Entrepreneur Journey · LGBTQ Success Syndicate

Entrepreneur Journey

I found myself clicking through a new member's website and discovered that their business is NGLCC Certified LGBT Business Enterprise (LGBTBE) — which is a truly remarkable milestone. I’m currently in the middle of putting in my own application for LGBTBE certification through the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC), which has been an unexpected but awesome journey so far. (nglcc.org)

I also wanted to highlight this for anyone here who might be interested in becoming certified as a queer-owned business and didn’t know this pathway existed — because I definitely didn’t until recently.

I’ll be honest — there was a part of me that did hesitate about being openly LGBTQ-owned in a field like healthcare, especially as a newer business. But then I was like, “If someone is turned off by that, they’re probably not someone I’d enjoy working with anyway,” and honestly, it probably filters out the exact people I’d hate collaborating with… so win-win. I'm curious what other people's experiences are with this.

For folks who are certified or further along in your journey: what else am I missing? Other certifications, networks, resources, or opportunities that actually made a difference for you? I’d love to hear what’s been useful in your experience.

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