Tips for juggling your own business with family

Dreaming of being a "mumpreneur" to choose your own hours and do something you love?

Here's how Lee Sutherland, founder of frankie+jet talent agency and Little Wildling Co organic herbal teas, plus mum to Jet, 6 and Ava, 4, tries to master self-care, business ownership and parenthood.

Sure, running a business takes a lot of time and effort, but when you consider the upsides of flexibility and autonomy, Sutherland says it's worth the sweat.

"You can work from home when you need to, do school pick-ups and be in control of your salary – the more you work, the more money," she says. "The hustle is up to you and you can navigate and control that to a degree."

And she believes you need to prepare a start-up for a few hard years before the rewards become really apparent. "You've got to have lots of grit and determination to get through," she says.

"It's tricky to start but eventually it pays off and you get to the point where you're able to hire staff, have the flexibility and all the benefits."

With those foundational years of business behind her, Sutherland and her family have relocated from Sydney to the Sunshine Coast in a bid to find a better balance.

"I'm bringing in all of the practices that 'Sydney me' was way too busy and hectic to do," she says.

"I'm realising that I can still be really great at my businesses and for my clients but look after myself as well, making little windows for what brings me joy, such as fitting in a surf at lunchtime or giving my kids my full attention."

Part of that has involved learning to better delegate tasks. "I often try to do everything myself, but now I've got a cleaner coming once a fortnight which prevents fights between myself and my hubby about who's cleaning what."

If there's one thing that motherhood and business have in common, it's the importance of building a support "village" around you.

"Having a good network and not being afraid of asking for help or outsourcing to someone who can probably do it better than you is important," Sutherland says.

"I try and look for people who are experts in their area and can complement my strong points, such as a graphic designer."

It's also meant hiring a finance expert to take care of invoicing, tax and reconciling her two businesses.

"Getting someone to work on finance full time was scary at first but the brain space and time it's freed up is priceless," Sutherland says.

Business and parenting lines do blur, and if Sutherland finds herself replying to urgent emails while her kids are at the park, she's forthright with them.

"I try to educate them that some mums have to sit in the office all day, but I get to do things like go to the park with you," she says.

"I love trying to get them involved and understanding what I do for work and also the meaning of money. They help with packing and shout 'tea order!' when a Shopify alert comes through on my phone, which is really cute."

Any parent will attest that kids can bring chaos, and Sutherland admits she's had to accept that life – and business – probably won't run as smoothly as it did once did, and that remaining adaptable is critical.

"Pre-kids I was crazy organised and everything was smooth," she says.

"Now I have this new level of understanding that nothing is ever going to be perfect or have all of my attention like it used to, and that's OK. I've learnt that 'better' is better than 'perfect'."

This article was originally published on Australia’s leading women’s network - 9Honey (nine.com.au)

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