Having founded her first business in 2009, Bridget Daley has over 10 years experience running a business. As well as being an entrepreneur, Bridget is also a mother of 5 children, and her journey balancing family life and everyday business inspired her to share her knowledge and experience through Parents In Biz.

‘Building a business from scratch all by yourself is not only hard but when you have children, it is especially hard. You can quickly become overwhelmed and frustrated. However, I believe you can have it all. The choices I make every day allow me to put my beautiful family first while building my business and working with people I genuinely care about.’

A true Libra, Bridget loves balance – and has helped over 100 parent entrepreneurs navigate the world of business and achieve a work life balance they can be proud of. We were so excited to get the chance to speak to Bridget and find out more about Parents In Biz as part of our #WomenInSMEs.

1. Hi Bridget, thanks for taking the time to chat with us. Could you briefly explain your business?

The parents in biz platform is there to support and equip parents with everything they need to manage the family and business tightrope. The type of parents we serve are parents who are running a business, self-employed and freelancing. Some of the resources parents have access to are our blog, podcast, inspirational interviews with parents, business tools and resources, self-care and productivity challenges also are recently launched Parents in Business magazine etc. This year we will be putting on events and launching our online hub.

2. What a great idea! Why did you start Parents In Biz, can you tell us about the journey?

I started my first business over ten years ago, and I understand, first hand, the pains that parents go through, from starting up a business to scaling a business. There weren’t many parent business owners in my social circle back when I started, and my ambition often seemed like a pipe dream.

I founded Parents in Biz in 2017, so I could work with parents who had the desire to start a business and parents who are running a business and wanted to grow their business. I wanted to use my experience of business and motherhood, to support and empower parents to manage the tightrope of running a business and having harmony at home.

I have 5 children, and throughout my business journey, my children have gone through all the stages of child development baby, toddler, pre-schooler, school age, teenagers, and young adulthood.

3. That’s fantastic! And seriously impressive. What have been your greatest successes and challenges in business so far?

The launch of the Parents in Business magazine has been a great achievement – it’s a free quarterly digital and print magazine, and we have just released issue 2. The support from the online parent community has been magnificent. From the inspirational parents who I have interviewed to the expert contributors, it’s been an excellent collaborative project. Every time I get a message from a reader I smile with joy knowing that the magazine is serving a purpose and parents are finding it useful.

Challenges to date are visibility with so much noise on the internet it has been hard to reach my
target audience however this is changing as word of mouth has been powerful.

4. From your own experience, what would be your biggest piece of advice to female entrepreneurs just starting out in business?

My advice would be to keep learning and have a growth mindset. Step up, step out and own what you are about. When you launch your first business you think it’s the greatest thing in the whole world and you want it to succeed so much it’s so easy to give up or become disheartened when you hit your first bump in the road. By continuing to learn and by having a growth mindset, this will help you overcome many of the challenges that being an entrepreneur throws at you.

I would also recommend reading Mindset by Carol Dweck.

5. Thanks Bridget, that’s great advice for our readers. Finally, can you tell us why were you drawn to the campaign?

This campaign is important because it gives a voice to a diverse set of women that have businesses in different sectors. It also provides inspiration and information to women who are thinking of starting out in business.

Connect With Parents In Biz

• Facebook: Parents In Biz
• Instagram: @parentsinbiz
• Twitter: @parentsinbiz
• Youtube: Parents In Biz

If you enjoyed this article, why not read about more of our #WomenInSMEs?

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• Meet 24 Fingers Founder: The Social Media Agency Helping Business’ Grow
• Meet Amber Renae: The Digital Entrepreneur Who Will Help You Become A #BossBabe