Milly Tamati

Instead of avoiding conflict, work on improving your skills to successfully navigate them. Conflict is a guaranteed, and in many ways necessary, element of entrepreneurship. It will arise, and in many cases, help you grow. Focus on stacking skills in managing conflict, de-escalating disagreements and active listening. Being an empathetic leader also goes a really long way. Conflict is a part of life, it's all about how we manage it that matters.

A slightly different take on this is before starting your business ask yourself honestly: "do I enjoy working with this demographic? Can I see myself serving them for the next 1, 5, 10 years?". If the answer is yes, you may have found your ideal customer which makes it so much easier to stick through the difficult times of entrepreneurship.

I hear you, it can be hard to pushback from the mainstream narrative. One way to combat this is to simply ask a question. Rather than strongly saying “this or that is wrong / bad / outdated” — you could ask “how else could we approach this?” “Is there another way?” This opens doors for conversation, rather than conflict

One thing that often holds people back is they believe they need to be an absolute expert, or have it all figured out before they start sharing their story. This isn’t true. There’s so much value to be found in the ups and downs of the story itself — the earlier you start to share, the more trust you can build with folks.

Celebration can take many forms, and a part of your leadership journey will be identifying which form is most impactful and relevant. Sometimes, this might look like celebrating 'in public' - amplifying their profile, or work, on social media or in a company-wide announcement. But sometimes, a 1-1 conversation works even better. Creating the space to have a genuine, personal conversation can mean even more to the person receiving the feedback.

Some ways to get started: - Use screenshots to showcase objective examples. - Make it a part of your routine. Set aside time each week (30 mins on a Friday, for example) to source and showcase these compliments. - Think about who you're uplifting, and how you can make the world more equitable by amplifying folks who may not have as much of a voice or platform as you - As always, be sincere.