This paper tells the story of how a group of women in a Lake Victoria fishing community in Tanzania addressed the poverty status of their community through their agency and social entrepreneurship and, by doing so, also their subordination relative to men. Their efforts to improve their situation in the community landed them in men’s traditional space. In order to occupy that space without stirring antagonism, it was crucial that the women apply their practical, cultural, and relational skills in a way that did not jeopardize men’s cultural roles and sense of worth. The paper argues that women’s entrepreneurship is circumscribed by social relationships that do not work in their favour. Thus, to become change agents in an economic sense, they also need to be change agents in a social relational sense. The paper also illustrates how Aristotle’s concept of phronesis – practical wisdom or prudence – is useful for understanding what poverty alleviation and social entrepreneurship require