Running a business and bringing up children can be a perfect combination. In fact it’s such a great match that, as you can see from the infographic below, most mums of children aged under ten in the UK are either running their own business, or aspire to do so.
I am writing this after a commute of less than 2 minutes. I see my children off to school in the morning and have my afternoon tea-break with them when they return after three o’clock. A trip on the London underground on a hot, summer day last week reminded me of what I’m missing. No thanks to that! Those are the kinds of choices driving the rise of the mumpreneur. This way of working makes sense to me and lots of parents like me.
But it’s not all easy. While high-speed broadband and the cloud have dissolved many of the other reasons to travel to an office, online meetings still don’t match face-to-face. And social media still doesn’t match real chat. Networks and co-working groups like UK Jelly can help overcome isolation. And events like Global Entrepreneurship Week provide lots of opportunities to sharpen skills and share experiences with others in the same position. At the end of the day, it’s all down to us. For growing numbers of mums, that’s an attractive challenge.
The infographic here shows UK mums’ top 5 reasons for starting a business from home. How would you rank them? Share your thoughts and any tips for mums in business in the comments box below.
