When you are feeling all the feels as a mompreneur – pressure, long hours, winning the big client, growing the team – it’s hard to notice that you are on the verge of full blown mom burnout, especially when you are facing mom guilt like making it home for dinner to make sure you have left enough time to “cherish the precious moments” with the kids. We hate to say it, but the truth is starting a business is hard. But, starting or growing a business while raising a family is like running a marathon on a treadmill—full speed, no finish line.
During the early months of COVID, Victoria had five kids under nine and no childcare. Beth, whose kids were “grown” with two in college and two high school upperclassmen, suddenly found all of them home, and she had a front-row seat to the peaks and valleys of adolescence and young adulthood. We were both working probably 80 hours a week, spending our days helping our large public company CEOs reassure investors their companies were not going under despite shutdowns and customer delays. These same clients slowed paying our invoices, and our cash flow was thin. But we refused to consider layoffs or cut salaries to the bone. We fought for PPP money to meet payroll, and bear hugged our team through Teams calls and virtual happy hours. Burnout didn’t even begin to explain what was happening in those wildly stressful days.
There was a happy ending—we made it through, together. Our business took off, but not before we learned the hard way how to manage not just our work, but our families and, most importantly, ourselves. Mom burnout doesn’t have to be part of your journey. Do yourself a favor—get ahead of it with these game-changing tips.
1. Follow our “one hard thing a day” rule – religiously.
This is an important one because Victoria still falls victim to the long to- do lists…and not just one – a work one, a kid one, and a “other” one. It will honestly paralyze her when she has to buckle down and get sh&t done. Despite her bad behavior, she remains slavish to the “one hard thing a day” rule that we talk about all the time. This is the one thing you’re dreading from the second you wake up. If you do this, you will make progress towards your goals – we promise!
2. Make your physical health a priority.
This does not mean you need to start training for a half marathon (or Ironman – yup, overachiever we see you). This is about making sure you make time for yourself. It could be a walk with your partner or a colleague at lunch, taking up an old hobby (in Victoria’s case, tennis) that you forgot you loved so much, or rediscovering cooking so you can refocus on what you are putting in your body. The point is, make the choices that make you stronger each day as you continue down your path of world domination.
3. Find an outlet that is neither work or home that makes you smile.
Beth was focused on giving back to her community during the height of our last business. So, she blocked one Thursday a month to work at her local food pantry. For Victoria, it was taking the lead for her neighborhood Swim Team, which all of her kids participate in. Ok, she hears you (and Beth back in the day) saying how does more stuff help you manage mom burnout – it’s a strategy to take your mind off the day-to-day stressors you work through as a mompreneur and mind space is like gold when you are scaling a business.
4. Put yourself first.
Most importantly, be selfish – not in the mean, vindictive way, but instead in the way that a burnt out mompreneur isn’t going to be as successful as she can be. Instead of 9 times out of 10 that you put the business or your family first – maybe make it 7 times out of 10 or even 8 times out of 10. The point is, put yourself first to help manage the heavy load we carry both at work and home.
If you are looking for a community of like-minded working moms going through the same struggles as you while kick-starting their entrepreneurial dreams, join Maverick 50! Don’t let mom burnout dictate your mompreneur journey.
