By Preston L. James, II

Just 14 days ago, we had a remarkable evening event at Champions of Change Awards with about 250 people at Austin City Hall. And now, the city, the state, the country and the world is on a serious lockdown due to COVID-19 virus! 2 weeks ago the US economy was soaring to new heights and today, those gains made over the last 3 years have already been wiped out. Predictions of an economic recession or depression are rampant. There are reports that unemployment, which was at an all time low , may sky rocket to an all time high! How quickly things have changed and continue to change on a daily basis. 

What I know is that no matter what, we all have to be in this together! I do mean all of us looking out for all of us. Though I’m supposed to be on spring break with family, I’m constantly thinking of the devastating impact this virus could have on our communities all over the world. I could go through a long list but at this moment I’m thinking of the many folks who are struggling to make ends meet and those who are going to struggle to meet ends meet if they lose their jobs. I also think about the millions of small business owners who are staring at a reality that they may have to close their doors. 

Entrepreneurship is the key to any strong economy! We must remember not to bail on our entrepreneurs! This is a time to get behind entrepreneurs to help keep them going. It’s also a time to prepare for a new wave of entrepreneurship as a result of anticipated increase in unemployment. There will be innovative/opportunity entrepreneurship as people looking to address issues they are experiencing for the very first time due to COVID-19. There will be those who will look to start a business just to get food on the table for families. These entrepreneurs will need support to help them be successful. For our economy to be resilient and experience recovery we need to have parity in entrepreneurship, especially for women and underrepresented entrepreneurs, now more than ever. 

We, at DivInc, want to continue to inspire and support our entrepreneurs through the toughest of times. They need our help and we can help them get over the critical obstacles to success. Let’s work together to provide broad support for all entrepreneurs everywhere to be the best they can be. Now is one of the times where we all need to be in together.  What can we do right now? 

Here is a very small sampling of the many awesome underrepresented and women entrepreneurs who could use our support : 

• Donate/Sponsor/Sew Masks for Health Providers like BB Imaging, http://www.bbimaging.net/
• Therapists provide free TeleHeath to families by My Kid Blooms, https://www.mykidblooms.com/ 
• Looking for successful food gardening?  Sign up with Gardenio, https://growgardenio.com/
• Need a gig? Go to Hire Kanna for Cannibis gigs, https://www.hirekanna.com/
• Looking for remote tech workers? Try CodersLink, https://coderslink.com/
• Keep your Pre-K learning with school out?  Check out DisruptED, https://disruptedx.com/

Join DivInc to mindfully and intentionally support our entrepreneurs during these challenging times. https://www.divinc.org/contact

More about DivInc:

If doing the right thing and equity for all is not enough of a ‘why’ for DivInc to exist, consider the economic and social impact to our nation. With projections of the U.S. becoming a “minority majority” nation by 2045(1), and the clarity that we are becoming more diverse each year(2), we must come together to ensure our currently marginalized communities have the education, access, and capital needed to participate in a global economy. Otherwise, the U.S. is destined to repeat the mistakes of other struggling countries.

DivInc is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization with a mission to bridge the gap between underrepresented founders and the resources they need to build high-growth, profitable companies and even the playing field in the tech startup ecosystem to bolster the future of the U.S. social and economic well-being.

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