The biggest question is wether or not my business is going to be a success now that I can't give it 100%. It's terrifying, really, because I have placed a lot of personal value in my business. If it doesn't succeed... does that mean I'm a failure? Before Paper Fox, I really struggled to find my place in the workforce. I was never really passionate about anything I was doing, and, in turn, I wasn't really that great at any of the jobs I had. It was the classic catch 22 situation. Working for myself has been a huge accomplishment- especially since I never ever thought in a million years I would be able to start a business from scratch. And now, here I am, on the precipice of success and failure (at least in my own eyes.) The flip side to all this uncertainty, is that I DO get to be home with my baby- which is a major stress factor for most working moms. At the end of the day, at least I know that I am experiencing all of Poppy's developmental milestones despite the complete chaos that is often my workday.
I see some work-at-home moms on Instagram and on Etsy and they seem to work like... a million hours a day. Answering emails as soon as they come in, constantly growing their social media following, collaborating with other businesses and STILL they seem to be able to manage 3 kids and a marriage... do they work all night? Do they never sleep?! I mean, this is all speculative but man, I feel guilty every second that I take for myself, especially when I know I have 20 unread emails sitting in my inbox. But I also know, that if I don't draw the line between work and my personal life, I'll probably go insane. And so, I take weekends off and deal with the angry customers who didn't receive an email that weekend on Monday... Or maybe Tuesday.
And so, with a crazy new work schedule, I have been scouring the internet for tips on how to be a super-mom. Currently, I am really thankful for Monica at GuguGuru.com for all her tips and advice on how to make this juggling act work. I have found that a few key baby essentials make all the difference in how much I can actually get done in a day. It's also been really useful to have an open registry that I can refer my family and friends to when they ask what Poppy still needs- while also getting the deets on cool new gear that might bring a little more sanity into my life. We've also had the opportunity to do a few giveaways and collaborations with them - which is a great new avenue for me, now that I have a little baby - I feel like I am connecting with all the other moms out there. (Hi there!)