This is a quick (not necessarily short) post responding to some of the criticisms I get in the fascinating Bangor Daily News column comments section.

Go get a job! We work hard. You should, too.

I do work hard. I don’t work in a traditional job. My business, grantwinners.net, helps nonprofits win grant funding. It would be foolish for me to get a job earning low wages when I have the skills and experience that will allow me to earn a truly livable income. Now that I’m working more, I spend most evenings when my children are sleeping getting the bulk of my work done. Frankly, I kick ass. It leaves me physically and emotionally drained, but it’s worth it.

Why don’t you work enough to make a living?

I have young children. Our family made a commitment to one of us (me and/or their father) being home with them when they are not in school. Add to that the fact that putting them in daycare would create an expense that would wipe out a significant portion of income, and the decision to stay true to our values was relatively easy to make.
In the last five years my personal life has taken some serious hits. I’ve had health issues (physical and mental), we declared bankruptcy, our marriage ended, and we moved twice. For a long time, I was living in crisis-mode, only focused on survival and being present, stable, and consistent for my daughters. It was as if there was a hurricane blowing around us at all times and it took everything I had to keep a safe and calm space around them.
Because of our values (children at home with a parent) and my life circumstances (survival mode), I made decisions to keep my business alive that cost me financially. During this time, my clients still needed the highest quality assistance with their grants programs. I relied on my team of subcontractors so much that I paid rates almost equal to what I was charging my clients. Because so much work of running a small business is not billable, my decision to ensure my clients received the best quality work—that I was unable to provide on my own—meant I was losing money rather than making a profit.
My life is settling down in many respects, I have been strengthening my business model. I have an amazing assistant, an extraordinary team of subcontractors who I pay decent rates (who also understand I need to make money from the transactions), and I continue to connect with new organizations who want our help. I couldn’t afford to grow my business in the last five years. I would not have been able to serve my clients. Now, I can. This means I won’t need to be on foodstamps and MaineCare for years.

Your ex-husband is a deadbeat! He should be made to pay!

My ex-husband is an incredible and responsible father. From the day we split, he has provided generous support. Our decision for me to provide most of our childcare was mutual and he has helped make that possible. The fact is, however, no matter how generous he is, paying all the expenses for two households would be impossible. It’s hard enough living on one income when the parents are together. When the parents are living in two different homes, it’s double difficult (it’s impossible).
Add to this the fact that the more support he provides, the closer I come to losing my MaineCare and food stamps—assistance critical to my fixing my financial situation—there is even a reason to not receive more support. More support couldn’t equal the costs of health insurance. Adding enough to cover my SNAP benefits would be difficult, too. He lives a relatively frugal life so he can provide for his children.

You spend all this time posting crap on the Internet when obviously you could be making a living instead of mooching off of my money! [readers sometimes research me on the ‘net]

Some people knit, some go to the gym, some watch television. I write and share things on the Internet for fun. Most of the Internet writing I do also has the side-benefit of reaching out to new people who might eventually find a need for help winning grants. It’s all publicity, in many respects. This is my downtime.

You’ll never be successful in business if you tell people you’re incompetent!

I’m competent. I’m also open and honest. Even my close friends think it’s not necessarily wise to be so public with all of my failings and struggles. How could I be dependable to work with if I was in such bad shape that I needed to go on food stamps?
It’s true, I risk turning off some (perhaps many) prospective clients because I show my messiness. It’s been my experience, however, that many people respect my all-cards-on-the-table ways. People see I have integrity and strength. Again, staying true to my values—not being ruled by fear—is the right decision for me.