When we think about entrepreneurs people like Alan Sugar or Richard Branson might come to mind. But all over the country there are entrepreneurs in starting a business at their kitchen table or mixing potions in the garage. Mum balancing a baby on one knee and a laptop on the other as all these self employed people try and bring their dreams to reality.
I spent over a decade in big business and in the past 8 years I’ve gone it alone and built my own business. In terms of the work and the reward it’s by many ways easier to get a wage each month and got to an evening class to exercise your creativity. It can be lonely and hard as you are figuring out how to pay the rent.
There is a decline in business start ups for a number of reasons. A decline in populations numbers, a generation that is in general risk adverse, and an increasingly difficult market as big brands dominate small towns and the internet.
However, despite all this there is one thing that a stable job will never give you. Freedom. You have an independence that you will never have being employed. You have the space to make the business fit into your life ow you want to. Doing the bulk of the work when the kids are in bed allows many mums to be able to go it alone and work.
I started this business 8 years ago and it has evolved and changed as things in my life have. I started it when I was child free and then three children under 2 years old later I’m coming out the other end with a job that I still love.
Rural Ireland needs entrepreneurs to keep it busy and boost employment but in order to do that we need to make it easier. 75% more females than males said the primary motivation for starting a business was to be able to work from home. However, the supports for childcare are sadly lacking that of many European countries.
We have to try and rid ourselves of the unconscious bias that inhibits women from starting out. Entrepreneurs often sail a bit close to the wind but research in the Journal of of Personality and Social Psychology, highlighted some fundamental issues.
“Our study found that consumers’ trust in, and willingness to support, an organization after a failure varied based on the gender of the organization’s leader and the type of incident,” the researchers explain. “Women incur greater penalties for ethical transgressions because of persistent gender stereotypes that tend to categorize women as having more communal traits than men, such as being more likable, sensitive and supportive of others. Even in leadership settings, women are still expected to be more communal than their male counterparts.”
And when it come to the workload of starting a new business the hours and time commitment are huge. Society is far more accepting of men putting in the super long hours often required in a startup than we are of women, especially if children are involved.
Entrepreneurship is often a passion but it is also a necessity. In rural locations finding employment elsewhere isn’t possible. We need to encourage people, especially women, to take that leap of faith and ensure that there are people there to help them fly.