Join us to build real connections and network with fellow female entrepreneurs in New England at Venture Café. We’re pleased to host our quarterly Female Founder Meetup and psyched for this week’s program!

That’s What She Said:
How Self-Sabotage, Imposter Syndrome and Gender Bias
Derail Your pitch, and What To Do About It

Chief Storyteller:  It’s the most important role inside of a early stage company…and if you’re the founder, it belongs to YOU. The story you tell yourself, your team members, your investors—everyone—will make or break your business.  For women founders, this task is complicated by well-documented bias in startup culture, especially among investors. But this dynamic runs deeper than that, with gender bias impacting how women talk about their strengths, weaknesses and plans from a very early age. There’s hope!

With a combination of awareness, practice and support, women founders can overcome these obstacles, become more effective storytellers, and push back against gender bias. Hear from Melissa Withers, an experienced fund manager and business builder, to talk about the ways that misogyny—hostile and passive—wreaks havoc on how women talk about their companies and discuss techniques to overcome. 

About the presenter:

Melissa Withers is Founding Partner of RevUp Capital, a non-equity investment fund for B2B and B2C companies that are moving fast up a revenue-fueled growth curve. An experienced fund manager and biz builder with 100+ investments under management, With a background in customer experience / customer development, go-to-market strategy, and company storytelling, she began her career at the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research at MIT, working the intersection of biological sciences and public policy, before starting her own entrepreneurial journey as a founder. She’s also worked in state economic development and youth advocacy, and is a strong advocate for closing the diversity gap in technology and investment.