Humaira Ahmed
Humaira Ahmed
CEO @ Locelle
“The perception that as a startup founder and CEO, if you’re not hustling every day, if you’re not putting your business first every day you’re going to fail, is a myth that needs to be busted.”
Action Prompts
These prompts are inspired by Humaira’s story about gender equity and how hustle & grind culture is propagated through the venture ecosystem. They’ll help you understand your internalized gender bias and strategies to respond.
// SELF REFLECTION
Humaira shared that both in her marriage and on her team, she practices the mantra: “I don't care about who is right, we care about what is right.” How do your behavioral norms from personal relationships impact expectations in your work life? And vice versa?
// TEAM EXPLORATION
Create connection time with your team to discuss:
• How do gender norms influence your roles and relationships at work?
• Share a personal or professional story about how gender inequality has shown up in your life.
• Brainstorm responses to this question: How might we play with “walking in someone else’s shoes” for a day?
Resource
Learn about how investors still fail to fund women owned businesses at scale, and three practices to hold venture capitalists to account:
Institutional Investors Must Help Close the Race and Gender Gaps in Venture Capital
Humaira Ahmed (she/her) is founder and CEO of Locelle, a global mentorship platform created to connect, empower and advance women in the workplace. Her passion around gender equity is rooted in her lived experiences as a young girl growing up in Pakistan.
Our biggest insight was how the complex system of oppression of women can show up in obvious ways, such as abuse and discrimination, but also in insidious ways, such as indoctrination into binary gender roles from a young age, and women shouldering a greater share of caring for their children and communities.
Humaira gives voice to the reality of how disproportionately the pandemic is impacting women and mothers. She also calls out the dark side of the VC funding game, an ecosystem defined by sacrificing wellbeing in the name of profits, and excluding many women and diverse people who refuse to buy into the hustle culture paradigm from accessing these resources.
As a result of the pandemic, Locelle pivoted from a networking business model to an outcomes-focused mentorship model, and is growing to meet the demand of companies who recognize they need to do more to elevate women to the boardroom, and overcome the systemic barriers that continue to keep them out.
We dedicate this story to Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who championed for equal rights her whole life, and showed millions of women that we can not only reach our goals, but transform oppressive systems at the highest level.
• • •
Illuminating a Range of Gender Bias
I was born and raised in Pakistan in a really privileged part of society. I got to do a lot of things, like cricket, which was taken away from me even though I was so good at it. I was invited to be part of a coaching practice for a national team, and I remember coming home one day and telling my mom. She said, “no, when you're 13 , you're not going to be playing cricket, because it's a boys game. What are people going to think about you?” So I dreaded being 13. From my perspective at that time, that was a huge deal, it felt unfair.
I’ve been hearing a lot of stories from there [Pakistan and India] about child molestation, assault, and rape. When I think about the child abuse, it comes with a lot of factors. There's poverty, there's lack of education. I mean, we can't even talk about sex. I was molested too. Now I'm on a mission to really talk about it and bring this to light.
It’s on us as girls and women to release the shame. It's always us. Why? Because nobody talks about that. It's always our fault somehow, especially if [the abuser] is titled. These people are still hidden or protected, especially if they're influential.
The inequality starts the day you’re born. It starts so early, whether it's abuse, whether it's equality. Not to say that men aren’t impacted by the same issues, but young girls and women, definitely.
Action Fueled by Equity & Justice
I’m seeing and feeling a lot more beyond inequality in the workplace. There's a big disconnect in workplaces and societies. Day to day, I'm really focused on gender diversity, equality and equity. As a team, we end up working on the stereotypes of how that affects our lives, our societies, and communities in general.
I think society is definitely becoming more aware, but we need to do more than just learning about these issues. Honestly, I'm tired of conversations. I think conversations are a great starting point, but we need to put together a plan, move forward and take action. Because then, I'm going to see a solution.
Respect and Authenticity Come First
We feel that to do your best work, you've got to bring your life into it. We’re deepening into creating spaciousness and being attuned to each other's needs. As a leader, it's critically important to create a judgement free zone that creates safety for our team, and model transparency and authenticity. There needs to be space to discuss what is on people’s minds.
Going into the end of the year, folks will be under even more stress, so it is going to be essential for leaders to to look out for their employees, who may not step up and ask for help. It's going to be key for me to be more mindful and attuned with my team’s emotional needs.
Calling B.S. on Hustle Culture
I’m surrounded by this hustle culture. As a startup, we’re supposed to be like that. But I think a lot of people are realizing that it's not all about the hustle and grind. When I used to hear about a company raising money, I would think wow, that’s so good. Now I think, at what cost, at what expense? I have heard about people committing suicide, companies failing because they’ve raised too much money.
