Do you want to start a creative business

If you are feeling the creative urge here are 5 things to consider…

1. Do you want to the hassle of starting a business from scratch?

So you’re home with bub and you see all these stories about mums with little businesses that started from nothing that now seem to be empires online and on social media.

You know how it goes.
First they make a bib for their baby and then a friend and next thing everyone at the mothers group wants one. Suddenly it seems that a new and exciting opportunity is opening up. People tell them they could turn this into a business, just like those other people do it on Facebook and Instagram. Do you really want all the hassles that come with creating a business from scratch or do you just like making things for people?
Sometimes when we turn a creative pursuit into a business it just becomes a job..one we can come to resent.

A lot of people may seem like they have created an empire overnight whereas most likely they have plugging away for years doing something they enjoy doing. This gives them the drive to keep going even when times are hard. If you want to do it be prepared to do it at your own pace and not compare yourself to others and where they are at. I love the saying ‘ Don’t judge your beginning to someone else’s end’.  I tired to remember this when I was starting out.  Use those stories as inspiration.

We’re all at different points on our own journey.
Everyone is different and can spend different amounts of time or money and bigger isn’t always better.

Maybe you just want more of a hobby business that’ll cover your costs so you can keep buying materials? Keep your priorities in sight.

2. Are you cut out to be a maker?

You may have experienced a surge of creativity while on maternity leave..wanting to create little things for your baby .

Its interesting how many new mums buy sewing machines. They may have never sewn a stitch in their life (like me) but suddenly they feel the urge to sew up a storm in the name of their new offspring.
Don’t get me wrong I think everyone has creativity inside which can express itself in a million different ways its just that it isn’t always going to be what you will do to earn a living. I believe that this surge of creativity experienced by pregnant women or new mums (accounting for nesting) is bought on by the fact that they have some time out.

Maternity leave , especially for your first is often the first time you may have ever had to actually slow right down. You don’t have the busy schedule,your mind is not as bogged down with the everyday stuff. This space allows creativity to blossom. Even the most creative person needs time out … often the way out of a creative rut is just to get out, experience new things, take time out.

So we can take advantage of this creative time… make beautiful things for our babies, our friends, but don’t put pressure on it to become a business that can support you before your maternity leave ends.
If you love making or creating…..you can and will continue to do so even once back at your old job (hopefully part time). If it turns out its all too much once you get back to work..no problem..keep it for your own little creative time outs.
Not everyone is cut out to make a full time business from making.

3. Do you like the idea of staying home with the kids?

You think, hey I can do that and I’ll be able to stay home with this little bundle of joy enjoying all their first moments while the dollars roll in.

While it sounds great in theory I really must stress how difficult it can be. While I love being able to be home I used to experience a lot of anxiety because I needed to get so much done..or get an order made but wasn’t able to do so due to whatever reason. When i first started out, I used to sew at night as I still worked as a visual stylist in a retail store two days a week. But then I’d be too tired and I would be grumpy at my son all day. I could see that this defeated the whole idea of being home with him. I ended up enrolling him in daycare for one day which I used as my business day. Eventually I replaced my part time outside job with my home business but it was quite gradual and I had to take a leap of faith that the business would replace my regular wage. Not everyone is comfortable to do this.

I really don’t want you to believe that a lot of people are out there kid wrangling, creating designer homes and creating pinterest worthy meals all the while making and selling oodles of their own handmade products and making a fortune.
It’s just not the reality!
I know at the start when no one even takes your little biz seriously its super hard to get support but just realise that you do need it and even if you can get a few hours of babysitting to allow you some solid time it will help a lot.

4. Do you think its easy to sell on social media?

And I’d be careful about thinking you can sell and grow solely on social media. A lot of people selling through Facebook suffered when they changed their rules a while back..suddenly they longer reached the customers they used to. I can say first hand that we used to grow so quickly and any pictures posted would often spread and create immediate sales. Good luck if you are starting up a business Facebook page today..its extremely difficult to grow your followers and its even hard to reach those followers you have without paying FB to promote your post. Paying to reach people who have already told you they want to be reached.

This caused the jump over and boom on instagram of business accounts a few years back. It used to just be a more behind the scenes app but its now grown extremely commercial and professional looking. I do still love instagram and the way people interact on it but I did decide back then to have a separate business and personal account. 

And as we all know now, Facebook bought out Instagram and now have implemented the same changes to restrict who sees your post to monetise the platform so once again it has become a challenging environment to begin a business.
So try not to have all your eggs in one basket especially if you are planning to continue to grow your business into the foreseeable future. Apps and social media platforms will come and go.

5. Do you want to live a more creative life?

Sometimes this down time allows us to see our lives with a new perspective. We see what we do and don’t want for ourselves . Some people make the changes they need to and others don’t.

There is an opportunity to slow down and be creative everyday.
It can be the way you dress, you can make something, paint, write, bake, play music, draw, sew, sculpt, take up a hobby.. put a smiley face on the kids pancakes.

Its the little things that really can make us happier.

So in conclusion I want to point out that I don’t mean to be overly negative.  I have always been involved in creative and entrepreneurial pursuits and I love it. I’d love to tell everyone to do it…But everyone is different.
I just want to put the other side out there so you can make a decision thats best for you.

The one thing that I’ve learnt is that everyone needs a creative outlet in life to enjoy a balanced life.. however it doesn’t have to be the thing that provides income for your family.

Nicole xx