Thoughts on Management and Parenting

Last week marked the bittersweet event of dropping off my (Beth's) oldest child at college. While slightly sad that I am no longer essential, I am proud to see how confidently she is managing this transition. I have been preparing her for this independence for years, gradually giving her more and more responsibility in the home: allowing her to decorate her bedroom as she saw fit (within my parameters of course), requiring that she make her own breakfast and lunch, and making sure that she knew how to cook, clean, sew, shop, arrange appointments, be organized, and most importantly, make decisions. Now is the time to let her try out her skills on her own and accept the mistakes along with the victories. My thinking is that if she was struggling and needing me too much at this moment, then I haven't done my job well as a parent.

This is not very different than the role that a good manager plays in the business setting. A good manager sets the tone, the direction, and the expectations and then allows her employees to assume more and more responsibilities. The entire purpose of having employees is to multiply the amount that can be accomplished by one person alone. Employees need to be provided with clear job descriptions and good training, and then gradually a good manager has to back off and allow the employees to try things on their own, learning from their mistakes en route to the accomplishments. Delegation can be difficult. Accepting that an approach might be different from the way you would have done it but nonetheless effective can be difficult. Both extremes, micromanaging and no managing, lead to nonproductive employees. But an effective manager develops competent employees who see the vision and help to move the company forward. Are you doing your job well as a manager?

Is There A Wrong Time In Your Life To Start A Business?

So you have an idea and you have the entrepreneurial bug.The question arises: is this a good time in your life to start a business? In fact, is there a right time and a wrong time to start a business? This is a question we mull over ourselves as we work with various clients. Ours is not the business to deflate people's dreams. However, inherent in planning for success is pointing out potential weaknesses in the plan and developing a contingency plan.

So what is our opinion, you ask?

Whether you are male or female, I wouldn't plan to start a new business if you are in the process of getting married. The same holds true if you are thinking about having a baby within the next 5 years. Both of these events are life changing events. Until you are in the middle of them, you cannot imagine how they will affect your attitude, your energy, your ambitions, your time, and your resources. They are some of the most joyful, yet stressful moments in life. Businesses that start up in the middle of these phases of life often fail.

Go ahead and work on your plan, and do some contingency planning regarding your time and resources, for example, but if at all possible, give yourself time to get through these phases and adjust to your new life before throwing the stress of starting a business into the mix. You will likely have better success in all areas of your life by following this advice.

What is your opinion?

Summertime for Mompreneurs

Well it's here! Summer has arrived! The kids are off of school. Camps have begun. Summer...in my opinion the most difficult season of the year for Mompreneurs...especially mompreneurs who work from home and have school age children andwork from home. Scheduling is crazy, the noise level is higher, there are more interruptions in the day, and the internal pull between running your business and providing a fun summer for your kids is at its peak. So how to navigate through these few precious months?

1. Organization is key: Decide how many hours you must work each week. Write your involvement in your children's activities onto your master schedule and then block your work time into your schedule as well.

2. Reclaim your office: During the school year I gravitate to my kitchen counter to work. When summer comes, I need to separate myself from the household activity and move my work back into my office.

3. Set rules: When I am working, the children need to understand that they cannot interrupt me randomly. When I am on the phone, they cannot be playing their musical instruments. Figure out where your problem areas are and set the rules accordingly.

4. Take some time off! You deserve it and the kids are only young once, so reward a good smooth-running workweek with a Friday afternoon at the pool.

What are your tips for managing your summer as a Mompreneur?