Take the risk! That is what I tell someone when they ask if they should start their own business. The people I encourage are other stay-at-home moms who have put their careers on hold to be at home with their children. Many of them including myself have our youngest in preschool or Kindergarten and we are ready to begin growing professionally but are not ready to commit full-time to an employer.



One of the biggest risks I took was quitting my job as a Senior Buyer for Hewlett Packard after my son was born. I had worked very hard to achieve that position and it was very risky to give up that income as well. I also knew that I wanted to be at home with him and that risk has been by far the scariest and best risk I’ve ever taken. When my youngest started preschool last year I was ready to take another risk of finding a career that offered me flexibility to be with my family, bring in an income and grow professionally. I took the risk of starting my own business.

Risk taking is something that you have to do in order to start a business. You have to risk money, time with your family, making sales calls, but all these risks are worth it when you get your first sale! In order to grow in life, you have to take risks and beginning your career again after having children is just another time to take that risk. I always encourage moms who want to develop their career skill set to try their hand at running their own business. I figure it can’t hurt to have on your resume that you weren’t only the CEO of the house but the owner of your own business. It means you are a self-motivator, willing to take risks, good at time management and many other skills sets that come with being a business owner. These are all great skills to develop and to present to potential employers if you decided to join the work force. You may also not need to work for someone else if your business takes off!

I’ve found that risk taking also has helped me figure out what I enjoy doing professionally and where I need to grow. As your business grows you can afford to outsource parts of the business that you don’t enjoy and than focus on fine tuning your other skills that you do enjoy. Being a work-at-home-mother entrepreneur isn’t just about taking a risk, it’s also about figuring out the balance of being a mother, wife and career woman. Take the risk and most importantly have fun!