Elizabeth is a digital brand and communications consultant who has worked across various industries over the last 12 years.
Alongside her fulltime job, Elizabeth founded the online community For Working Ladies and is also the host of How I Made It Happen, a podcast focused on giving advice from women in business. In 2019, she was named by The Dots UK as one of 100 women redefining the creative industry on International Women’s Day and named UK Ambassador of Women’s Entrepreneurship Day established by the UN.
Tell us a bit about yourself, background and your current role
My name is Elizabeth Ogabi, I’m an Author, podcast host of How I Made it Happen and an entrepreneur.
In 2016, I founded For Working Ladies to support women building their careers which has now pivoted to focus on women who are entrepreneurial and would like to start a business. I am also the co-founder and CEO of Leicour.com a private membership network focused on accelerating mid level women into leadership roles within organisations, with a huge emphasis on women of colour.
Did you ever sit down and plan your career?
From a young age I have always been very ambitious about what I want to achieve with my work, I have always focused on wanting to make change and being significant. I tried to plan as much as possible, but as usual with most careers, there were many pivots and surprises. One thing I knew for sure was that I would be working with women whether that would be mentoring or supporting them with their ventures. I’m young and there’s still so much more to achieve. I’m excited for what the future holds but I hope it is not another pandemic!
Have you faced any challenges along the way?
Who hasn’t? Looking back, I wouldn’t change a thing because it has made me who I am today and given me such a strong mission.
What has been your biggest achievement to date?
Starting For Working Ladies as a platform. It has brought about so many opportunities such as having the opportunity to write a book and connect with so many incredible women.
What one thing do you believe has been a major factor in you achieving success?
I’m not sure I’ve achieved the ‘success’ I want but I have been able to have some great achievements by being resilient and always asking for help from the right people. My biggest reward in my career has been meeting great people who have supported me.
How do you feel about mentoring? Have you mentored anyone or are you someone’s mentee?
Mentoring is a gamechanger, most of us don’t know what we are doing at times and having someone to be a guide and give support is so helpful. I am both a mentee and mentor and learn from both experiences. My advice is never to ask someone to be your mentor but to build a relationship with them and ask for advice if they give you room to do so.
If you could change one thing to accelerate the pace of change for Gender Equality, what would it be?
More access to opportunities of power and leadership for women of colour, I see change when it comes to Gender Equality. I see women in power but the women I see are not always representative of what our society looks like, we need to see a range of different women in power. Not only will this influence our perception of what leadership looks like but will inspire a whole generation of young women and girls rising up.
What is your next challenge and what are you hoping to achieve in the future?
I’ve just published my book Side Hustle in Progress and will also be focused on launching leicour.com over the next couple of months.
