15 Moms Share Their Best Work-Life Balance Tips

This year marks 9 years as a mom for me.  I like to describe mom life using a term I coined called the Three C’s:  cooking, cleaning and of course children! This juggling act requires all of my attention to keep the cycle balanced.  Thankfully, a few smiles and hugs from the kiddos tugs at my heart strings and I keep going…. cooking, cleaning, children. Repeat.

Just when you think you can’t possibly add more to this cycle, you do – because you are a a business owner, or entrepreneur – or as they like to call mom entrepreneurs, a ‘Mompreneur’.

That part of your life is equally as demanding. Driving a business to a successful and profitable state requires an enormous investment of time and energy.

A Day In The Life As An Entrepreneur by Derrick Halpern
Entrepreneur.com
15 Moms Share How They Maintain A Work-Life Balance, Line graph showing life after becoming a parent
A Dash of Data.com

Clearly parenthood and being a business owner both have their ups and downs!  But this hasn’t stopped moms from taking the entrepreneurial road.  In fact, according to Score.org, in 2018, women-owned businesses made up 39% of the 28 million small businesses operating across the United States and is continuing to rise. 

Check out 50 Best Side Hustles to Make More Money

This infographic presented below and on Score.org shows that 23.2% of the women entrepreneurs surveyed decided to start a business at the same time that they were starting a family.  It seems like a bold decision to make, but flexible hours and the ability to work from home are a huge benefit when you have young children.

15 Moms Share How to Maintain Work-Life Balance infographic

So how are women entrepreneurs balancing their business goals with mom life? Here is what 15 moms do to get it done.

Make Family Time a Priority

Robin Saves

Robyn is an independent contractor and also the author of the blog A Dime Saved.

“The most important thing is to have some times that are non-negotiable family time. Bedtime is a time for each kid to get a book and I lay down with them for a few minutes. No matter how busy I am – bedtime is always bonding time.”

Tiffany L. Thomas

Tiffany was previously a math teacher and is currently the author of the blog Saving Talents.

“Put your kids first and fill the rest with work.”

Marie Tehillah

Marie is author of the blog Mommy Makes Money Online.

“When I was first pregnant, I thought that once the baby was here I could still run my business when my daughter was asleep and on weekends.

Then I quickly realized that kids need your undivided attention. Now I have a strict schedule I use to plan out what I need to do and when to give her my undivided attention.

I work 2 hours every morning and an hour after she’s in bed. I set realistic expectations of what I can and cannot do.”

Samantha Milner

Samantha is author of the blog RecipeThis and creates recipes with her husband Dominic.

“My number #1 tip is to work around the kid’s hours and be flexible about when you work. I have 3 kids and my youngest two are in preschool. My husband and I work on our online business while they are at preschool and then do leftover work when they are in bed on a night. It gives us lots of time with them and we are still able to grow our online business. Prior to this when the kids were at home we worked shift patterns. I would work one week and the hubby would work the next and this worked very well for us too.”

Keep an Organized Work Schedule

Dr. Rubina Tahir

Rubina is a Chiropractor, writer, and co-founder of The Positivity Charge, a national wellness conference.

“I use google calendar reminders – or else I don’t know where I am supposed to be half of the time. Take business calls with your toddler in the room. People are understanding of hearing a LOT of background noise and support the goals of the Mompreneur.”

Darcey Lynn

Darcey still has her day job and is in the process of getting her coaching business off the ground.  Darcey has also been a blogger for several years.

“It is a balancing act, but I try to pick a different task to focus on each night after my daughter goes to bed. For example, on Sunday night, I’ll schedule my Facebook and Instagram posts for the week. Then I’ll use the theme I chose and on Monday nights, I’ll take an hour to write a blog post. The next day, I’ll edit and look for images. Another day, I devote to coaching calls. I have found that focusing on one area each day feels less overwhelming.”

Donna Mansour

Donna is the author of the blog Whole Food Bellies.

“My main thing which I have really honed in on this year is to work hard when you can, so you can truly be present for your family when you are together.

I batch work and schedule in advance a lot more so I can really and truly be there for the kids on weekends and school holidays.

This way I know I am being true to myself in how hard I am working on my business and I don’t feel  mom guilt as I know I am making quality time for the kids (and hubby).”

Shirley Crumbie Wood

Shirley is author of the blog Intelligent Domestications.

“My kids are grown and I am very active in my grandkids lives. I make myself available when my daughters need me. I’m still a busy Mompreneur. Keeping a schedule written is key for me. I also share my schedule with the family so that everyone else knows what to expect of my availability.”

Jennifer Kropf

Jennifer is author of the blog Healthy Happy Impactful.

