5 Practical Hacks for Entrepreneur Mums

Handling business and family represents one of the most demanding challenges for every entrepreneur parent. Now that gender roles have changed, many parents of both genders are pursuing a career and looking after their kids. 

Even though men and women can be equally successful managers, it’s more stressful for women while their kids are still babies or toddlers. In some cases, fathers can’t replace mums when kids are still very young. 

In this article, we’ll share some practical hacks on handling a business and a family for entrepreneur mums. 

5 Practical Hacks for Entrepreneur Mums

1) Double estimate your business projects

If you want to finish your projects on time, you need to make a proper estimate before the beginning of each of them. 

Some busy mums forget to factor in sudden circumstances that can slow them down in delivering their projects. You can never tell when your kids are going to be ill. If you arrange a too tight deadline, there’s a risk that you won’t complete everything on time. 

People miss promised deadlines even when they don’t have kids. You may catch the flu, experience an unpleasant emotional event, or simply feel burnout. 

That’s why you should always give yourself a safety cushion in the form of less strict deadlines. So, even if something unexpected comes up, you’ll have enough time to finish everything as agreed. 

2) Make daily and weekly schedules

No matter how organized you were before parenthood, it’s time to change your organizational habits. If your kid wakes you up five times a night, you’ll probably forget at least one of the obligations the following day. 

Mums who make daily and weekly schedules will track their business duties more successfully. 

For instance, you can use some templates for weekly schedules and print them out to always keep an eye on them in your office. As you complete a task, simply tick it and move on. 

As for daily schedules, you can spend the last 15 minutes of your workday writing a list of tasks and a timetable for the following day. That way, you’ll have a framework that will improve your productivity. 

3) Share responsibilities with your partner

This is a sore point for many parents with successful careers. Who should do what and when? 

This time, we’ve taken a perspective of a married busy mum. Many women have problems with their partners and husbands when their kids are still babies. Men often don’t understand how exhausting motherhood can be in those periods. 

So, if your partner or husband doesn’t help you with the baby, it’s time to speak up. Explain to him that you can’t handle everything on your own and that he should take some of the responsibilities. For instance, you can suggest that he puts the baby to sleep. This will strengthen the bond between him and the baby, plus, you’ll have at least some me-time. 

Depending on your partner’s preferences and habits, he might agree to share responsibilities in chores and cooking. More and more men want to cook and contribute to the household in that way. You could make a 7-day meal plan and save a lot of time. When you know in advance what you and your kids are going to eat, you’ll reduce the stress coming from preparing food day after day, as well. 

4) Mix family and business

How many times have you heard that you shouldn’t mix your business and personal life? While this principle is generally valid, for some entrepreneur mums this is the only chance to spend some quality time with their family. 

For instance, when you’re visiting business conferences, summits, and trade shows, you probably don’t spend every day of your stay at those events. 

If you take your kids and husband with you, it’s a nice chance to have fun and learn new things together. When you’re staying abroad, you can learn foreign languages as a family. For example, if you want to learn French, you can book some lessons in advance. For younger kids, you can find a French-speaking nanny to help your kids learn the basics of this language while you’re attending lessons for adults. French is only an example here, but feel free to learn any language that you find interesting. 

Apart from languages, you’ll expand your own and your children’s knowledge of art, culture, customs, and cuisine of countries that you visit as a family. Those memories are something you’ll be coming back to so that you always have something to discuss with your family. 

5) Ask for extra help

Some parents overestimate their abilities in juggling business and family commitments. When they start feeling burnout, it’s already too late to fix things fast. According to a study published by Science Daily, parents who don’t react to signs of potential burnout are more likely to neglect their kids or to start thinking about how to escape from family life as a whole. 

Even though the percentage of mothers with such thoughts is much lower, you should work on the prevention of burnout and exhaustion. 

That’s why asking for help is crucial in both preventing and overcoming such difficulties. If your or your partner’s parents live nearby, include them in your children’s lives when they still a baby. That way, they’ll develop mutual emotional bonds with their grandchildren. 

But if they’re not alive anymore or live far away, ask for help from your siblings, friends, and neighbors. For instance, you can make a deal with some parents to interchangeably babysit kids once a week. One week you look after their kids and the following week, they take care of your kids. 

Also, if you feel that you and your family are overwhelmed by emotional and business challenges, don’t hesitate to talk to a psychiatrist or marriage counselor. These experts can help you resolve your issues at an early stage. After that, you’ll be able to fully focus on your family and your business. 

Being a business manager or owner and a mum at the same time is a demanding combination. If you want to successfully manage both these aspects, you need to plan your weeks and workdays. Also, don’t accept all sorts of projects if you don’t have to. Always leave yourself a little bit more time than you need to finish them. Share responsibilities with your partner so that each of you knows what bases to cover. 

Finally, include your family in some aspects of your business life, such as travels and company projects. Together with some extra help, you’ll handle your family and business in an organized way.