Should Parents With Disabilities Consider Opening a Small Business?
Parents can find it difficult to juggle working and caring for their children; This can be especially challenging if the parent has a disability. Some employers don’t make reasonable accommodations for employees with disabilities, which can add to the struggle. If you are a parent with a disability, you might want to consider opening a small business to accommodate all your needs better.
Why Should You Start a Small Business?
There are many kinds of disabilities, and some of them require specific accommodations. For instance, if you get migraines often, you’ll need special lighting in your office. If you are in a wheelchair, you’ll need a desktop at the appropriate height and enough room to maneuver your wheelchair behind the desk. Setups like these aren’t always readily available in mainstream businesses, and that might create problems. If you open a home-based business, you most likely already have the appropriate lighting or space in your home.
Transportation to a job site can be a hassle, depending on the type of disability you have. If you work from home, that ceases to be an issue.
When you work for someone else, you don’t have control of your time. Working from home in your own business allows you to manage your time as you see fit. If you get a migraine, you don’t need permission to lie down. If you need to feed your children, you can do so at your leisure. You can set the days and hours that you plan to work.
If you have your own business, you can tailor it to your needs and interests and have the freedom to decide how to operate it. That freedom isn’t usually found when working for someone else.
What Steps Are Involved in Opening a Small Business?
Starting a business can seem overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be. There are several steps you should take to get started:
Decide what type of business you’d like to own. Think about your interests and abilities and try to come up with a business idea that suits you. Do you want it to be a home-based business? Do you want to sell goods or services?
Research the type of business you choose. You can get ideas to make your business more successful from reading what others say about similar companies.
Create a business plan, which is essentially a description of what your business will do, goals and plans to achieve them, financial forecasting, and marketing ideas. A written business plan will help you clarify your thoughts and will be needed if you need a loan for startup costs.
You will need to obtain city and county business licenses and register with your state’s Department of Revenue. You will also need to get an employer identification number from the IRS. Your EIN is used in conjunction with payroll taxes and can make it easier to file your business’s federal or state tax returns.
Apply for funding if you need it. The U.S. Small Business Administration can help with a new business loan, and you may also qualify for grants.
Create a strong marketing strategy, which can include a website, social media posts, email campaigns, or brochures to print and distribute.
Many small business experts agree on this helpful hint: For your business to be successful, you should strive to provide excellent customer service.
Are You Ready To Get Started?
There are people and organizations that can help you with getting your business started. Use them as resources to get off to a great start!
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