“I use a block schedule to separate my mom life and my business life. It works because it keeps me from multitasking myself to death with three kids at home. I have times that my family gets my undivided attention, and times when my business gets my undivided attention. I try not to mix them if possible. “

Kallie Myer

Kallie is author of the blog One Fit Mamma.

“My best tip is to make sure you make time for family and do some self-care. Find the best time for you to work and stick to it every day. Don’t let yourself get distracted or else it will take forever to get done!”

Find the Best Blocks of Time in the Day to Work

Alice Anderson

Alice has a shop on Etsy and is the author of the blog Mommy to Mom.

“We’ve been remote learning since school started this year which has really thrown my schedule off since I have to help keep my kids on task. One thing I’ve found that helps is making sure everything is prepared the night before school. I have them make their lunches the same as if they were going to school. This allows me to work during their entire lunch break, rather than needing to make food for them. I also make sure they have their work set out for the next day so things are organized and they are able to work more independently.” 

Check out some quick meal ideas:

Quick and Easy Chicken Quesadillas

Mexican Soup with Chicken

Italian Sloppy Joes

Teralyn Simmons

Teralyn is author of the blog New Mom Vibes.

“My tip is to wake up earlier than your kids. I find that waking up 1 to 2 hours before my kids and focusing on my top to-dos helps me get my most important things done and also makes me feel like I accomplished something for myself before the kids wake up. It also gives me time to be really present with my kids in the morning without trying to multi-task during breakfast time.”

Samantha Radford

Samantha is author of the blog Evidence-Based Mommy and has a PhD in Chemistry.

“Find activities that your kids want to do independently. Novel toys or activities that you can set up quickly and then put away after your work can be really helpful at buying you time.”

Set Reasonable Expectations for Yourself

Lily Boukheir

Lily Bo is author of the blog The Matbakh.

“My best tip as a mompreneur is to set expectations reasonably and with compassion. Identify exactly how much time is spent outside of your business, so you can have a realistic gauge of how much time you actually have to work on your business. Whether that’s 10 hours a week or 30 hours a week, then it’s possible to start setting reasonable expectations. Also, I set expectations that are within my control- i.e. number of blog posts, keyword research, etc, then use indicators like traffic, engagement, email opens to guide my actions.”

Sarah Brooks

Sarah is author of the blog Keep Calm and Eat Ice Cream.

“My biggest tip is to manage your expectations. Pick what’s important for the day and get that done. So some days the dishes can wait while I smash-out that killer recipe, others I turn off the computer and spend the afternoon in the sunshine with my boys. You can’t do everything all the time and you will burn out trying.”

Being a Mompreneur requires a commitment to a lifestyle that often demands the highest level of organization and time management.  Being able to find those blocks of time to work around family eventually becomes second nature.  Set reasonable expectations for yourself of what you can accomplish, taking it one day at a time.

Finally, celebrate the fact that being a Mompreneur fulfills two dreams, experiencing the blessings of motherhood and being your own boss!

Do you have little ones at home still? Check out this post on Mom Hacks for a Smoother Day with the Little Ones.

15 Moms Share Their Best Work-Life Balance Tips
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16 thoughts on “15 Moms Share Their Best Work-Life Balance Tips”

  1. I’m not a mom, but my wife and I have five children aged 12 and under. My wife is a SAHM, I work a typical 9-5 (though it’s usually longer than that), and we both work on our blog. I recently attended a men’s retreat where family members wrote us letters that we read privately for encouragement. Our 12-year-old son wrote in his letter that he understands why I work so much, but he wishes I didn’t have to—talk about wet eyes. Everything I do is motivated by the love I have for my wife and children. It’s so important that we remember our priorities in life not only for our own soul but for all those we love so deeply. As a favor to someone, I framed in a window in their home over the weekend. I typically would’ve gone alone to hurry up the work as I’m always so busy, but I instead asked our 12-year-old if he’d like to tag along. The work may have taken a bit longer, but my son and I were able to spend time together, and I taught him how to hammer nails and use a circular saw. My #1 tip is to really listen to your children—the “planned” family time every Sunday might not be the right approach.

  2. Such a great post! Thanks for letting me participate. There are so many great tips and hacks here that I will try to incorporate into my life.
    Working moms have it tough but we are strong!

  3. That’s such a great story Joe! The sentiments of those I spoke to were as you expressed – work around family time and give children undivided attention as much as possible. Thank you for sharing!

  4. Yes! Since moving to remote work in March, it was a tough balance – at first. Once I set boundaries, blocked times out my calendar, and set my priorities, work-life balance became much easier to obtain. Thank you for sharing these!

  5. This was helpful to read. We can’t churn everyday. I agree with the early morning advice. Even 20 minutes before the others are awake helps. I need to go to sleep earlier so I can aim for an hour earlier in the morning!

  6. I hear you. I tried burning the candle at both ends but I didn’t last long! I definitely need to get to bed earlier as well!

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