Let’s get real: Motherhood is hard. Entrepreneurship is hard. Being a mother and a small business owner is extra hard and it comes loaded with guilt, mile-long to-do lists, and the constant judgement by many.
I can’t tell you how many weekends and evenings I have spent responding to emails while I cook dinner, or drawing for my next client on the floor of my son’s room while he falls asleep. Sometimes it HAS to be that way, but I’ve learned to do my best and accept the fluidity of these periods.
This weekend, I chose my family. There was hockey tryouts, there was meal planning, there was a birthday party, more hockey tryouts, laundry, Monster Jam (I’m late posting this), a toddler who didn’t want to go to bed… There wasn’t an unscheduled or unoccupied minute of our weekend from the moment I left the shop on Friday to my arrival back on Monday morning. I simply didn’t get any work done. AND THAT IS OKAY.
I really strive for a balance between work and family-life, while trying to fit in some time for personal care, but it doesn’t always happen, and I want to be realistic about that. You can’t do it all day in and day out and as with any small business, there will be ebbs and flows, busier months and slower months, not enough hours in a day and not enough clients to fill those hours.
That being said, part of being a small business owner (who wears many hats) and a parent is planning time for the different roles you play in your business. This is absolutely integral to functioning well from both a business owner and human-being perspective, and there’s a couple of ways that I help to organize these thoughts.
Sticky Notes: I could honestly be sponsored by Post-it, with the amount of notepads that I go through. I use these for my ‘day-of’ tasks. These are items that I have goal-set at the beginning of each day to complete, but are not absolutes.
Desk Calendar: The main function of this calendar is to note and schedule tasks that happen on certain days of the month (ie. invoicing, bill payments, subcontractor payroll, order reminders, ect.), so that I can see them upcoming and check them off the list as they approach.
My favourite desk calendar (and the cutest one I’ve found is linked here*: ). It’s got large enough squares that I can list multiple tasks, especially around month-end, but it’s super minimalist and cute.
Google Calendar: This is my absolute tool as a mom and business owner. I use this to organize what is happening when, broken down into multiples schedules and color coded. I want to do a deep dive on this in a separate blog to get down to the specifics, but this is where I have everything scheduled that is a non-negotiable. These are appointments that I schedule my other tasks around and fluctuate week to week, which some weeks being heavier on actual tattooing and some weeks being more focused on business admin tasks.
The bottom line is that motherhood coupled with entrepreneurship isn’t easy. It’s a constant balancing act and some days will feel like you’re falling off that tightrope. But THAT IS OKAY. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, the most important thing you can do for yourself, your business and your family is to give yourself grace. There will be tasks that stay on the post-it for longer than you’d like, but sometimes you just have to don the Iron Man mask and tiny goalie gear and play hockey with your toddler.
With love,
Erin
*This is an affiliate link. I have recently partnered with Amazon as an associate/influencer. I want you to know that everything I post an affiliate link for is something that I truly recommend and use everyday.
