Bored Mom

[Mum12]

Man law, you come across as a fairly bitter soul. You contardict every point of view that doesnt entirely match your own.... notice you do it on other threads too.

[Hazelnutz]

observer99

What you say is somewhat true. I had great jobs in HK and S'pore before I had kids and found that Expat women who were not working (and those not working with kids) tended to treat me differently. A working woman and a non working woman have very different lives here. I actually found it more lonley when I was working despite what others may have thought. At the end of the day the two parties do not have a lot in common and the topic of conversation you have with either are very different. Unfortunately that is just the way it is. When I didn't have kids and we met up with friends with kids they used to annoy me and bore the a$$ off me about their little ones.

Now, when I return to work it would just be for the cash, not for the stimulation. For me, like the guy said above, now work is just ploughing the field for $ to spend on my family. i have actually worked with women in the past who had a child then came back to work and were superproductive as they used to come in at 9am, blitz thru the work (no coffee breaks, chit chat, long lunches) and  leave at 5.30pm on the dot. They just did it for the cash and believe me seemed to work like a steam train.

[Man Law]

"Man law, you come across as a fairly bitter soul. You contardict every point of view that doesnt entirely match your own.... notice you do it on other threads too."

Thanks for noticing.  Personality advice from a completely anonymous unregistered person on the internet is something I value only slightly less highly than personality advice from completely anonymous registered people on the internet.

However, I'll definitely try to agree with you more often in the future, whoever you are.

[This message has been edited by Man Law (edited 27-11-2006).]

[Damn it]

Now now kids....who hijacked this thread? Was it not originally about helping Op find out how to start a business?

[Mum12]

You are doing it again....

[Man Law]

I agree.  I am doing it again.  Thanks for pointing that out as i didn't notice. I *really* appreciate it. You are so helpful!  What time does hubby get home so you can stop nagging me and go nag him?

To OP - The link you were provided is correct.  My wife runs a small business here.  It is not such a difficult thng to get registered and yes you can do it.

I would venture that running a small business requires exceptional adaptability and flexibility.

For a small business owner the internet will be your best friend.  You need to google all kinds of stuff and do a fair amount of research on your own in order to figure things out.

Here are some things you could research:

- Running a small business - Look for articles covering the pitfalls risks and rewards of running a small business.  You will learn it is very tough and most small businesses fail for various reasons
- Singapore government websites for employment practices, business registration, taxation etc., etc.
- Import / Export rules - If the business you plan to run involves this activity
- Businesses of the same or similar type - Maybe the market is already being serviced. Who is the competition?
- Small business organizations - networking opportunities.  Some countries (like the US) have programs to hook up small business owners with successful business people who serve as advisors and mentors for free.

My wife would tell you that she has learned a ton about business.  She thought it was doing the thing she loved (working with people).  In reality it is doing a ton of cr@p you hate in order to do a little of what you love.  What she hates is the bookkeeping, accounting, billing, taxes and millions of other details required to make it a business not a hobby.

In fact she is winding down her business to go back to work as an "employee" in order to get away from all the stress.

[lilolil]

funny - people with kids bore those without kids about what is essentially their daily business and work.  People without kids tend to bore those with kids silly about their mundane day at work (unless their a stuntman or something a bit more exciting).  Can't win really!!