Lyn Lee, founder of Awfully Chocolate, told us her main reason for starting a company was so she could start a family and raise children on her terms.

In a way it seems counterintuitive. Begin a company to spend time with your kids, when we all know the amount of work involved in starting a new venture. But integrating work and family is one of the top reasons why women start businesses. It’s also one of the reasons why women-owned companies are generally smaller.

This is Lyn’s thinking: She’s not so sure that she spends more time with her kids than other people, but she doesn’t have to stress out when she needs to drop everything, when her child is sick, for example. Or she can show up at a school event that’s important to her child without having to worry about any repercussions at her office.

Thirteen years after starting her company, Lyn has 90 employees, and three children. Miraculously, she does not look too stressed out either.

Can starting your own business lead to a better family life?