Ethical - Value Business Practices – Women Founders’ Advice - Part 9

In the Ethical - Value Business Practices Series, we feature the insights of 10 women founders who share lessons on taking action without waiting for perfect conditions, staying true to your values, and building businesses around genuine value. Their advice also highlights integrity, meaningful relationships, intentional learning, resilience, sustainability, and creating positive impact while maintaining strong personal and professional standards.

Featured Women Founders

• Cindy Matlapeng  My biggest advice?

• Margatet Hopkins  Be brave, true to your integrity, and don't do it alone.

• Ms. Aastha Lalit Bajaj  My advice to aspiring women entrepreneurs is to believe in the value of your vision and pursue it with confidence, resilience, and purpose.

• Nicole McDonnell  My advice is to begin before you feel completely ready.

• Stephanie Engelbrecht  My advice to aspiring women entrepreneurs is simple: don't wait until you feel ready.

• Jessica C. McDonald  Be intentional about who you learn from.

• Jackie Wargo  Lead with your heart, but build your business with integrity.

• Mariia Kharakhash  My advice to aspiring or early-stage women founders is to not wait until you feel completely ready.

• Payal Parashar  Don't wait to feel "ready" before you start

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Cindy Matlapeng – My biggest advice?

Founder – The Office Team Cleaning & Support Services

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/cindy-matlapeng

Advice

My biggest advice? Just start—don’t wait for perfect conditions. Use what you have, learn as you go, and embrace the messiness of building something real. Focus on building genuine relationships and delivering exceptional value from day one. Consistency, integrity, and showing up—even when it’s hard—will take you further than any perfect plan.

Margatet Hopkins – Be brave, true to your integrity, and don't do it alone.

Founder – State Faarm Insurance

Website: https://www.margaretinsures.com/?cmpid=MLLIST

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/margaret-hopkins-7722338/

Advice

Be brave, true to your integrity, and don't do it alone. Everyone who is successful, do it with a network of support to guide them.

Ms. Aastha Lalit Bajaj – My advice to aspiring women entrepreneurs is to believe in the value of your vision and pursue it with confidence, resilience, and purpose.

Company– AIO Impex Private Limited

Website: https://www.ancientindiaorganics.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aastha-lalit-bajaj/

Advice

My advice to aspiring women entrepreneurs is to believe in the value of your vision and pursue it with confidence, resilience, and purpose. Entrepreneurship is rarely a straight path, there will be challenges, setbacks, and moments of uncertainty. However, these experiences often become the greatest sources of learning and growth.

Focus on solving a real problem and creating genuine value rather than chasing short-term success. Build strong relationships, seek mentors, remain open to feedback, and continuously invest in learning. Do not be afraid to enter industries where women are underrepresented; diverse perspectives often lead to the most innovative solutions.

Equally important, stay authentic to your values. Sustainable success comes from building trust, acting with integrity, and creating a positive impact for customers, employees,

communities, and the environment. As women leaders, we have a unique opportunity to build businesses that are not only profitable but also inclusive, compassionate, and transformative.

Most importantly, do not wait for perfect conditions to begin. Start with what you have, take calculated risks, and keep moving forward. Confidence is built through action, and every step you take brings you closer to creating meaningful change. Your journey may inspire many others to believe that they too can lead, innovate, and make a lasting impact.

Nicole McDonnell – My advice is to begin before you feel completely ready.

Company– Location Unknown Travel

Website: Locationunknowntravel.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/locationunknowntravel2022?utm_source=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=member_android

Advice

My advice is to begin before you feel completely ready. Confidence often comes from taking action, solving real problems, and learning through experience—not from waiting until every detail is perfect.

Be willing to ask questions, seek mentorship, and build relationships with people who understand areas where you are still developing. At the same time, trust your own judgment. You know your clients, your purpose, and the type of business you want to create better than anyone else.

Do not mistake slow growth for failure. Building trust, refining your message, and creating strong systems takes time. Pay attention to what is working, be honest about what is not, and adjust without losing sight of your values.

Most importantly, do not build a business that only looks successful from the outside. Build one that serves people well, supports the life you want, and reflects the kind of leader you want to become. Progress may be uneven, but persistence, integrity, and a willingness to keep learning can take you much further than perfection ever will.

Stephanie Engelbrecht – My advice to aspiring women entrepreneurs is simple: don't wait until you feel ready.

