If you are among the growing number of women taking the bold career leap into self-employment, today’s messages of female empowerment will surely have not gone amiss. For those who missed the memo, this year’s theme is #balanceisbetter. The underlying sentiment of gender equality is an important one, there’s no denying, but there is another form of ‘balance’ which we think is just as important to the realisation of female business potential. This balance is one of communication: more specifically, the ratio of digital communication, versus actual, real life face-to-face conversation. Over-reliance on the former means that women at various stages of entrepreneurship are missing out on the opportunities for support, inspiration and networking which derive from bypassing cyberspace, and putting your heads together... even if only once in a while. Yes, FACE (to face) VALUE is real...and under-utilised! Whether it’s coffee with an old friend, or lunch with a new acquaintance, it is possible to build more rapport in just half an hour than it is in months/years of emails and phone calls. It’s this collaborative environment that helps to make up some of gaps in know-how, opportunities and confidence that arise when starting, building or running a solo enterprise. . This a challenge that the country’s 1.5 million self-employed women probably know too well, especially the 1 in 10 who @notonthehighstreet found to be juggling four extra enterprises!! If we’re right in thinking that swapping emails for coffee dates can support the steep learning curve to entrepreneurship, whether emotionally or practically, then it’s a small but important step towards the £60bn boost that @royalbank believe female entrepreneurship could potentially add to the UK economy. Coffee anyone?? 📸 The #ladies in charge of @lolaandthebutterflies and @healthy_magazine - not emailing, but TALKING instead.