There’s a lot of talk these days about flexible working, work-life balance and portfolio careers. Crèche-at-work schemes, job-shares and flexi-time have become commonplace. If so much is being done to help women be part of the work force why are women, especially mothers, turning away from traditional jobs, and becoming entrepreneurs?   

Mothers who do run their own business make an important contribution to the UK economy, £4.4 billion according to a recent estimate in a study commissioned by the Yellow Pages. This shows that the difference between the sexes when it comes to entrepreneurial ambition isn’t as wide as we may think. Many women in paid employment choose to set up their own businesses upon parenthood, not because they are unemployable but rather because it’s a lifestyle choice. Indeed, most were in other, more traditional, types of employment positions before starting up their businesses. As with most entrepreneurs, setting up their own business is often centered upon the drive to be their own boss, and, importantly, the flexibility that this gives.

Mum at work.
[image © copyright Photos.com]

Two reasons appear to dominate women’s decisions to start-up their own businesses after they become mothers. The first of these is the desire for greater flexibility and autonomy. This is a great incentive for women, despite the fact that the demands of juggling your own business with the pressures brought on by motherhood and a hectic home life can be very challenging. The second is the difficulty, or perceived difficulty, of returning to the jobs they held previously.

This issue recently came under the spotlight when legislation was introduced in April 2007 extending maternity leave entitlements. Whilst aimed at protecting the rights of mothers, as Nicola Brewer, chief executive of the Equality and Human Rights Commission said in July 2008, it had the unintended consequence of alienating some employers such as small business owners who see women of childbearing age as potentially a costly problem.

The legislation views women as primary child carers, which may stereotype the roles of women rather than improve the flexibility of working arrangements for both parents. This is compounded by the unhelpful views of some high profile businessmen. For example, Sir Alan Sugar of The Apprentice fame reportedly stated that many employers discarded the CVs of women of childbearing age. These scare stories can surely be seen as ‘push’ factors for women to go it alone in business.

The need for flexibility is reflected by the types of businesses that are established by women when compared to men. Men tend to opt for start-ups in construction, consultancy or IT. Popular choices for self-employed women are also start-ups in IT. In addition, they make more traditional choices in the areas of health and beauty, catering and childcare-related fields where flexibility and the link between their personal and professional interests are more apparent. However, about a third of all businesses started by mothers are now internet-based, showing the invaluable role of modern technology in enabling more flexible career strategies involving home working.

Websites such as elance have encouraged a boom in employing virtual administrators and PAs (personal assistants) who are based on the other side of the world, remotely organising clients’ emails and diaries, and booking meetings and travel all at a distance. More often than not these are mothers, who are being inventive with regards to the type of work they can accomplish from home.

FriendsReunited creator, Julie Pankhurst, founded the website in 1999 while expecting her first child. This business was sold for £175m in 2005. We should champion the successes of such high-profile female entrepreneurs who turn large profits, but also the large number of women who are small and micro business owners. My own research on home based businesses, such as small hotels and bed and breakfasts, shows that flexibility, autonomy, and the ability to combine home and family with rewarding work are important for women at all stages in their lives. As one such business owner explained to me:

“It works for me. I can fit other things in more easily now like the kids, and family and friends … just spending more time doing what I want to do and working from home. Although it’s a lot of hard work, you get used to that the longer you run a business. It’s very rewarding to have a successful business which is all your own work. I’m very proud of that… It just makes sense really for many women” 

However, when looking at entrepreneurs who want to combine parenthood with a rewarding career, it is important that we are not gender-biased. Some men also choose to start their own businesses while seeking to balance childrearing with career aspirations. The current economic downturn may make credit harder to come by for future entrepreneurs of both genders causing a decline in ‘mumpreneurs’. Let us hope that this doesn’t happen and that we continue to benefit from the boom in tycoon mothers – oh, and let’s not forget the fathers! 

Weblinks

• Maternity leave 'damages' careers
• 'Kitchen table tycoons' identified as new brand of female entrepreneurs
• Watch the Mum's the Business trailer
• Mum's the Business
• What makes an entrepreneur?
• The world of work
• Free OpenLearn course - Entrepreneurial behaviour

Courses

• Investigating entrepreneurial opportunities 

About the author

Dr. MariaLaura Di Domenico is a Lecturer in Organisational Behaviour at the OU Business School where she is responsible for research and teaching in organisation studies, small business, and entrepreneurship.

