Running a business isn’t all roses, unicorns, and flowers. You have ups and downs, highs and lows, and a whole lot of stress in between. There have been tears shed, panic-driven fear, and the doubt of, “Can I even make this happen?”

With all of these lovely emotions going on, add on the new responsibility of being a brand new parent. 

The stress of that can be overwhelming and daunting at times in the beginning. Having a baby is both exciting and exhausting! When Anthony was first born, I forgot to check my car oil and basically burned out my car’s engine because my focus was on keeping my baby alive.

This was 18 days after I had him. I was on the verge of crying because my mind had been on “Keep baby alive”, not “refill car engine oil.”

The stress is real and I have felt the stress of both being a new mom with a new baby, figuring out how to balance my time while being exhausted 90% of the time and then running a business.

If you can relate, or if you’re pregnant now wondering how you’re going to manage it all with a new baby while running a business, here’s the behind the scenes look at the things that have helped me with these tribulations. My aim today is to encourage you that you can do both. I know many women who have a thriving personal life and successful business.

Here is one thing I am going to say before I get into what has helped me:

It gets easier over time.

The first few months are the worse because you’re tired. You are getting up anywhere between 2-4 times a night to feed your baby. Your schedule isn’t really your own anymore. It’s an adjustment for sure!

But as your precious baby grows, he/she will begin sleeping longer throughout the night, you’ll have his/her naps down pat, and they begin to entertain themselves, leaving you more time to work on your business.

Hang in there, sister. I feel your pain and I am here to say, right now, my little one is 6 months old (where did the time go?!) and it’s so much easier than when he was just two months old.

Okay, let’s get into the things that have helped me with my stress of being a new mom and a business owner:

1) Being realistic on what I can get done throughout the day.

I touched on this last week, but I cannot stress this enough: I have to be 110% okay when things don’t get done. It’s hard, but I am learning what I can and cannot get done throughout my day. I used to put 10 things on my to-do list with no problem.

Now with the baby, I put 4-7 things on my list, and it depends on what I am doing and how long I give myself. 

If I have to make a module for my online course, then that may take up 80% of my work day, so I’m going to only put 2-4 things on my list and the other things need to be 30 minutes or less activities. 

2) Give myself permission to not do it all.

I have learned to ask for help. I have asked my husband to help me with Anthony or asked my neighbor to watch Anthony for me when I am being interviewed on a podcast during non-naptime hours.

I feel guilty over asking my husband to help me sometimes because he’s been at work all day and here I am bugging him. Then I remember I wasn’t the only one who brought Anthony into this world and then I get over myself *chuckle* 

But I have learned to just ask. Ask for help. Ask my neighbor to watch Anthony for a few hours once a week just so I can get more work done. 

And I have to be 110% okay with that because mom-guilt is real.

3) Learning to be crystal clear on what I really want.

This is a toughie for me and I am still working on it. But I am learning how vital it is to be crystal clear on what I want to do with my business, thus being more focus on my time and energy within it.

I am learning that the more scattered brain I am with my business, the more I tend to stall. So becoming crystal clear on what I want is going to bring me closer to my goals: working a few hours a day while raising my precious baby boy.

When I’m clear, there’s less stress. When I’m unclear, I am more stress. 

If you want to be less stressed, then I advise you not to be scattered brain. Get crystal clear, make a plan, and go for it!

These are just a few things that have helped me overcome the stress of being both mom and business owner. Here are some other things that help: yoga, hanging out with friends, swimming, camping, exploring my local area, and treating myself to ice cream. 

What are some things that have helped you with being a new mom and a business owner? Let me know in the comments below or on my Facebook Page. I cannot wait to hear from you!