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I‘m not going to lie, finding balance in life as an influencer is extremely difficult especially when you’re a mom. For those of you who have followed me these last few years, I’m sure you’ve noticed my traveling schedule and how it’s ramped up through the years. Many of you have also began to ask about my girls… Who watches them when I’m gone? Since Mother’s Day is just around the corner, I wanted to share something personal and talk about how I balance blogging and motherhood.…
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The thing about being a mom and an ambitious career woman is that you’re constantly juggling two full-time jobs. There’s no right answer for how to balance out this tricky scale, but I have found a few things that worked for me. If you’re a new mom or just tapped into a new career and are looking for tips to help your family and career flourish, keep reading below.
Find a strong support network
My best kept secret for keeping my head above the water is having a strong support network, which includes my parents, my husband, and a few close friends. When you’re running a business and have a family of your own, you need to understand that you’ll be great at some things but certainly won’t be the best at everything. And as a result, you need people around you who can not only help physically but emotionally. For example, I might not be the best in the kitchen, but I’m excellent at putting processes in place. Things like coordinating a nanny for when I’m traveling and being involved in school activities is where I excel.
Create a work and family calendar
A calendar is my saving grace. If I didn’t plan fun family activities and vacations, I would probably work all the time and not even realize it. I once had to learn the hard way when I forgot about my daughter’s performance at school. I still hold the guilt to this day, but I’ve never made that mistake again! Even if you think you’ll remember, do yourself the favor and add it to the calendar. This helps eliminate surprises.
I like to go through my calendar once a week and it’s helped so much with deadlines, bills, birthdays, extracurricular activities, and more!
Work and career is a constant struggle so the faster you can build that network and create an organized calendar, the better off you’ll be. I can’t be in two places at once, so I sometimes have to pick and choose my battles. Where I can’t be, I have family to lend a hand – or my husband and I will split up.
Cut yourself some slack
For years, I was haunted by mom guilt, constantly wondering if I was giving my girls enough time and feeling like I was putting work before my family. It still gets the best of me at times today. But, I’ve learned to combat this by having a vision – a purpose – more importantly, cutting myself some slack. I know that by working hard for a business that I’ve built from scratch, I’m being the best role model I can be for my girls. Though not directly, they’re learning key principles of responsibility, hard work, and discipline. I also remind myself that I’m doing what I can to provide them with a life full of more opportunities than I was able to have.
Compartmentalize your day
Life as an influencer is never rigid, but when you have a family at home, it’s important to have a structure and routine in place. If I don’t have time set for designated activities, I’d be wasting my day with distractions. So, I usually spend half an hour at night putting together everything my girls and I might need for the next day (things like organizing the backpack or packing lunch). When Hazel gets home from school, we have some downtime, but then it’s reading and homework after an hour or so. I even set aside time early in the morning to handle emails. If there’s an opportunity to put a procedure in place, do it! I’ve learned that kids work best when they have a routine.
Know your priorities and learn to say “no”
Learning how to prioritize is also another key player in how you can balance blogging and motherhood. There are some things that are just non-negotiable for me. For example, if I have to choose between a school performance and a blogger event, I’ll say “no” to the latter – although maybe not all the time.
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There are also more trivial things you’ll run into like a choosing to clean your house for a few hours or using that time to manage e-mails and work. I know it sounds silly, but the struggle is very real. If you can learn to accept the minor issues that arise and feel good about saying no to the less important events, you’re already doing a great job!
How do you balance blogging and motherhood – or your career in general?
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