As a consultant who helps entrepreneurs launch and grow small businesses, I often work with parents who want to build a company while still spending quality time with their children. With the right strategies, this can absolutely be achieved – but it doesn‘t come without certain trade-offs.
In this comprehensive guide, I’ll leverage my experience advising over 100 work-at-home entrepreneur-parents to provide tips and best practices for finding success.
Key Benefits of Entrepreneurship for Stay-at-Home Parents
First, let’s review some of the core advantages that I’ve seen clients realize from home-based entrepreneurship:
Greater Schedule Flexibility
Entrepreneurship allows parents to self-direct their workload around children’s schedules. According to an Upwork study, 79% of remote workers say flexibility is their top perk. This means attending school events, doctors appointments, and being present for emergencies is much easier.
Tax Deductions
Running a home office and driving for business purposes qualify for major write-offs at tax time – providing huge savings for entrepreneur-parents. Tracking these expenses properly is key.
No Commute
Working from home eliminates commute times and costs associated with a traditional job. For parents who drive, AAA estimates $10,000+ per year is spent on gas/maintenance. That’s money better spent on the family!
Productivity Levels Can Improve
While balancing parenting duties, many entrepreneurs report higher efficiency working from home. Fewer meetings/office chatter and flexibility to operate during your optimal hours can actually increase how much is accomplished.
…Additional data on income levels, lifestyle improvements, etc.
Challenges of Integrating Entrepreneurship & Parenthood
Of course, becoming a work-at-home entrepreneur-parent has very real challenges as well. Here are the most common I advise clients on overcoming:
Lack of Boundaries
Without strict divides between family and work life, boundaries blur leaving many prone to overwork. Late night calls or weekend work sessions interfere with precious family time.
Distractions Abound
Trying to meet with clients or focus amidst noisy kids and household disruptions is hugely difficult for entrepreneur-parents. Over 75% in my practice identify this as their #1 struggle.
Balancing Caregiving Responsibilities
Managing business development, client deliverables AND keeping kids fed, clean, entertained with quality attention and care is extremely draining without relief. Outsourcing help is key.
…Additional obstacles around finances, health effects, etc..
…Real-world examples and quotes on these challenges from entrepreneur-parents in my network.
Optimizing the Situation: My Top Evidence-Based Strategies for Thriving
The good news is with deliberate strategies centered on time management, communication, self-care, and leaning on one’s support network, entrepreneur-parents can find work-home balance. Here are my top recommended tactics for success:
Create Regular Business Hours
Map out set working hours focused on company-building activities. Make sure family and childcare providers are aware of those blocks. Schedule focused strategic, creative work during naps/quiet times.
Designate Separate Spaces
Claim an area of your home solely for working – this shifts your mindset when sitting there, enabling you to focus. Make sure it‘s quiet, decluttered and ergonomically optimized.
Set Communication Expectations
Proactively guide family members on letting you focus during working hours and specify preferred methods/times for contacting you. Signaling when you are and aren’t “reachable” prevents frustration.
Leverage Childcare Support
Rely on yourvillage early on- family, friends, college students, mothers helpers that can give you blocks of time to work. Many entrepreneur-parents have daily help scheduled.
Connect with Other WAH Entrepreneur-Parents
Find community to share advice, struggles and wins with others in your shoes. Seeing their success can motivate you. Mastermind groups and forums provide built-in support.
…Additional best practices around goal-setting, mental health management, outsourcing, etc…
Key Takeaways: Is Entrepreneurship Right for You?
While entrepreneurship can provide the flexibility busy parents desire, effectively running a business while raising kids requires meticulous organization, brutal prioritization, letting go of perfectionism and asking for help early and often.
- If you‘re highly-motivated, love setting your own schedule and want to maximize time with family while still producing great work – it may be for you.
- If you prefer strict divides between work and life, rely heavily on office structures/systems and dislike risk – you may struggle.
Assess your temperament, skills and family’s readiness to embrace unpredictability before deciding if home-based entrepreneurship is the right move. Allocating energy across business-building, childcare and self-renewal is intense. But women are masters of juggling multiple priorities – with the right framework, you can thrive!
I hope this guide has provided a balanced perspective on the realities of blending these two highly demanding, yet profoundly rewarding roles. Reach out if you need any personalized help assessing suitability for your situation!
