Over the past few years I’ve learned a thing or two about balancing a business and being a mother. And not only balancing the two, but balancing them WELL. Feeling like at the end of the day I can pursue both these passions and callings of mine. And not let one or the other get the short end of the stick. In this post you’ll find tips for how I find balance between both these roles. This is part of my education for photographers series, so stay tuned for next week when I’ll share part two with more tips.
1- Don’t check social media or email until naptime
This is a big one for me. I find that when I start my day with things like social media or email it gets my day off to not the best start. Plus, checking these things in the morning, when I don’t have time to actually respond to emails until naptime, just leaves me feeling pulled in so many different directions. I’ve found when I don’t look at these things until I have time to sit down and respond, I can give my full attention to motherhood in those morning hours. And I’m not preoccupied thinking about how I need to respond to “so and so” later.
2- Only work 1 weekend a month
This was a hard one for me to start implementing, if i’m honest. But after some thinking I realized that I got out of the wedding industry so that I could have weekends available for my own family. So I started offering one weekend a month for sessions, and any other sessions I schedule for weekdays. I have a whole post about this coming soon!
3- Set realistic goals (financially) for the season of life you are in
There is something I recently realized: I won’t have young children forever. They won’t always need me like they do now. My husband won’t always be in graduate school. And in this current season that I am in. A season where I need to give a lot of myself to my children, my husband, and our home. During these years I will probably make less money, because I will take on less clients. Therefore, my goals reflect that realization. I don’t expect to make the amount of money some moms who work 5 days a week do. I want to work 1-2 days a week, so I know that my finances will reflect that.
4- Remember what success looks like for you
I saved the best for last. But you have to realize that success looks different for you than it does for others. And success will also look different depending on the season of life you are in. For me right now success looks like shooting 1-2 times a week, and working 2 days a week. Success also looks like spending time doing things I enjoy like gardening, going to the park with my girls, and taking family camping trips in our pop up trailer. Success is not just a number in your bank account, but it can be measured in the intangible things too.
Stay tuned for part two of this post for four more tips about balancing work and motherhood! Also, head on over to my education page if you’re interested in learning more from me about all things business and motherhood.
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Rachel Howden Photography is a photography mentor in the San Francisco Bay Area. Who specializes in family, newborn, baby, motherhood, and maternity photography in the Bay Area. Including Livermore, Oakland, Walnut Creek, San Francisco, San Mateo, Palo Alto, San Jose, Fremont, and Pleasanton. Mentorships are not limited to being in person and can be done virtually as well. This post focuses on Rachel providing education for photographers. Rachel loves helping other photographers learn film photography, balancing motherhood and business, and finding your why and purpose in your business. She helps photographers build rhythms and techniques to have a successful business filled with contentment and joy (and profit, of course).
This post helps you to have a little sneak peek into what you will receive if you have me as your photography coach. If you want to learn more about what a mentorship and coaching session looks like, you can find out more about education for photographers On This Page.
Are you interested in booking a mentorship? Contact me HERE.
