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Military spouses can start their own businesses and be entrepreneurs.
It’s not as scary as it sounds and several agencies offer great FREE resources to help you get started.
Ashlee Sullivan is the proud over of Woman + Warrior, an apparel brand for the whole military family and an army spouse. Ashlee and her husband found themselves knee-deep in school loans with a few kids underfoot. So, Ashlee got creative and brainstormed what she could do to earn enough to tackle their $100,000 debt. Ashlee is creative so she ventured into something she would enjoy doing and could be managed out of her home. Ashlee has successfully launched and managed a business while supporting her military man, raising four kids, and following Jesus.
Check out Ashlee and her awesome apparel. I’m a huge fan. Her shirts are adorable, sport military pride, and are soft and excellent quality.
Just the reality of being a military spouse presents problems with finding and keeping employment. You will likely PCS and not stay in one location long and will deal with a spouse deployed while juggling the responsibilities of caring for a home and/or family. You also may find a lack of jobs that meet your skill set. But, as a military spouse, you probably have drive, dedication, and a work ethic that exceeds your civilian friends. This means you may be able to successfully start and run your own business.
You Can Be An Entrepreneur
Below are some resources for owning your own business.
Underemployment can be a real problem when you are a military spouse. Running your own business may an ideal career choice for your mobile military lifestyle. You may turn to starting your own business to create a more steady source of income. Below are organizations that provide free resources and courses to help military spouses start their own businesses.
1) National Military Spouse Network – Networking, mentoring, and professional development organization that allows military spouses to connect, share experiences, and develop strategies for starting a business, building a career, and finding balance.
2) National Military Family Association – Largest advocacy organization for military families. They offer resources, training, and support for military spouses looking to start their own businesses or develop a meaningful new career.
3) USO – Offers workshops and guidance on entrepreneurship.
4) Association of Defense Communities – Offers assistance in entrepreneurship for military spouses.
5) The Rosie Network – Helps military spouses looking to become small business owners offering training, mentoring, networking, and resources.
6) MilSpo Project – Milspo Project is a community of military spouse entrepreneurs meeting in-person, online, and in between to level up in business and life. MilSpo Project is the largest military spouse-member business organization in the country with 450 military spouses who connect daily online and in person.
7) The Small Business Administration – offers military spouse pathways to business classes. They have a calendar that offers in-person and online classes for helping military spouses become entrepreneurs. They offer several programs for military spouses under their Boots to Business classes, Boots to Business Reboot classes, BSB Revenue Readiness, or the Follow-On Support Classes. Boots to Business is an entrepreneurial education and training program that offers an introduction to entrepreneurship course. Further training is also available.
8) Military ONE Source – Offers free education and training to help you become an entrepreneur. Through Military One Source, https://www.score.org/SCORE business resources offer a free mentor, local and/or online workshops, and templates and tools to create business plans, generate financial statements, learn about growth strategies, legal issues, office operations and more. SCORE programs are offered for service member families and women entrepreneurs. Once you receive PCS orders, you can connect with a SCORE mentor in your new location before you move to get a head start. You can also use local or online mentors ot help you plan, start, or expand your business or learn how to shut down or sell your business before your next PCS. Resources and mentors will help you get started quickly.
Military One Source can offer an entrepreneurial coaching session, allows access to small business administration resources, and can help you learn about home-based businesses.
Military One Source offers articles on the following topics:
Starting your own business could be a rewarding way for you to pursue something that is your own, while following your military spouse around the world. It’s a win-win!
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