The Foreign Service Journal, January 2004

Editor’sNote: Due to the success of this AFSA News feature, AFSA will now pay a $100 honorarium(up from$60) for any column published as part of this series. Submit your 500-word columnonany topic of interest to Foreign Service family mem- bers to dorman@afsa.org. SD A s “trailing spouses” we carry our homes on our backs like snails— why not carry our careers as well? I have been self-employed since we joined the Foreign Service. From selling handmade toys at craft bazaars, I have moved on to free-lance writing, editing and Web-site design. Self-employment has always been possible, but is now an easier andmore lucrative option, thanks to the educational, telecommuting and networking opportunities offered by the Internet. Nearly every Foreign Service spouse entersthediplomaticcommunitywiththe brains,educationandtalentheorsheneeds to open a home business: It’s just a ques- tion of finding the right business. The answer may have nothing to do with the spouse’suniversitydegreeorpreviouspro- fessional life. For example, I have a B.A. in international relations, but learned to designWebsitesthroughonlineresources. Over five overseas tours, I have known self-employedcaterers, translators andwoodworkers, and teachers of foreign languages, yoga and quilting. Many of these free-lancers successfully turned the disadvantageof beingunemployed intheir profession intoanopportunity to explore an interest or a talent thatmight not have been sufficiently profitable to support a family in the U.S. (Embassy-provided housing can reduce, if not eliminate, the need for a second income, at least dur- ing some overseas tours.) While few self-employed spouses make large salaries, few conventionally- employed Foreign Service spouses do either. Self-employment has certain advantages over embassy employment, including the following: • Self-employed spouses, unlike those inEligible FamilyMember positions, can claim the overseas earned income tax exemption. Even considering the “self- employment tax,” theywill keepmore of every dollar earned outside the embassy thanwouldbe possible inEFMpositions (formore information, visit www.irs.gov). • They can enjoy career continuity. They may have to acquire new clients at each new post, but they will not have to start from scratch. If the business is Internet-based, they may not even have todo that. With the aidof a laptop com- puter, the business can continue to prosper andprovide an income evendur- ing home leaves and transfer periods. • Particularly if children are involved, self-employed spouses can arrange their business hours to suit the family’s sched- ule, remaining employed yet available while the FS employeeworks long hours or travels frequently, as somanydo. This can be especially useful during difficult periods such as the months following arrival at a new post. • Theywill have interesting answers to the “What do you do?” question at din- ner parties, enjoying a separate profes- sional identity fromtheir FS spouses. At my current post, for example,most peo- ple knowme as a local Web-site design- er or the mother of my children, not as “the cultural attaché’s wife.” Finally, free-lancers overseas canenjoy the same advantages as their counterparts in the States. There’s something to be said for being able towork inyour sweat- pants and bunny slippers on cold days, or todrop everything and take awalk on beautiful ones. When my kids are in school, I can be available to help with homework, or just tohear about theirday. When they are sick, they can curl upwith a book on the daybed in my office. Meanwhile, I’mearning enough to fund their college savings plans. A “portable career” has been a good employment solution for this Foreign Service spouse. ▫ Kelly Bembry Midura is a Web-site designer and writer whohas accompaniedher husband, Chris, a public diplomacy officer, to La Paz, Guatemala City,Lusaka,SanSalvador,WashingtonandPrague. 8 AFSA NEWS • JANUARY 2004 Committee, in cooperationwith the Visas for Life Project. The exhibit was put together by Eric Saul, who has gathered information on 147 diplomats from27 different countries who aided in the massive effort that in total saved more than 250,000 Jews from certain death during the Holocaust. Nine of the diplomats honored were American. At the June 2002 AFSA award ceremony, thanks to the hard work and research of for- mer AFSA President John Naland, Secretary of State Colin Powell presented a special posthumous constructive dissent award to Bingham’s family on behalf of AFSA. AFSA has also been actively involved in supporting efforts to gain approval from the U.S. Postal Service for an official postal stamp honoring Bingham. Bingham’s storywas featured in the June 2002 issue of the Foreign Service Journal. Rep. Lantos, who survived the Holocaust because of the efforts of Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg, opened the exhibit pro- gramby extending heartfelt words of gratitude to the families of all the righteous diplomats. Family members present offered emotional FS VOICE: FAMILY MEMBER MATTERS BY KELLY BEMBRY MIDURA Self-Employment: A Portable Career Solution Visas • Continued from page 1 AFSA Executive Director Susan Reardon and AFSA President John Limbert with their com- memorative medals.