Amanda Kerin launched Creative Women’s Mastermind in July 2019 after moving from Bristol to a small ski resort in the French Alps. She left behind a strong local business network and, within months, found that working from home alone was affecting her confidence, creativity and income. Her response was to build the community she wished she had found. Her story is a practical example of overcoming isolation for women in business, and it remains relevant for any UK woman running a business from home in 2026.

Isolation is still one of the most under-discussed challenges of self-employment. Research by the Federation of Small Businesses has consistently found that loneliness ranks among the top wellbeing issues for small business owners, with women founders and home-based business owners particularly affected. The issue is not simply emotional. Loneliness is linked to lower productivity, slower decision-making and weaker business performance.

Why isolation hits women founders harder

The shift to remote and hybrid working has made home-based business ownership more common, but it has also removed the casual conversations, peer feedback and accountability that offices provide. For women who juggle business with caring responsibilities, the boundaries between work and home can blur until professional identity feels invisible.

According to ONS Labour Market Statistics, women make up around one third of the UK’s self-employed workforce, numbering more than 1.5 million in 2024, with significant growth among women over 50. The Alison Rose Review of Female Entrepreneurship (2019) estimated that women-led businesses contribute £85 billion to the UK economy, while British Business Bank data from 2023 shows all-female founder teams receive around 2% of UK equity investment. The Prowess Women in Business: Key UK Facts page sets out the scale of women’s enterprise in the UK. Yet the same expansion has not been matched by a proportional increase in locally accessible support networks, especially outside major cities. The Prowess article on self-employed women over 50 explores how this demographic is reshaping the labour market.

From a busy network to a mountain home

“It felt like I was living in my own rom-com,” Amanda recalls. “But it was definitely not quite like the movies.” Working from home in the mountains, without the casual conversations of an office or a local network, affected her confidence, creativity and income. Her mental and emotional health suffered, and her coaching business stalled.

Her experience is increasingly common. Since 2020, remote and hybrid working has become routine for millions of UK workers, and the number of women starting businesses from home has risen. Yet isolation remains one of the least discussed challenges of self-employment. Research by organisations such as Enterprise Nation and the Federation of Small Businesses consistently ranks loneliness, poor work-life balance and a lack of peer support among the top wellbeing issues for women founders. For women who work alone, the absence of colleagues can blur boundaries, drain motivation and make setbacks feel larger than they are.

Amanda’s response was to step away from the online space for a while and spend time with creative people in real life. That break confirmed she still wanted to run her own business, but it also showed her what had been missing: regular contact with like-minded women.

How community beats isolation

“I only knew women through a keyboard,” Amanda says. “I thought I couldn’t be the only one having these thoughts.” She began to design a community that would recreate the structure and camaraderie of a shared workplace online.

Creative Women’s Mastermind was built around regular virtual coworking sessions and a weekly mastermind meeting where members brainstorm ideas, share challenges and hold one another accountable. The format is deliberately informal: members get work done, but they also have time to chat. For some, it is the only professional conversation they have with a like-minded woman that day.

The scheduled sessions also help members avoid the procrastination that often creeps in when no one is watching. A clear weekly routine, time-blocking and accountability check-ins can make the working day feel more defined, which is especially valuable for anyone struggling to stay productive while working alone.

From side project to sustainable business

Amanda started the membership while still working a part-time job in Geneva. She saved six months of living costs, took a three-month sabbatical and launched in the summer of 2019. Growth was slower than she had hoped, and a skiing accident early in 2020 forced her to step back temporarily. She also took on freelance work for a former employer to reinvest in the business.

Over time she refined the service, adjusting session times to serve members across the UK, Europe, the US, Australia and New Zealand. She hired a virtual assistant to handle admin and worked with a website specialist to keep the technology manageable. “I’m definitely not the most technically savvy individual,” she says, “so I’ve intentionally kept things really simple.”

Her marketing has evolved too. A free Facebook group did not convert well, so she shifted her focus to helpful content, social media visibility and a low-barrier paid trial. The lesson, she says, is that patience and iteration matter more than a perfect launch.

Creativity, values and support

Before coaching, Amanda spent her career in creative industries as a radio producer and event manager, winning Sony radio and event awards along the way. She also ran an events company before retraining as a coach in 2013.

She believes creativity is not limited to traditional crafts. “Creativity is about ideas,” she says. “I genuinely believe we are all creative. Some people just may not have tapped into it as much as others yet.”

Her values for the community are simple: connection, support, collaboration, accountability and action. They reflect what she needed during her loneliest months. “If I had more help and support whilst working from home on my coaching business, my mental and emotional health wouldn’t have been so affected,” she says. “It’s a very self-destructive and slippery slope not living out your best creative life.”

Amanda’s own support network includes her own mastermind group, a business coach and her fiancé, who offers a fresh perspective even though he does not work in the online business world. She also draws inspiration from her mother, who ran her own businesses and encouraged Amanda to follow her dreams.

Three lessons from Amanda’s journey

You’re more capable than you think. Fear and uncertainty can stop women from starting a business, but Amanda believes most people figure things out as they go. “You don’t have to know everything to get started,” she says.

Everything is temporary. In moments of despair, Amanda advises doing what you need right now rather than forcing a business to work at the wrong time. “No matter how bad things are, things will change as time passes, and the time will pass anyway.”

You are not meant to work alone. Humans are designed for connection, and most people want to help if they are asked. Journalling, reaching out and accepting support are not signs of weakness; they are practical business skills.

Overcoming isolation for women in business: practical steps

If Amanda’s story sounds familiar, there are concrete steps you can take this week.

Join a structured peer group. A mastermind, accountability pod or industry circle gives you regular contact with people who understand the decisions you face. The Prowess guide to women in business networks in the UK lists communities that are active in 2026.

Leave the house on purpose. Coworking spaces, library desks, café mornings and local enterprise hubs all create the ambient professional contact that home offices lack. Many UK towns now have affordable day-pass options.

Build a support stack. One group is rarely enough. Combine a peer network for tactics, a mentor for strategy, a coach for mindset and at least one non-business friend who will ask how you are, not how work is going.

Set boundaries around visibility. Schedule video calls, even short ones, so your work is witnessed by others. Block time for deep work, but also block time for connection.

Ask before you need rescue. Reach out when you first notice loneliness, not when you are in crisis. Small, consistent contact prevents the spiral that Amanda describes.

Turning isolation into connection

Amanda Kerin’s story is a reminder that isolation can become the starting point for something valuable. By building the community she wished she had, she created a space where women in business can work alongside one another, share ideas and protect their wellbeing.

If you are working from home and feeling isolated, remember that overcoming isolation for women in business rarely happens by working harder alone. Small steps, a regular routine, a peer group and the courage to ask for help can make a significant difference to both your mental health and your bottom line.