The Top 5 Things I Love About Owning a Business

I've fallen HARD in love with owning my own business over the past month. I've always really liked owning a boutique and I adore my customers, but there's been an enormous shift in my mindset since the kids all left for college. Now that I'm an empty nester and my business can be my primary focus every day, it's a total head-over-heels love affair! I always get questions about owning a business, so let me tell you why I love it so much! It's not always happy, happy so I'll add the downfalls in a separate post.

Top 5 Things I Love About Owning a Business

1. Flexibility

My first priority has always been my kids and, when I started my boutique, it gave me the flexibility to work from home. My two youngest kids were in middle school and high school when I started and it was very important to me that I was available to them while I was also bringing in an income to pay for college for my oldest. One of my daughters also had some health issues so it was vital to me that I was able to be there for her when I needed to. 

 

2. Be My Own Boss

 

I was 48 when I started my boutique and I had had multiple careers. I was old enough to know that I wanted to be my own boss and call the shots.

>>> I was also confident enough to know that I needed to learn new things and confident enough to know that I could teach myself anything that I needed to learn. <<<

I had been in positions where I KNEW what was best for the company and had to sit back and watch someone make the wrong decision. It's an awful feeling and I never wanted to deal with that again. 

 

3. Support Other Women

 

One of the first things that drew me to a clothing boutique was that it was size inclusive. I LOVED being able to serve women of all sizes in the same way! I had always been either borderline plus-size or plus-size and I knew how humiliating it was to have to go to the "other" section of the store while my mom or my daughters shopped the "regular" section. I wanted better for all women! And I realized that I could help the community by holding fundraisers. I could make a difference!

 

4. Build Something

 

I loved the idea of building a business and being completely responsible for how it was built! I had total control over all decisions and I could choose who to surround myself with! Plus, my kids were watching! They had seen me choose other careers and then leave them and I wanted them to see me build something from the ground up and enjoy it!

 

5. Be Creative & Have Fun

 

In 2004, I discovered scrapbooking and fell in love with the creative side of myself that I had never known existed! That was quickly followed by a love of photography, digital design, quilting, and crochet. Being creative became a huge part of who I was and it filled me up like nothing else. Working with clothes, making outfits, playing with patterns, and choosing accessories all filled the creative side of me! Work was fun!

 

>>> Work was fun! That was HUGE! <<<

 

If you've ever thought of owning your own business or you already do, let me know! I'd love to chat about it and I'd love to know what draws you to it!