When you’re an entrepreneur and a mum at the same time, you are constantly juggling your priorities. You of course want to be the best parent to your child that you can possibly be, but you also want to run a successful, profitable business. And at times it can seem like the two are mutually exclusive.

But in actual fact, running a company and raising a child are very similar. They both require you to commit all your time and energy, and they need constant attention and care if they are to flourish. You don’t want to have to choose between your child and your business, and hopefully you never have to. But the truth is, your child is a living, breathing, human being and they always come first. But how can you prioritize your offspring, while keeping your company going at the same time? Here are a few tips to help you lead a balanced lifestyle.

Stick to a schedule

The best way to maintain a strict focus on both your business and your parenting is to divide your time between them. Create a routine for your work week and stick to it. Your days can be focused on growing your company and finding new clients, but you should have a fixed time to switch off at the end of the day. Switch your phone off, and devote your evenings to your family. Spend time playing with and talking to your child, or go to the park to use the outdoor playground equipment. Splitting your priorities in this way allows you to be the best parent and businessperson you can be, without feeling as though you have to compromise on anything. 

Be flexible

Although you should stick to your schedule, it’s inevitable that unexpected challenges will arise. Your child might get sick at school while you’re working and you’ll have to postpone your meeting to pick them up. Or maybe your website goes down while you’re sitting down to dinner with your family and you need to get on the phone to IT support right away. You need to incorporate some flexibility into your routine in order to keep a handle on each of your priorities. This might require an honest conversation with your clients about your parenting responsibilities, or a discussion with your family about your career.

Hire help

Although you want to spend as much time with your child as possible, sometimes you’ll need to get external help. The commitments of taking your child to school and picking them up each day may not be compatible with your business duties, so there is no shame in looking for childcare. A good babysitter or nanny can take on a large share of your parenting tasks and make your life a whole lot easier. And the same goes for your company too. If your work is getting out of control and leaving you with no time to see your child, it might be worth spending a bit of money to outsource certain areas of the business. After all, when you look back on your life in years to come, you won’t care about the money you spent but you might regret not spending enough time with your kids.