Ever thought that you would like to have a family but are scared (if you look at the above video you might just be scared!) about giving up your professional job and all the perks that go with it? It is true that many new mothers decide to stop working outside of the home after giving birth or fathers decide to become stay at home dads. I am a huge advocate of combining family and work through entrepreneurship or can we say parentpreneurship. Nobody has statistics on how many mompreneurs or dadpreneurs are out there in the US today but we do know that the trend is on the rise and it is not going away.
Many women and men have discovered flexibility and balance in the world of entrepreneurship- and more and more moms and dads are deciding to work from home to be able to be the primary care takers of their children and also bring home the bacon.
Are you cut out to be a mompreneur or a dadpreneur? Some important traits to look for are determination, flexibility, passion, patience, ability to multi task and be a whiz at managing time. For example , when the babies are napping (you know exactly for that 1.5 hours) you can decide to clean the kitchen, exercise or park yourself down at that computer! There is always give and take- for example you have to give up a clean kitchen -to be able to work on a chapter. You have to know where you want to prioritize.
Clear advantages to mom and dadpreneurship are flexibility to create your own schedule, added income and the satisfaction in working while knowing that the kids are in your care.
Frustrations include when work and family collide, mainly by not getting support (kid coverage!) to be able to work during your designated work times. Having to miss either a work or a family priority on occasion is par for the course.
Unfortunately there is no one magic formula to balance lifestyle- as families are different so are the systems entrepreneurs as parents set up to be able accomplish their goals and support their values.There is no wrong or right way but what suits you and your family. Personally, I have never regretted being there for my family while also having the luxury of being a working professional. Despite some rare days I would not want to ever repeat- I can tell you from the bottom of my heart-I wouldn’t change a thing.
