Change of Career - Real Mum story on MoM

20 Comments

I worked from 14 and from 17 had a good government career, I raised 3 children as a single mum, I met my husband and we maintained separate homes as he had a couple of teenagers of his own, My husbands job was made redundant and mine was moved, so we sold up, moved 5 teenagers and settled into the city, Hubby did the school runs, meals, sport runs etc, then my job went interstate after 18 mnth, we could not move the kids again so I took a redundancy, I found this hard as I had always worked and this was a shock. I did a few part time jobs and then I saw a Laundromat for sale, I was not looking for a business, I purchased it, upgraded it, and whilst my husband was not keen he supported me, I actually continued working elsewhere and Hubby took over!! we expanded the services and I spent hours ironing and washing for other people, also we took on contracts for medical centres, physios, hair salons, etc, I would never had thought that I would be doing domestic work for others, and I certainly did not think my Husband would, Eventually the building came up for sale, we purchased it, as it was cheaper than rent, after running this business for 10 years we had a man walk in and offer us a silly amount of money to buy the business and the building. we could not refuse, we now have a lovely little nest egg due to my silly move, But do not think that you cannot do anything, I came from a customer service office environment, my husband came from a technical background and neither of us would have ever though of this, so if you are considering a career change, look outside the square, people laughed at us but we are now retired early, and we actually enjoyed working together for 10 years and we talk about different things that happened during our time in business.

Posted by mom109463, 20th February 2015

20 Comments

- - mom113055 said
  - 09 Apr 2015
    5:42 pm
great story to read

- - mom94125 said
  - 28 Feb 2015
    11:21 pm
well i hope that you enjoy this new life experience
- mom109463 replied
  
  01 Mar 2015 , 11:59 pm
  Thankyou for your comments, and after working since I was 14, then 10 years in business without a holiday and being on call 24/7 it is wonderful to now be retired, we are still young enough to enjoy life and are busy renovating our home, doing all those jobs that should have been done in the last 10 years, but it is lovely to get up in the morning when we want, go out for coffee and just enjoy life without any pressure.
- - hopefullyheidi said
  - 28 Feb 2015
    8:13 pm
Well done to the pair of you. Go getting is the way to do it!

- - blondie said
  - 27 Feb 2015
    11:34 pm
well done glad the change worked out for the best for you and your family!

- - mom101330 said
  - 27 Feb 2015
    8:52 pm
It is strange where life takes you. I am currently studying after years in the airlines, and then years in government positions. I am working hard for a career change after having my son and becoming a single mother. Cheers to career changes….like you they can be rewarding.

- - mom119776 said
  - 26 Feb 2015
    4:18 pm
Glad the change worked out for the best

- - mom73672 said
  - 26 Feb 2015
    11:21 am
I have changed career several times from Chef to teacher to importer and as they say variety is the spice of life. My partner and I have been in business together for 17 years and whilst some days I just want to throttle him on most we are best friends. Our career changes have allowed us to taylor our job to suit our lifestyle which allows us more time to travel and enjoy life whilst still making a living.
- mom93821 replied
  
  27 Feb 2015 , 5:01 pm
  Good to share success stories with others.
  - mom109463 replied
    
    27 Feb 2015 , 8:49 pm
    
    I certainly understand the I want to throttle him sometimes, but at least most times things work out well, I think our relationship is better for the time we spent together and it gives you another dimension to your relationship to discuss your business as well. pleased to hear that you have enjoyed changing careers and working with your partner as well.
- - christial said
  - 25 Feb 2015
    1:08 pm
How lucky of you to get great money for your business and be able to retire early!
- mom109463 replied
  
  25 Feb 2015 , 10:52 pm
  We were very lucky, we do not normally have good luck, but the timing was fantastic, and this sort of business is normally sold within the industry, so to have someone who just walked in the door and offered a fantastic price for the business and then a great price for the property when he discovered we owned that as well was great, as when I bought the business I did a plan of why I wanted to work for myself and what I wanted to achieve, but no one ever tells you to do an exit plan, so when you want to get out for whatever reason, you do not know when the time is right, so this made it so easy, and my health as well as my hubbies was failing so it was the opportune time, and we had no agent fees, just a lawyer for conveyancing etc, so that saved heaps, and to sell a business in this day and age can be a difficult process, most simply shut!! BTW I actually ended up in hospital on settlement day and was In for a few weeks so hubby had to keep bringing things in to be signed. LOL thankyou for reading my story and commenting
- - jenniw said
  - 23 Feb 2015
    1:47 pm
Wow.. well done. I’ve often thought I would love to run by own business but just can’t justify a career change at the moment

- - mom93821 said
  - 23 Feb 2015
    10:14 am
Glad you are happy with the direction of your life and with your career choices. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with others.

- - Kelly said
  - 22 Feb 2015
    4:05 pm
Thats fantastic im so glad everything worked out for you guys in the end.
Like you say you never know if things will work out unless you try.

- - pakeko said
  - 21 Feb 2015
    8:04 pm
What a great thing you have been able to do, enjoy the nest egg and the next stage

- - 191joannes said
  - 21 Feb 2015
    8:07 am
loverly story

- - Moonberry said
  - 20 Feb 2015
    11:47 pm
Oh wow! Yes, I believe if opportunities pop up, take them… because chances are they were put in front of you for a reason, even if others pick on you about it! In the end, it could be the best thing you have invested in..

- - BellaB said
  - 20 Feb 2015
    4:36 pm
Indeed. It’s surprising what you can do if you ride out life’s bumps.
- mom109463 replied
  
  20 Feb 2015 , 10:43 pm
  And I can assure you with 5 teenagers we certainly had some bumps!!! 4 boys and 1 girl, fortunately they are generally well adjusted adults now and we get some me time, We actually ran into my husbands brother yesterday who ironically used to laugh at my husband who came from a technical background and was in a management position, telling others what to do for many years, so for him to be washing other peoples laundry was certainly a change for him!! But his brother made some very bad financial decisions and is basically broke after working long shift work his whole life and now in his 70’s is to old to recover financially, he actually said to my Hubby that he should have done something like us rather than working like he did til he was 68, as his health has suffered and he has nothing other than a basic home to show for it. so next time someone is doing menial work, applaud them encourage them, as they are not always doing it for the money, we did it for the lifestyle as well, and would not change a thing, although we did not have a holiday for 10 years, but you know, we actually enjoyed our jobs and we did not even notice, it was not until we actually thought about it that we realized, also the business was seasonal, so Jan and Feb was very quiet and we would only work a couple of hours a day, and our work hours were only 8 til 12 unless we wanted to extend them due to lots of work.