Balancing two things is never easy. There’s always the risk that one thing will slip away if you give too much time to the other. Being a Mom can demand all of your time and attention, all day long – so it’s no surprise that it’s a challenge to juggle it with being a business owner, which has the same requirements. Here’s how to make it work without going crazy.

Make plans

The most important thing to do is to keep yourself organised. Set up a planned schedule for every day – and stick to it as much as possible. Of course, things will always change and go wrong, but it’s important to keep on track so that you don’t allow one part of your life to take over everything else. Separate your day into time for business and time for family. Make sure that everything you need to do, from meetings to school plays to interviews to sports practice, is all kept on a single calendar that you can refer to easily. This way, you can balance your time and avoid letting anyone down.

Limit check-ins

While you’re at work, it’s natural you may want to check in on your kids and make sure they are doing fine. Similarly, while you’re at home with your kids, you may worry about work and whether the business is running well without you. But checking in can quickly become overwhelming. You may find you spend a whole evening answering emails without spending any time with your family! In order to stop this from happening, set yourself a time limit. Put a 20-minute timer on your phone to check those emails, or text the kids, or watch them on your smart home monitor. Don’t allow yourself to be further distracted.

Stay healthy

Most importantly, don’t get overwhelmed. If you’re not healthy, then both your business and your kids are likely to suffer. Stay strong by taking regular breaks and allowing yourself to rest. Make sure that you get enough sleep, and drink plenty of water during the day rather than coffee. Focus on eating only healthy office snacks – as the business owner, you can also take care of your employees by encouraging them to have these healthy options as well. If it all feels like it’s getting too much, take a step back and breathe instead of charging ahead.

Be respectful

It’s important to give employees the same flexibility that you enjoy as a business owner, especially if they have their own children. Why not allow them to work flexible hours around their families? So long as the work gets done, all is well in the end. You should also be respectful of the working environment, however. Don’t abuse your position as the boss by allowing your kids in the workspace if you wouldn’t be happy with everyone else bringing their kids along, too. In general, it’s better if your home and your work stay separate – although when you are working from home, this is not something you can achieve easily. This way, you can maintain that professional image whilst also keeping time to just be Mom.

Although these tips are easy to say, you will most likely find that everything is much harder in practice. Hang in there and keep going with these suggestions, and over time, things will get easier. You will find that the separation of work and family becomes more natural – and even though there will always be scheduling clashes, you will work out a system to deal with them.