The short answer: Because you want to!
You may not need much more than that. But in case you do, I’ll briefly walk you through the financial, practical, and professional reasons to open your own small business.
The Financial Case for Starting Your Own Business
Women start their careers behind the eight ball from a financial standpoint. You have probably heard about the wage gap. But have you heard about the wealth gap? Wealth is the accumulation of assets. They are intricately connected. If you can’t earn a decent wage then you can not accumulate wealth.
Let’s start with the wage gap.
It is commonly stated that women make 80 percent of what men make. However, that is not the full story. It’s more of an average.
Here is the actual data of what women earn compared to their male counterparts:
- Asian American/ Pacific Islander 85%
- White/Non Hispanic 79%
- Black 63%
- Native American 60%
- Latina 57%
Moms have their own special wage gap:
Yep, you read that right, with the exception of Asian American women, the rest of us lose even more money once we become moms. This is the exact time we need a higher income.
What moms earn compare to their male counterparts (regardless of their paternal status):
- Asian American/ Pacific Islander 90%
- White/ Non-Hispanic 71%
- Black 52%
- Native American 50%
- Latina 46%
Source: http://www.equalpaytoday.org/overview-2021
I can’t guarantee your income as a small business owner will be greater than your current income, but at lease you will be in control of it.
Can you retire comfortably?
The ultimate goal of wealth (accumulation of assets) is to retire in the manner you desire. A secondary goal is to enjoy life now. What is important to you? Travel? Private school for your kids? Simply being able to be home more with your family?
Regardless, you can not accumulate the wealth to meet those goals if you are not earning high enough wages.
Are you earning enough from your employer to accumulate the wealth you want and need to meet your retirement and present day goals?
The Practical Case
Over 1 million women left the workforce during Covid. Do you know why? Because homeschooling children and managing a career was untenable. Obviously, it takes some privilege to leave your job. That being said, wouldn’t it be great to have a career that flowed with your life, not the other way around?
How do you picture parenting? Do you want to be the mom who chaperones school field trips? Perhaps, walking your kids to school is important to you? I know a mom who spends 6 weeks in Hawaii every summer with her family. It may be as simple as having more space and time to do the basics of life while working and parenting. Personally, I was never someone who could have everyone packed in the car by 7am to get to the office by 8:00am. I needed more time in the morning and liked letting my kids ease into their day.
Does your current employment situation support the kind of parenting you want to be doing? Can you attend to your needs and wants while parenting in your current job? If the answer is no to either of those questions, then you may want to consider starting your own small business. Of course, you will still have work-life conflicts, however you will have more flexibility and ultimately be in charge of your time.
The Professional Case
What are your professional aspirations? Is it to write a book? Spend more time interfacing with clients? Perhaps you would rather hold an administrative role. You might even have interests that lay outside of your actual job. Starting your own small business could potentially link them. Here is an example. Anna is a hair stylist. She also has a passion for social justice. By having her own salon and renting out 2 chairs to other stylists, she frees up 5 hours of her own time per week to join an organization aligned with her views. Anna can now really sink her teeth into volunteer work that is meaningful to her, without compromising her income.
Starting a small business may make financial, practical, and professional sense for you.
Are you interested in exploring this more? Come work with me. Learn more about my individual services here.
Ready to start your own small business? Reach out now!