Solve the Daycare Dilemma

As a working mother with a full time job, I was dreading the start of my daughter's first year in kindergarten. After-school care for a school-aged child in our town was either non-existent or just ridiculously expensive. I spent hours figuring out the cost of care versus my income. I knew something had to give but I didn't know what. I had contemplated all of my life, working for myself, but in what capacity I didn't know. I was scared to quite a full time job with insurance and some security but I felt even worse, knowing my child would be in school basically 10 hours a day.

I began scouring the internet, looking for opportunities I could do at home. I was intelligent enough to know that stuffing envelopes was not the dream job I had been seeking. I was determined to do something that would allow me to be home to get my only child on and off the bus each day. Finally, a fellow entrepreneur friend of mine offered me an opportunity to do marketing for a local company. They paid well and I was so happy to put my full time job behind me and work from home. All was going well for about six months, when suddenly the rug was pulled out from under me. I got one day's notice in June that my subcontracted position was not going to carry on. I had just two months to find an alternative before the school year started.

Again, I went back to the internet. I was desperate and started answering ads on craigslist, hoping to get at least one response from the many inquiries I sent out looking for work. That evening, I received what would be the email that changed my entire life. A freelance writer by the name of Debbie Dragon answered one of my inquiries. After a series of "life story" emails, Debbie suggested that I try freelance writing. After I finished laughing, I replied that I couldn't possibly know how to do that and make money. Debbie promised to help me out and stuck with me through the first few weeks of getting acclimated. I couldn't believe my eyes when my Paypal started getting more and more paid invoices from people who loved what I had created for them. It was mind-blowing to know that I had finally solved two big dilemmas: how to care for my child and how to be successful on my own terms.

While I was essentially a guinea pig, the mentoring Debbie provided has now been developed into a real-life program, Make Money From Writing, that almost anyone who likes to write can use as a springboard to finding their own place in the writing world. It was so important to me, as a mother, that I had the flexibility to do the work I love and get paid money I was worth, unlike any full time position that I had ever held. I am so grateful that I went for it and worked hard to get what I wanted and needed for my family.

For anyone considering making a change in their lives, no matter what stage or dream they hold, I can only offer this clichéd piece of advice - "You'll Never Know Unless You Try".