Tips for balancing business and family @HelenLindop
Many mums are starting up businesses so they can earn an income flexibly around their families, cut down on childcare costs and save commuting time. But how on earth do you balance a business with a family? Here are my top tips:
You don’t have to do it all yourself
As a mum, it’s easy to slip into the trap of doing everything yourself. Before you know it, you end up doing all the housework, childcare, cooking and then you have to run your business too! The truth is that you can’t do it all yourself because there are not enough hours in the day.
Instead, think of which tasks you could delegate to other people. Could your children and partner help out more around the house? Could you have a friend’s children at your house during the school holidays and then swap over so each of you get a child-free afternoon? You might think it’s too expensive to get help with your business, but it needn’t cost much to get a teenage neighbour to do your post office runs or help with some basic admin.
Plan out your time
Work out how many hours you have to work and when. Some business mums work for a couple of hours while their child is at preschool and then a couple more hours in the evenings. Others can work from 9.30am to 2.30pm during the school day. Some only work weekends when their partner is taking care of the kids.
Be realistic about what you can fit into the time you have and make sure you give yourself some time off, too. Pick a business that is flexible enough to fit in your hours and build in some extra time to your deadlines for those days when your children are ill and your plans go out of the window!
Get the right tools
There are loads of tools out there that can help you to be more productive. These could be anything from a slow cooker, which is my favourite way of saving time when preparing meals, to Blackberries and iPhones that mean you can email while out and about. I also love Skype for keeping in touch with colleagues I can’t meet regularly. Some gadgets are fun but won’t actually save you much time and others might just sit on a shelf gathering dust. So ask around, find out what other people have found useful and read some reviews online before you buy.
By Helen Lindop of BusinessPlusBaby.com
To find out more about running a business as a parent, take a look at Helen’s Earn What You Deserve as a Mumpreneur e-course
