Being a wife, mom, and business owner is a balancing act. It seems the more effort you put into one, the more focus you have to pull from the other. But there are ways to keep yourself, your family, and your business a priority all the time. It starts with making sure things run smoothly at work and taking care of yourself at home.
Setting yourself up for success
One of the challenges of small business ownership, especially in the early days, is getting customers through the door. Whether your door is brick-and-mortar or the digital variety doesn’t matter, it’s difficult nonetheless. Both require customers; without them, you have no business. Make sure that your website and branding are both appealing and consistent. Your logo should be easily recognizable and scalable across all platforms. If you’re not particularly creative, there are plenty of free online tools you can use to get started. Oberlo’s logo creator is one example.
As you begin to grow, you’ll need to implement strategies to ensure this growth doesn’t overtake your personal life. This is accomplished in many ways and includes having the right team to help you run your business and implement systems and strategies that increase efficiency. Your payment processing system, for instance, is crucial to your business.
These days, many businesses are looking into cryptocurrency. If you are considering receiving this payment method, keep in mind that while it is becoming more robust, cashing it out is not an option. This involves hiring a processor to take immediate possession of the bitcoins on your behalf, paying you in return with the equivalent in dollars or euros. You’ll pay around 1% for the service, which still beats the 2% to 3% fee for credit card payments. So merchants can reap the benefit of cryptocurrency without having to worry about the price it’s getting on the market.
If you have an outdated method of sending invoices and accepting payments, your customers will notice. Not only will it slow things down, but using obsolete technology will leave you behind as your competition moves forward. If you haven’t upgraded your payment and accounting systems for a while, take a moment to see what’s available. Callstream notes you should compare payment methods with security in mind.
Don’t forget about streamlining and securing your in-house bookkeeping as well. You can use a high-powered payroll app like Quickbooks that allow you to pay your team right from your smartphone. It’s a great way to ensure you can take care of business from anywhere, anytime.
It’s all about the balance
Ask yourself this: what’s more important, family or work? On the surface, it’s an easy question to answer. But the truth is, it’s more complicated than choosing sides. After all, without a way to support your family, they will suffer. However, by focusing on your business or your career, you may miss out on important milestones and events.
Learn how to balance your family time and personal time by treating them both as a priority. If possible, adhere to a flexible work schedule so that you can take care of business when you’re most effective and alert. For some, this may be early morning. Other women are more professionally capable in the overnight hours when the world is still. Block off time for your family each day and make sure your customers and employees know you will be unreachable for this short window of time.
When it’s difficult to coordinate your schedule, you may need to bring in help outside of the office. This could mean paying a service to handle your home maintenance or contracting with a house cleaning company to take care of chores that would otherwise dip into your family time.
Remember, you are the platform upon which balance is achieved. Don’t forget to pencil in time for yourself. This should include self-care activities, which GirlBoss blogger Deena Drewis asserts is really not that hard, and consists of actions such as eating well, being mindful, and staying positive.
As a woman, you wear many hats. Some moments you’re mom. Some moments you’re the boss. When you’re struggling to know which hat to wear at what time, it’s time to slow down and remember there is only one you. While you can certainly do it all, you likely won’t be as effective at any of your roles unless you set boundaries between them and put some effort into yourself.
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Image via Pixabay
Article courtesy of Lindsey Weiss