American Center New Delhi
“Women First, Prosperity for All.” That is the theme for the Global Entrepreneurship Summit, which India and the United States will co-host at the end of November in Hyderabad. This theme highlights the critical role women like you play in fostering global growth and prosperity.
The U.S. delegation to the Summit, headed by Ivanka Trump, will include leading American CEOs as well as government officials. They will be joined by 1,500 talented entrepreneurs and investors from around the world, approximately half of whom will be women.
The Global Entrepreneurship Summit was conceived as a way to unite government with private sector partners and local businesses, along with civil society groups, to help create successful entrepreneurial environments. At the summit, budding entrepreneurs will participate in business plan competitions to identify and support promising ideas. The goal is to give entrepreneurs who have sound business concept access to credit to enable them to put their ideas to work. Investors and mentors will help facilitate partnerships to share knowledge and help strengthen business opportunities.
The program you have just completed with U.S. support and under the stewardship of TiE, “The Indus Entrepreneurs,” echoes the objectives set forth for the Global Entrepreneurship Summit. Your program, the “All-India Road Show on Women’s Economic Empowerment through Entrepreneurship” (AIRSWEEE) also emphasizes mentorship and international networking, corresponding nicely with what the Global Entrepreneurship Summit is all about.
Congratulations to you for getting to this point. You lead by example, and your determination and dedication to your ideals and entrepreneurial aspirations inspires us all. The fact that some of you have already attracted funding further highlights the success of this program and the tremendous, largely untapped, potential of women entrepreneurs across India.
I would like to conclude with some ideas about success. What does that actually mean? I know the first thing some people think about is money. And, certainly, I hope you are all financially successful. Others think about power. But success is not just about making money or wielding power.
I like the definition of success by American Nobel Laureate Maya Angelou, who said, “Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it.” I also really appreciate what author and businesswoman Arianna Huffington said on this topic: “To live the lives we truly want and deserve, and not just the lives we settle for, we need a Third Metric – a third measure of success that goes beyond the two metrics of money and power, and consists of four pillars: well-being, wisdom, wonder, and giving.”
That is what I wish for you, and for all of us: well-being, wisdom, wonder, and giving. Real success rests in the differences we make in the lives of our families, our communities, our colleagues and in our societies. I believe you have already made a big difference and you will continue to do so for many years to come. Thank you and congratulations once again.
