I’m not a millionaire (yet) nor had I ever been exposed to so many of them in a concentrated period of time before this week. Two back to back events packed with an audience of millionaire women that I invested a significant amount of money to attend, turned out to be a real eye opener.
Everywhere-a-millionaires
At first blush, the event consisted of a well dressed, chatty group of women just like at any other networking I go to. But when I started to talk to some of the women I ran into at the coffee table or the bathroom lineup, I started to discover that lo and behold–most of the ladies were nominees of one award or another and based on what I know about the criteria for nomination–were millionaires!
Here are a few things that I learned from them:
They Have The Same Headaches
Yes, these women don’t see their children and husbands often. Yes, they spend more time in airport lounges than at hockey practice but the big difference between them and the rest of the women entrepreneurs I know, is that these millionaires have mostly gotten over the guilt of it. I found that millionaire women biz owners looked at being away from their family for work as teaching their children what it’s like to sacrifice things in order to get what you really want in life.
Lean On My Husband
When I came home from the gala last night, I told my husband that I was most definitely going to become a millionaire entrepreneur because the one thing all these ladies had in common with me was a supportive husband who took care of the home front and supported the woman’s dream of building her vision. It was so wonderful and inspiring to hear that.
They’re Terribly Humble
I don’t know if it’s a Canadian thing or if it’s just the nature of millionaire business women but there was such a feeling of humbleness and lack of pretension with these women. Some of the award winners even wept in surprise or said they often felt like an imposter. They talked fearlessly about their ‘dark nights’ where they were scared and depended on loved ones to get them through.
They’re Persistent
Perhaps the single biggest differentiator that I saw between this group of millionaires and the usual entrepreneurs that I meet is that no matter what the circumstance, these millionaires didn’t throw in the towel. They kept putting a second mortgage on the house, they borrowed more money, took more risks in the face of failure but never ever gave up. This characteristic isn’t really found in most women or even most entrepreneurs that I’ve met. They just go back and get a j-o-b.
They Look Good
Was I ever glad that I rented myself a $1000 designer gown that stood out like a beacon in a black tie event that might as well have been called a black dress one. My dress MADE friends for me. Perfect strangers would say ‘I love your dress’ and I’d tell them that I’d rented it. My frankness about the situation as well as the interesting story behind the dress started conversations that turned into genuine connections. From my brush with these millionaire shoulders, I learned that whether day or night-millionaire entrepreneur women dress well. They have expensive boots, purses and dresses. They have giant chunky bling. They are elegant and prepared to look their best when out in public.
They Are Helpful
The last point about these millionaire business women came out when part of the conference was a round table coaching of each other. These women were generous with their experiences and offered a lot of help. They were caring and attuned to the needs of those around them. Excellent connectors, these ladies had hundreds of employees and had formed phenomenal cultures around their workplace.
My whirlwind 2 days with millionaire women left me wonderfully inspired to be more like them. I hope I’ve been able to impart some of the magic of my time with them so that you too can join me at the next awards gala as a millionaire yourself next year!
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