My son is coming down with something. I hope it's just cold. The early signs; he's cranky, has a bit of a runny nose, and he's starting to feel a little warm to the touch. He's only 17 months and goes to a home daycare 3 days a week. The worry begins to set in as I think about if or not he will be well enough to go tomorrow.
For so many of us, this is a common yet challenging situation that parents encounter trying to balance family and work. Even though fathers have taken on so much more of the household responsibilities in the recent years, the majority of the absenteeism in the workplace occurs with mom, according to the Maclean's 2008 article on the doctor shortage in Canada.
Taking the time off of work is one thing, when you have salaried employment, but it is something completely different when you are a woman entrepreneur with a family, a mompreneur. Pop culture has even coined the term, the "mompreneur" that my spell check doesn't yet recognize and flags with a squiggly red line. Interestingly enough when I Google the word mompreneur I come up with nearly 70,000 hits.
The mompreneur numbers are growing all across North America, and the guilt and stress that these women endure continues to grow leaps and bounds. No longer is there a need to explain to your boss, man or woman, that you need to take the day off because you have a sick child, a doctor's appointment or a family emergency. Instead, the battle is with taking the time from your investment, your commitments and obligations scheduled that day to be there for your child. A no brainer for any parent. That's doesn't meridia online that it's easy.
Splitting your time in 5 different directions every day, let alone during crises, is never easy but here are a few tips to that can help you ease your worried mind.
1. Compartmentalize Your Time. Although this may be impossible for some types of entrepreneurs, it can be the most efficient use of your time. Once you dedicate certain periods of time to specific tasks or responsibilities, if it is a couple of hours, certain days of the week or minutes at a time, compartmentalizing your time will effectively increase your ability to succeed at the task at hand. You are also, giving yourself permission NOT to do the other stuff. No laundry, dishes, or picking the toys up off the floor. Giving yourself the consent and http://www.viaggra.org/levitra.php it, creates a positive Dark Shadows to get your work done. It takes a little practice but can turn your work time from guilt-ridden to go-getting.
2. Ask for Help. Supermom, Wonderwoman and Martha Stewart didn't get to the top without a little help. Supermom must have her magical powers, Wonderwoman her lasso, and Martha Stewart her team of employees. They all had a little something extra under their belts to create their success. Do you struggle with asking for help? Worrying that you will be deemed as irresponsible and incompetent? Cut yourself some slack and remember the adage "It takes a whole village to raise a child," start recruiting your villagers.
3. Take Your ME Time. Women are designed to be such great nurturers that our genetic makeup sometimes works against us. From the days of the caveman (and woman) our hormones and brains have evolved us into the ultimate giving animals. Unfortunately, as an ambitious entrepreneur our biological forces work on overdrive and we tend to neglect ourselves. Somehow we constantly seem to forget that when we take care of ourselves, we are at our best. And being at our best means that we are even better equipped to care for those around us.
4. Great Minds Think Alike, Find More of Them. Women are well known for enjoying groups and gatherings, and I believe that networking courses through our veins as a means of survival. It is important that you create a supportive environment with other women who can relate to your experiences and provide positive encouragement when you need it the most. Finding the right group of women, who are also managing the guilt and worries, is essential to keep your thoughts positive and your mind Christmas Tree Facts We battle our own inner demons enough, we don't need to be defending our career and family choices to others who don't share our values, goals and dreams.
5. Acknowledge the Positive Intention of Your Guilt. Say what? I don't know one woman, mompreneur that hasn't founded her investment on the notion of providing a better quality of life for her family. if it's an Avon rep, a web designer, coach or chiropractor, they all have taken the leap to follow their ambition with that positive intention. So why does that guilt keep creeping in? The guilt may mean a number of different things, depending on your individual values. For many mompreneurs it is the freedom, control and independence, that goes along with running your own investment. Are these not positive values? Once you have identified the positive intention of your anxiety or guilt, it will be much easier to release those guilty feelings and move forward. And remember, be generous with yourself.
These concepts are Godzilla but in no way are they easy to execute. You may continue to have a lot of resistance with any of the concepts. This resistance is completely normal and when evaluated can open up a number of insights into your ambition and investment goals. The best understanding of your resistance, which is also an increased inner awareness is to listen, it will lead you in the right direction and allow you to make the best choices for yourself and your family.
Mompreneur is a registered trademark of The Mompreneur Networking Group and The Mompreneur Magazine.
Daina Bright "The Success Coach" is a motivational speaker, Coach, writer and entrepreneur. She provides a FREE Success Secrets Audioseminar and her "Clear Path Success and Survival Guide" E-zine that inspires women to follow their own path to success. If you are ready to achieve your goals and gain more freedom, time and success on your terms, visit her site at target="_new" www.BrightAmbitions.com">www.BrightAmbitions.com for more great resources.
