Everyone that has children, will testify to how much their lives change after the birth of baby but one of the more unexpected changes is how they will feel about working and their job.
Returning to work after maternity or parental leave can be a big shock to the system. It’s still mainly Mum’s who are taking maternity leave and the options for flexible working can actually be fairly ‘inflexible’ from many employers or your role may significantly change with part time hours. Part time roles that pay enough to cover the fairly hefty cost of childcare that we’re presented with in Brighton and the South East are few and far between.
After your bundle of joy has descended chaos into your life, the job that you once loved and felt defined you, may just no longer excite you and at worst, there are thousands of people who hate or loathe their job but could never muster the conviction to do something about it.
Maternity leave gives you time to re-evaluate and so many parents are hit with the feeling that life is just too short!
One of main incentives driving the rise of Parentpreneurs is flexibility with working hours and location. Dealing with sick children and school holidays is a painful part of a working parent and having the pressure taken off at these time is a welcome relief. Many of the businesses that Parentpreneurs are launching are service based which means working from home slots in nicely with school hours. Coupled with the fact that many parents have had a very successful employment career and have built up a wealth of experience and invaluable skills from perhaps the corporate world that can easily be transferred into the world of self-employment.
My business was set up based on an experience that affected my family which ignited a passion to help other parents in a similar situation. I’m far from alone in this. You’ve once been your ideal customer and know exactly what’s needed to the help the people that are coming to you for your services.
With all the positives that our kiddiwinks bring to our lives, one of the big loses can be the spontaneity of life. Everything is planned and last minute decisions usually means stress. Losing the spontaneity makes you value ‘you’ time and you want to fill this time with things that excite you, make you happy, challenge you but also bring you tonnes of reward and satisfaction.
Spending plenty time with your family and having a job that you love and rewards you, might seem like an impossible dream but Parentpreneurs across the country are living this life every day and I’m one of them!