the 40-SOMETHING woman entrepreneur

Many women decide to take the plunge and start their own business when they are in their forties. After having worked many years for someone else and having accumulated valuable experience and skills, this is the time when the forty-something woman usually decides to put all that knowledge to work for her and no one else.

Statistics in many developed countries show that the number of new businesses being started by women is soaring. The authors of Birthing the Elephant: A Woman's Go-for-it!, a book offering advice for women who are starting a business, even claim that women are better suited to entrepreneurship than men because women are not afraid to ask for help.

Female entrepreneurs usually decide to take the crucial step to start their own business because they are not satisfied with their careers and want to do something more challenging or simply because this gives them the flexibility they want.

Balancing family life and a successful career is one of the biggest challenges women in their forties face these days, and being self-employed or in charge of their own business helps them find the right balance in their lives.

A large percentage of businesses started by women in their forties are home-based, with many forty-something women leading thriving online businesses these days.