By Guest Blogger Suzy Fielders
Being a mom brings a ton of responsibilities, when you add owning and running your own business, a.k.a being a mompreneur, on top of that then your to do list likely feels impossible to achieve. Before you get too overwhelmed take a breath and remember to take everything one step at a time!
When you’re a mompreneur with a ton on your plate, everything often feels like complete chaos. The best way to beat chaos is embracing it, then get organized!
My Personal Chaos
I was a single mom for the first 14 years of my daughter’s life – during that time I always held a full-time job, gained my master’s degree, and had a plethora of side work. In January 2021 I branched out on my own into the self-employed world for writing and content marketing. This June my husband and I welcomed a second daughter into our family and as I write this my almost 3-month-old baby is snoozing beside me. I’m sharing all this to let you know I have a little bit of experience with chaos!
Amongst being a business owner and mother, I’ve learned several tips and tricks about staying organized that I wanted to share to help anyone who is a small business owner and/or a mompreneur!
Top 3 Organizational Tips for Every Mompreneur
Choose the Right Calendar
Using and updating a calendar/planner is imperative! So many moms that love physical calendars/planner they can write in. I love those too! I mean hello I’m a writer so I take any chance to actually write things I can get. But, the downside is you don’t always have physical calendar or planners with you or it creates a hassle of carrying it around. What is something you always have with you? Your phone! Therefore, I highly encourage you to have an electronic calendar.
Google Calendars
I have a planner (I use and love this one from Amazon) and use a Google calendar (it’s free!). I put EVERYTHING on my Google calendar as soon as I know about it. Don’t wait – as soon as you book that appointment put it on your phone calendar, otherwise you’re likely to forget to do it later.
Every Sunday, I look at my Google calendar for the week and write down in my weekly planner all I have to do – from doctor’s appointments to article deadline and meetings.
It might seem like overkill but trust me when you are juggling all the balls in the air this ensures nothing gets dropped. It also is a great way to recap your week in advance.
One reason I use Google calendars is because you can add multiple calendars and color code them. Color coding your calendars – both electronic and physical – is a great tip as it allows you to easily categorize things you have to do. For example, all medical things are one color, each child can have their own colors, clients can have separate colors and calendars, etc.
Set Weekly and Daily Goals
Set weekly goals as your top things you must complete that week. Be sure to include professional, parental, relationship, and personal goals. One way to avoid burnout is to not focus too much on one aspect of your life over another. I use this weekly planner from Amazon to plan out my week goals.
I recommend also setting daily goals. These help you to stay on track each day and meet your weekly goals! I love this daily planner from Amazon. Not only can you put goals, but also tasks, meal prep, and a lot more.
Utilize Spreadsheets
Google Sheets is a great tool to stay organized for a variety of ways. Below are some examples of Google Sheets I use.
- My writing assignments
- Yearly business expenses
- Account logins
- Social media calendar
One reason I love Google Sheets is because I can open it up on my phone anywhere. These means no matter where I am I can edit and make notes – before I forget something!
I hope these tips help keep you on track when running your small business!
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