Reading stories of successful boss ladies is one of my favourite things to do. Why? Well, first of all as a woman myself, I’m inspired by other women’s success. There’s no room for jealousy here, only inspiration and a desire to achieve that success too. Secondly, I love to see women, in general, become successful when we’re so used to seeing men succeed.
I’m not into movements about women power etc (though I do love it, of course), but I just think it’s nice to read success stories about women who bossed up and built an empire for themselves. And even if it’s not an empire yet, it’s still their dream life anyway. So in today’s post, I’ll be sharing with you 10 successful women entrepreneurs that you should get to know.
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10 successful women entrepreneurs to follow today
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If there’s anyone that embarked me and gave me the final push about starting my own business and actually taking action, it’s Marie Forleo. She’s a business coach and the founder of BSchool, she’s been defined by Oprah as the thought leader of the next generation, and she’s been able to help thousands of people around the world start their business and build the life of their dreams. I especially loved her book, Everything is Figureoutable, where she openly shared the story of her beginnings and the journey of becoming the successful entrepreneur that she is today.
2. Jenna Kutcher
Jenna is another incredible woman entrepreneur that I find absolutely inspiring. She started off as a photographer and worked on that business for some time until she pivoted to business coaching through digital products that help ambitious individuals build their dream business. I love how she also doesn’t shy away from sharing her beginnings and her journey. I’ve taken a few of her courses myself and I absolutely loved them. She’s also the founder of The Goal Digger Podcast where she weekly shares tips, inspiring content, and interviews with other successful women.
3. Maya Elious
I can’t remember exactly how I came across Maya, but when I found her account on Instagram I was instantly drawn to her. First of all, she’s SO funny, like I can relate to quite a few of the things that she puts out there. Secondly, she became a millionaire by age 30. She’s also a business coach who focuses a lot on branding and online services, helping other women to grow a successful business, find their voice and build their authority in this overcrowded online space. She’s now also launched another company that sells workout clothes for curvy women, the products look incredible and she’s already being quite successful with it (the power of branding!). I like following her not only because she shares many practical tips, but also because I like to see the two different sides of running a service-based business vs a product-based one, both owned by the same entrepreneur.
4. Jamie Kern Lima
I discovered Jamie through a podcast not too long ago. She’s the founder of IT Cosmetics, which was sold to L’Oreal for a billion dollars (not bad, huh?). I found her story so inspiring not only because I could personally relate to it having the same skin condition she has which is what brought her to start her own makeup company, but also because she never gave up. When she tells her story, she always shares how much rejection she faced for years; investors and companies didn’t believe in her products, she and her husband used up all their savings to fund this business, and she heard the word no more times than people like to share online. But one day, because of her determination, something changed and she got noticed, which led to a series of successes and to her becoming a hugely successful entrepreneur.
5. Mattie James
Mattie is Maya’s sister (from point n.3). I also don’t exactly remember how I came to know her, but she’s a full-time influencer who teaches other aspiring influencers how to be paid appropriately and make a career out of their passion. I believe she started out as a blogger over 10 years ago, learned a lot about the online space, went through her fair share of challenges, and eventually blew up. She now runs her business full-time, joined by her husband, spending time with her family and making a pretty decent living. Now, if you ask me, that’s goals. I also like to watch her stories with her daily life as I think that it really helps to establish trust and relationships with your audience.
6. Patricia Bright
I’ve known Patricia Bright for a few years now, and I recently read her book Heart and Hustle (highly recommend you check it out). She’s also a full-time influencer/entrepreneur, but she didn’t start off like that. She had a very qualified job in the city but was also managing her YouTube channel in her free time, doing beauty/fashion reviews, and sharing other kinds of content. She eventually made enough money to leave her 9-5, take her YouTube channel full-time, and work on other projects too. She now has another channel called The Break, where she basically helps Millenials with adulting. She talks about finances, saving, investing, property, and many other interesting (and very helpful) topics. I’d really encourage you to check her out because she’s the definition of a boss babe!
7. Jasmine Star
Ahhh I love Jasmine, I think she’s so funny and down to earth! I started following her probably a few years ago, she’s the co-founder of Social Curators, together with her husband, and she has this incredibly successful business that she runs entirely online. She started out as a photographer just like Jenna Kutcher, but then her business became so successful and people wanted to know more about how she did it, that she decided to pivot to business coaching and helping entrepreneurs grow their social presence. I love her content because it’s packed with helpful tips that anyone would appreciate, as well as real behind the scenes and real stories. She doesn’t hide the struggles that new entrepreneurs go through, and she really tries to help with her free content, so I can imagine the paid one must be AMAZING.
8. Marshawn Evans
I discovered Marshawn around the end of 2018 when I was trying to get my life together to begin the new year. I read her book, Believe Bigger, and it was life-changing. Not only did she share lots of practical tips there, but she really helped me to understand my purpose and know myself more. In fact, I think I need to read her book again because it was amazing. She’s also a coach, speaker, and what I love about her is that she’s a Christian entrepreneur, which is helpful for me because I love discovering other women who are successful and who also share the same faith as me. She’s now the mom of 3 beautiful girls (triplets) and enjoys being a mum and entrepreneur.
9. Sara Blakely
If you know what Spanx are, then you know who Sara Blakely is. She’s the billion-dollar business owner behind one of the most successful US brands, but she didn’t start off like that. Just like Jamie Kern Lima, she also faced a lot of rejection, used a lot of her own money, hustled to get someone to notice her products, and eventually, she made it. Now she’s such an inspirational role model for other women who dream of solving somebody’s problem, whilst building a successful business and their dream life. I love her inspirational content and how she always encourages other entrepreneurs not to give up, because if they hold on tight enough, eventually their breakthrough is going to come.
10. Rachel Rodgers
Finally, I wanted to include Rachel Rodgers in this list. I found out about her through a podcast a few months ago, and she’s just published her new book, We should all be millionaires, which wants to help women build wealth and achieve financial independence. She built a very successful business which allowed her to have her dream life, and now she teaches other women how to do it. From when I heard her speak, I could tell she was a “no-fluff” kind of person (which, if you know anything about me, I absolutely love), and she gives very practical insights and tips to help other entrepreneurs.
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Conclusion on the 10 successful women entrepreneurs you should follow
Alright friends, I’ve now finished listing these incredible women. Obviously, there are many more that are doing amazing things in the world, but as of right now, based on who I’m following the most, I felt like these were the people I wanted to recommend to you today. Hope you will find each of these women entrepreneurs as inspiring as I found them, and let me know in the comments if there’s anyone else I should check out!
