Balancing Work and Motherhood - Helpful Tips For Mompreneurs

Many of us are entrepreneurial moms (mompreneurs,) myself included. If we work away from home we feel like we should be home with our kids and then once we're home with our kids we feel like we should be working. If we work from home we constantly see around us what needs to be done for household chores. There's no one tactic or strategy that will work all of us when it comes to balancing work and motherhood, but there are many women that have found a way to do it that suits their lifestyle. Here are some tips when it comes to being a mompreneur and feeling we are where we should be all the time.

Efficiency: One thing that I have found when it comes to balancing work and motherhood, that especially applies for the work at home mompreneur, is establishing when you can be most productive at specific tasks. You will be more efficient this way. Work on tasks that require the most attention and focus while children are napping or having quiet time and tasks that require less dedication that have room for distraction without having to fully refocus when they are up. Get help from your partner when you need to meet deadlines or goals and be appreciative of his help. Don't forget to take care of yourself, you can't be efficient if you are overloading and neglecting yourself. There really are only 24 hrs in a day. If your schedule allows, consider setting aside one day a week to be a day where you focus on family instead of work to help ensure quality time.

Day Planner: When it comes to balancing work and motherhood, using a day planner will help us mompreneurs stay on top of our daily schedules in priority sequence and enable us to know how to better prepare for the day ahead. Combine work and family schedule to ensure no double booking. Establish your goals and how much you want or need to get done in a certain time period and break down the tasks within 'x' amount of days. Another way to feel well prepared for the day ahead is to do a few things the night before to help your day start off smoothly. For example tidying up your office space, prepare lunches, or setting the coffee pot. You can also get up before your family does to take some quiet time for yourself or get some extra work done.

Don't Be Too Hard On Yourself: There is only so many hours in a day available to get things done. Balancing work and motherhood and feeling efficient at both can be a challenge for the mompreneur. Chances are you won't complete absolutely everything you could in a day, but prioritizing by importance and priority then performing work and tasks when you can be most efficient at them will help you feel productive about the efforts you are putting in. Don't be unrealistic with your home duties when balancing work and motherhood. You don't have to be a suzy homemaker to be a good mom. By working for your family you are providing in other areas. Don't feel guilty if you don't make school costumes by hand or do school baking from scratch. Realize you are only one person and are doing the best that you can with the time given.