When times are good it’s easy to feel like entrepreneurship is the only path for you, but what about the times when your hit with multiple crises at once? We wondered if all entrepreneurs have moments when they wonder whether they should have gone with (or stuck to) a more standard job where they worked for someone else.

Joleen Amos

We are happy as business owners; I really wouldn’t trade it for the world. On rough days it has crossed my mind about what it would be like to just have a regular job you know go home at the end of the day and be able to just shut it off once you walk out that door, but then when I really think about it, I’m like nope, we were made for this. Business never stops it keeps going even when we get home, it is our baby, and we are constantly trying to build it and make it better. You know that saying “build your own dreams or someone else will hire you to build theirs” Farrah Gray, I am glad we our building ours. Read more>>

Derrek & Aundria Williams

Yes Scouts Honor is apart of our family. I had a regular job before we launched but I never had any time to focus on the business. The last time I thought about going back to the work force was when financials got tight, but I picked up the power of broke book. Which gave me a refresher of ways to market and brand my business when I was in trouble. In conclusion I started to use door dash, Uber, Lyft to create ways to make money and still have time to create for the brand. Read more>>

Jamie Causey

I am! I think, sometimes I remember what it’s like to let everyone else worry about the details and all I had to do was show up and do the work, and I have a half a heartbeat of something like nostalgia…but overall, I prefer captaining my own ship. My day to day isn’t repetitive. That lack of routine keeps my energy and focus directed on my work. Read more>>

Rachel Cross

I spent the first 12 years of my career in corporate America in various marketing roles, and it was a great training ground. I had amazing mentors, learned valuable skills, build lifelong relationships, and discovered what sets my soul on fire. I also learned what I don’t want out of life – working on projects I don’t believe in and under leaders I wasn’t sure I wanted to emulate. Sometimes, you have to start with what you don’t want to clearly define what you do want. Read more>>

Tara Tarrant

I had a 9 to 5 while I was engraving for friends and family as a hobby. I had no idea I’d still be doing this work 20 years later. It took many years for this to become a full time career. I initially starting making products for friends and then their friends would order for their friends and so on. It just kept building until today it keeps a consistent base of steady work while continuing to keep building the customer base. Read more>>

Ana Rosales

I think it’s not so much about whether you have a job or a business of your own, but rather about the love of doing what you do. In every job we will always have challenging situations that will make us doubt and feel confused. But it’s a competition of you against you, of proving to yourself what you are capable of. You may think that in a normal 9 to 5 job your performance will be validated by your bosses and in the case of running your own business, the validation will come from your clients, but at the end of the day it is about you and if you love what you do you will be able to overcome any challenging situation, which ultimately is part of your growth. In my case, I feel like I live on the edge all the time. I’m unveiling the path as if I’m developing a photo. Read more>>

Mollie Gilligan

Being a business owner is great. Since the first day we decided to do this, we’ve never looked back. Both my husband and I came in with a corporate background, and we just hit the ground running. We told ourselves there was no looking back. Of course, there were times at the beginning where there were ups and downs. But every time we questioned anything, we just kept moving forward. We went in with the mentality to do whatever it takes to make this work. I don’t really wonder about having another regular job because I can’t see myself doing anything else. Read more>>

Tammy Huynh

I’m often caught in the rifts in between loving where I am and hating where I am in the business journey, so we would probably be here all day if I had to go through all the times this feeling comes around! The last time I was in this darker place, it had a lot to do with money. I was flipping between quitting and going back into full corporate work because the stability was affecting my mental health and I was extra snappy all the time. As business owners, our minds are running a million miles a minute. From ideas to the next bill due, Read more>>

Lily Bushnell

I genuinely wouldn’t change anything at all about by job! Even the tedious and mundane parts are exciting because I know I’m working on building a business I’ve created on my own! I’m absolutely filled with joy each day while working. I know God has me exactly where He wants me! While having my own business, I have contemplated working another job and either ending my business or doing it part time but in reality I know I would never be able to give up having my dream job! The freedom and flexibility I have every day is unbeatable. Read more>>

Monica Watson

I’m 100% happy and fulfilled as a business owner. It gives me so much freedom, flexibility, and most importantly – tons of time with my family. Prior to running Berlin Skin full-time, I worked in marketing, and while I loved it, it came with a lot of unwelcome stress. When I had a traditional day job, I remember often coming home from work and going straight to my bed; that’s how exhausted I was. When I had my son 3 years ago, I realized that nothing was more important than my family, and I took a leap of faith by leaving my secure job to really go for it with my business (which at the time was just a side hustle). Read more>>

Michelle Banks

I am very grateful to be a happy business owner. I used to wonder what it would be like to have a regular job, but then realized that God made me unique, and has called me to step out of my comfort zone to fulfill the calling he has on my life. I few years back, I was led to leave my part time job and stepped out on faith to pursue my calligraphy business full time. It didn’t make sense to my natural mind, but so glad I did not lean unto my own understanding about it. I believe my most striking confirmation was when I received the email stating that I was awarded a full scholarship to train under a calligraphy artist (Laura Hooper Calligraphy) that I admired for so many years, for a 6 month mentorship. Read more>>

Cera Marquez

My business was discovered in the midst of global pandemonium and great personal loss. Using the art of “breathing life back into death” as a form of expression and a way to grieve, others soon recognized the love that I pour into each piece and wanted to take a part of that magic home with them. I find this to be a funny way to answer this question because ironically the pain I was able to and have been able to release through my brand and business has made for one happy business owner! Read more>>

Shelby Marquardt

I would say that I am definitely happier as a business owner. I appreciate the flexibility. The ability to go get mid-morning breakfast with a friend on a Wednesday is amazing. Complete control over my schedule is invaluable. However, I do envy 9-5ers who get to turn their work off. If I am not working, I am thinking about my to-do list. Just the other week, I was talking to my husband about it. I told him that I wish I had a normal job where I could completely turn off my work brain during the evenings or weekends. Being a business owner, do that does not come easy. But I force myself to set boundaries for what is important to me: My faith, my family, my friends… and REST. Read more>>

Shyla Collier

Being a business owner is extremely difficult and time consuming. It definitely takes hard work and determination. Although it is stressful at times, I would never trade it for anything. There are many perks to owning your own company. It is very empowering to look at the empire that you have created. I love helping others take their business to the next level. I also value always being there for my son and making my own schedule. I am not sure that I would ever go back to a corporate job again. Read more>>

Marissa McCurtain

Generally speaking, yes! But did I send in my resume for a “regular job” in the last month? Also yes! When they said 45% small businesses close within the first 5 years, they weren’t kidding. In the events industry specifically you go through seasons, and when you go a long period of time without inquiries and see how open your schedule is it becomes terrifying. I start rationing out my savings, I begin hoarding any income I do have, and I start living off of ramen just to sustain the business that just isn’t busy right now. Read more>>

Jon Ekstrom

I literally never wonder what it would be like to have a regular job again. I had a regular job long enough that I remember how resentful I was of the perception that my time did not belong to me. I am wired for anxiety as it is, which, in a self-directed environment, propels me to action. Who do I need to call? What am I behind on? Ultimately: How do I rid myself of this feeling? When I worked in a big corporation, since things necessarily move much more slowly, that anxiety manifested as existential dread. I couldn’t do much in terms of direct action when things were giving me anxiety, so I mostly just felt full of resentment and fear. I don’t miss that in the least. Read more>>