If there’s one word that I could use to describe being a mompreneur , it would be: never-ending. 😂 I wrote this as I’d gotten home from picking up our spring/summer 2022 collection, Take Me to Carnival. I had 8 emails waiting for a reply, the various papers on my kitchen island stacked quite high, there was a pile of laundry in our bedroom staring at me, my business to-do list had a lot of things unchecked… See what I mean by never-ending! Ask me though, if I would have it any other way, and I’ll tell you: Nope! This is what I prayed for!
Well I didn’t exactly ask for papers stacked on a kitchen island, or all the other things that consist of never-ending. However, I have always wanted to be a stay-at-home mompreneur. Everyday at my day job I would dream of the day I could stay home and run a business, full-time. When we started having kids, I knew how much more important it would be to have that flexibility of working from home on my business and the freedom to pick the kids up when they got out of school. I have always wanted to be my own boss.
As hard as it is juggling all of these things running People of Color, it’s hard to imagine how I would be able to do all of this and have to work a regular job. Kudos to all parents who are working and managing home plus kids. This is hard!
When people ask how you manage it all, the answer is: I don’t. I have learned to be OK with my house not being in perfect condition at all times. I have learned to be OK with not having the energy to cook dinner everyday. I have learned to be OK with asking for help. I have learned that it is OK to not do it all; I mean there’s never enough time or energy anyway. There’s a thing called priorities. That is how I manage my time instead of trying to do it all. When I first started People of Color and things really started to grow, I would never settle for the day (or night) until everything on my to-do list was done. I found myself up until 1am most nights trying to finish everything, just to wake up at 6:40am to get Monroe up for school. Needless to say, I burnt out quickly and hard. I learned quickly to focus on a short list of 3-4 top priorities for the day, and being OK with leaving whatever else on the list doesn’t get done for the next day.
Getting enough rest is so important, and taking time for myself is one of my top priorities daily. The to-do list never stops, however, we must! Stop and rest. Stop and exercise. Stop and go out for a drive with the music blasting. Stop and watch your favorite show. Stop and laugh. Stop and breathe. Stop and be.
Life as a mompreneur is hard, fun, rewarding, never-ending, annoying, and so much more. Be careful what you ask for, because you just might get it! I am forever grateful that I did. As People of Color continues to grow, I will continue to build a team around me who believes in the vision and wants to help the brand succeed with their expertise. I will also continue to outsource and hire when I can for my personal life, so that I can focus on and enjoy the things that are most important to me. In the end, it’s my life and I don’t want to miss it!