While Silicon Valley’s male-dominated culture is in the spotlight now due to a gender discrimination lawsuit against Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, a session I attended at South by Southwest (SXSW) on Sunday made me believe the investment community is changing.

During the session, I heard stories and motivations from a panel of women who have created leading seed-stage funds, accelerator programs and startup communities. The women included Sara Brand, founder, True Wealth Innovations; Karen Griffith Gryga, managing partner, DreamIt Ventures; Shari Wynne Ressler, founder and president, SKU; and Reshma Sohoni, co-founder and partner, Seedcamp.

Gryga discussed DreamIt Athena, an accelerator she heads up that supports female founders as they forge forward in an industry typically run by men. She explained that there are several reasons women aren’t getting the capital and respect they deserve when pitching their businesses to male-dominated investors, including the following:

  • Lack of role models: “Women are relatively new to the entrepreneurial scene; we were only granted the right to a business credit in our own names in 1974,” Gryga said. “We need women CEOs, COOs, CMOs that we can interact with and guide us.”
  • Difficulty accessing capital: “It’s hard enough for an entrepreneur to raise money, but since most investors are men, it can be particularly difficult for female founders to tap this network,” Gryga said. “This is compounded by the fact that female entrepreneurs tend to start companies based on topics of interest to them. A lot of what interests women doesn’t interest male investors. Add in the tendency to work with and invest in people that look like you, and women have a difficult time accessing capital.”
  • The bravado gap: “Unlike men, females have an inclination to downplay their accomplishments,” Gryga said. “Research indicates that women have a tendency not to self-promote in comparison to men, even though they’re actually overperforming.”

So, what should women do to break the cycle and overcome these obstacles?

For one, Gryga said women have to learn what she calls the 60 percent rule — i.e., “instead of waiting until you know 100 percent of what’s required before pitching something, got for it when you’re at 60 percent.” She said the rule stems from a study she heard about where male and female college students studying science were asked to rate their own scientific skills on a scale of one to 10. The women in the study gave themselves a 6.5 on average, while the men scored themselves much higher.

“Be prepared and know your information, but feel comfortable discussing what you might not know,” Gryga said “You don’t need to spend three hours reviewing everything the night before, which women have a natural tendency to do. Know what you know and present it well.”

Gryga also said that women should work with accelerators and incubators that understand women, such as Golden Seeds, Female Founders Fund, 37 Angels and Cowboy Ventures.

“These funds have women at their helm, understand women entrepreneurs, and believe that investing in exceptional women leads to exponential returns,” Gryga said.