JMGT_V4_N3_RP5 Raholanda White Journal on Management 2230 – 715X 4 3 65 72 Entrepreneurship, Women, Minorities, Business The 21 century has brought many opportunities as well as challenges for women and minorities. Research has revealed that women's participation in the entrepreneurial economy rose dramatically over the past three decades. One question to ask is why are women and minorities starting ventures and contributing substantially to the world economy, yet receiving small amounts of venture capital? Yet another question is why do women and minorities seem to face greater hurdles in growing their ventures, with or without equity investment. The purpose of this paper is to expound on five challenges women and minorities face as entrepreneurs in the twenty-first century. Although only five challenges are discussed in this article, they are certainly not limited to that number. The hurdles addressed are balancing life and work; access to capital; credit history and collateral issues; cultural differences; and drive, ambition, and motivation. December 2009 - February 2010 Copyright © 2010 i-manager publications. All rights reserved. i-manager Publications http://www.imanagerpublications.com/Article.aspx?ArticleId=1105