The world has yet to truly embrace gender equality. We need to face that fact if we’re to properly address it. While there are many women out there in positions of power we cannot lull ourselves into a false sense of security. There’s still rampant sexism, pregnancy discrimination, casually misogynistic attitudes among business elites and a gender pay gap that could take over two centuries to close according to the World Economic Forum. Yet, we live on the cusp of real and lasting change. Women have more opportunities than ever not just to achieve the same success in climbing the corporate ladder as their male counterparts but in striking out on their own and going into business for themselves.
But while many a career woman and mother has chosen to tread the path of Momtrepreneurship, she has also courted great risk in doing so. She runs the risk of dedicating more of herself to her business than her personal life, she runs the risk of falling afoul of the IRS, she runs the risk of isolating and even endangering herself and she risks the ever present threat that is entrepreneurial burnout. Here we’ll look at 3 of the thing an entrepreneur needs to beware of in her personal life if she’s to achieve success in life both inside and outside of her business…
It’s great to be a dreamer, but you can’t have your head in the clouds all the time
Many who pursue entrepreneurship are dreamers who simply don’t do well when constrained by an office cubicle and the rigid structure of a corporation. They don’t want to play by the rules, they want to make their own rules. They don’t want to live on the ground but in the clouds, constantly dreaming up new and exciting ideas that could one day change the world, even if it’s something as simple as creating invoice templates for businesses to use. But while imagination is a key to entrepreneurship, be wary of daydreaming, especially in busy settings or behind the wheel. Drifting off into the idea factory of your mind could lead to a collision with a tired truck driver who didn’t check properly before merging lanes. While you could sue them for negligent driving; read more from Green Broillet & Wheeler an incident of this sort could leave you injured and unable to properly run your business. Speaking of which…
Your business shouldn’t crumble if you take a few days off
Many entrepreneurs get extremely phobic about taking time away from their operation, even if they are sick and desperately need to recuperate. Thus, they continue to come in and not only endanger their own health but potentially that of their employees. An entrepreneur shouldn’t be afraid to take time off to spend with family or friends, look after her kids or attend to her own health. If she’s invested properly in training and recruiting the best, her operation should get along just fine without her for a few days.
Taking a little time just for you doesn’t make you lazy, negligent or selfish
Entrepreneurs deserve work / life balance too. And sometimes the best tonic for anxiety, stress and depression caused by the relentless demands on your time and attention is a little you time. Take yourself on a date for dinner and a movie. Take the dog on a long trek. Spend a little time in one of the quiet places of your childhood.
One of my clients runs a hugely successful business and found that using Mailchimp – an email marketing software – not only saved her time but generated more traffic to her site. To find out if Mailchimp could be a time saving solution for you, have a look at the Mailchimp pricing plans. It’s all about prioritising your time wisely after all.
Ultimately, you deserve some you time. You’ll be a better entrepreneur, parent, spouse and person for it!
