Being both a mom and an entrepreneur isn’t the glamorous balancing act people imagine. It’s not “work-life balance” tied up in a pretty bow. It’s more like juggling fire while fielding the question “What’s for dinner?” for the hundredth time. Spoiler: the hell if I know.
Running a business while raising kids means your workflow is never uninterrupted. It is answering emails in the pickup line, pausing work mid-flow to drive someone to a friend’s house, or taking a deep breath before climbing into the passenger seat while a teenager learns how to change lanes without taking out a mailbox. Honestly, teaching teenagers to drive should qualify as advanced leadership training. Forget mastermind groups, hand over the keys and see if you survive the left turn onto a busy street.
When my kids were little, it was the nap time hustle. I’d finally get them down, exhale in relief, then immediately try to cram three hours of work into 40 minutes while battling the temptation to collapse on the couch myself. Spoiler: I usually needed the nap more than they did.
Here’s the thing though. Motherhood gave me the sharpest entrepreneurial skill set. It made me scrappy. It forced me to create solutions on the fly. And it showed me that resilience is not about perfection, it is about showing up even when you’re exhausted, overwhelmed, and wearing the same sweatshirt three days in a row.
My kids see me chasing a dream while encouraging theirs. They see me fail, adjust, and try again. They see me stubbornly building something that works for us, even if it means taking the road less traveled. That’s the gift I’m handing them: not perfection, but permission. Permission to dream big, screw up, laugh it off, and keep going.
So when you feel like you’re drowning in both motherhood and business, remember you’ve already mastered the impossible art of convincing small humans to eat vegetables. Clients don’t stand a chance.
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