Being a business owner isn’t easy. There are amazing highs, but the lows are often quite intense as well. Somedays it feels like the problems never stop – regardless of how much success you achieve. The problems just grow, evolve, morph. So we asked business owners if they sometimes wonder what it would be like to just have a regular job and have shared some of the highlights below.

Kate Eckard

The thought of getting a “normal” 9-5 is something that has crossed my mind many times in the last 5 years of being a small business owner. Benefits, consistent paychecks & not having everything riding on my shoulders are all very compelling arguments, but what about the freedom to be creative, set your own schedule and do exactly what you want to do? Every day I wake up and I get to decide what I want to do with my business, what direction do I want to go in? And because of that I’ve had many evolutions in my branding as it’s an ever-changing journey. Read more>>

Audrina Henry

Being “happier” is an understatement as a business owner, I feel like having a permanent adrenaline is what makes me be a business owner. The constant ups and downs, the major campaigns, to the sold out sales somehow you will get an adrenaline from any of those cause you never know what to expect. As someone who had two regular jobs during the beginning and during being a business owner it’s really not much of a difference but you get little pay while the big boss gets the big coins. That never sat right with me, however it is a safety net just in case something happens. In 2020 while working my second job as a retail in Walmart I remember talking to my coworker Martha she’s an elder lady who always told me her crazy stories when she was younger, always had a soft spot for me vice versa. I told Martha that me working here was just temporary due to the pandemic and slowing down my business like crazy I showed her how much i made monthly and she told me “you just need to be here till spring and your business will pick back up. Everybody just scared right now, you see they taking nothing but toilet paper.” So listening to her I waited till spring saved my money and flipped it by buying my inventory and relaunching my hair company which resulted to selling out within 2 hours and having a 25k profit. Read more>>

Heceliza Perez

When I decided I would turn away from having a corporate job, I felt very confident and sure of my decision. Only at the beginning of my pursuits to have my own business did I question my choice a few times. Being an entrepreneur can be very lonely, especially not knowing many female business owners to lean on for support. It also takes a lot of energy to be a self-starter, along with courage and passion to continue day by day. When ideas or choices are a “fail”, it takes a piece of my confidence and what was once enthusiasm and excitement. Now it’s been a few years, so I cannot imagine working for a company and having a regular 9-5 job. I love having control over my schedule, what I get to do daily, how I get to do it, and bringing my ideas and inspiration into fulfillment. Read more>>

Justin Morrison

This is one of those questions that I revisit often when I’m alone in a mental retreat. I also discuss this with my wife regularly. My profession before owning my business was extremely gratifying. I was given opportunities to make significant impacts in people’s lives through professional training and coaching. I worked with companies ranging in size to help their teams work together smarter and optimize their performance. My co-workers and I used to joke about how we were part trainers, coaches, and therapists. One of my beliefs about teams in general is that they are a direct reflection of their leadership. This is in no way my own idea, I just subscribed to it the more I observed how teams perform in professional settings. Read more>>

Christine Barshtak

Every single time I travel and I’m still a slave to my emails – which is remaining in service to the clients, to the employees, to the stake holders – I wonder what it would be like to have a regular job where I can go away, tune out and turn off. Read more>>

Mehwish S.

As a regular person I think we all end up working for regular jobs, working for someone, specially because we don’t know what else could be done. I was the same. Since having kids, I always wanted to use my time to grow as a professional & all I could think of was to work for someone, as a school teacher (which in my opinion is the most convenient job as a mother), as a sales person or to go back to school to learn something else that I could pursue. It was a very depressing phase I remember, & I have also tried getting my hands into multiple things while I was doing my job as a home maker. Read more>>

Maya Pezzente

Yes, I am much happier as a business owner versus working in a typical 9-5 desk job, even in the interior design industry.

Being a business owner allows me to have creative control, and a flexibility with my day that works well with my personality. Read more>>

Alexiane Silla

Most people know me as Alexiane the singer and the songwriter. But I am also the owner of the Canadian independent record label I created GION RECORDS signed under distribution with Universal music Canada. As such, I wear many hats and there are many business decisions I am responsible for on a daily basis. I have been singing and composing alternative pop since I was a child but my studies were in Economics (McGill University) as well as in Music production and music business (UCLA). I guess I have always had an artistic and entrepreneurial streak and I think I made it my mission to prove that the two can coexist. In 2017 I released “A Million On My Soul”, the theme song of the blockbuster movie “Valerian and the city of a thousand planets” (Luc Besson) which has accumulated more than 80 million views on YouTube with the original and its Turkish remix by MOSES & EMR3YGUL. I then released my first album “Into The Sun” in 2021 in co-direction with Carla Bruni. This cinematographic alternative pop album rocked by the sounds of Senegal (my father’s country) opened up wonderful opportunities of international collaborations for me. I am now preparing my second album IGY scheduled for fall 2024 with exceptional collaborators from Canada, USA, France, Germany, Ukraine, Turkey, Senegal, Mali and more. I will be releasing several singles in early 2024. I’ve recently released my EDM interpretation of the classic AVE MARIA (link: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=2mJK8T8OK2I&pp=ygUIYWxleGlhbmU%3D ) Read more>>

