By Suzy Rawlins with Roots and Boots with Suzy Rawlins

Since I was a young girl, I remember thinking I would own my own business someday.  I think being an entrepreneur is just part of my DNA. 

As I write this, I have been an entrepreneur for over 15 years.  I guess the BIG WHY was time freedom.  I was a single mama of two very young boys and had been working several jobs at a time to make ends meet.  I missed out on several memories and fun times because I had to work how I was scheduled.  I often worked long hours, back-to-back shifts, ran on lack of sleep and did whatever it took to make it happen. 

I had just graduated from massage therapy school, where I was looking forward to becoming my boss.  However, my health took a turn, so I had to postpone that.  I ended up taking a job as an outside sales rep for an auto glass company.  This is where I was introduced to the community of networking.  I was still an employee representing a company, working their dictated hours, and only earning a commission.  At a networking meeting, I met a woman who introduced me to a skin care product that I fell in love with.  She also shared the opportunity for me to be an independent consultant and build my own business.  This blew my mind; I could choose my hours and still work for commission only. I would not have someone breathing down my back about putting in certain hours.  I would have a support system of a company that cares and other consultants that would help train me.  This was a no-brainer.  So, I quit my job and took this dual marketing opportunity full-time, and that has been my passion for the past 15 years.  It has been an incredible opportunity, and I am so grateful that I decided to start.

Through all my years of networking with other businesses, I have had the opportunity to meet the most incredible people.  I have been blessed to become friends with many other like-minded small business owners.  The clients, friendships, knowledge, and incredible opportunities I have experienced over the past 15 years are some of the best.

My grandpa and my dad were entrepreneurs, so when I say it is in my DNA, I genuinely believe it.  Not everyone is supposed to start a small business, but I believe everyone should support small businesses as much as they can.

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By Sharon Loduca, Real Estate Professional in Ontario, Canada

When life throws unexpected challenges our way, it often leads us down paths we never imagined. For me, that path was entrepreneurship in the world of real estate. Let me take you on a journey of why I decided to start my own business.

My background in business management for both profit and non-profit organizations provided me with valuable skills and insights, but life took a turn when I became widowed and needed greater flexibility in my schedule to care for my three homeschooled children. Little did I know that this shift would eventually lead me to follow my lifelong fascination with homes and their stories.

From a young age, I was captivated by the concept of homes, not just as physical structures, but as vessels of human stories and aspirations. Growing up in a remote corner of Newfoundland, I watched my father, a brilliant man with only a grade 3 education, build his own home from the ground up. He hewed the support by hand, and he taught my brothers the value of hard work and resourcefulness. They invested in their homes on a weekly basis, using their paychecks to buy lumber as their cash flow allowed. Mortgages and credit cards were unheard of in that world. Instead, they relied on the support of friends and their own sweat equity to create their homes.

My move to Ontario as a teenager exposed me to a completely different world of home building—one dominated by land developers, builders, contractors, subcontractors, unions, labor laws, realtors, lenders, brokers, inspectors, and appraisers. Here, homeowners rarely drove a single nail into their homes’ frameworks. This stark contrast intrigued me and sparked my curiosity about the multifaceted world of real estate.

My journey into real estate was anything but planned; it felt like destiny. It all started with a piece of vacant land that I financed, followed by the acquisition of summer properties. Eventually, I found myself buying and selling homes of my own. My foray into mortgage financing was the stepping stone that allowed me to delve deeper into the industry.

I began to understand the concerns and pain points of my clients intimately. I was there for them every step of the way, from listing to closing, and years later. My clients knew that I genuinely cared about their well-being, which led them to entrust me with their home purchases and sales. That was the foundation upon which I built my real estate business.

In my business, I take pride in working closely with clients, lenders, appraisers, and inspectors. I help clients navigate the complex real estate landscape, offering personalized strategies that prioritize their interests. Behind the scenes, there’s a lot of meticulous work involved, but it often feels like creating magic—the magic of helping people find their dream homes and make significant life transitions.