The perception that as a startup founder and CEO, if you're not hustling every day, if you're not putting your business first every day you're going to fail, is a myth that needs to be busted. I’m guilty of contributing to that to an extent. When people look at me, it's the first thing they think: Wow, Humaira’s killing it! She’s an example that you can have at all. She has two kids, she works from home, her business is growing amidst a pandemic, she can’t be crushed!
I have a few amazing advisors and mentors, who make sure I’m doing well and the company is moving forward. One week I was feeling really, really bad. I don't know if it was burnout, or if I just felt too overwhelmed. I decided, I'm not going to do this meeting, I just don't feel good. I remember feeling guilty because a mentor I had said to me, “you should have done it, wasn't this your goal?”
I said “yes, but my mental health is important.” So they said, “OK, so that's not your priority then. Just acknowledge it. Your priority is your well being, not to hit this goal.”
I thought, what kind of question is this? Why of course I’m a priority! Then I reflected on it. I thought, wow, this mentor is amazing, and realized a lot of their mentees are men with wives to support them. I get that we all feel burnout, we all feel guilty, we all feel these emotions, but they’re probably not showing them. So I stand out as someone who is more focused on myself.
The Investor Game: Who Wins at What Cost?
An investor once said to me, “Humaira, I’ll only give you my money if I believe that you will die to make me money. That you’ll do anything. Until I have that feeling, I’m not going to invest in your company.”
You learn this from investors as a founder early on. You need to be so committed to bringing them their money back 10 times more. Unless they feel that, unless you show them that, they’re not going to invest. So I still haven't raised money. That’s one of the reasons, because I don't want that stress. I love my family. If you look around at companies, a lot of these people are either single or have other people to support them, or come from a lot of money. I don’t have that ecosystem here. I’m so grateful. For two years we didn't make money. I would be roasted, and be that startup failure.
Now we're finally starting to make money, and it's growing every month which is amazing. But it's all because we’ve given ourselves that grace, that time.
Creating an Ecosystem of Change
We’ll always have the vision and mission of helping women advance in their careers, but it’s evolving as we understand that it’s more than helping women learn to navigate the current system. We want to be a part of the whole ecosystem of change, working with government and social organizations to look at how we can bring about a positive impact in women’s lives. I love how Catalyst says, “workplaces that work for women, work for everyone”.
A lot of companies who we work with put “high potential” or “top talent” women into our programs, and that has been really bothering me, because who decides? What about the women who are so talented, but they don't have the confidence to speak up? There's a bias there. The bias is going way beyond what I originally thought from my personal experiences and networks. We want to help whoever we can help. Like, what about Sally from reception? How can we open it up company wide?
There’s a lot of work that needs to be done. There’s a lot that every company can do to go beyond the profit. Of course you have to make money to survive and be able to provide a service, but think about other ways where the underprivileged or the unseen can benefit from what you're doing.
Scaling Connection at Work
We’ve doubled our team in the last few months - across Victoria, Vancouver and Montreal. The challenge is, how do we bring everybody in with the same enthusiasm, still feel connected and productive? I don't care if you work five hours, or eight hours, as long as you're doing what you're supposed to do. Everybody works differently, but we have core working hours when we’re on Slack and meeting and checking in.
Locelle is like my third child. I protect it, I love it, you know it's my life. But at the same time, we believe in families first, you first, and then Locelle. It’s something we love, and really that makes people work even harder. They're so accountable. It’s important for leaders to recognize that people have lives, and their lives are more important than your profit.
We make sure as a team that everybody knows that empathy is at the heart of everything. I know the “future of work is remote” but I still worry about the connection piece, the real human touch.
Focusing on What’s Right vs. Who is Right
I bring a lot of my personal life into work. We also have this rule in my marriage too: I don't care about who is right, we care about what is right. If you don't think this is right, take some time to go away and really think about the bigger picture goal. We hired an intern recently, and even she can tell me, “I don't think that's a good idea.” I say “OK, tell me why”. Then she can bring forward her ideas and say, “here's why”.
As long as you have your why, I'm happy to listen to you. I get called out all the time, and I actually take pride that people feel safe, that they can bring forward their ideas and their best selves.
Our company is still a social impact venture. We are on a mission to help women advance in their careers. Break that gender stereotype. Ask for that salary, ask for that position and get that position. We're really designed and created for women.
• • •
Join The Tour & Get Your Free Guide Book!
Use this collection of 28 self reflection prompts and team activities. Each one is designed to support you in exploring empathy, and building a work culture in alignment with your values and vision.