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Why call me a dadpreneur?
I was at a friend’s home recently and had to answer the awkward question by an unfamiliar guest. The question was some version of what you do for a living.
I told the curious gentleman that I am an engineer by profession but am currently running a small start-up with a friend and we design and sell cloth diapers.
Triviality ensued. And then he called me a “dadpreneur”. I replied, if a title were necessary, I’d rather be called just an entrepreneur.
So call yourself an entrepreneur not dadpreneur or mompreneur. Gender referencing words are not popular today.
Photo belongs to respective owner
I was an Entrepreneur before my Daughter was Born
I was an entrepreneur in the 8th grade. Defined myself when I sourced a cheaper supplier of notebooks (the paper kind) for my high school, linked the supply shop to the fellow responsible for buying school supplies and kept a small profit on the transaction, enough for feeding a few buddies.
Nobody termed me a “childpreneur” then.
Parents ≠ Entrepreneur. Parents = More Awesome Entrepreneur
Being a parent has taught me to be more patient and look at the larger picture, when things are going awry.
These things have certainly carried over to my business. But fatherhood has not changed my decision making pattern for doing things in the best interest of my business.
I might see a few issues with new eyes. Now I have more appreciation for people who can balance raising a family and running a mad-house AKA a small business.
Yes I have more empathy for people letting things slide now and again because of family matters.
My motivations to succeed have slightly changed since I became a father. Must provide for my family, while spending enough time with them. But, priorities change at every new station in life.
Running a Business comes with Bigger Challenges
Being a mom, dad or caretaker of a person hasn’t made things any more or less difficult to put a business together.
Making a business successful and meaningful comes with a horde of challenges, including raising a family, as each one of you can vouch but that doesn’t define how it is run- nor should it.
Raising a Family makes Life more Interesting, not Limiting
Each time I tell somebody that I run a cloth diapering company, they inevitably tell me that they have this amazing business IN THEIR MIND or they always wanted to be independent by owning a business.
Most of these people have never done anything to take their dream ahead because there is something that is not aligned perfectly to start them off.
The reasons for not starting a business range from the obvious: a looming mortgage, a family to raise; to the ridiculous: new pet. Again, starting a business in itself is very, very difficult and sustaining it long enough to make it successful even more so.
Raising a young family, like all things in life, make things more interesting, but it is not limiting to your ability to start or run a business.
You don’t have be a Mom or Dad to run a Family-Centric Business
Nader, my partner at Lil Helper Cloth Diapers, is not a father. Yet, he is expected to abide the same high standard of conduct that a caring parent who runs an identical business- me.
He also has the enthusiasm and the right mind set to develop a product suitable for children. If he had only waited to start a cloth diaper company after becoming a parent; we would still be waiting.
How do you Define Yourself
Call yourself a business owner or an entrepreneur not a mom- or dadpreneur. Put yourself out there to be judged by the same standard as every business. Be judged on value, customer service, quality and price.
Providing the above-mentioned things to your customer does not require you to be a mom or dad- just a conscientious person, who happens to run a business.
So what do you call yourself when people ask you what you do? Leave a comment below.
If you are an entrepreneur or want to start your business someday. Please comment below.
Check out! 1200+ Unique & Catchy Event Names Ideas for Your Business.
This is something that often annoys me. I am labeled a “mommy blogger”, a “mompreneur”, and a WAHM. I rarely hear the terms WAHD or WAHS(work at home single!)
It does not matter if you are man or woman, parent or non, owning and running a small business is a lot of work and requires the same planning and professionalism either way.
Nice article.
Great point! When you are labelled a “mommy blogger”, it is almost as if you are being pushed into a corner where you can only express opinions about how it is being a mom. You had opinions and ideas even before you had your child. Being a “mother” is only one more thing you do, it is not how you should be defined entirely.
I agree, Mohommed! Lots of professionals in all fields are moms and dads, but labeling them in that way is not helpful. If I’m going to do business with someone, it’s most important to me that I’ll get great service, not whether they are balancing life with children or not!
Precisely Anne. Most consumers care whether a product is either worth the money spent or the experience gained- not how many kids the entrepreneur is currently raising.
Really great article; I was just discussing the “mompreneur” label with my sister and friends, saying somewhat reluctantly, “I guess that’s what I am.” It seems to carry an implication that being a mom makes you a lesser business person, or that being a business person makes you a lesser mom, or that you’re just riding on a new fad. Probably all three. Whatever it is, it usually isn’t meant as a compliment.
I guess I was happy when I first learned the whole “WAHM” label, because I felt like I had found somewhere I belonged, but I can see how that can be annoying, too. I really dislike “stay-at-home mom” now that I have read books from the viewpoint of people who really, truly believe that if you are the one watching your children all day, it is just the passive non-choice that happens when you don’t do something else. Gah. Maddening.
Thanks for a great article.
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