Entrepreneur Wannabe: The Story of My Entrepreneurial Journey

Since I became a mom, I always wanted to stay at home and be with my children. But it was also important to me to contribute to the family income. So I decided when my son was born to discover work I could do from home, and get paid for it. The following is a description of the many entrepreneurial ventures I have tried...some successfully, and some not so successfully!

Home Daycare:( 1991 - 1994)

My average earnings annually: $13,000

My first child was born in May, 1991, and at his birth, I left my job determined to make money from home so I could be with him daily. I wanted to have a few months alone with him, just he and I every day first, so I didn't start my home daycare until he was 6 months old. I had to pay a $10 licensing fee, then get approved by the state of Connecticut, which included a visit by a state daycare worker. This resulted in a list of items that needed to be changed in my home, such as wooden radiator covers needed to be fitted onto the metal radiators in my 40 year old home. And outside, I needed a fence so the children could play in an enclosed area. As soon as those items were taking care of, I launched, "Little Lambs Christian Family Daycare." I was afraid the Christian label in the title of my business would turn people off, but never the less wanted the freedom to incorporate grace before meals, read bible stories to the children, and have Christian values be part of our daily lives. I needn't have worried...once I got started, I always had a waiting list and I never had to advertise. I was never full by state standards, but had between 3 and 5 children in my care each day, so that I could give each child more individual attention. I had a routine that the kids and I followed every day, and we went on once weekly field trips to get out of the house. I loved doing daycare, but when my son was 2 I had a miscarriage which was devastating, so decided I needed to focus on my own family. I continued daycare till I got pregnant with twins, and had to start bed rest at 5 months.

Although I thought I would go back to daycare once the twins were a few months old...I found out having twins and a 3 year old was already like having my own private daycare, so tried to figure out another business to do at home which led to...

The Joyful Heart ( 1994 - 1997)

My average earnings annually: Broke even

I discovered the joy of making crafts when a friend taught me how to make dried flower creations. From there, I added clay pins out of Sculpey Clay, and worked on them when the kids were napping, or at night when they were in bed. I sold my creations at an annual craft show my friend and I started doing each Christmas, and I would do 3 or 4 craft shows throughout the year. Although I loved creating things, by the time I lugged my wares to shows, paid the entrance fee, and sat there all day hoping people would buy my creations, the money just wasn't there, so I just about broke even.

Someone at this time taught me how to save money using coupons and I started teaching friends and family how to do this, which led to teaching coupon classes, and

The Coupon Lady ( 1997 - 2004)

Average earnings Annually $1,000

I started teaching classes on how to save money with coupons in a grocery store, social service agencies, schools, and churches. I added classes refunding, and making your child feel special. I LOVED doing this because people, most of whom were moms, were so grateful to learn how to save. Some moms saved so much, they decided they didn't need to go out and get a part time job because they saved so much money from their budget by coupon shopping.

I met the owner of a grocery store through this business, and although I loved what I was doing, he offered me a position that he created just for me, entitled...

Consumer Advocate ( 1999 - 2005)

My Average Earnings: $15,000 annually

This meant I would interface with customers at his new grocery store and ask what the owner could do to improve the store. I wrote up weekly reports offering customer feedback. I was also able to interface with many non profit and social service groups and developed programs in which the store helped them. I became a whiz at marketing and promoting the store owner, and booked him on local radio and TV shows, and sent press releases that got him free press in local newspapers.

While I was working as Consumer Advocate, I also continued to teach classes as The Coupon Lady, and started writing a national newsletter for frugal moms. I needed some samples for a Mother's Day Promotion, so signed up as an Avon Rep for what was suppsoed to be a short period, so I could purchase inexpensive samples. That led to...

