"If they can't find you, they can't fund you." Why we all need a hype woman like Barbara Pike Gonzales in our life
by Jennifer Cooper
photo courtesy of Barbara Pike Gonzales
“I won’t stop until all women confidently own their value and what they bring to the table, and we break the cycle for future generations of young women.”
It wasn’t until the early 2000s that we reached a historic tipping point: the majority of women* were now in the workforce. If you’re in your 40s or 50s, you’re likely to be the first in your family to break conventional female roles. That means it’s highly unlikely you had mentors you could call up and ask for advice, because during our formative years, our media, education, everything was filtered through the lens that men were the “successful” ones.
If there’s no one around who understands what you’re up against, and can help guide you, invest in your efforts, and cheer you on, you’re going to hit some walls and think it’s a failing on your part even when it isn’t. Being under-resourced in this way creates a toxic breeding ground for competitiveness, resource hoarding, and grind culture. And all of that can lead to feelings of insecurity, low self-esteem, and exhaustion.
Thankfully, many of us have learned from that experience and are creating something beautiful from it: Women coming together to support and cheer each other on. Women like G Force PR founder, Barbara Gonzales.
Barbara is redefining how the modern female founder knows, shows and grows her worth. She not only helps founders talk about themselves, she also helps them overcome the conditioning that says we aren’t meant to be successful in the first place.
I recently spoke with her about this evolution and what it can mean for future generations.
One of your missions is to help more ambitious women develop their personal brand. Why is this important?
When women can clearly and confidently communicate who they are and what they bring to the table, those sitting around the table get used to hearing those female voices. That helps lift up all female leaders and shifts the paradigm that we’ve been under for so long. My personal mission and the mission of my agency is to help female leaders know, show and grow their worth through authentic personal branding and creative PR strategies. If I can be even a small part of their success, and the success of future generations they inspire, I will be so fulfilled.
What are some of the mindset issues you’ve seen these brilliant women struggle with as they move into the spotlight?
An overarching theme that I have seen in my clients, who are all high-achieving, successful, talented women, is that they have been conditioned to not talk about themselves, and it’s a hurdle we have to clear. Often from childhood, they were taught not to “brag,” not to make others feel uncomfortable, and not be too “showy.” I find myself reflecting back to them their years of experience, their proven track record of success, the impact they’ve made, etc. as a way to give them permission to own their worth. It’s still quite uncomfortable for these qualified quiet women—and many would still prefer to talk about their business and not themselves—but I won’t stop until all women confidently own their value and what they bring to the table, and we break the cycle for future generations of young women.
I feel like so many of us are growing and learning and looking at how we want to spend the rest of our careers. Have you noticed anything that you’ve outgrown or want to change moving forward?
I am so passionate about supporting my clients and I’m so invested in their success, that I am committed to only working with women who are energetically aligned. I often describe my clients as “my client, and also my friend” because we go deep and get vulnerable, and her success is truly my success. It’s a real partnership.
At 51, I’ve outgrown the competition trap. I fundamentally believe and trust that there is room for everyone. Each person brings something specific to their audience and market, and when you do the work to establish your personal brand, it helps you to get in front of and attract those you’re truly meant to work with. When you show your authentic self, and not what you think you should be or a carbon copy of others who have been successful, that’s what people innately connect with.
I hear you’ve started thinking about how you can support women founders. Can you tell me about that?
We all know the dismal and infuriating statistic by now that roughly only 2% of venture capital goes to female-founded companies with even less than that to companies founded by women of color.
You may have the most innovative product in the market, or the industry-disrupting solution your audience has been screaming for, but if you are seeking funding to establish or grow your business, you cannot hide behind your brand, your team, or your offering. You as the founder must be visible.
You can certainly pitch your product—market fit, future projections, addressable market opportunity, etc., but if you aren’t able to confidently articulate why you as the founder would be a sound investment, and if you don’t have proven examples of this through speaking engagements, panel discussions, thought leadership or media placements, you’re doing yourself a disservice. As I often say, “If they can’t find you, they can’t fund you.”
Finally, I know you’re a natural cheerleader and pumping up and supporting others brings you life. Anyone who’s doing something you love that you’d like us to know about?
Oh my goodness, so many women are doing incredibly inspirational things right now, YOU included! I encourage your readers to help support fellow female founders, especially those in their 40s and up, by sharing their products you love and their services you can’t live without on social media and with your friends. We should also actively seek out female-founded and female-run businesses and choose to support them when given the option. We all need our hype women!
And to that we say, AMEN!
Follow Barbara on Instagram, Linked In, and visit her site, G Force PR to learn how you can work with her.
*Until 2021, the U.S. government didn’t have a category for nonbinary adults.
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