Mompreneur tips: How to be a great leader for your family and your employees
Being a mompreneur is hard work. You have to wear lots of different hats and somehow keep both your family and your employees happy. This is can be hard given that being a parent is like having a second full-time job. However, you can use being a mom and a business owner to your advantage and funnel your parenting skills into your work and vice versa. Here are some tips on how you can conduct yourself as a mompreneur and be a great leader for both your family and your employees.
Communicate Effectively
Strong communication skills are imperative in both the work and home arenas. The most effective leaders are clear communicators and make sure not only that they are heard but also that they listen. Communication is not always about getting your point across but hearing the opinions, queries and concerns of others. At home and in the office you should be keeping your family and employees up to speed with what is going and the upcoming schedule. You should regularly check in on them to ensure you can minimize conflict and offer support where needed. Positive communication skills are a quality of a good leader because it sets an example for your children and your staff that they should communicate effectively with you and one another.
Be Organised And Prioritise What Is Important
Being involved in entrepreneurship while also meeting the demands of motherhood, means expending a lot of energy, thought and time into both your business and your family. Sometimes, when you’re so immersed in the work of it all, you can lose sight of what’s important and what tasks need to be done first. It’s important as a leader to manage your time efficiently and prioritize your tasks so neither your business or your family feels neglected. Some days your kids might need your more than your business does. Being organized is a crucial part of parenting and running your own company or business. Make sure you have a schedule and that you stay up-to-date with the commitments of your family and your employees.
Encourage A Healthy Lifestyle
As a mompreneur, it’s important that you stay healthy so that you can do everything you need to do efficiently. You should be conscious that you’re eating nutritious meals, exercising regularly and trying to reduce your stress. As a leader, it’s also important you set an example for your children and your team. Healthy kids are happy kids, and healthy workers are happy workers. By encouraging a healthy lifestyle at home and at work you are being a great leader because you’re helping to create habits that will benefit people for the rest of their life. Eating healthy food, eating regularly, exercising and getting enough sleep help to contribute to overall health and general wellbeing. By encouraging these practices at home and in the workplace, you, as a leader, can change people’s lives. Consider having healthy snacks in the office, teaching your kids about healthy foods and making exercise accessible.
Don’t Be Afraid To Ask For Help
Something that people in leadership positions often avoid is asking for help due to the fear of seeming incompetent or incapable. However, if you’re a mompreneur, chances are you often have too much on your place. Make use of your support network, whether that be your partner, your friends or your employees. Part of being a good leader is being able to recognize when you need help. This attitude teaches both you kids and your employees the importance of a solid support network and creates an environment where they are comfortable seeking assistance and asking questions.
Give Positive Feedback
Positive praise has many benefits in your home life and work life. Providing only negative feedback, whether it’s to your kids or your employees, creates an environment where people feel underappreciated, unmotivated and discouraged. In the workplace, this can have a particularly detrimental effect on productivity. At home, this can seriously undermine your child’s confidence and performance at school. Being a good mom and a good boss depends on how you make your children and your staff feel. If they accomplish something, say something. Reward them, whether it is with praise and gratitude or a physical reward. If you do need to criticise or even reprimand someone, make sure to do it in a way that is constructive rather than accusatory or damaging.
Rachel is a mother of 2 beautiful boys. She loves to hike and write about travelling, education and business. She is a Senior Content Manager at Bizset.com – an online resource of relevant business information.