The Avon Lady ( 2003 - 2010)

My average earnings: $4,500 annually

Avon started to go crazy and the catalogs sold the items for me. before I knew it, I had $250 - $400 orders every 2 weeks, and my manager suggested I start recruiting so not only was I an Avon Rep, but Unit Leader as well. At my high point, I had 52 reps signed onto my team and was making bonus checks based on their sales, as well as earning from my own sales. After awhile, I realized that while I loved the recruiting and training part of Avon, and being a team leader, I really didn't like the selling part of Avon. I love Avon products, but am not so fond of having to pack up individual orders, set up delivery times, and collect the money.

In 2005 I went through a divorce, and now had to get a full time job so I could get health benefits. I got a job at a school, so I had summers and school vacation off, so kept at the entrepreneurial ventures to bring in extra money.

Silpada Representative ( 2008 and 2009) My Average Earnings: Free Jewelry

After the divorce, I decided I wanted something special for myself and thought I would give Siplada Jewelry a try. My initial idea was to do this to get a discount on the jewelry which I love but is expensive. I bought my kit at 50% off the catalog price for anything i wanted. Then I would earn money on parties, and get 30% discounts on the jewelry. Once I started doing a few parties, I realized I could make some money with Silpada, so for about 6 months decided to try it as an official business. Calling people to ask them to have parties in which their friends were expected to come spend money, in such a bad economy, was hard for me. Some hostesses would book a party, then cancel because none of their friends wanted to come because they had no extra money to spend.

Macaroni Kid Newsletter ( 2011)

My Average earnings: Lost Money

Macaroni Kid is a franchise newsletter where local moms can sign up to be Publisher Moms and list all the local events going on in their towns for children and families. Parents can sign up to receive this email newsletter for free. The Publisher Mom is charged a monthly fee ( normally $99 per month but there was a special of $59 per month when I signed on) as a franchise fee, but is able to obtain local advertising for their site in the form of front page ads, or a listing in the business registry. The Publisher Moms are able to keep all the money from the advertisers. Because I had been successful in promoting the grocery store, I felt I could successfully promote this newsletter and earn money based on the advertisements. This sadly was not to come to fruition. Because I have 3 teen aged children, and a full time job during the school year, I was unable to get out and promote the newsletter as much as I should have. I did this for 9 months, lost money, and never was able to get more than 290 subscribers, which meant no one wanted to advertise to such a small group of subscribers.

Disappointed, but never one to give up on my entrepreneurial dream, I decided to write a blog because I have always loved to write, and if it wasn't for my Dad telling me I couldn't major in English in college because there were no teaching jobs for English majors at that time, I would have majored in English and written my first novel by now ( well, that was the dream anyway!)

So that led to

Second Marriage Romance: The Adventures of Chuck and Karen ( 2011 and continuing)

http://secondmarriageromance.blogspot.com/

Average Earnings through Google Adsense: Too soon to tell

which is a blog about how my second marriage is one of the most fulfilling experiences in my lifetime, and about the traveling and romantic adventures of my husband and I. We knew each other back in 1976/1977, drifted apart, and met up again 28 years later. We got married in August, 2010. We have the absolute best relationship I can imagine, and although things aren't always perfect, I never doubt that we will always work things out. The blog is a way to share our experiences with the rest of the world, and give hope to those who have been through a divorce that you may still find true love.

Which also led to Hub Pages, which I stumbled upon and am having a wonderful time writing for.

Hub Pages (2012 and continuing)

My average earnings through Google Adsense: Too soon to tell.

I write hubs on everything and anything that comes to mind right now. I am so happy that I have found a place to share all the bottled up words and stories that have been inside me for years. My plan is to eventually settle down though and write mostly about motherhood, romance/marriage, and becoming a work at home entrepreneur.

So, that' my journey. I think I have found my niche now...I am finally writing and loving it. I do plan on adding Amazon to my hubs and blog, but for now am just starting out slowly. Maybe someday I will be able to write a hub about all the money I make as a freelance writer. Stay tuned...

Would you like to become a writer for Hub Pages? It's free to join and fun. I am available to answer any questions you may have, but to sign up for Hub Pages yourself, click on this link:

http://hubpages.com/_kbababif7771