Image source: https://pixabay.com/photos/woman-computer-desk-baby-job-5551134/
By Leslie Campos
Whether you have decided to stay at home to be there for your children, or confined to your house due to COVID, you’re likely already used to juggling multiple responsibilities, worthy several impressive titles – carer, teacher, cleaner, cook, mediator, confidant. Quite likely you are also sharing the bread-winning, adding doing your work to the many jobs to juggle while at home. What ever your situation, have you thought about using your skillsets to create your own livelihood? Making you less prone to the whims of a boss and the employment market while at the same time allowing you to better manage when and how you spend time with your family.
I’d like to share five considerations that will help you get of the right food with your own venture.
Step 1: Brainstorm Your Passions and Skills
While making money and being there for your family may be one of your main motivations for starting a new business, let me tell you, this is not enough. To be able to sustain multiple responsibilities, joyfully, you really want to focus on something that lights your passion. Balancing work and family can be difficult at the best of times, so discovering a pursuit you are passionate about might even make your work a way to unwind and enjoy yourself, rather than adding onto to the stress of parenthood.
While you can always take a class or pick up a new hobby to turn into a business, you’re more likely to find success in a field you have prior expertise in. Think about your current skillset and brainstorm unique ways you can turn your assets into a product or service people want. Figure out where you energy is, where you get excited and motivated, then think about how and where you might turn this into a business.
Step 2: Let someone play devil’s advocate
Before you decide what to do and how to monetise it, find some people who have different skill sets and world views – don’t ask your best friend who agrees with you o everything!
Step 3: Explore Business Models
There are several different business models that fit well into a work-from-home environment. For instance, monetizing blogs is an effective business model to pursue from home. A report from Glassdoor shows bloggers make an average salary of about $50,000 a year. Yet of course, many many people write a blog, and few can turn it into a profitable business. But perhaps it could give you an idea to look at what successful bloggers focus on?
If you make handmade items, selling them online can be an effective way to make some money from home. While Etsy is probably the most popular e-commerce platform for this purpose, there are several other online websites. You can also create a website to sell your products – creating your own website has become really quite easy today.
Step 4: Choose Your Business Structure
Once you have an idea in place, you will need to choose a business structure. These include a sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation, S corporation, and a limited liability company (LLC). Or perhaps you might think about setting up a not-for-profit, an NGO? Each option has its own advantages and disadvantages, they have different pre-conditions and ongoing requirements. In my view there are several benefits of forming an LLC, including less paperwork and flexibility, which are very helpful as a busy mom. There are also tax advantages and protection from personal liability. Just make sure you file yourself or use a formation service to avoid having to pay legal fees. You should always check state regulations on forming your LLC so you don’t make any mistakes that you cost you later on. As Bettina (ILF) says, the most valuable decision for her was getting an accountant involved early on, pointing out that if anyone wanted to torture her, they would give her a form to fill in!
Step 5: Consider Other Obligations
With every step that you take closer to becoming a mompreneur, consider how your family fits into your new lifestyle. If anyone else will be involved in caring for your kids, such as a family member or spouse, create a care schedule to know how much time you’ll have to dedicate to your new business. You should also factor in the costs of getting professional help from a nanny or babysitter, as well as take the time to properly vet and interview them.
Think of unique ways you can involve your children in the process if possible, such as letting them help make handmade products. If you know there will be times where you need to work while also overseeing your kids, create a workspace that includes activities and comfortable spots for your children to hang out and play.
With the right strategy, you can successfully start a business while staying at home with your kids. Make sure to start your new endeavour off on the right foot and make time and space for your family as your business takes off.
Of course, if you’d like some help with getting your business of the ground, or taking it to the next level, Bettina will be delighted to help. you can reach her on bettina @ innovationleadershipforum.org.
Posted 22nd April 2021