Should I be a Mum in Business?

 

Hello and welcome and what a difficult question to address in my first blog! Unfortunately the only person that can answer it is you but there are a few things that you need to take into consideration before you begin to look into the finer details of setting up a business. Before I start this is me:

 

What type of business are you considering?

 

There are so many ways to begin a business but the most important thing for you is to make sure your business incorporates your passion. Without the passion behind the business you run the risk of struggling to stay motivated and becoming bored. We only live once so we might as well enjoy what we do!

 

Will the business be a side hustle, full time or part time?

 

Some businesses need to be full time in order to work. For example, many couldn’t afford to open a shop and only work in it three days a week to start with. A small business usually has limited funds and employing staff to open the remaining days may not be cost effective in the beginning.

 

If its a side hustle you are after it may be something that you can run from home like a small craft business, something which is computer based or a network marketing business. The beauty of network marketing is that you can chose the hours that you put into it and much of the admin and setting up is very straight forward but it does need to build up and you couldn’t rely on it being a full time business straight away. I have two businesses and run a salon which I set up from scratch, with my husband 12 years ago, and also a network marketing business which I started as a side hustle and now run full time. Our salon was set up for my husband to work in full time and I just managed the admin from home. At the time of set up we wanted something for him to run and receive a main income from and I wanted minimal input as I was working as a full time teacher. A few years down the line, with children now in the picture our situation changed. Our daughter has cerebral palsy and I was suffering with Crohns disease and having a hard time keeping up with full time work, attending my daughters appointments, my appointments and also days that I was having to take off ill. The decision was made for me to stop working and look at something that I could do from home… along came The Body Shop at Home which allowed us an extra income with flexibility. This became so much more but time to tell that tale another day.

 

As with anything there are pros and cons to each business type and the key to success is lots of research before hand. It may be boring, it may not be what you want to focus on now but it really is important.

 

Start up costs.

 

This is a huge factor in deciding what business to begin for most of us. Setting up a shop, office or any other business that needs a premise is going to have higher start up costs than a work from home business. This does not make it easier or harder, it simply needs a bigger budget so finances may need to be carefully considered. What other outgoings will you have? Insurance, rent, rates, salaries, communications, licenses, equipment, furniture … the list goes on and on.

 

Working from home can often be a good way to start your business and get you name out there before moving into a fixed premises. Obviously this is not always possible but can be a good start for some. My next door neighbour has the goal of opening his own bike shop but while he is saving up he has set up online from his garage and posts out to his customers. His reach is growing and with the global pandemic it has been a successful start for him. He hopes to grow further and have his own shop open by the end of 2021.

 

Your children

 

They really are our focus, they are usually our ‘why’ and they are the centre of our universe (even when they are tearing each other apart). Are you physically able to spend time away from them to work on your business? Do you have childcare support or can you afford to put them into childcare? My two are now at school but I know that as a baby I would have found it very difficult to get time away from Seren and she was more demanding than Kerem. By the time she went to bed I was really tired. As she grew this settled and now she is at school and becoming more independent I can work around our lifestyle. I don’t say this to put anyone off or be negative. Some people are so determined and will find a way to make it work but I do think it is necessary to be realistic and look at the reality of our situation.

 

Biggest Tip

 

My biggest tip for you would be to put the passion aside (for a very short minute) and think realistically by creating a business plan. Get it all down on paper so that you can make an informed decision. Starting a business is a HUGE thing to do but could be one of the best things that you ever do. Flexibility and being our own boss can make our family life so much easier and allow us to LOVE living our lives.

 

Please feel free to contact me if you would like any advise or to ask any questions. I have so much information and can point you in the direction for the correct support.

 

I hope this has helped and please note that I have only touched the tip of the iceberg in this blog but I hope it gives you some starting points to think about.