Rieva Lesonsky has covered small business since the 1970s and became the first female editor-in-chief of a general business magazine around 1987. She talks about what she learned about women, money and starting a business, and where new owners can get free help.
Dr. Tamara Patzer talks with Rieva Lesonsky about what it takes to start and grow a business, and why women entrepreneurs still face financial disadvantages after decades of progress.
Rieva found her way into business journalism in the 1970s through a job ad for a researcher. It used a word she had to look up, “entrepreneur,” and couldn’t find in the dictionary. She went on to edit a general business magazine and to launch magazines for women entrepreneurs. She tells what she learned when women told her they didn’t want to be left out of what the men were reading. That led to her rule that about 80 percent of business issues are the same for everyone, and about 20 percent differ by gender, ethnicity or age.
In this conversation:
- How Rieva got into business journalism and became the first female editor-in-chief of a general business magazine, and what she changed about the writing
- Why she writes “for the ear and not for the eye”
- Why her magazines for women entrepreneurs didn’t last, and what she did instead
- Why women-owned businesses tend to stay smaller, how bank lending formulas still favor bigger businesses, and why women only gained full financial rights in 1974
- Where to start with little money: write a business plan, bootstrap, spend only where there is a clear return, and use free help from SCORE, Small Business Development Centers and Women’s Business Centers
- Why a business should fill a gap customers have, not just follow what you are passionate about
- How Rieva uses AI as a brainstorming tool and not as the boss
- How rising everyday costs and changing customers are affecting small business owners
About the guest:
Rieva Lesonsky is a small business journalist and entrepreneurship advocate who has spent most of her career covering and championing small business owners. She publishes the free weekly newsletter Small Business Currents. It brings owners trends, survey data and expert insight so they can see how they compare with the wider business world.
Connect with Rieva:
- Website and free newsletter signup: smallbusinesscurrents.com (new issues come out Wednesdays)
Mentioned in this episode:
- SCORE, local Small Business Development Centers and Women’s Business Centers
- Rieva’s planned series of topic-specific e-books, priced from $4.99 to $14.99
Hear more conversations on the Thought Leaders Show at Business Innovators Network.
Tamara "Tami" Patzer
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