I have always been a workaholic, building a business from the ground up takes years and years of hard work and commitment. My business always came first.
That is until I had my beautiful son Oscar. Then my whole world got turned upside down.
I had to take care of, and keep a little human alive. Between the breast feeding, lack of sleep, C-section recovery and the hormones, I barely had time to focus on work, let alone try and build the brand.
For the first time in my life I understood the true meaning of multi-tasking. From this moment on I had a new found respect for working women, for all women.
I found myself asking
How do you find balance between being a career woman and a mother? How do you show up for both roles and not feel like you are letting one side down?
I actually don’t think there is a balance. Some days you are winning the Mum game and others you criticize yourself for making bad parenting choices. All you can do is try and be present in the moment and do your best. There will definitely be good days and bad.
Here is what I have learnt along the way:
It is helpful to have a daily routine; however, you do need to be flexible. Each day presents you with new challenges. Try and write down in your diary or calendar the night before. Be specific, this includes loads of laundry, pediatrician appointments and team building calls.
Be present with your little one: When you are with your child, try and give them your full attention, that means no texting or checking emails. They will always be there when you pick your phone up again.
Set aside an hour a day to catch up on emails: Rather than sitting at your computer waiting for emails to come in, allow them to collect and then take an hour to respond to all of them sitting in your inbox. This is much better use of your time and allows you to really focus on work for that hour.
Carve out time for you to workout, even if that is just for 20 minutes. Try and involve your little one, give them their own yoga mat to play on and try to encourage them to copy you. If you have an infant, try and find creative ways to involve them in movement. One of my favorites is the baby weighted squat.
Schedule your zoom meetings or business calls whilst your little one naps, this way you can focus with no background noise. However, I have been known to take a call from my closet, you do whatever you have to!
Call your Mum and girlfriends, laugh, cry and give each other support. Share the funny story or your day. One of my favorites was changing a dirty diaper whilst on a zoom call.
Finally, BE KIND TO YOURSELF. You can only do what is physically possible. Some days will look better than others, just know that you are doing your best. You are enough xx
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