The relationships that have blossomed from these endeavors continue to grow and strengthen, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to be part of my client’s home journeys. From financing a vacant piece of land to becoming a trusted guide in the world of real estate, my entrepreneurial journey has been a rewarding one, fueled by my passion for homes and my unwavering commitment to my client’s happiness.

In conclusion, my decision to start my own real estate business was born out of life’s twists and turns, and my genuine fascination with the world of homes. It’s a journey that has allowed me to combine my business acumen with my deep-seated love for helping others create their own stories within the walls of their dream homes.

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By Jamie Allen Bishop with Jamie Allen Bishop Coaching

I have an entrepreneurial spirit and a service-oriented heart. I have run lemonade stands, sold my art, and cleaned houses since I was old enough to ask the neighbors to pay me for services rendered. I started being my own boss at 8 years old, and my mom might tell you my business mindset started before that. I have always made a good living as a side hustle mage. But the nagging question was always, “When was I going to grow up and get a real job?”

Working an 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. job bores me – the mundane schedule, the routine tasks, and the clock-punching. YUCK! Office work in Corporate America is my personal version of hell on earth. At my first officially full-time, benefits-paid, post-college job when I took three personality profile tests that all said I was 99% likely to be successful as an entrepreneur, the career counselor on staff pulled me aside and said, “You know you won’t ever be satisfied working in an office, right?” I agreed. So, I started my first business.

The year was 1996, and faux painting was very popular in the South (of the United States – I lived in Georgia at the time). I applied for a business license and started working evenings and weekends as a faux painter. In my spare time, I painted floorcloths (front door/kitchen sink mats) to sell at local festivals. I found myself excited to meet with clients, come up with sample boards of their ideas, and then paint a floorcloth or a whole wall in the style they chose. It was exciting and unique, and it was definitely outside the boundaries of a normal job. It was just my cup of tea!

After almost a decade of painting, my business venture changed, then changed again. In the last 40 years of my life, I have run several businesses, and all have brought me knowledge about what I like, what I do not like, and how best to serve my clients and community. Whether I am providing art designs, personal or professional guidance, or teaching something valuable, my mantra has been and will remain, “How may I be of service?”

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By Cheryl Clark with Clark Strategies

Business versus Hobby.  To me, there is a difference.

I had a few hobbies back in the day that provided me with extra money, afforded me some purchases for my enjoyment, and gave me some freedoms (like traveling) that I would not have had if it were not for the ‘hobby.’

Those hobbies and what they provided helped me go into business.

I went all in.  No safety net, no parachute, no plan B.  I knew little to nothing about owning, running, or being in business.  I knew only the enjoyment of coming and going, money in my pocket, and guiding my own daily actions.

The past 22 years have brought on many lessons.

What inspired me the most was not being ‘tied’ down.  I don’t know how else to put it.  I won’t say it was time freedom because most of us work more hours as business owners than we did when we were employed.  Even if we are not sitting at a laptop or talking to people about our business – the mind doesn’t rest easily when you are in business.  There is a constant dialogue running of what I need to do, what I can do, and reevaluating what I did – at least for me.

I don’t think I am a ‘free spirit,’ or of the ‘gypsy’ mindset, and yet, maybe I am.  I don’t goooo…  I don’t use my ‘freedom’ to go here and there and yet my mind likes knowing I can.  Simply put – I can.

Now often this “I can” moment is hindered by a lack of funds in a bank account however overall, without the financial barrier should I decide to wake up in Mexico, or sleep in a tent by a lake “I can.”  I am not confined by another’s schedule.

Yes, my showing up is how I get paid, but I decide when, where, and how I show up.  I will say setting some of these boundaries and expectations has been the biggest learning curve for me in business and continues to be, this is another blog in and of itself.

Learning the branding, learning what I enjoy doing, learning what needs I can meet in others, and learning the ever-changing tools and technologies out there for us business owners has been time-consuming but truly not that difficult.  I had to learn evolution.  I had to embrace change.  My business ownership is constantly evolving and changing, and I had to be okay with that.

What inspired me to start my own business?  The thought process of NO barriers!  I can come and go!  I have no financial cap!  I am not confined.

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