Yin and Yang: How do you balance work and family?
The balance between work and family is an ongoing journey for me – one that I am continuously evolving in.
When you start your own business, it can be similar to raising another child, requiring my time and attention to foster its growth and success. Much like my children who need this and more from me to reach their full potential. Therefore, I am actively working on establishing boundaries within my business to ensure it remains aligned with my initial intentions.
One thing I have made a priority is ensuring I get enough sleep. Not getting the sleep I need severely impacts my ability to function at all, particularly now that I am juggling multiple responsibilities, including running my business, looking after my children and managing everyday household tasks.
Therefore, I have not only focused on cultivating healthy sleep habits for my children, but also for myself. Recognising the importance of quality rest, I have made it a personal commitment to improve my own sleep patterns. Additionally, I am gradually working on encouraging better sleep habits for my husband…
Embracing this ongoing process of adaptation and self-improvement, I hope to continue fostering an environment where work and family life seamlessly coexist, enabling me to be present for my children while growing my business.
Image Credit: James Bedford Photography
The drive: What challenges have you overcome?
One of the biggest hurdles I’ve faced was the transition from the idea of starting a business to actually taking action. While the initial excitement of embarking on this venture fuelled my motivation, sustaining that drive in the face of obstacles required perseverance.
This included the process of putting myself out there and conveying my purpose and services to potential clients. It was essential for me to establish a strong presence and reputation in the parenting community, which meant I had to market myself and make parents aware of the transformative outcomes I can help them achieve in their children’s sleep routines, which I had never done before.
For better or worse: What are the pros and cons of running your own business?
The greatest advantage is the flexibility it offers to accommodate my children’s lives. I can be the kind of mum I aspire to be, ensuring that I never miss important moments like sports days, school assemblies, or after-school activities.
While not necessarily a con, one aspect that requires ongoing learning is the ability to ask for help. In a world where we are often encouraged to believe we can do it all, balancing responsibilities such as maintaining a clean house, grocery shopping and cooking can be challenging. It can feel difficult to seek assistance, but it’s crucial to demonstrate to our children that it’s okay to ask for help.
As a business owner, it’s essential to recognise that we don’t possess all the knowledge and can’t handle everything alone. Acknowledging when we need support and reaching out for it is vital for achieving our full potential.
Hopes and dreams: What next?
Sleep has always been a controversial topic, with many adults claiming they only need 5 or 6 hours of sleep a night to get by. BUT all the research being done shows just how important sleep is for us, and society is slowly starting to acknowledge it. There is so much re-educating that needs to be done to help EVERYONE learn healthy sleep habits.
While I am currently working on helping as many families as I can to reclaim their sleep by supporting parents with their little ones’ healthy sleep habits. This is only a small part of the population and I want to help as many people as I can with their sleep.
From my background in Occupational Therapy, I know that there are children who are neurodiverse who need more specialised help with their sleep. This is something I am looking to get further training on to be able to help these families with their sleep.
Then from there who knows? My big goal is to help as many people with their sleep as possible, and a dream for my business is for this to not just be helping children but adults as well. As sleep plays a vital role in helping us achieve a happy and healthy life, we just need to learn how to embrace it!
Visit the Celebrate Sleep with Mia website to find out more, download her Free eBook and follow her on Instagram.
