Full-time housewives can become entrepreneurs like their counterparts in the traditional societies and rural communities. They manage their home-based businesses; they find self expression and personal satisfaction serving others.

This keeps them busy. They overcome the doldrums of ‘stay-at-home mum syndrome’; they become vital spokes in the wheel of medium and small-scale enterprises’ contributions to economy growth.

Walking on sunshine Bisola (not real name) lives in the city. She was an upwardly mobile career woman in the oil and gas industry. She quit her job and became a full-time housewife. She said, “I am a woman, wife and mother. I work from home. I spend more time with my children. I cook hot meal for my husband. I love the life I live now.”

It is not all full-time housewives that are walking on sunshine like Bisola. Career women are skeptical of life as full-time housewives.

They prefer to keep their paid jobs in spite of the many troubles.

Some wives suggest their husband should also embrace the ‘stay-at-home dad’ vocations.

Overwhelming challenges

The challenges of full-time housewives are overwhelming. These women are sometimes restrained from working and compelled to stay at home because of their spouses’ personal, socio-cultural or religious preferences.

Others are constrained by gender, environmental and economic factors.

There are also issues of personal limitations or spouse’s idiosyncrasies, poverty or over-abundance, under-employment or unemployment, retrenchment or early retirement, workplace harassment or glass ceiling and home-making or child-rearing.

The ‘housewife syndrome’

If not properly managed, these challenges lead to ‘housewife syndrome’. Full-time housewives and home mothers suffer anxiety, anger and frustrations. They may be prone to nervous and emotional breakdowns. They experience feelings of isolation, loneliness, boredom, anxiety disorder, mood disorder, depression and in extreme cases mental health crises. They suffer in silence. They are ashamed to seek professional help for intervention.

Getting your grooves back

You can reverse the downhill trend. You can find purpose for living, happiness, and personal fulfilment as full-time housewife. Instead of living in denial or fighting to change your status when your spouse is insisting that it is a foregone conclusion, you can get your grooves back and enjoy life all over again!

You can be a full-time housewife, and have your own business. You can work for yourself. Awaken your inner mind, there are opportunities around you. You can transform your circumstances into gold.

Full-time housewife is a serious business

You clean, sweep, wash, cook, cater to your children, prepare meals for your spouse, and entertain guests. You have all the facilities in your household to carry out these chores effortlessly. You are very good at multi-tasking. The next thing is to scale up. You should reorganise yourself and your kitchen to deploy your dexterity to serve your friends and community for a fee. Do what you enjoy doing at home and make money from it.

Your talents

You were a woman before you became a wife. You became a full-time housewife because you are a wife. You should rediscover yourself.

Instead of lamenting about your situations, engage yourself and find out where your talents are.

Are you good with using your mind, eyes, mouth or hands? Can you knit, sew, sell, talk, transcribe, interpret or use any instruments or tools before you got married? Go and sharpen your skills. Learn new vocation. You can earn money and grow a home-based business using your talents.

Your time

You should not chatter away your time on neighbourhood gossips, politics, trends in fashion and endless viewing of television. You should productively invest your time in home-based ventures that give you personal fulfilment and enable you earn your own income.

Your space

You can make money from unutilised spaces in your premises. You can consider small-scale agriculture: plant vegetables; rear pigs, snails, chicken, catfish, and rabbits for sale. You can rent out space for events. You should check out with your estate association and local government authorities before you convert your space.

Your technology platform

They litter your home, and are cost-centres. Your telephone, smart phones, internet facilities and other gadgets in your living rooms or kitchen can fetch you some money. You are not too old to learn new technologies.

Your community

You are a full-time housewife, but you are not an island. You operate in a community of people who have needs that you can meet. In your place of worship, where you shop, where you live, when you do school runs, when you meet old school mates or people in your estate, let them know what you can do to add value to their lives.

Discuss with your family

Your journey to become an entrepreneur begins with a conversation with your spouse. You should also carry other members of your household who may be impacted by your decision along. It helps to have them on your side. You will need their support.

There are countless home-based businesses you can do. You should locate your passion and areas of interest and begin to earn money while enjoying your status as full-time housewife or home mother.

Source: http://www.punchng.com/business/am-business/full-time-housewives-can-become-entrepreneurs/

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