With a few gaps, I’ve been on an entrepreneurial path since 1988. As an entrepreneur I’ve started a creative mini-department store, opened a copywriting business, launched a marketing consultancy, founded a women’s speaking group and birthed a social media services company. I also pursued an editorial writing career, working my way up from an event reporting “stringer” to a regular contributor and columnist. I’ve made mistakes, met amazing mentors and friends, tested my limits, opened new doors and achieved more than I could have ever dreamed.

On my worst days I thank God I’m my own boss – I’ve experienced so many wonderful life-enhancing benefits by being a woman entrepreneur.

Freedom Rocks – even with pits!

Back in the Stone age… when I graduated college the first question that was asked in any job interview was “how fast can you type?”  The thought of being an admin or secretary horrified me, yet if you lacked a teaching certificate or doctor or lawyer’s degree, that was the expected starter job for many women. While I worked at some interesting places, I couldn’t seem to find my niche, and basically took whatever customer service or production job I could, to help support my family.

The retail business that started me on my entrepreneurial journey was created with my sister-in-law, giving us our first taste of creative and operational freedom – what a rush! Our new venture allowed us to do the mom thing while bringing in some bacon. And while we thought it was going to be the ultimate dream job – we shopped, we decorated the store, we sold lovely, unusual gifts and delivered friendly, fun service to a lot of wonderful customers – we did not have a clue about budgets, pricing, funding or inventory management. During the 7 years we were in business, I also learned about branding, marketing copywriting, art direction, PR, merchandising, hiring, delegating, and selling. We did not attend one networking event the entire time we were open and did not make the major bucks we envisioned. We also worked into the wee hours of the night many times, so we could keep up with our home/work lives. The freedom thing was a bit sketchy by the end…

Yet without this experience, I would not have realized how much I love consultative selling, how much I LOVE marketing, branding and creative communications… all of which helped me to develop my own sales and marketing systems that I use today. Without the journey – which began when I became a woman entrepreneur – I would have never gotten to develop my speaking or writing business, worked with social media, gotten on TV and radio, traveled to exciting destinations, or interviewed interesting, savvy business leaders, authors and celebrities from across the country.

The experience has been even sweeter, because as a woman entrepreneur I been able to breach  many self-imposed boundaries – pushing the bar and achieving new goals. Today, I use all the skill sets that were developed along the way and nurture new ones. I structure my days as I like – make meetings, go on business trips, attend conferences, plan my annual agenda and tweak my goals and to-do’s as needed. Yes, along with the creative freedom I still have to deal with responsibilities, bills and budgets (things every business owner grapples with), but each day is a new adventure, another opportunity to learn, grow and advance.

Other perks:  I enjoy working with many different kinds of clients, covering diverse industries and markets. It’s also been really nice to be a part of many supportive women’s empowerment communities like WomenandBiz.com, NJAWBO, WICE and the Center for Women– folks that are eager to help career women as well as new and growth-track companies.

And the long hours that I still put in are done around family and “me” time – they are an investment in my business and my future.

So as we recognize feminine advances of all kinds during Women’s History Month – I celebrate my entrepreneurial life, with all it’s perks and pitfalls. I still relish the learning path I’m on, the opportunities I’ve been able to take advantage of, and the fabulous people that continue to cross my path because of the leap I made so many years ago!

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Pattie Simone is a Viral Adventurer and Business Success Activist. As a Speaker, Writer and Consultant, she helps entrepreneurs and growth-track firms chart winning success paths via keynotes, workshops, PR, blogging, Digital Asset Planning & Management and other nimble marcom solutions. She has appeared on FOX 5’s Good Day New York and ABC TV’s nationally syndicated America This Morning program, has a sales & marketing column on WomenEntrepreneur.com and is an Ask Entrepreneur Expert. Simone is the thought-leader behind Write-Communications.com and Marketing-Advantage, print and viral marketing resources. She is also the founder of WomeCentric.net, a virtual directory of savvy & diverse women experts and authors, keynote and motivational speakers, and career & life advancement professionals.