Hello,

Let's say you own a Canadian corporation with around $1M in retained earnings, and you're at a point where you no longer want to actively grow the business or work full-time.

Instead, you're considering scaling back significantly...paying yourself and your spouse just enough in salary or dividends to cover basic living expenses, and leaving the remaining funds invested within the corporation to compound over the next 10-20 years.

The idea is to essentially "coast" financially without needing to generate much additional business income, while still maintaining a relatively modest lifestyle.

I'm wondering if this is a viable strategy, or if things like the taxation on passive income and the difficulty of withdrawing funds without massive tax hits make it too complicated to truly "coast."

I understand the specifics depend on individual circumstances, investment returns, and tax planning, but I'm more interested in whether the overall approach makes financial sense.

Has anyone here actually attempted something similar? Did you find it worthwhile to keep the money invested inside the corporation, or did you eventually decide it was better to withdraw the funds and invest personally?

I am a mom of 2 with a pretty useless associates degree in liberal arts and not a lot of experience in anything but retail and child care. I currently work at the daycare my youngest daughter goes to and I am looking to leave. I am underpaid and overworked living paycheck to paycheck (and even that it generous because we don’t even make it pay check to paycheck) we get our groceries from a church and we are constantly having to borrow money from money borrowing apps. I feel so overwhelmed and stuck. I don’t like working at the daycare I want less overstimulating work first of all so I don’t feel so completely drained and have nothing left to give my own children. I would also love something that pays more so it actually feels like my work is worth something and getting us somewhere. But I am stuck because I have 2 more year before my youngest can start public school for free and I already opted out of signing my oldest up for afterschool care for the year because I wanted to be the one to pick her up every day and do pick up and drop off. Idk. It just feels like I can’t win. It seems like the only place I can afford to work is at a daycare until my youngest is in public school. I want to start a job where I actually have a future and it can be my career for a long time. Childcare is not that so I just feel stuck. Also my husband just got a notice that his job no longer will cover spouses on their health insurance unless they are unemployed and don’t qualify for health insurance at their own job and I am basically right at the BRINK of being part time/ full time because I work between 28-33 hours which can teeter the line. I told my boss this and said I may need to work slightly less hours and she was basically like “uh huh I understand… but we need you” she basically insinuated I work off the clock for free. I just feel so stuck and helpless. Any suggestions for career advice ? Has anyone been in a similar situation where they used to work in childcare and left for something else ? Or you were a stay at home mom who needed to make income but still wanted to be present for you kids (drop off, pick up, half days etc) it feels so hard to be a mother sometimes it feels like we can’t win. If you stay at home you struggle financially, if you work it feels like you have to make a ton of money to make working even worth it to afford the help you need for childcare etc.