Company– C&S Automotive

Website: www.csarepair.com

Advice

My advice to aspiring women entrepreneurs is simple: don't wait until you feel ready. Confidence doesn't come before taking the leap—it grows because you take it.

Be willing to learn, ask questions, and surround yourself with people who challenge and support you. You don't have to know everything to be an effective leader, but you do need the humility to keep growing.

I would also encourage women to build a business that reflects their values rather than trying to lead like someone else. Your perspective, experiences, and strengths are what make your business unique. Lead with integrity, invest in people, and remember that success is about more than financial growth—it's about the impact you leave on your employees, customers, and community.

Finally, don't neglect yourself in the pursuit of success. I've learned that sustainable leadership requires healthy boundaries, and that asking for help is a sign of wisdom, not weakness. Above all, trust God with the outcome, remain faithful in the work He's called you to do, and don't underestimate what can happen through consistency, perseverance, and faith.

Jessica C. McDonald – Be intentional about who you learn from.

Company– Southern Wealth Builders

Website: https://www.southernwealthbuilders.com

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-cassady-mcdonald

Advice

Be intentional about who you learn from. Seek mentors and peers who are generous with their knowledge, honest about the work, and living a version of success you actually want—because you’ll unconsciously adopt their mindset, habits, and standards along the way.

And just as importantly, learn to filter feedback. Not every opinion deserves equal weight; if someone is bitter, chronically negative, or miserable in the path they chose, their “advice” may be more about their experience than your potential. Choose guidance from people who build, lead, and learn with integrity—then take consistent action, stay close to your values, and let your results speak.

Jackie Wargo – Lead with your heart, but build your business with integrity.

Company– Call Jackie Senior Living Placement

Website: www.CallJackieNow.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jackiewargo/

Advice

Lead with your heart, but build your business with integrity. Success isn't measured only by revenue—it's measured by the lives you impact and the trust you earn along the way.

Don't be afraid to start small. Keep learning, surround yourself with people who challenge and encourage you, and never stop improving your skills. There will be setbacks, but resilience and perseverance will carry you farther than perfection.

Most importantly, stay true to your values. When you genuinely care about the people you serve, success becomes a natural result of making a positive difference in their lives.

Mariia Kharakhash – My advice to aspiring or early-stage women founders is to not wait until you feel completely ready.

Company– Ukrainian Films USA, operated by Quants Stream LLC

Website: www.uafilmusa.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariia-kharakhash

Advice

My advice to aspiring or early-stage women founders is to not wait until you feel completely ready. There may never be a perfect moment, enough resources, enough confidence, or a clear roadmap. Sometimes you begin with only a strong feeling that what you are building matters — and that has to be enough for the first step.

There were many moments in my own journey when the vision was much bigger than the resources I had. I had to learn, ask, negotiate, make mistakes, rebuild, and keep going even when the path felt unclear or lonely. What helped me was staying connected to the meaning behind the work. When your business is rooted in purpose, it gives you strength on the days when numbers, support, or confidence are not enough.

I would tell women founders to take themselves seriously before the world fully does. Do not make your dream smaller just because it is new, niche, emotional, or different from what already exists. If there is no door into the industry or market you want to enter, build trust step by step until that door appears — or create your own.

Protect your standards, your integrity, and your heart. Growth is important, but reputation, consistency, and the way people feel after working with you are even more important. A woman founder is not only building a company; she is often building trust, community, opportunity, and a new way for people to see what is possible.

My deepest advice is this: build something that still feels meaningful to you when it becomes hard. Because it will become hard. But if your work is connected to your values, your story, and the impact you want to leave, you will find the strength to continue — and one day you will look back and realize that the path you were searching for was the one you created yourself.

Payal Parashar – Don't wait to feel "ready" before you start.

Company– Ethereal IT Solutions Pvt Ltd

Website: https://etherealitsolutions.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/payalparashar/

Advice

Don't wait to feel "ready" before you start. I began at 23, straight out of engineering, with no business experience, no network and no capital, and I learned almost everything on the job. Clarity and confidence come from doing, not from planning endlessly on the side lines. Back yourself with whatever resources you have right now, deliver real value in whatever you're doing and let your results build the credibility that opens doors later.

Most importantly, build something that is truly yours. Stay financially independent, protect your values and integrity, and remember that success doesn’t happen overnight. Be patient with yourself, stay consistent and keep moving forward, even when the journey feels uncertain.