Getting back on the highway with Lea Curtes-Swenson
Welcome to the On-Ramp!
Hello, and welcome to the On-Ramp!
My name is Lea Curtes-Swenson, and I am so pleased to be hosting this section of Working Mom Lifeline. If you are a mom who’s taken time off from your career to stay at home – but now are seeking the on-ramp back to the superhighway of the (paid) working world – this is your resource.
Whether you call yourself an On-Ramper, a Comeback Mom, or just plain crazy – please do bookmark us now, while you’re thinking of it… because, if you’re anything like me, you have a kazillion things to do and accomplish today (not to mention in this lifetime), so surely you’ll forget when you notice that dinner is burning and it’s time to get off the Internet.
First, a couple of things about me. Number One, I am in the same rocking, wobbly boat as you. I have two little girls, and I took a few years off from working outside the home. Now I am in the process of brushing up my skills and building my portfolio so that I can start earning money again.
My journey is far from complete, but (and I guess this would be Number Two) what I might lack in “genius”-level expertise, I try to make up for in pure, unfettered desire – desire to help moms like you and me find the resources they need to get back to work.
My goals for this column are threefold:
- I’ll provide you with scores of strategies, resources and tips for going back to work.
- I’ll feature real-life success stories to inspire you.
- I’d like to start a conversation with you about being an On-Ramper. Please, please bring us your comments, questions, frustrations, tips, success stories (& your failures, too!) – all as they relate to the challenge of going back to work.
Interview #1 with On-Ramper Erin Kokoszka, Founder/Owner, Maternally Posh
As On-Rampers go, Erin Kokoszka falls into the “short break” category – after the birth of her three-year-old daughter, Sophia, Erin took only a six-month hiatus from working. That’s a remarkably brief period of time when you consider that Erin completely reinvented herself, career-wise.
After receiving her bachelor’s degree in social work, Erin worked in her chosen field for five years. Admittedly burnt out, Erin sought a new direction as executive assistant to the chief of police in her hometown of Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts, on Martha’s Vineyard. When she got pregnant, Erin expected to go back to the full-time position she loved and put baby Sophia in daycare.
“I thought Sophia would go to daycare, I would go back to work, and that would be it,” says Erin. “I’ve always been committed to my career, and that was my plan.”
But, like many first-time mothers, Erin discovered that she felt very differently once she’d met her little girl for the first time. Her challenge, then, was to find a way to do meaningful work while still being the primary caregiver for Sophia. (Erin’s husband, Mark, works long hours – so his time with Sophia is reserved for family fun, mostly on the weekends.)
So when Sophia was six months old, Erin established her bookkeeping business. While it was something she enjoyed and was good at (and still is – she maintains several clients), Erin dreamed of blending her passions for business and all things motherhood, with her love of great style and smart shopping.
When Sophia was two years old, Maternally Posh was born. Erin’s mission for Maternally Posh is to bring moms the best baby stuff – from car seat covers to slings, high chairs to diaper bags – that isn't just for babies.
As she puts it on her website: “Newsflash: moms are people too. You do not need to give up your highly refined sense of style just because you had a baby. You've been working on your look for years – keep it, for heaven's sake! You can be MATERNAL and POSH at the same time.”
Erin’s first step in building the business was to establish relationships with manufacturers of the unique, stylish baby equipment and accessories she’d come to admire. She says this process was surprisingly straightforward – it usually started with a simple phone call or e-mail, asking about wholesale pricing.
Then, rather than investing a lot of cash into a professionally designed website with e-commerce capabilities, she started an e-Bay Store. Once she saw her sales volume steadily increasing, she moved the business to its new online home, www.MaternallyPosh.com. (It even includes a well-written, informational and entertaining blog that’s updated on a regular basis.)
New Business Start-up Resources
Erin identifies two resources that she found invaluable in starting her business: SCORE and Count Me In for Women’s Economic Independence programs, including “Make Mine a Million.”
SCORE is a nonprofit association dedicated to educating entrepreneurs and the formation, growth and success of small business nationwide. They have 389 chapters throughout the United States, with 10,500 volunteers nationwide. Both working and retired executives and business owners donate time and expertise as business counselors.
Considered a premier source of free and confidential small business advice for entrepreneurs, SCORE offers online and in-person mentoring advice, workshops, how-to articles and business templates.
Count Me In for Women’s Economic Independence provides resources, business education and community support for women entrepreneurs seeking to grow micro businesses to million dollar enterprises. Count Me In’s mission is to promote women entrepreneurs and women’s economic independence.
The goal of their primary program, Make Mine a Million $ Business, is to inspire and support a movement of one million women entrepreneurs to build million-dollar businesses by 2010.
Because this program is geared toward businesses at least two years old and making $250,000 in revenues, you may want to check out the Biz Help Service tab – look for the Starting a Business checklist, use their Bizline to get your specific questions answered by experts, read the articles in the Library, or sign up for workshops.
Maybe there's something about having a baby that inspires creativity, or injects a woman with courage enough to follow her dreams of business success. If that's the case, then Erin Kokoszka should be seeing plenty more success -- she is pregnant with Baby #2!
Best of luck, Erin -- and thank you for sharing your story with The On-Ramp.
Erin's Advice:
“Really dream big, never settle, and always take risks. Be strong, and keep plugging away. ... When I lost my dad suddenly, I realized that life is too short to do things that make you unhappy. Seize every day!” --- Erin Kokoszka, Maternally Posh
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