It was September 12, 2015, and I was on my usual 7:31AM train from New Jersey into Manhattan. Stressed and disheveled from racing to catch it, I balanced a garment bag on my lap—a formal dress for the Allure Best of Beauty Awards that evening. At the time, I was Head of Digital Revenue at Allure, my fifth leadership role at Condé Nast, home of legendary titles like Vogue, Vanity Fair, and The New Yorker. I loved the work, the people, and yes, the glamour. It was a big day in my career but on that train, I fought back tears. It was my daughter’s fourth birthday, and I’d left before she woke up. The event meant I wouldn’t be home until well past bedtime. My son was six months old. In that moment, I silently vowed to both of them that this would be the last birthday I miss.

Like many in my generation, I was raised by a stay-at-home mom and a devoted dad who made it home for dinner every night. They cheered at every game and celebrated every milestone. I grew up in a house where presence mattered and during a time when people didn’t have to choose between their careers and their families. My father was a successful self-employed estate planner who made his own hours and created his own destiny. Both of my parents were the first and only in their families to go to college. Their parents were first generation. My sister and I were taught work ethic without realizing it. Like every Saturday morning when my father would back their cars out of the garage and call us down to help wash them. By hand! Or when I was in middle school and started earning an allowance for the first time, and my parents told me it would only remain intact for the summer if I got a job that money into savings. I rebutted asking why my choices were double income or nothing! Thankfully they held firm, and I taught tennis every single summer from 7th grade through college. After a few years working camps at the local racquet club, I wanted more but didn’t want to leave the courts that had become my second home. I started soliciting business from people who had private tennis courts, offering lessons for their children late in the afternoon when camps were over and kids were running wild. I was making more from 4-6pm than 9-3pm every day! That is when I learned that earning money didn’t have to be straightforward, and working didn’t have to be a grind. I knew then that I wanted to be an entrepreneur, living life on my terms.

Growing up in northern New Jersey meant frequent trips to Manhattan for plays and restaurants which left me dreaming of a life in the Big Apple. I wanted to learn everything about business so that one day I could have my own. Two months after college graduation, my best friends and I moved into a tiny apartment on the Upper West Side and began living out our dream. Comically, this meant lots of ramen noodles and sharing clothes, but we thought we were living our best life. For nearly two decades, that city, the people I met there and the places I worked were my whole world. It was exciting, fast-paced and full of opportunity. Every morning I would leave my apartment and think who knows what could happen today! I was only 20 miles from my hometown so I had the best of both worlds, kiddingly referring to my parents house as my country home. I never wanted to leave, until I had with two little kids who thought Washington Square Park was their playground and the city buses were carnival rides.

In 2015 my husband and I packed up and said goodbye to city life, returning to New Jersey to raise our kids near my family. It was the right choice, but a hard one since our jobs were still in the city. While our children thrived, we found ourselves missing all of the moments that mattered. Stuck in traffic or at work events during first steps, school plays, and doctor visits. We barely got vacation time and could never enjoy them during the summer.

The Lean In philosophy by Sheryl Sandberg became popular then, stating that women could have it all. It simply wasn’t true, or so I thought, and I was enraged. Why did I have to choose?! I wanted to have a career and raise my children. My mother didn’t have to choose, but that was a different time. At this point there were more working moms than stay at home ones in my town. I was proud to be the former but I refused to miss another birthday. I was on a mission to define my second act. Yes, I needed something closer to home, but it was more than that. I wanted something bigger. I wanted something that allowed me to build, not just manage. I didn’t want just another paycheck. I wanted ownership. I wanted my time, my outcomes, and my future to be mine to shape.

I consumed everything I could on starting a business and achieving this mythical work-life balance. I read Tim Ferris’ Four Hour Work Week which teaches freedom and flexibility by focusing on working smarter, not harder. It suggests methods to help you create a lifestyle where work is a means to an end, rather than a constant obligation. The first step was to clearly define my goals and what I truly wanted from life. I knew that I wanted to be a business owner but I also wanted to ensure success. I didn’t know at the time that I was defining franchise ownership.

A few years later, I made the leap into the unknown world of entrepreneurship when I became a franchisee. Everything started to slowly shift for the better. Building a business isn’t easy, but following the playbook of a proven system dramatically reduces risk and provides a clear path to success. Six years later I have a thriving B2B franchise that I spend 2 hours a week on. I employ a retired police officer who is equally thankful for our flexible work arrangement. We both work on our time, making passive incomes in an unconventional way.

My only regret is not pursuing franchising sooner. I spent years climbing a ladder without questioning the fact that it led to someone else’s success. Franchising isn’t just about business. It’s about lifestyle, flexibility, and building something that aligns with your values.

Today, I am also a Certified Franchise Executive and a consultant with The Perfect Franchise. Whether you’re a corporate executive looking for your next chapter or a first-time entrepreneur exploring new possibilities, I’d like to help you analyze opportunities and decide if ownership is right for you. While I work with people at all life and career stages, they all share one thing in common: they’re ready for change and ready for more.