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.

 

Alex Hudson

I find this question interesting because I have been on both sides of the token. Currently, I am the Executive Director of the Saving Gracie Equine Healing Foundation, a non-profit equine rescue that was started by my mother, Barb Phillips. My mother and father have several different businesses that they have grown from the ground up, and at this point my siblings and I are all connected to the family business, but it has not always been this way. I started my career as a nurse. I worked for a very large hospital and although I loved nursing, I always felt that I wanted to be able to make an impact on a higher level within a system. In 2020, I made the decision to start working for Blue Sky Utah. Blue Sky is the ranch and resort my family owns and operates in Wanship, UT. The equine rescue is right down the street and works very closely with the ranch as well. Working in the family business means that work never goes away! Instead, Blue Sky and Saving Gracie Foundation have become our lifestyle as a family. I can, of course, be challenging and stressful at times to navigate, but the reward is so great. My children get to see the passion that my mother has for the animals she rescues and the care that my husband (he works in the family business to) and I have for the property and the people. So although it is certainly a challenge, I would never change it. Read more>>

Jamie Torres Tia Beliso

We are so happy being business owners. Some days more than others but the good always outweighs the harder days. Recently, we had reached a peak where we felt like we were just stuck and not growing the way we started. When we started the business during pandemic, there was so much opportunity in the online space. We hit it at the right time and were scaling quickly. But as the world got used a “new normal” the enthusiasm for online services slowly tapered and we realized that we were doing everything, including things we didn’t like doing, and the market had gotten oversaturated. We were left feeling stagnant and with major imposter syndrome. On top of feeling the business stress, we were each going through a lot in our personal lives, financially, health, family, and all that fun life stuff. Anxiety hit with all the thoughts of how we were going to make it all work- could we support ourselves financially, the guilt of starting a business and not feeling like we could contribute to our families financially, the panic of should I go back to the 9-5 for stability even though we were miserable before, was our initial success just a fluke?  Read more>>

Tayla Holman

Although it’s a lot of work, I don’t see myself going back to a full-time job anytime soon. I was laid off from my last job in 2022 after just six months due to restructuring. I was completely blindsided and felt like such a failure, even though I wasn’t the only one affected. It was hard not to take it personally because I had never been let go from a job before; I always left for a better opportunity. But I was still freelancing, so I figured I would focus on building my freelance business and work on my jewelry business as well. I did a little bit of job searching, but nothing was really catching my eye. Or I would get interviews and not hear back. I kept looking sporadically because it felt like the “right” thing to do, but my heart wasn’t in it. Read more>>

Dmytro Bondarenko

I worked as a law clerk at a small law office in Brooklyn prior to getting into the hospitality industry. It was long hours and stressful. Most importantly, there is no room for creativity. After the experience in the legal field, I stumbled upon working as a delivery driver and then a waiter at an Italian restaurant. These experiences allowed me to develop great social skills and customer interaction. It was then I discovered my passion in foods. Now running my own crepe store, it is a 24/7 job. It is a lot of responsibility. I have to make sure we have all the inventory for the store to run. I have employees that need the hours. I have to make sure all equipments are working properly for safety reasons. Read more>>

Chandler Monroe

I think this question is multifaceted, and any mildly successful business owner is lying to you if they didn’t think about going back to their 9-5 frequently, especially in the building and growing stage of their business or on days when juggling all the roles gets a little hard. But to say that I am not fundamentally happier despite all of the ups and downs than I ever was at my day job would be a huge understatement. It’s not about how you feel on a minute-by-minute and day-by-day basis, but rather the overarching life of freedom and fulfillment that owning your own business provides for you. That’s the true happiness. Read more>>

Michelle Lloyd

Ten years ago, I was fresh out of university, having studied Art, and found myself unemployable. Nobody wanted to hire a recent art graduate who hadn’t worked in more than six years. I didn’t see art as a career option, even after studying Business prior to Art! I never thought to combine the two. I even turned down an offer to attend a start-up business help session, replying, “Why would I attend that when I’ve studied Art?” I spent months applying for non-art-related jobs and was repeatedly rejected. I had already exhausted all the art-related options, such as galleries, and faced rejection there too. So, here I was, fresh out of university and unemployable. Read more>>

Aspen Vallee

I truly am happier as a business owner. It’s been a transformative journey filled with growth, challenges, and a deeper sense of purpose. At the same time, I’ve developed a newfound appreciation for the stability that often comes with a regular job. Running a business has been a profound learning experience. It offers incredible freedom and the opportunity to build something meaningful, but it also demands perseverance and adaptability. There are moments when it feels lonely, confusing, or overwhelming—especially during growing pains. In those moments, I’ve sometimes wondered what it might be like to experience the simplicity of a traditional job. Read more>>

Maelyn Hecox

Starting my own business has pushed me to redefine what professional happiness means to me. I worked in a corporate role beforehand, and back then, happiness equated to stability, great paychecks, and clear top-down direction. As a business owner, all three of those things fly right out the window on day 1. It’s so easy to have a rough day and question why you chose this path, but the grass isn’t greener on the other side. Working for someone else full-time wound up costing me my passion, creativity, and peace over time, and I have to remind myself of that on the days when I want to burn it all down. Read more>>

Serena Sara Hesse

Working as an independent stylist has been the best decision for me. In the 8 yrs that I’ve opened Serena’s Hair Now, I have yet to entertain the idea to go back to a salon. Salons are very much based on a hustle culture, that might be changing a little bit, but not much. When working for other people it was required that I work on their timelines. Now , I get it, we need to get the job done and there needs to be structure in that. For me it’s based on the individuals hair and ensuring they get the best service I can provide for them. That’s important to me. Having the time to listen to what someone is looking for , having time to finish with the confidence that I didn’t rush any steps. People appreciate the time and thoroughness . People will budget for this, for a space where they feel comfortable. A space where there isn’t a rushed atmosphere.  Read more>>

Tara Condon

Funny enough, leaving the path of a “regular job” is what brought me to the travel industry. I jumped straight into the world of recruiting after graduating college in 2016, and I stayed in that world for nearly eight years. During that time, I felt that I was doing the thing that I was supposed to do – corporate job, steady income, normal life. I won’t lie though, the occasional thought of “am I really supposed to do this for 40+ years?” while sitting in a beige cubicle definitely crossed my mind once or twice. But, the stability of a 9 to 5 seemed to pull me back in whenever my thoughts wandered to what could be. Read more>>