ACCESS Community Capital Fund

In the late months of 2022, Satbir Walia saw ‘Volunteers Needed! Help us achieve our mission of empowering emerging entrepreneurs with the skills and funding they need to be successful!’ After looking more into ACCESS and aligning with our mission and purpose, Satbir decided to reach out for more information. It was not long after that she was facilitating sessions.

With a career as a corporate lawyer, Satbir is able to impart much of her expertise to our Clients in the accelerator programs, allowing our Clients to learn the legalities of starting and owning a business in Canada.

“I am an immigrant as well, so for me, a message I try to get across is to think of the law as something that enables you and your business as opposed to thinking it is something that you should be afraid of,” Satbir said. “In my perception, there is a lot of fear and not wanting to do something against the law, especially when you are a newcomer to a country, so try to see the law as something that will help you flourish.”

Although Satbir’s intention in volunteering with ACCESS was to contribute her skills to our mission, she often comes away from the sessions feeling inspired.

“Personally, I always find volunteering is a selfish experience for me, because I end up getting a lot more than I feel like I can give back,” Satbir said. “It’s always very inspiring hearing people’s ideas and business plans and what they set out to achieve.”

Happy National Volunteer Week to all of our Volunteers!. Your time, efforts, skills and commitment to our mission does not go unnoticed, and we will always appreciate YOU. If you're interested in getting involved with ACCESS, visit https://lnkd.in/eduf3BWZ

💪 How do you work to uplift the women in your life?

At ACCESS, we do this through our various programs. Our Women’s Business Accelerator and Women’s Business Launch Programs are made specifically to help women overcome the systemic barriers that hold them back at the early stages of their entrepreneurial careers.

This Women’s History Month, we wanted to feature the powerhouse entrepreneur Mallory Rowan. We asked the self-proclaimed serial entrepreneur if she had any advice for women entrepreneurs who are in the early stages of their businesses.

“Bet on yourself every time,” Rowan wrote to ACCESS. “Bet on yourself when you’re scared, when you’re doing something for the first time, when you have a dream you know you can accomplish.”

Rowan is the founder of three businesses in three different industries – a powerlifting apparel brand, a marketing business, and a real estate company – all before the age of 30.

“A woman’s intuition is strong, and sometimes we push it down because of fears: fear of not being good enough, fear of embarrassment from those who thought we were silly, fear of letting ourselves down,” Rowan wrote. “Trust your gut, it has the confidence you can lean on even when you lack it in the moment.”

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In a recent survey, 91 per cent of the female respondents said the ACCESS program they took had a positive impact on their well-being by reducing the amount of stress surrounding starting their businesses, and 82 per cent of the female respondents reported feeling an increased sense of confidence in their businesses after taking an ACCESS program.

It is our hope that one day we will live in a society where everyone has access to the resources they need to achieve their financial and entrepreneurial goals. With your donation ­­– which goes towards supporting our Clients – we know that one day that hope will be a reality.

Please support ACCESS this Women's History Month by clicking the link to donate: https://lnkd.in/eVHuFABX