Still a Man’€™s World?

Women everywhere are breaking business stereotypes. A recent study shows the fastest growing segment of women business owners is in nontraditional fields.

One example? The number of women who own construction companies jumped 50 percent in five years. Leina Zimmerman can relate.

“No one ever told me that girls weren’t ‘supposed’ to do certain things,” says Zimmerman, executive vice president of Skyline Construction. “When you listen to people and solve their problems, they aren’t looking at you as a male or female, they are looking at you as a business partner.”

How did Zimmerman level the playing field? She took classes, trekked to job sites and poured over blueprints to truly understand her industry. “It’s hard to be

dismissed if you know what you’re talking about, especially if you have the credentials to prove it.”

“Trying too hard to play off the fact that they’re women,” is the biggest mistake women can make, she says. Zimmerman adds that many of us provide strengths like creativity and multitasking, which may be lacking in a male workforce.

Want more?

Single mom Tonya Hicks is founder of electrical contracting and engineering firm Power Solutions, WomenDoEverything.com and apparel company MaryAnn Works, designing clothing for women in construction. While “the recession has not been good for construction,” Hicks is proud to say she’s yet to lose a client.

Women say they excel among the guys by networking outside of their comfort zone, maintaining a balance between patience and drive and staying on top of industry news.

Bonus PINK Link: Find out how to navigate the new age of men.

By Malee Moua

“For most of history, ‘Anonymous’ was a woman.” Virginia Woolf