Breaking News and Breaking Barriers: Journalists Who Shine

Over the years, the number of female entrepreneurs in India has increased, showing that women can succeed in business just as much as men.

Despite the rise, female business owners still encounter several particular difficulties. For female entrepreneurs, things are not just difficult; they are downright difficult, especially in a nation dominated by men. Here, women are still seen as emotional, less ambitious, and unfit to take the initiative and turn a project into a successful business.

But today's women are changing this reality. They are breaking mindsets and proving their worth in every industry. Even when running a successful business, they are on par with men. Several successful women have repeatedly demonstrated it with their inspiring stories.

One such example is themotivational story of Mahananda , who was raised in a traditional family. She was asked to put her plans for further education on hold and choose marriage over her dreams. At the age of 17, she married as per the wishes of her family.

Unfortunately, her marriage was short-lived. She left her abusive husband and took her children along with her. After realizing their terrible choice, her family encouraged her to pursue higher education. Mahananda has a bachelor's degree in arts and is skilled in computers too.

Then, in 2019, Mahananda started her computer institute and began her entrepreneurial journey.

"It's crucial to be financially independent, and I feel pride and accomplishment in supporting my family financially," says Mahananda.

In 2020, she recognised a market for sanitary napkins in her village. She conducted a thorough investigation into the equipment and the raw materials. Later that year, she opened her sanitary napkin manufacturing facility after obtaining a loan of INR 10 lakhs through the "Stree Swabhiman " programme. She works there with five other people and produces nearly 50,000 sanitary pads monthly.

Since 2015, Mahananda has been associated with the Internet Saathi Programme. She was the only female nominee from her village for the programme coordinator position and was later recognised as the best coordinator in her district.

The enthusiastic businesswoman also collaborated with fellow Internet Saathi to market and sold Stree Swabhiman sanitary products. On Women's Day, she gave out 150 packets of free sanitary pads to students and distributed the same at a summit for village entrepreneurs!

Her venture has gained consumers' respect and favor in just a short period. Her clients include NGOs from Bangalore and Gulbarga, the Abudya Trust, and her neighboring villages of Alanda, Chikkaballapur, and Gotur.

She has doubled her monthly income thanks to her education and hard work. She now has another important objective: to provide affordable, environmentally friendly sanitary napkins to women in rural and urban areas.

LinkedIn is a very popular online platform. It connects potential employees to companies looking to hire. The networking site has a lot of advantages and can prove to be beneficial career-wise. Almost every working person uses it. Hence, you can connect to leading people in your industry. The site is a very effective tool for marketing oneself.

What does marketing oneself mean? Simply put, it is a way to promote yourself. This is done by highlighting education and achievements and generally showing employers what you can do. This means that people become aware of who you are and the kind of work you do. Marketing yourself also helps people realise whether you are a good fit for their company.

So if you don't have a LinkedIn profile yet, create one today! If you do, here's how you can effectively use it to promote yourself to prospective employers.

• First, you need to appear on search lists of employers and hiring agents. The key to using LinkedIn in the best way possible is to ensure you're 'discoverable' to agencies and employers. Updating your location helps recruiters know where you are based. It also allows you to narrow down places of work.

• Once a hiring manager or a recruiter checks out your profile, what will they see? Remember, your LinkedIn profile is their first impression of you. HRs don't only check if you are interested in being hired. They look at your profile picture. They check your posts and interactions. They even check posts and images that you are tagged on. This helps give them an idea of the person you are. Ensure that your profile picture is clear and professional. It needs to be appealing to see and not taken in an inappropriate setting or a dimly lit room with a messy background. Not only your profile picture but even your cover photo also needs to be aesthetic. It could be anything, even a simple background.

• Update your bio! Keep it short and sweet. Mention what you do and what you are looking for. Think of it as marketing yourself using three sentences.

• Ensure your education, accomplishments and work history is up-to-date. Write only important points, so it isn't too cluttered. The HR needs only to see the key points. Too much information can make it looks messy and unorganised.

• It is essential that you use all your connections to your advantage. Connect with people from the same industry. Connect with coworkers and friends. It will help you come across as well-connected and with a friendly personality.

• Mention your previous jobs. Add the company you worked at and the work you did for them. This also increases your discoverability. Plus, it helps recruiters see what you are experienced at.

• You can also share posts about your accomplishments in the company. Show that you value your company by sharing company posts, blogs and articles.