Hi Lilac,
I am almost the same boat as you except a few years further down the road.
I have 3 boys, the youngest is 3, I had them very close together and for a few years my life was a bit mental:)
The decision to start a practice wasn't really a decision at all. I was on maternity leave with no 2, when the recession hit and I could only go back to my job a couple of days a week.
This meant I had a couple of days a week to pick up work.
It was very gradual and I have only started working 5 days full time in my own practice in the last year or so.
Working part time for a company at the start gave me the guaranteed income I needed, I also picked up a day or two a week in other businesses as well. While this was great, it also meant that any work on my own practice, for a long time was squeezed in between everything else.
And even though I might not have been working 5 days, the phone was never off..... I remember once hiding in the car to try and talk to a client in peace...
Thankfully those days are gone, and I am now able to concentrate properly on the practice during business hours. However after the kids are settled and in bed, the laptop always comes out.. I can't see this changing anything soon.
The major plus of having the practice is the flexibility with the kids, I can come and go as I need to, and I don't have to worry about pleasing a boss.
But the downside is that with a normal job, I could leave at 5 and forget about it, although I can physically leave the office at 5 now, I never stop thinking about it.
I often wonder if I could change things, would I and I don't think I would. The pressure and stress can be hard, but at the stage my kids are at, it's more important to be there when they need me, which is easy for me to do at the moment.
Hi Elaine
Thanks for posting this.
I have a small online service that runs alongside the practice (Ireland)
I am getting an increasing level of enquiries and I am slightly concerned about money laundering issues.
Obviously the nature of working online means we do not meet these clients.
How do I handle MLR?
Are other methods I'd identifying the client, ie ID, address verification, maybe Skype etc etc enough to satisfy the requirements?
My answers
Hi Lilac,
I am almost the same boat as you except a few years further down the road.
I have 3 boys, the youngest is 3, I had them very close together and for a few years my life was a bit mental:)
The decision to start a practice wasn't really a decision at all. I was on maternity leave with no 2, when the recession hit and I could only go back to my job a couple of days a week.
This meant I had a couple of days a week to pick up work.
It was very gradual and I have only started working 5 days full time in my own practice in the last year or so.
Working part time for a company at the start gave me the guaranteed income I needed, I also picked up a day or two a week in other businesses as well. While this was great, it also meant that any work on my own practice, for a long time was squeezed in between everything else.
And even though I might not have been working 5 days, the phone was never off..... I remember once hiding in the car to try and talk to a client in peace...
Thankfully those days are gone, and I am now able to concentrate properly on the practice during business hours. However after the kids are settled and in bed, the laptop always comes out.. I can't see this changing anything soon.
The major plus of having the practice is the flexibility with the kids, I can come and go as I need to, and I don't have to worry about pleasing a boss.
But the downside is that with a normal job, I could leave at 5 and forget about it, although I can physically leave the office at 5 now, I never stop thinking about it.
I often wonder if I could change things, would I and I don't think I would. The pressure and stress can be hard, but at the stage my kids are at, it's more important to be there when they need me, which is easy for me to do at the moment.
Good luck with your decision :)
Hi Elaine
Thanks for posting this.
I have a small online service that runs alongside the practice (Ireland)
I am getting an increasing level of enquiries and I am slightly concerned about money laundering issues.
Obviously the nature of working online means we do not meet these clients.
How do I handle MLR?
Are other methods I'd identifying the client, ie ID, address verification, maybe Skype etc etc enough to satisfy the requirements?