Embracing Change: Insights from Women-Owned Enterprises and the Rise of Rage Rooms

Explore the transformative power of embracing change, the latest developments in women-owned small business opportunities, and the unique stress-relief trend of rage rooms. Dive into the lessons from the bicycle's history, the potential for expanded access for women entrepreneurs, and the cathartic appeal of smashing things in a controlled environment. Discover how these diverse topics intersect in the world of small business and innovation.

What Can You Learn From the Bicycle? Change is good.

That thing with two wheels? At one point, the bicycle was a change maker. A change maker. And people shied away from that change.

Jason Feifer, Editor-in-Chief at Entrepreneur magazine, often spouts this to his crowd:

“At some point in your career, perhaps in multiple points, you have said ‘I’d rather try and keep it the way I like it to be rather than the way that it is. I’d rather pause time instead of moving forward.’ We want to hold onto what we have, what we know.”

The reality? We must change.

When the bicycle debuted, people were furious. The bicycle changed consumer habits and people didn’t like this. They called it “lunacy.” There was talk that the bicycle would induce “homicidal mania.” The bicycle was “the source of many ills.” There was the made-up health problem of “bicycle face.” There were people who actually tried to stop the production of the “very dangerous” bicycle. 

Why did the bicycle freak everyone out?

Because change is scary. Reality might not play out the way you think it will. When you’re ready to grow but you’re scaring yourself, recall...the bicycle.

Women-Owned Small Businesses Will (Hopefully) Gain Expanded Access

An audit report, released on June 20, 2018, explored the ways in which the SBA may not have been granting Women-Owned Small Business  (WOSBs) and Economically Disadvantaged Women-Owned Small Businesses (EDWOSBs) the contracts they deserved.

One such Federal Contracting Program was supposed to allocate certain governmental contracts to be fulfilled by WOSBs and EDWOSBs, but it looks like there was an oversight.

According to the report

“The Small Business Administration (SBA) has a number of programs that help small and disadvantaged businesses grow and develop. The intent of the Program is to increase Federal contracting opportunities for women-owned businesses and economically disadvantaged women-owned small businesses through restricted competition to only WOSBs and EDWOSBs.”

Unfortunately, the eligibility of 50 of the 56 programs reviewed weren’t able to be verified, meaning the firms did not meet compliance or comply with the self-certification requirements and criteria.

The sum total of these contracts resulted in $52.2 million, but, at this point, the businesses that received this funding may not have actually been WOSBs or EDWOSB firms. 

Pulled from the audit report this section reads “Examples of missing documentation included WOSB and EDWOSB self-certifications, articles of incorporation, birth certificates, and financial information. Without this documentation, it was not possible to ascertain that a firm was owned and controlled by a woman who is a U.S. citizen.”

The overall recommendations to the SBA Administrator are the same recommendations that may help you stay on top of your own small-business concerns: keep your documentation up-to-date and organized.

Turns out, correct documentation can make or break your government contracts.

Another Crazy Idea That Worked: Rage Rooms

When anger gets to you, what do you do to relieve it? If you’re not to keen on smashing your own dishes or kicking in your own expensive computer screen, rage rooms are a new trend on the rise where you can blow off some serious steam and do some intentional damage.

The first rage room opened up in Japan in 2008 during the recession that sent a population into extreme stress and work-related tension. Now, rage rooms are a global trend, with rage rooms popping up in Australia, Italy, and throughout the United States.

What brings rage room visitors in for a pile of destructible objects, a time limit, and the option for a pumped-in pumped-up soundtrack? The consensus is in and stressors include friends, drama, work stress, family issues, and, in our current climate...lots of people who can’t tolerate politics.

Fluid strives to help small businesses grow by sparking innovative ideas, keeping them up-to-date on industry knowledge, and providing financial options. If you would like to talk about your business and your future plans, reach out to us, we’re here to support your success.