Are You An Entrepreneur With Kids? Here’s How You Can Find A Realistic Work-Life Balance

There are two types of entrepreneur parents in the world. You and those that use their kids as an excuse. The difference: You hold the key to the movers and shakers club.

Yes, being a parent is hard. But stir in the challenges of entrepreneurship and you find yourself in a whirlwind of epic proportions. For many, ‘work-life balance’ seems to be a mythical creature in the land of Entrepreneurship. Will you find the ‘perfect’ balance? 

No. Perfection doesn’t exist! It all comes down to developing time management skills that can help you overcome the challenges of being an entrepreneur with kids.

If your end goal involves maintaining a realistic work-life balance, consider these 9 insights.

1. Set clear boundaries

How can you communicate clear boundaries so your time is respected?

• Use your calendar. Block out time for your activities and make sure you’re marked as unavailable.
• Ensure that you stick to a focused agenda when setting up meetings for work. The goal is to prioritize your limits politely while feeling calm on the inside.

2. Create a schedule

It’s all about time management. If you want to run a business successfully and balance it with your personal life, consider creating a schedule. When you have tasks scheduled for each day, week, and month, you wake up with intention. 

But you know too well that, being an entrepreneur with kids, sticking to a rigid routine is near impossible. Creating wiggle room for the unexpected will help you adjust as needed. Most importantly, make family time purposeful. The goal is to disconnect from work entirely to spend quality time with your family. Block out time in your calendar to make it official.

3. Create an office space

Distraction is one of the most common entrepreneur struggles that hinder performance. Especially when you homeschool your kids and work from home. 

If your work brain refuses to switch on at home, create an official office space, and communicate to your family that it’s a no-go zone.

• Hang a “DO NOT DISTURB” board on the door.
• Wear noise-canceling headphones and listen to productive music.
• Create a mindful ritual.

For example: Go for a brisk walk outside. Jot down your intentions for the day. Boost your blood-oxygen with a quick breathing exercise. Do what you need to do to switch into work mode. But if you need to be extra focused, consider an office away from home to reduce distractions.

4. Hire childcare

Sometimes there’s just no way around it and in order to get some work done on your business, you have to hire childcare. Yes, they will pull at your heartstrings when they reach for one last hug and watch in horror as you walk away or shut your office door. 

Remember that they are part of your “why.” Why you want to pursue your mission as an entrepreneur. You want to provide the best for your family, don’t you? It’s all about striking a balance so you can maintain proper focus in your business.

5. Delegate tasks

Being an entrepreneur with kids means you’re a superhero. But let’s be real. It’s impossible to do everything yourself. To be an effective CEO with kids, you need energy... lots of it. Every day is a marathon. Delegating tasks can not only do wonders for your work-life balance but also save you from burnout.

6. Prioritize self-care

As a parentpreneur, you often have to deal with the challenges of entrepreneurship. From unusual schedules, digital burnout, eye strain, time pressure, and risk of failure, to irregular income, limited social interactions, and unexpected circumstances. 

We can all agree that burnout is real. It creeps up on you when you least expect it. While the celebrated “hustle” culture makes you feel inadequate, I want to remind you that it creates an expectation a person simply cannot meet. It’s not worth the stress, health problems, and poor mental health that follow. 

Prioritizing self-care can greatly minimize stress, enhance creativity, boost productivity, and generally improve your physical and mental health.

7. Protect against blue light

While most of your waking life is spent staring into digital screens, your eyes are attacked by artificial blue light. As a result, your body aches, you can’t get enough quality sleep, you have zero energy coupled with mood swings, and your productivity is subpar. Before you know it, your overall performance sucks… your life sucks. 

It’s a vicious cycle that you can’t afford as an entrepreneur with kids. The solution: Block the blue light! And no, blue light isn’t a myth. Read my article debunking 5 common blue light myths, here.

8. Be patient with yourself

In a world where everything is at your fingertips, it’s often difficult not to expect instant gratification. Behold the truth. You can’t build your empire in a day. You won’t find a perfect work-life balance, but you can work towards it every day. Patience is the key. You might think, “Easier said than done, Celeste.” I’m with you.

It takes time to change ingrained habits. It also takes time to adjust to new habits. The great news is that it is entirely do-able if you set your mind to it. It won’t be easy, but with consistency and patience with yourself, you will gain the parentpreneur edge you deserve.

9. Redefine success

If you have reached burnout, the only real solution is to listen to your body and stop. We’ve established that to foster success in your business, you have to prioritize self-care. The only way for that to take full effect is to redefine what success means to you. 

Success looks different for everyone. For me, success means having more time for my family, hobbies, and enjoying financial freedom to travel and live an independent life. 

What does success look like for you? Here are some questions to identify triggers.

• What aspects of “success” breed anxiety and burnout?
• Next, write down your perfect day and start living your ideal life. 
• Here’s a tip: Success doesn’t have to stem from milestones or money. It can manifest from a life well-lived.

Key Takeaway

Whatever insight you start with, ease into it, stay consistent, keep your end goal in mind, and remember this: The truest form of success as an entrepreneur comes from happiness and purpose.

You might also be interested in this article that talks about the blue light filter of iPhone.