The Joys and Challenges of Being a Mom Business Owner: Lessons Learned Along the Way
As a business owner, parent, and military spouse, I’ve faced unique challenges in balancing my responsibilities. In this blog post, I share my experiences and tips on leveraging resources, adapting to changes in parenting demands, and building a supportive community to navigate the ups and downs of this journey.
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Finding Leverage: How I Balanced Being a Parent and Business Owner
As a parent and a business owner, finding balance has always been a challenge for me. It’s not easy to juggle the responsibilities of running a business with the demands of motherhood, but it’s important to remember that you don’t have to do it all alone. That’s why I always emphasize the importance of leverage, whether that means getting help at home or hiring an assistant for your business.
When you’re first starting out as a mom business owner, it can be overwhelming to try to do everything yourself. That’s why it’s important to take the time to figure out where you can get leverage. For me, it was hiring a virtual assistant to help me with administrative tasks, which freed up more time for me to focus on growing my business. And at home, I’ve learned to let go of the idea that I have to do everything myself. I’ve hired a cleaning service to help with housekeeping, and I’ve enlisted the help of family and friends when I need it.
But getting leverage isn’t just about making things easier for yourself. It can also be a source of inspiration. For me, my kids have always been a driving force behind my business. When COVID hit and we were all stuck at home, I saw how much my kids were struggling with not being able to see their friends. That’s when I got the idea to launch virtual movie nights. I wanted to create a way for military families to come together and have fun, even if they couldn’t be in the same room. And my kids were a big part of that process. They helped me with the crafts and were involved in our Facebook Lives.
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Apply this to your life! If your child has a school event coming up that you don’t want to miss, think about how to add leverage in your business to give you the flexibility to attend. This might mean delegating tasks to my team, rescheduling meetings, or implementing automation.
Now, my kids continue to be a part of my business in new and exciting ways. They help me pack gift boxes for my coaching clients, and they’re always eager to lend a hand when I need it. Seeing them get excited about serving alongside me is one of the greatest joys of being a mom business owner. It reminds me that I’m not just doing this for myself – I’m doing it for them too.
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Leverage Tip: We use Monday.com as a project management tool and to add leverage in our business! You can automate your workflows using Monday.com and get time back.
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Seasons of Motherhood:
As a business owner and a parent, I’ve learned that there are certain seasons in life where your priorities and parental responsibilities may shift. I started my business in my childrens’ formative years and I knew that I wanted to be present for those moments while building my brand. It wasn’t always easy– balancing childcare costs, spending quality time with each of them, and building my business at times felt overwhelming and/or impossible.
The blending of the mom responsibilities and the work responsibilities is something that I experienced firsthand when I was starting out in real estate when I didn’t have the resources to pay for childcare. That meant that my youngest, Colton, came with me everywhere. I always joke that he sold more real estate than most real estate agents because he came with me to all of my jobs! While it wasn’t always easy, I’m grateful for those moments that I was able to share with him.
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Of course, I don’t advocate for bringing your children along on every business errand. As a parent, you have to judge what situations are appropriate and what situations are not. While some clients may be perfectly fine with kids being present, others may not be as receptive
As my kids have grown older, I’ve found that the demands of parenting have shifted. Instead of needing me physically, they require more mental support and guidance. So while I may not need to take them along to work-related errands, they might need me to support them at a school event or spend more time with them over summer vacation. I always remind myself and my clients: it’s okay to take a step back from scaling my business in order to be more present with my family, because in the end, my children are my priority. Your business will always be there, but one day your children will leave the home.
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Apply this to your life! Remember, you may only have 5 or 6 summers left with your child before they leave the nest. Spend those summers wisely
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Lessons on Adaptability and Community Building: How Being a Military Spouse Taught Me to Think Creatively in Business
As a military spouse (now retired military!), I can say without a doubt that being a milspouse has had a tremendous impact on my business. It has given me a unique perspective on life, which has helped me to think creatively and outside the box.
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Story time! I launched my real estate career in Texas and my business was thriving and had gained a significant amount of traction. I had built a solid Texan business! But just like that, we got orders to move to Colorado. Instead of starting over, I decided to build a referral network that I could run from anywhere in the US. Because of this experience, I learned of the importance of being willing to get creative and step outside of your comfort zone to come up with a solution. In this way, being a military spouse gave me a hand up on being a business owner and provided me with a valuable lesson about adaptability.
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Story time 2! One aspect of my previous business that I cherished was our deep connection with the military spouse community. Our focus was to serve this community, so we created Facebook groups as a means to get milspouses connected to real estate agents who could service them. Through these groups, we were able to stay informed about what was important to the milspouse community, which allowed us to create relevant and valuable content. For me, it was crucial not only to serve the community but also to keep an eye on what our market needed from us. I found it awe-inspiring to see how our groups positively impacted the lives of others, whether it was helping people meet new friends or providing useful information for making informed decisions. I loved creating and nurturing these communities.
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Apply this to your life! Think about ways you can foster communities – either virtually or in person! I have a whole course dedicated to building Facebook communities!
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Being a military spouse and owning a business has been an incredible journey. It has taught me so much about the importance of adaptability, flexibility, and community. I am proud to be a military spouse and grateful for the lessons that this experience has taught me in both my personal and professional life.
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I hope my experiences balancing parenthood and entrepreneurship can help others who are in similar situations. It’s not always easy, but with the right mindset, support, and strategies, it’s definitely possible to thrive in both roles. Remember to prioritize what matters most, get help when you need it, and stay flexible as life inevitably throws curveballs your way.
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