Self Employment Ideas for Women

Traditionally, many women have been self employed out of necessity rather than choice due to lack of employment opportunities and the added responsibility of childcare. Fast forward to the present day, the idea of self employment appeals to many women, and for good reason. There are a multitude of self employment ideas that suit the skills and natural instincts of women very well. Here are just a few self employment ideas:

1. Beauty and skin care – let’s face it, this is a women’s monopoly in self employment opportunities. Ever since Anita Roddick, the founder of the Body Shop, came up with the idea to sell her own take on beauty products, many women have followed in her footsteps and succeeded. The trick is to find your very own niche in this very big market. Organic products are all too common now. Better ideas? Think ethnic and cultural products, funky marketing, no frills and unique plant products. Also, you can either become a stockist/franchiser of an established brand or start your own. There are lots of ways to test and sell your products affordably at first, like the internet or at a market stall. One thing to note, in the beauty business, presentation is everything.

2. Online administrative support – How does the idea of being self employed and working from home sound to you? With many workplaces moving towards more ‘virtual’ arrangements, having a phone line and a good internet connection will be enough to start you off as an independent administrative service provider if you think this is a good self employment idea for you. Roles in this field include being a virtual PA, secretary, bookkeeper or receptionist. How do you get the clients and work? Third parties like recruitment agencies, both the traditional and virtual are platforms to get you work. A tip is to get networking. Go to entrepreneurship seminars and shows and pass your card around. You will be surprised how many people who are setting up their business need good administrative support. To women who already have some form of administrative experience, this is quite an ideal self employment idea that you can also work around family.

3. Health and fitness – I have blogged about becoming a fitness instructor as a self employment idea. Now how does the idea of becoming an alternative/complimentary medicine practitioner sound to you? Becoming a masseuse or beautician is all too common now and competition is keen. However, with a growing obese population in many countries, it is predicted that the cost to treat the illnesses related to the pandemic will grow rapidly over future years. So self-employment ideas like becoming a nutritionist or dietician will be in demand. Becoming a hypnotherapist, or even better, one specialising in gastric band hypnotherapy, would be another great idea. All this requires training of course and some form of practitioner registration with the relevant regulating body. If helping others is something you also find rewarding, this might be the self employment idea for you.