have you started your own business?

[greenmamato2]

We are struggling financially right now, making about 1/3 what we were making a year and a half ago (hubby's contract ended with the military and it is difficult to find a job that pays as much as he made before, in the civilian world). 

That said, I am thinking about starting up my own business.  I know it won't be making $ for a while - it isn't my first time starting a new business. In fact, this is a spin off of another business I once had as a wedding and family photographer throughout Oklahoma and Texas. The road I am thinking about going down with this won't require a lot of start up costs, but it will require a lot of hard work from me to get it going.  Eventually I think it will be a very lucrative trade - it just requires leg work, and patience.  It will work a lot better with my family's schedule than what I was doing before, and should hopefully pay as well, or better over time. 

Have any of you started your own business to help your family's finances?  I'm just looking for some support, I guess, and would love to hear your stories as well. :)

[SunRise]

It sounds like a great idea. If there is not much start up, Is it something you can just start doing (work wise), and then put together the business plan and other legal things later, as things pick up.  I have started a business (it was the main source of income for family though) and know (remember) some of the things one needs to do for a start up. Are you looking for that kind of insight?

Edited by SunRise - 3/14/12 at 8:38am

[SweetSilver]

I am self-employed-- I hesitate to say I "started my own business".  I have no business plan, just a license and a car.  So far I haven't had to advertise, but my work needs are not high.  My husband is a self-employed gardener.  In some ways, I love working for myself.  My hourly pay is higher, schedules more flexible.  We homeschool.  I can bring my girls to work with me and they can actually earn some money with real, meaningful work.  

The flip side of this is that we cannot afford health insurance.  The girls are on DSHS, but we do not qualify for state-subsidized care anymore, and right at this moment even catastrophic care is beyond out reach.  Sometimes I just want to go get a job somewhere, but the drive and the hours would be onerous, and I always end up asking myself if my absence would be worth the job.  

[Christine08]

Go for it! My husband and I have both been self-employed for the last five years. We started our business together in 2006 and I had another small side business that I began in 2007. I let mine go after having 2 babies 2 years apart because the other business ended up doing well. We are extremely grateful. I honestly feel that in the economy we are living in today that we have more control over our work and lives when we work for ourselves. I saw how frustrated my husband was working for others, so naively I said "go into business for yourself....how hard could it be?" It is easy to laugh now, but I still believe that the freedom you can have with owning your own business is worth it. Owning your own business and managing it along with doing the work can be very demanding, but I wouldn't give it up for anything! Plus, I think it sets an excellent example to our kids who will hopefully learn a very solid work ethic.

[greenmamato2]

Thank you so much for the encouragement and insight, everyone!  I am so happy to hear that some of you have gone down another road with your careers independently as well.  

What I'm hoping to do really won't start paying for a while, but the business plan includes that as a part of the process.  As with most things you have to prove you're worth paying for. ;)  I know it will work out eventually if I really apply myself now, and I've seen others successfully do what I am hoping to do in a slightly different way in other areas.  

I'm still on the fence about it because I know it will be a LOT of work, and I JUST found out I'm expecting a baby.  On the other side of things, it is a great progression for me in my career, doing what I'd really like to do with photography, and if I am going to do it anytime soon, I should probably use the time that I'm pregnant to put in the leg work, since I may not have time to do as much of the base-building after the baby is born.