Do you ever feel like you are struggling to stay afloat with the intense demands of managing motherhood and your career? Embarking on an entrepreneurial journey can be a challenging, stressful, and isolating experience filled with high highs and low lows. When coupled with the pressure of being a mother and ensuring your children are equipped with the tools they need to succeed on a daily basis, mounting to do’s from every direction can start to inhibit your mental well-being. With a few tactful tips to help ease your anxiety and improve work-life balance, you will feel confident to approach motherhood and your career head on.
Organize Business Receipts & Write-offs
One common mistake business owners make is leaving all of their financial backend tasks until the end of the year. Try to avoid this behavior whenever possible. Not only will you have to spend hours and hours combing through endless transactions, but your organization probably suffered as you haphazardly threw receipts and other items in a folder and told yourself you would “deal with it later.” Waiting until the last minute to pay taxes will increase your stress levels and can take away precious time you could be spending with your family and friends during the holiday season. Instead, begin forming more mindful business practices that will increase productivity.
- If you aren’t already utilizing Quickbooks for Small Business, this software should be integrated into your workflow as soon as possible. You can easily track payments received, log time per task, and manage cash flow like never before. If you’d like to avoid preparing taxes on your own, you can even connect with a Certified Professional Bookkeeper through the Quickbooks platform to further save you time (and headaches).
- Brush up on the IRS’ comprehensive list of deductible business expenses. Make sure you are taking full advantage of what you can legally write-off while operating your small business. Entrepreneurial life can present an array of complex and unique financial challenges, so being fully versed in this area is imperative, especially if you are still gaining traction and establishing yourself.
Strop Pushing Yourself to Max Capacity Everyday
With more and more individuals pursuing entrepreneurial life than ever before, embracing hustle culture is the norm. With this mindset, however, significant and serious issues can arise. When you feel the need to constantly be productive, prove your worth, and work long hours every week – while simultaneously raising a family – at some point you will begin to unravel from this unhealthy, unsustainable pattern. Signs of depression can start to creep up before you know it and can have a significant impact on your ability to operate your business and perform daily functions. This is why it’s vital you take at least one day every week to turn off all business-related distractions. Instead, have a mother-daughter/mother-son day, treat yourself to a pampering at the spa or simply just practice some breathing exercises.
You can’t produce your best work or be fully present as a mother if you are hustling to the point of sadness, persistent disappointment and loss of interest in day-to-day life. As you are likely the sole member of your business, all decisions weigh on your shoulders. Every wrong move may be subjected to scrutiny or backlash. As a relatively new company, you still may be finding your footing and trying to gain respect from industry peers. With all of this uncertainty and pressure, feelings of depression and anxiety can surface. On top of everything, with a large amount of capital likely funneled into this endeavor, your holiday season may look a little different this year. Despite a tight budget, you can still enjoy a merry and mindful holiday season. Cherish the small moments; quality time will always trump a physical gift.
Set Realistic Goals
Sometimes it’s easy to get carried away and swept up in the magic of entrepreneurship. Suddenly you are your own boss, you don’t have set hours to abide by and you can operate on your own terms. With all this freedom, however, it can stir up the inability to hone in on setting realistic, attainable goals for yourself. While it’s admirable to dream big, make sure you also are thinking strategically. Don’t compare your year one to someone else’s year five – this will only hinder your ability to get where you want. Hone in on your top goals and revisit them at the end of the year. Celebrate small successes with your family while the magic of the holiday season encompasses you.
Utilize these techniques to help ease the strain you face as an entrepreneur and a mother. Carefully monitor changes in your mood and any psychiatric symptoms that may develop. Don’t let fear, judgment or perceptions hold you back. Subjecting yourself to immense pressure in your career can only heighten mental health difficulties you are experiencing and set you back further. Instead, set healthy work boundaries and put the needs of your children above all else. Allow yourself the freedom to try new things and make mistakes along the way. This will help you achieve a harmonious balance between motherhood and your career that you so desperately desire.
