Permission to be a mother

I see it all too often (and have done it myself!)

Business mum’s on facebook apologising for taking longer to reply to e-mails because they are busy with their kids. Apologising for taking longer to complete an order due to their children being sick. Apologising for taking a “break” from their business or blogging etc to have some family time.

I’ve recently been thinking a lot about this as I work on sorting out the balance between business & mothering and thought – It is time we stop apologising and give ourselves permission to be mothers.

In the end – our family and our kids come first. I think most of our fans on facebook and customers understand that because they are mum’s themselves. We all want more time with our children.

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Sometimes as a small business owner you can feel that if you don’t post a facebook status update…or don’t write a blog post…or don’t showcase a new product photo etc…that you will start losing business or people will ‘unlike’ our facebook page. So we stay on the never ending merry-go-round that never seems to stop.

However everyday in my newsfeed I see many (too many to keep up with!) inspiring posts and products and status updates. It doesn’t bother me if some of my favourite pages/businesses don’t post anything!

Life goes on with and without our blog posts and facebook photos and e-mail replies.

Don’t get me wrong. I do think customer service is so important to good business practice and if there is a reason why you will be having delays in e-mail replies then by all means it makes sense to say so. Or perhaps if you are a store that offers next day shipping etc then again I understand why immediate response is expected.

However I’m talking about the expectations of small business mum’s replying to all e-mails within a 24hour period (or less!).

Sometimes as much as you want to…and as much as you plan to….your little people just take EVERYTHING out of you. At the end of the day you sometimes don’t have the time….nor energy…nor motivation to then go and sit at the computer and reply e-mails.

This is ok. Motherhood comes first. Our sanity and health comes first.

I’m not sure if this is the best “business” advice….but I love this quote from Loralee Lewis:

“No other success can compensate for failure in the home”

I am telling myself this as much as I am sharing these thoughts with you.

There will always be clients, and facebook fans. However I only have this time now with my children at this age to be there with them.

 

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And although everyone on facebook or e-mail may not notice me being absent….my children WILL notice my absence.

So women – let’s give ourselves permission to be mothers!

Do you struggle with the balance between motherhood & business/working?

How do you manage your competing priorities?

 

 



12 Comments to “Permission to be a mother”

  1. Linda V @ Bubble and Sweet August 5, 2013 at 11:43 pm

    Oh I couldn’t agree with this more 🙂

    Reply
    • admin August 6, 2013 at 4:47 am

      Thanks Linda for feedback and taking the time to read the post =)
      Tanya

      Reply
  2. Shell August 6, 2013 at 12:09 am

    Well said Tanya, I’ve been contemplating this myself too lately and how to get the balance right for my own family life. I’ll let you know when I figure it out, after I’ve played barbies & race cars!! X

    Reply
    • admin August 6, 2013 at 4:45 am

      Thanks Shell! I think it is trial and error and in time we all work out what works for our family and our particular children =)

      Reply
  3. Suz August 6, 2013 at 8:41 am

    Thanks for this! My kids are on holiday at the moment and I want to spend time with them and I do this job to fit in with them so I’ve reminded myself of this and work fits around the family. Not so easy when you have deadlines so you just have to be super organised! Haven’t mastered it yet!! x

    Reply
    • admin August 7, 2013 at 12:07 am

      So true Suz – it is all about being organised so we don’t have to squeeze in last minute things unexpectedly when the kids suddenly need us. Easier said than done!

      Reply
  4. Jade August 6, 2013 at 9:17 am

    The most stressed I am is when I’m putting the expectations on myself to be contactable & available to clients 24/7. I try very hard to set boundaries in place so I’m fully present for my clients but they are also aware how valuable my time is!

    Reply
    • admin August 7, 2013 at 10:01 am

      Yes it is difficult Jade because we want to give the best customer service but in the end we are human and people have to understand they are dealing with a real person (who needs to eat/sleep etc!) and not a major corporation. Thanks for your comment!

      Reply
  5. Minette August 7, 2013 at 1:43 pm

    Thank you Tanya! We need reminding once in a while! xx

    Minnie

    Reply
    • admin August 12, 2013 at 1:15 pm

      Your welcome Minnie! Yes I need to remind myself of this as well =)

      Reply
  6. Belinda August 12, 2013 at 5:09 am

    Love it Tanya! The past 5 weeks have been a little hideous for me, and I haven’t been the best mother, wife or business owner! Things need to change (and processes are already starting!) to allow me to be all of them, and do them well.

    Reply
    • admin August 12, 2013 at 1:16 pm

      Thanks for your comment Bel…sometimes we need to be at rock bottom before we can see the changes we need to make I think? It is all trial and error! xx

      Reply

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