Business owner

As a business writer who specializes in writing about women business owners and the issues they face, and as a woman who has started and run several businesses since 1995, I'm puzzled when I hear women say:

I really want to start a business -- but I have no idea what kind of business to start.

I hate to break it to these women, however, wanting to start a business and having an idea for a business are one and the same for almost every person who becomes an entrepreneur. Read More »

As a writer, I receive a lot of pitches from PR people trying to get me to write about their clients. Since I specialize in writing about women in business, I see my fair share of pitches with the term "Mompreneur" in them.

Wondering what the term "mompreneur" really meant, I did a quick search on Google and came up with several definitions:

Definition: A female business owner who is actively balancing the role of mom and the role of entrepreneur (Entrepreneur.com)

Most definitions, however, are more specific and refer to women entrepreneurs who are work-at-home moms.

MompreneursOnline.com defines mompreneurs as work-at-home mothers and claim to have coined and trademarked the term in 1996 with their first Mompreneurs book.

So do we really need the term "Mompreneur?"

Maybe 10 years ago, it was catchy and cute, but as a female writer who writes daily about women in business, I have to admit I'm more likely to ignore a pitch with "mompreneur" in the email subject versus "female entrepreneur" or "woman business owner" because it just doesn't sound credible or legitimate enough. Read More »

As a business owner, I have my share of questions and quandaries even though I'm also a business expert. My issues run the gamut and thankfully they aren't always the same ones because I do eventually find solutions -- either through other entrepreneurs, through social networking contacts, through a little research, through a bit of luck or a combination of these things.

Here are my Top 5 Business Quandaries, in no particular order.

1. How do I handle a client who doesn't have any business boundaries?

I've got a client who started off calling me at home at all hours wanting to talk about the project. I finally told him my husband didn't want him calling our home number. I've resorted to leaving my business cellphone off more often than I'd like to moderate his calls. When we are on the phone -- even if it should be a quick conversation -- he goes off on tangents, and the calls last over half an hour or more for no good reason. How do I draw firm boundaries without risking a good business relationship?

UPDATE: Parted ways with the client. Huge sigh of relief.
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