today. It's always a pleasure talking to you. I'm sure we'll have future episodes about just kind of breaking down the elements of this entrepreneurial journey as you continue to build the Women's Business Center. If we have listeners who would like to connect with you, what's the best way they can connect with you?

 

00:29:43 - Lizzy Okoro

Absolutely. I would say LinkedIn. That's definitely the best way. So LinkedIn.

 

00:29:54 - Salvatrice Cummo

Fantastic. We'll be sure to put those in the show notes. Thanks again.

 

00:29:58 - Lizzy Okoro

I love the conversation. So thank you.

 

00:30:02 - Salvatrice Cummo

Thank you for listening to the Future Of Work podcast. Make sure you're subscribed to your favorite listening platform so you can easily get new episodes every Tuesday. You can reach out to us by clicking on the website link below in the show notes to collaborate partner or just chat about all things Future Of Work. We'd love to connect with you. All of us here at the Future Of Work and Pasadena City College wish you safety and wellness.