How to Have a Work-Life Balance Being Mompreneur Being a mom and having your own business is like having two babies that need equal amount of attention from you
By Rashi Bahel Mehra •
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Being a mom is the most beautiful feeling in the world and so is being an entrepreneur. Being a Mompreneur on the other hand is not everyone's cup of tea. The role of a mompreneur as compared to regular mother and more challenging than of an entrepreneur. It requires you to multitask as well as be patient and balanced. I gave birth to a beautiful boy recently and went through a similar phase and hence would like to share my experience and suggestions with other mompreneurs.
Have a Well-planned Ecosystem in Place
For a new Mom the first three months are the most joyous and also the most difficult as you recover from the delivery and get used to being a mom. Getting used to a routine with a baby takes time and a lot of sleepless nights. Being an entrepreneur you don't have the liberty of taking a 3-6 months maternity break which is what makes it extremely important that you have a great ecosystem in place of your immediate employees and the extended team who can act as your support system. I started planning from the moment I knew I am expecting and created systems and processes for the team to follow. This ensured that none of the tasks during my short absence were missed. Even after delivery, the ecosystem that was created is able to function on its own giving me more free time to settle in this new phase.
Don't Stick to a Schedule
Being a mom and having your own business is like having two babies that need equal amount of attention from you. One has to stretch a bit beyond their regular self to be able to do justice to both. During this phase, a mother has to tweak her schedule on a regular basis to meet the both maternal as well as professional demands.
Don't Be Too Hard on Yourself
There are a lot of curve balls that life will throw at you and there will be days that you will feel overwhelmed. The only way to handle this is to take a deep breath and relax. You will learn how to handle both eventually, so remember not to be too hard on yourself.
Partner With Your Partner
Parenting is a tedious task and requires both the parents to be equally involved and share the responsibilities. It is ideal to discuss with your husband and seek his support to ensure chores are equally divided between you and him. For e.g. Taking turns to stay awake with the baby, addressing other household chores and related tasks should be shared between both the partners.
Just Go With Flow
Be okay to not have things perfect for a while. There will be times when you will have to deal with tricky situations related to professional or personal life. It is advisable not try figuring out each and everything and just go with the flow.
Create a workspace at home and a play area at work.
During the earlier days of motherhood, it is crucial to be with the baby 24x7. This may create an interruption in the overall workflow pertaining to matters of professional urgency. One can arrange a small workstation at home to address such situations. Similarly, a play-area at work turns out equally helpful in the later days of motherhood where you can have your baby right in front of your eyes while you are at work.
Show Some Love to Yourself
While you are efficiently juggling between diapers and delegations, it is essential to pause for a while and reward yourself with some self-pampering. Take time-off for a spa session, go out with your friends for coffees & conversations or simply dig into your favourite novel. Make sure to reward yourself once in a while. Being an entrepreneur is tough and being a mother is even tougher, hence one should make sure to indulge in some self-time to avoid burn-outs or stress.
Never Mix-up Your Tasks
Make sure you never mix up your professional task with personal ones. When at work, give your 100% and when you are at parenting, give your 100% here too. Dividing your attention between any of the two may lead to uncertainties and hence, it is advisable to ensure you have a satisfied work life as well as happy days of parenting.
Being a parent is one of the best days of a woman's life. One must seek the beauty of the moment and try as much possible to be with your baby. The entire process will teach you a lot of self-discipline and further hone your management skills to a great extent. After all, a child gives birth to a mother.
