Parenthood and entrepreneurship…they’re not that different

I’ve mentioned before, I don’t have time for “mom brain”—in fact, I was laser-focused during the final months of pregnancy. (See Project Push…) And the first few months postpartum have been my fullest client load in a LONG time. (Not a flex, just an acknowledgement.)

A while back (when my daughter turned 1) I wrote a blog post about the parallels between parenthood and entrepreneurship and some lessons learned. Because I can’t just shut off one part of my life/brain/being. So it’s normal for these challenges and stresses and victories in my family and in my business to all be woven together.

Now ~3 months into this 2-time-mom thing and almost 6 years into entrepreneurship, I have all the thoughts and feels.

Here are a few other lessons that have been on my mind lately as both a mama and a business owner:

1️⃣ People say “rest while you can” or “just enjoy this time”. Meaning stop working, go on parental leave, only focus on baby.

But “rest” for me often doesn’t look like sitting around doing nothing. Sometimes being sedentary (mentally and physically) actually makes me feel way worse.

Plus, while postpartum is NO JOKE, newborns sleep a lot. And I already had 2.5 years of massive sleep deprivation under my belt (thanks, Baby #1), so I felt infinitely better having some normalcy through my business.

And my work and its connection to cool people doing meaningful things in the world make me feel like a whole person outside of the baby/motherhood vortex. Which is very very important for me to have any semblance of mental stability.

I’m continually thankful to be able to do and have both identities of mama and entrepreneur. But in the doses and on the timetable that work for me and my family.

2️⃣ This is similar to a lesson I shared last time around, but it’s worth reiterating: Best practices only get you so far. Your baby (and your business and you as a practitioner) are unique in most ways.

Developmental milestones are the average. (Which is rarely the best metric to use…) Personalities matter. Family dynamics make a difference.

So soak up the advice and the tools and the techniques that work for other people, but then figure out what works for you.

3️⃣ The confidence that comes with a “just start” mentality is very real—everything becomes more intuitive the more you do it.

Potty training isn’t so hard (for you and your little) once you get the hang of it. Being a 2nd time mama (and the breastfeeding and clothes changing and sleep schedule, etc) is a lot less scary than the first time around.

Same goes for hitting publish on a post or podcast episode. Hosting a summit. Cold pitching a dream client or media outlet.

As Ms. Rachel reminds us (IYKYK), you can do hard things. And those things feel and become way less hard after you do them once, or 20 times, or a million times.

4️⃣ This gem is from long-time entrepreneur and 4-time mama Heather Vickery—her reply to my prompt about parenting x entrepreneurship on Instagram instantly resonated: “As soon as you think you’ve got it figured out, it changes.”

I have to repeat to myself at least once a week that everything is just a phase. It’s especially noticeable with kids, but it’s also true in business.

Tantrums subside. Teething ends. Markets change. Offers morph.

This constant evolution makes it hard to plan and anticipate and have solid footing. But it also allows us to appreciate what we’ve been through, celebrate how far we’ve come, and look forward to what’s next.

Like I said, I see little (and giant) connection points between mom life and business ownership. Often multiple times a day. But I’ll leave you with these 4 for now.

And I’d love to hear some of your biggest lessons you’ve learned (or are always re-learning in new ways…) from whatever experiences have shaped your worldview and life path!

 

This is an excerpt from Toward Purpose & Progress, my newsletter where I share business tips, good news, shoutouts to Founder Friends, and other juicy snippets. Subscribe here for more rants, reflections, and resources.