The good, the bad, and the bits no one puts on Instagram

A lot of people comment when I say I have my own business.
Usually it starts with something like:

“I’d love to work for myself…”
or
“I sew / make / create, but I don’t know how to price it.”

Before we even get to pricing, it’s worth being honest about what working for yourself actually looks like — especially if you’re doing it from home.

The upsides (and there are plenty)

Working for yourself — particularly from home — can be brilliant.

If you don’t need customers coming through the door, overheads can be tiny. No commute. No rent. No awkward office politics.

You can often:

• Work around school hours

• Stick the washing on between jobs

• Feed the baby, put the bins out, make a cuppa, then carry on

I started my own business as a single mum, and for me that flexibility was everything.
I never missed a sports day.
I was there when my kids were ill.
No asking permission. No guilt. No explaining myself.

That alone was worth more than any payslip. - and yes I took a massive paycut to be self-employed

The bits people don’t talk about

Now for the other side — because this matters just as much.

When you work from home:

• The house is never properly tidy

• Work is always there

• You can’t really “leave” it at 5pm

There’s no clean line between work and life.
You’re always half-on, half-off.

And then there’s the unpaid work.

When you work for yourself, you do:

• The making

• The packing

• The emails

• The pricing

• The bookkeeping

• The tax returns

None of that is paid — or you pay someone else to do it, which comes straight out of your pocket.

Employing people (a special kind of fun)

If you ever grow enough to employ people, that’s another reality check.

You:

• Pay staff when they’re sick

• Pay staff when they’re on holiday

• Still have to get the work done

So yes — you might be sewing at midnight, doing their job, while still paying them.

You don’t get sick pay.
You don’t get holiday pay.
You don’t get to switch off.

That doesn’t mean it’s bad — but it is different

So… why do it?

Because for the right person, the trade-offs are worth it.

Because flexibility can matter more than money.
Because independence matters.
Because being present for your kids matters.
Because building something of your own matters.

But — and this is the important bit —
only if the numbers make sense.

That’s where most people fall over.

They underprice.
They don’t count their time.
They don’t understand the difference between turnover and profit.
And they quietly burn out.

If pricing is the bit that’s stopping you…

I’ve put together a free, practical guide that walks through:

• How to price handmade products properly

• How to account for time, materials and overheads

• Why “paying yourself” matters (even when HMRC sees it differently)

• Using a simple tote bag as a clear, real example

It’s short. It’s honest. And it’s designed for people who are thinking about business — not pretending they’re already running a six-figure empire.

[Download the free guide here]

If nothing else, it will help you decide whether this is something you actually want to do — and that’s a win in itself.