I have written before about flexible working and how 2017 seems to be the year that people are really starting to take notice and I believe policy will change. For lots of people (not just parents) this is brilliant news. To return to your career / job in a more flexible way is what lots of people aspire to.
What I am really passionate about is entrepreneurs and small business owners who see motherhood as an opportunity to start up their own business and do something that love on their terms.
I am not going to pretend that having your own business is easy, I have had times when I have been working very late or very early to get everything done and I have felt lonely being a solopreneur on my own all day.
The loneliness has been abated by the fact that I now have a team of three people who work for me in various ways and I have made sure my schedule includes time every day when I interact with others (who aren’t my clients) which could be networking, coffees, virtual coffees or gym dates.
I understand that by working for myself I have to be stricter about what I will and won’t do – there are lines in the sand that I needed to draw and when I have that is good.
I remember early on saying “yes” to everything and finding I didn’t have time to do my work and I was spending more time travelling that when I was commuting!
My time is very precious to me (because it means time away from my kids) and I am now a lot happier to say no as I am clear about my purpose and priorities. I have learnt the art of saying no to things that don’t align with what I want to do or that don’t work with my time commitments.
I have also recently realised that I need time off and want time with my kids but I don’t need days off. I like to do something for my business every single day – this might just be half an hour writing a blog post or an hour with a client.
I love the freedom you have from having your own business, yes you do have more responsibility and that financial responsibility can be bloody scary when you are starting up. But, like anything in life with responsibility comes independence.
One of my best resources is an accountant and really getting my head around finances. This means I know exactly where I am with my business.
People think a service level business is a more risk-free way of setting up and in many ways it is but I invested heavily (£25,000 +) in training and self- development for years before I even started my business. I did this because I believe that lifelong learning is the key to self-development. I am excited to be attending Brendon Burchard’s high performance academy later this year.
I have now built up a business that works around my children and gives me the flexibility to choose what I want to do. I have discovered that I have an entrepreneurial spirit which I never used to pursue due to lack of confidence and am now launching a second business and working on a partnership program.
I am so lucky to be in the position where I can do something that I love and it is my passion to help others do the same. I find my clients inspiring and am energised by their success – they have built profitable businesses in a matter of months across different sectors.
