Afraid of Losing Customers, Losing Time With Family

How one Cambodian business owner began reclaiming her life through leadership and practical management

At Pich Chenda Pharmacy, customers could find someone ready to listen. Ms. KAO PUTTREA answered their questions, attended to their concerns, and kept the business moving through long working days.

Yet behind that constant availability was a painful contradiction: she could make time for other people, but struggled to make time for her own family.

In her testimony about training at CEO Master Club of CEO Institute, she described working 14 hours a day and feeling like a prisoner in a business she owned.

“A prisoner in a prison without walls.”

Her story raises a question that many small business owners in Cambodia may recognize: when a business needs you every moment, how much freedom does ownership actually give you?

From the outside, a busy pharmacy looked like success. Customers saw steady sales and wondered where all the money went. Ms. Puttrea found herself wondering what she was working so hard for when she barely had time to enjoy what she earned.

Her days began and ended in the same place. Even with people available to help, she did not know how to organize their work effectively. Customers needed her. Routine decisions needed her. Even cleaning could fall back on her.

The business depended on her presence because responsibility had not been distributed clearly.

At home, that pressure carried a different cost. She recalled telling her child not to come near because she was busy, then feeling sorrow late at night as she thought about those moments.

These were losses that sales figures could not reveal: attention, patience, rest, and opportunities to be close to the people she loved.

For an owner in this position, working harder can become a habit that leaves the underlying problem untouched. More effort fills the day, while the business continues to depend on the same person for almost everything.

A friend associated with a pharmacy in Siem Reap encouraged Ms. Puttrea to attend training. At first, she hesitated.

The fee—more than US$300, as she recalled—felt difficult to justify. Leaving the pharmacy felt even harder.

She was afraid of losing customers.

That fear is easy to understand. When customers are accustomed to dealing directly with the owner, stepping away can feel like putting years of work at risk.

Eventually, the strain became too great to ignore. She spoke with her husband about attending, and he gave her his full support.

Her decision opened a door she had struggled to approach: the possibility of learning how to run the business with greater clarity, while making room for family life.

During her first training sessions, her phone rang repeatedly. Questions about prices, purchases, and daily operations followed her into the classroom.

The calls showed how many decisions still depended on her.

Following the guidance she received, Ms. Puttrea returned home and began applying what she had learned. She organized staff responsibilities and clarified how work should be handled.

Later, she described a striking difference: she could attend training without the same stream of calls. Staff no longer needed to contact her about the routine questions she had already prepared them to manage.

The significance lay in what that quieter phone represented. Her team had clearer direction, and she had more space to step away.

Her experience offers a practical lesson for business owners: Delegation Takes Preparation. People need defined responsibilities, accessible information, and a clear understanding of which decisions they can make and which require the owner’s attention. In a pharmacy, that clarity must also respect each person’s qualifications and professional responsibilities.

Training became valuable because she took it back into her workplace and used it.

Ms. Puttrea also spoke about the leadership course led by Dr. Om Sengbora, Founder of CEO Master Club.

One lesson stayed with her: how can people share happiness with those around them if they cannot find it within their own lives?

That question brought her attention back to the purpose behind her effort.

She said her family noticed changes after she attended training. She had more time for her husband and child. Her understanding of success had widened to include the happiness she had been too busy to protect.

Her testimony does not promise that one course will resolve every business or family difficulty. It shows what became possible for one owner when learning led to changes in how she managed her work and spent her time.

For Cambodia’s small business owners, Ms. Puttrea’s story invites an honest look at daily life.

Which routine decisions still depend entirely on you? What could your team handle with clearer guidance? How often does your family receive only the time and energy left after work?

These questions can reveal where leadership development may have practical value.

Ms. Puttrea encourages other owners to explore CEO Master Club membership and attend the leadership course with their families. Her recommendation comes from the changes she experienced in her own workplace and home.

If her story feels familiar, consider learning more about the coaching and practical business training available at CEO Master Club of CEO Institute. Discuss your challenges, ask about the program, and explore how its approach could support your next steps.

The customers you serve matter. So do the people waiting for you at home—and the life you hoped your business would help you build.

Location: CEO Institute, Diamond Twin Towers, Level 7M, Koh Pich, Phnom Penh

Registration and consultation: Contact CEO Master Club

Adapted from the supplied testimony of Ms. KAO PUTTREA, owner of PICH CHENDA Pharmacy. Direct quotations are translated from Khmer.