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The pace of life seems to be quickening, people complain of working longer hours, and some surveys have shown a decline in work satisfaction in recent years, largely as a result of the perceived time pressure. However comparisons with time distribution half a century back suggests that the major change is that time that used to be devoted to chores is now spent watching TV, rather than necessarily working longer hours!

The question is does devotion to work and money make us happy? It seems not. Above a certain minimum income, currently around £10,000 per annum, wealth has remarkably little effect on happiness ratings. GDP has more than doubled since the mid 1970s, but the number of people rating themselves as very happy has remained pretty constant since the 1950s.

Of course there are variations across countries. The proportion of those satisfied with their life rises in countries like Scandinavia where inequality in income is least and personal autonomy is considerable. It is lower in the former communist countries where freedom may be more limited and there are considerable differences between the rich and poor.

"Relationships are the critical factor"

If hard work and wealth does not necessarily increase our well-being, what does? Research shows that relationships are the critical factor. On average married people rate themselves as happier than those that are single, as do people with many friends compared with the more isolated. The socially embedded live longer and recover quicker from illness than social isolates. So if you want to be happy keep up the social network!

We need to bear in mind that people have different capacities for happiness. Extroverts for example, consistently rate themselves as happier than introverts. Psychologists estimate that innate tendencies can account for as much 50% of the variance in happiness ratings between individuals. They also say that our level of happiness normally remains pretty similar throughout life. Even after good fortune such as winning the lottery or a misfortune such as a bad accident people generally revert back to their normal level of happiness surprisingly quickly, often within a year.

Nevertheless there are a number of things we can do to draw out well-being. We have already discussed the importance of developing and maintaining satisfying relationships. Another factor is the extent to which people are actively engaged with life. Those who do things they like and/or find meaningful tend to be more satisfied than those who rarely do things they value.

Some studies suggest that it is more satisfying to be actively absorbed in areas in which we are intrinsically motivated and where we get feedback on our progress, such as gardening, dancing, playing golf, surfing, looking after children and cooking than with activities that are more passive, such as watching TV. However watching TV for 50 hours a week is surprisingly common in the UK and the US, though the number of hours watched is falling among the young who spend more time on the internet.

To enhance well-being, watch less TV and get actively involved in something you enjoy and value. Note that almost any work offers the opportunity to do something well and engage helpfully with others.

"There are plenty of happy secretaries and unhappy CEOs"

It is the attitude that a person brings to their work and life rather than the type of work they do and, normally, the situation they find themselves in, which governs their satisfaction levels. Outward achievement is not necessarily the answer; there are plenty of happy secretaries and unhappy CEOs. It can help to remember to count your blessings and avoiding spending too much time ruminating on the empty half of the glass.

The 24 hour culture has benefits. Quite a few studies show people who work part of the time at home rather than in the office are more productive. They also have the satisfaction of saved commuting time to devote to family, partners and friends, the relationships that are so important to well-being. If you are disciplined, asynchronous communication also affords the possibility of answering emails and voicemail at a time of your choosing.

Well-being is enhanced where workers have some flexibility over when and how they work and where they maintain a work-life balance that provides time for themselves and their family as well as work. People vary widely as to what that balance is. One study found half the leaders worked weekends and half not, yet both groups were equally happy with their work-life balance.

Further reading

• 'The Positive Organisation' by Jane Henry in the The Psychologist, 2003
• 'The Healthy Organization' by Jane Henry in Research Companion to Organizational Health Psychology by C Cooper & A Antoniou, published by Edward Elgar Publishing
• 'Strategies For Developing Well-being' by Jane Henry in A Life worth Livingby M Csikszenmihalyi, published by Oxford University Press
• Creative Management by Jane Henry, published by Sage
• Creative and Perception in Management by Jane Henry, published by Sage
• 24 hour working – discover what’s driving our long hours culture, and its impact on our health
• The price of parenthood – having children brings many changes

About the author

Jane Henry is an applied psychologist. She chairs the Open University Business School Creativity, Innovation and Change programme.

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