10/06/2026
Tight on money, but still want to support small businesses? Here’s how to do that without spending a dime. The House Kat Pet Services, thank for sharing this.
We cannot all come from grace, but when we are given grace, we can grow from it. Sometimes, grace comes disguised as the blessing of tribulation.
At forty-six, I found myself terminated from a job I had held for eleven years. My favorite boss had retired and then passed away, and the new supervisor arrived with an air of superiority, acting as though she had all the answers despite knowing very little about my role. I did not take kindly to someone who had never done my job telling me how to do it. It infuriated me, and ultimately, I was let go.
It became one of the most humbling experiences of my life. But before I could even fully process what had happened, I made a pivotal decision: I chose to start my own business.
I have been running my business for over five years now, and I could write an entire book about what this path has taught me about people, money, boundaries, exhaustion, pride, fear, confidence, and myself.
I used to complain about what things cost and what people charged for their time. Then I became the person responsible for pricing my own time, carrying my own expenses, paying for my own insurance, website, gas, equipment, education, and taxes. I understand now that a price is rarely just a number; behind it is someone's time, experience, risk, knowledge, overhead, and the parts of their life they have traded to build something of their own.
Running a business taught me that knowing your worth is not the same thing as believing you are worth more than someone else. It taught me that boundaries are not selfish, that saying "no" is sometimes an act of survival, and that being good at something does not mean you have to give all of yourself away.
Most of all, it gave me something I had been missing for a long time: connection. People began inviting me into their homes and trusting me with the creatures they loved like their own children. The business grew, but so did I. I learned that being independent does not mean doing everything alone, and that success looks very different from what I once imagined.
While I thought I was simply building a business to survive, I was actually becoming acquainted with a new version of myself—one who learned to stand behind her work, ask for what she was worth, and keep going when things didn't go according to plan.
Happy National Women's Small Business Month to every woman out there building her own path.
PS- I am working on writing a book, and as I have been reflecting on business, I had to acknowledge all of this here. Some of these thoughts will be included in my book.
