I know what it’s like to defy the odds to set up my business in a male-dominated industry. Having fled my homeland of Ukraine following the Russian invasion in spring 2022, I relocated to Riga, Latvia and immediately established FYST to solve the challenges facing e-commerce businesses in accessing global payment methods.

Building a brand new fintech business requires a lot of resilience in the face of adversity, and this is especially true for women. I’ve learned that self-confidence is crucial. One of my favorite quotes is, “Opportunity does not knock; it presents itself when you beat down the door.” If you don’t believe in yourself and what you are capable of, you can’t expect anyone else to buy into your vision either.

You can’t just sit around and wait to be noticed, just as you shouldn’t wait for life’s great opportunities to knock on your door. In order to manage your life and yourself, you need to take full responsibility. In my case, I was young and ambitious, I love challenges, and I purposefully amassed the skills and experience to deal with them. Women should not be afraid of tackling new challenges, however complex they may be. Skills can be learned along the way and experience can be gained – but if you never take that first step, you’ll never know what you’re capable of.

A really important aspect that can be applied to any tech-orientated retailer or e-commerce business is understanding how to use software to meet customer needs or to improve business processes. Female entrepreneurs and leaders should strive to dive deep into their customer’s pain points, and take the time to understand what problems they’re trying to solve. When developing the solution, selecting the right team around you can make the difference between success or failure. Don’t make the mistake of thinking you have to do everything yourself — recognize where your skills or knowledge may be limited and recruit the right people to fill those gaps.

Women in business can sometimes be afraid of appearing to be too competitive or aggressive. Everyone in business needs to compete with others, and at times there will be lots of pressure to deal with, but don’t let emotions cloud your decision-making. At the same time, being too hesitant and not competitive enough can mean you miss out on opportunities. It’s important to demonstrate strategic thinking; sadly, in my experience I’ve found that men rarely expect this from women in business. To do this, you need to clearly visualize how each decision will affect any future outcome.

For me, strategic thinking can be visualized as a technical mechanism that controls and influences the entire system — what influences A, what interacts with B, what links C, and so on. Having visibility over that plan is essential if you are to understand the connections between people and their roles in bringing everything together for a desired outcome. The most important thing you can do as a leader is listen. Ask your team leading questions to clarify understanding of the task or project, and have them visualize and vocalize what the finished picture should look like.

I believe that women make the fiercest competitors in business — we are more systematic and thoughtful, diplomatic and purposeful. I also believe in the power of being able to “read” people. I have been practicing this for many years, and in my opinion, this is one of the most important skills for women to have.

But there’s no denying that women must work harder to be recognized, and to make their voices heard over those trying to speak over them. That’s why I believe it’s so important for women in business to support each other. I’m grateful to those who gave me opportunities, believed in me, saw my potential and mentored me. That’s why I want to pay it forward and become a source of support for other women in fintech and e-commerce.

For women to thrive in business, they need to ask themselves honest questions, understand what it is they want, and form a strategic plan to get there — otherwise they’ll end up working to meet other people’s goals. We all have our own specific path — so you need to be fair with yourself and crucially, understand exactly what motivates you.

I believe that if I can influence those who need it — people who are looking for opportunities, looking for answers to their questions, who are drawn to development — then maybe someday, they can go onto positively influence somebody else’s life too.