After you have introduced a baby into your life, there will come a time when you will want to plug back into your business. Impossible as this thought is when you are in the state of feeding, changing nappies, surviving and giving the best start to your precious bundle, it will need to happen.
You will welcome the change of focus back to business. You’ll appreciate the centre of every conversation not being about your baby, its feeding and pooing habits or your post-birth recovery.
It may not be easy – it will be hard to stay focused on conversations; your foggy, sleep-deprived head won’t be able to handle too much; and you will be constantly thinking of your cherub and their wellbeing and hoping they are happy.
There may be times when you can take your baby with you to meet business commitments – and you will find that you will start being attracted to the networking groups and people who are accepting of you having a baby attachment.
Now, like no other time in history, women are encouraged to return to work and contribute to their community. Women are seeking empowerment to make decisions and control their own lives. They are putting their families first – and if the traditional workplace is not allowing them to this, they are creating their own environment that is supportive of being both mum and business owner.
Women are leaving the traditional workforce in droves after they have children, and are creating micro and small businesses – some are even growing into international exporters, right from their lounge room. They are creating social businesses that aim to make a difference in their area of expertise.
I have found that post-baby, women made better business decisions in the following core areas:
- Time management
- Business processes and procedures
- Dedicated workspace and time
- Balance between work and home.
Time management
For many women, time becomes a commodity that they fully appreciate after they have had children –they want quality time to spend with their family. It’s so important to respect both your own time and the time of others.
Some time management tips:
- measure your time
- schedule time, be realistic
- do not multi-task
- write lists
- organise “play-date” or “walking” meetings.
Business processes and procedures
Some women find it helpful to have procedures within their business – setting up processes and automation for repeated tasks. This means either automating, outsourcing, or employing someone to complete tasks.
Dedicated workspace and time
Having a dedicated workspace is essential when you are running any-sized business. This is something that many people forget about – especially when running a home-based business.
Putting your laptop down and separating yourself from work is hard when you work from home and don’t have the dedicated space and time. Many women run their businesses from their lounge room, dining room table or spare room.
Balance between work and home
Many businesswomen find that when they put focus back into their business, the tasks at home become overwhelming. This can cause stress and anxiety, resulting in a loss of focus on what is important – business growth and happy families.
Outsourcing domestic tasks should be viewed in the same way as outsourcing business tasks – a necessity.
Get savvy with the use of your time, set up processes, give yourself a dedicated workspace, and find the balance between work and home. If you give your life focus and clarity, the process of plugging back into business will be smooth.
Rachel Allan, marketing consultant and author of “When Business Meets Baby”
