wanna-be entrepreneurial mothers – juggle don’t struggle…

by theEmother | Jan 21, 2014 | build a Mother of a Business, business ideas & thinking, Buy a Mother of a Business, Consultant EXIT Options, entrepreneurial mothers, MEinc, single parent l single mother, so you think you're in business, start with the end in mind

Easier said than done, right?

As you know, we often have a lot to deal with in our daily lives and quite often, all at the same time. Many find it hard to balance business with the demands of raising a family. The good news is that striking a balance between the two is not as hard to do as you may think.

In recent times, many entrepreneurial mothers have opted for freelancing and consulting over salaried employment, as did I when I started. Some of you may have decided to quit employment in favour of starting your own businesses while others may have lost the jobs they had. Being a Consultant and Freelancing offers the flexibility of pursuing business aspirations and/or careers while still fulfilling family responsibilities.

By the same token, thanks to setting up your consultancy by freelancing, wanna-be entrepreneurial mothers no longer have to end businesses or careers once they decide to start a family.

Although starting a personal business is thoroughly satisfying, it comes with a fair share of challenges. Savvy entrepreneurial mothers learn how to meet these challenges while expanding their businesses and raising a healthy family.

Simple, general business tips for working mothers:

• Effective time management.

Mothers who run their own businesses while bringing up children need to develop effective time management skills. This calls for prioritisation of tasks and drawing up a time-schedule to ensure all important or urgent functions are dealt with first. It is also important to learn how to juggle or outsource various roles to make sure everything is done on time. The one key requirement with this is discipline!

• Creating boundaries

Another vital skill for working mothers is learning how to set well defined boundaries between their businesses and their home lives. The boundary can be as simple as designating a separate room in the house as the office. Boundaries help to ensure that business duties do not spill over or interfere with running the home and vice versa. They also help the mother to make the mental switch from homemaker to businesswoman.

• Outsourcing unnecessary tasks

An entrepreneurial mother who wishes to make the most of her business should outsource some of the business functions to external third parties. This would assist in freeing up valuable time and resources to concentrate on business growth and expansion. Outsourcing also allows a businesswoman to complete tasks in a short period, leaving more time for her important business tasks and her family.

• Working with umbrella companies

Working mothers who do hire subcontractors might find it time-consuming to deal with payroll issues. This can also be the case when being subcontractors, i.e. when freelancing themselves. This is where an umbrella company comes in handy. These companies act as intermediaries between the hiring organisations and subcontractors. They effectively take over administrative and payroll duties, reducing the strain on entrepreneurs.

Additionally, they make all the necessary tax and insurance deductions from the subcontractors’ salaries, saving business owners the hassle of calculating those for themselves.

• Managing finances

Finally, mothers who run businesses need to know how to manage their finances, both for their business’s and their family’s sake. Other than hiring accountants or financial officers to handle the accounts, a business owner should take the initiative of learning how to embrace cost-effective methods and streamline business expenditure.

Sometimes the umbrella companies will offer to do this for them. Alternatively, there are a number of Online options which may suit.

Entrepreneurial mothers also ought to seek out how to take advantage of any available tax breaks, reliefs or credits they are entitled to receive.

Having just spent the Christmas break reworking the entrepreneurial mothers® Online Mothers Group, it reminded me of just how important getting these tips right, as they are for you. If you’re interested in finding out more about the Online Mothers Group, drop me a line at info@theentrepreneurialmother.com