Andy Weyenberg

I have definitely had that thought before. Last time, it was actually during a very quiet, “normal” week. I had gotten my daily task sheets finished on time a few days in a row and it was looking like I’d be able to end my day early, and I wondered to myself if this was what it used to feel like back when I had a somewhat regular job; working until the end of a pre-set day instead of needing to keep going until the work is done. Almost immediately after, two things happened. First, I found a problem with my steam generator that required me to completely dismantle and reassemble it with some spare parts I had, and the second was getting a phone call from one of my restaurant clients asking for 30 extra pounds of mushrooms a week starting with their delivery a few days away. I took this call while deep into the reassembly part of my unexpected project, in the middle of rewiring my heating element. Not wanting to disappoint a client or lose out on more business, I quickly ran through some options to figure out how this could be done, decided I would have to figure it out, and gave them an answer “I can definitely have that amount for next week’s delivery, and I’ll see what I can do about getting you those extra 30 lbs this week. See you in two days!” Read more>>

Callie Arino Esther Rutter

This is a great question. This topic is a frequent reflection we have where we can acknowledge this new type of hustle being business owners. While an overwhelming amount of daily gratitude is to witness where our abilities and experience can take us, our gratitude can be found in many minor and major things. For example, our clients, watching the someone beam with excitement after seeing the final result, having deep meaning chats behind the chair, refilling our snack counter, and sweeping our OWN shop at the end of a tiring day. Of course we have hard days where we run behind, people cancel, TAXES can be a scary thing, but at the end of the day we have so much gratitude, even in the small moments, it makes all the hard work worth it. I don’t think having a regular job is for us, we love what we do! Read more>>

Lauren Kovacik

I think every business owner, especially those of us in the creative field, have questioned if we were doing the right thing and wondering what it would be like to have a “normal” job. In my busiest and my slowest seasons I always hear a little voice in the back of my mind asking me if I am happy in my work and how I would feel with a normal job with normal work hours. During the busy periods, where I am photographing weddings and events all weekend and spending my weekdays editing and working on my pre-wedding checklists, I find myself wishing I had a weekend free to spend with my husband and family while they have the time off of work. Or wanting to take a few hours off during the week to go on a fun date night, but feeling guilty I’m not working on galleries fast enough. During the winter season, when I am not booking as many weddings, I tend to wonder if I’ll be fully booked for the next year and how I’ll make ends meet. It is a vicious cycle of feeling like I’m not good enough to be a creative business owner, or wishing that I had a more regular schedule. Read more>>

Ralph Bernstein

I’m very happy as a business owner. I have the freedom to run the business according to my values, without having to compromise them in order to meet external demands like “maximizing shareholder return.” I make decisions based on what I think (or hopefully know) is good for the business, our employees, and/or our customers. When I’m right, everyone benefits. When I’m wrong, I say that I’m wrong and we adjust things and move forward. Sometimes, my decisions mean we give up some potential revenue and I am just fine with that. For example, in 2023 we provided the equivalent of 3.5 years of free and discounted boarding nights to dogs from various foster programs around the state of Minnesota. And, in this past quarter, we’ve provided free and discounted boarding to a dog who’s family fled the war in Ukraine, a dog owned by someone in transitional housing, and two dogs owned by someone fleeing a domestic abuse situation. The freedom to lead and manage more from my heart and less from my wallet brings me happiness every day. Read more>>

AKilah Love

I am much happier being a business owner as im able to create programs to help those in need based on my expereiences, create my own schedule and not be limited to a pay grade choosen by an employer, the option to hire and empower people who are worthy of it, based on energy, motivation, vision and worth, as opposed to gender, education, degree lists and state appointed mandates for community work iniatives and or minimal wages. I love building a business with no ceilings and unlimited opportunies to explore ones passion and purpose for not just the executive team, but for all. I love allowing for profits organizations to feed into the non-profit organizations consistently and not based on trends but based on commitment of a certain percentage without a cap. I do sometimes think about what it would be like if I had a regular job. The guarantee of a certain amount per year can help with automation and end of year accounting for tax returns, but certainly is a trade off to give up on your personal goals and dreams and potential. Read more>>

Kenzie Dorsher

I love being a business owner and all that comes with it. I put a lot into it while also having a full time job. My business is not a “side hustle” to me. It’s one of my favorite things to work on. There are times where I come home after my full time job and I’m exhausted and I don’t want to work on my business. I get into ruts where I feel so uninspired. I’m still learning how to navigate these periods. I hope to one day be able to work on my small business full time because it makes me the happiest and I love doing it. Read more>>

Nick Leo

I love being a business owner, and I don’t think that I could go back to working in another company that I am not an integral part of. My life has changed in every way being my own boss. I love the near unlimited freedoms that come with the territory, from scheduling to creativity! Read more>>

Jennifer Ramirez

Being a business owner has completely changed my life, in the most positive way! I always knew I was suppose to work for myself. I love being able to work at my own pace and time. I don’t think I could back to working for another person, it’s just not in me. It’s not what I like, I always tell my friends to somehow or some way work for them selves. I know some people are ok to work for others and I think that’s great, but if you could have the opportunity to make your own schedule and YOUR own money. Why wouldn’t you take that chance? Read more>>

Alexander Madaus

These are questions I think about almost every morning, and the answer is always yes; I often think about what it would be like to have a regular job, and I am so much happier as a business owner. I wake up every day untethered to an externally imposed schedule, which is both terrifying and liberating. In theory, I could close the shop, drive up to my mom’s house and spend time with her. I could escape to the woods when I feel overwhelmed, or I could just stare across the Baltimore harbor and listen to the water lapping the dock. I could do all of that, and no one would stop me, and no one would pay me. Read more>>