<p>aibarr, that’s why I have my own firm and don’t design state of the art buildings. I do decks and kitchens and additions. I’ve got more work than I want to cope with this summer, but my business has been growing gradually. I don’t do any marketing, I just let word of mouth do it for me. I worked part-time when my kids were young and then went out on my own when my youngest was six.</p>
<p>Myarmin, you have the right attitude. Things will continue to improve for you, I’m sure. It just takes a bit of <em>getting used to</em>.</p>
<p>I own my business so I’m technically at work 24/7. However, the time I spend in the office varies depending on what I have scheduled that week. I also travel extensively so it’s common for me to leave my house at 5am, catch a flight to Chicago or NYC, have a day full of meetings, catch a later flight back home then walking into my house that evening hungry and hoping that my boyfriend decided to cook. LOL </p>
<p>My advice to you is find something your passionate about and pursue it with vigor. I’m a special events producer so my “job” usually involves me designing and planning large scale corporate events, weddings, product launch parties, and even CEO retirement parties. It’s a lot of fun and the money isn’t too bad either 
However some weeks it’s possible for me to work 60-80 hours and then some weeks it’s possible where I work less than 20 (Thank God for an executive assistant! LOL)</p>
<p>I never had a paying job for which I felt anything close to passion. On the other hand, I did not feel passionate about going to school either. However, in every job I’ve had there have been elements that I did enjoy. If things got tiresome enough, or not enjoyable, I would look for another situation.</p>
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<p>That’s how we found our designer for our kitchen remodel project- through word-of-mouth from our neighbor.</p>
<p>However, people in your profession must be well-paid 
Especially after I received a $125,000 quote from her last week!</p>
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<p>One thing that women who leave the work place to raise kids give up is a secure retirement that they control. It’s a risk.</p>