Self-Employment As Parents: Pros and Cons
Self-employment has seen a boon following the pandemic, with people either deciding to follow their dreams and become their own bosses or turning to self-employment out of necessity.
Toss having children in the mix, and being self-employed has some major advantages - and disadvantages.
Lack of childcare
Being self employed can puts a lot of pressure on your to be as productive as possible, and this means putting the hours in where you need to. This can be difficult if you’re juggling kids too. They run to their own timetable and you can almost guarantee that they will get sick or fussy at the most inopportune times.
Affordable childcare is something that many people just don’t have. You need childcare to be able to do your job and make money, but that childcare is prohibitively expensive. So what’s the solution? The truth is that there’s no simple answer - and definitely no perfect answer. Some parents pull together a support network of friends and family to help them, but this isn’t an option for everyone. Arranging the work schedule for flexibility around the baby’s needs is another strategy which works for others.
Another alternative would be to get together with a few other self-employed parents in the same situation and arrange to share childcare duties. For example, one person could watch the kids on a particular day, while the others work, then you would take them on another day to return the favor.
Opportunities to network
To succeed in any business area, we need to find our group. The challenges faced by those who work for themselves, working parents and women are all barriers to achieving your potential but there are many organizations out there that can help to support you with training, advice and community. For example, if you’re a working Mom, or are pregnant, Embrace Grace is a high profile organization helping women in many ways.
Look around online an find communities that operate in your sector that you can network in. A lot of these communities have in-person and also online, so you don’t have to feel isolated.
Work-life balance
The dream of many people who work for themselves is to have a better work-life balance. Often, this isn’t the case. Building up your own business means that you have to play a lot of roles, as well as working for your clients. It’s easy to find yourself putting in long hours to get established, and neglect other areas of your life. Not only is this less than perfect, but can also have larger consequences for your health and wellbeing.
Self-care
Between family and work, there just aren’t enough hours in the day. Usually the first thing to take a back seat is time for yourself. Self-care is a term which is thrown about a lot, but it means far more than taking a bath or getting your nails done (but it can include those too). True self-care means taking the time to look after yourself, physically, mentally and intellectually on a regular basis. Not doing this can lead to low self esteem, depression, anxiety and reduced productivity at work.
Taking time to focus on ourselves isn’t selfish and it’s not lazy. A healthy you is better at their job, better at parenting and much more resilient.
Running the home
Modern life seems to take a lot of work. Running a home is no exception, especially if you have kids. Keeping everything organised and tidy is a never ending task, and who likes doing laundry? No one. If you’re devoting a lot of time and energy to your work, it’s likely that you’re feeling a little overwhelmed when it comes to your home. You may have a partner to share the load with, or maybe not, but there are some things you can do. The most obvious solution is to hire in help. Having someone spend a few hours a week helping with the cleaning or gardening could make a huge difference in your life. Other techniques could involve things like automating your shopping online or meal prepping in advance in order to save time on cooking. There are many social media channels dedicated to lifestyle hacks, you’re sure to find tips and tricks that work for you.
Balancing your life with self-employment can be tricky, but worth it as you get to be your own boss and create a lifestyle that suits you and your family.
