“Mompreneurs” are powerful women who run businesses and households. Separately, each of these jobs is daunting and exhausting, so combining them is not for the faint of heart. Women who are raising children while growing a business can face incredible rates of burnout, but there are ways to keep yourself centered no matter what your complicated life throws at you. Many successful mompreneurs agree that the most important thing you can do is step back and take a close look at your mindset. Your mindset matters more than you might think, so taking the time to cultivate a positive mompreneur mindset can mean the difference between meeting your goals and burning out.
Two Mindsets
Your mindset directly contributes to your goals, and your ability to achieve them. Many psychologists believe that there are two types of mindsets: fixed, and growth.
- People with a fixed mindset believe that the circumstances of one’s life are based on the personal qualities we are born with, and remain fixed and unchangeable. This type of mindset creates a constant need to prove oneself to others and to seek reassurance and outside approval. When people with a fixed mindset encounter hardship, they are likely to give up.
- Those with a growth mindset, however, believe in the ability to develop and strengthen positive traits at any stage of life through perseverance and hard work. People with a growth mindset have a desire to be their best, tackling challenges and learning new things.
Psychologists argue that to excel at anything you need a growth mindset: the mindset that hungers for more, thrives in challenges, and faces daunting tasks with resilience and pride. Know who has those traits? Mompreneurs. To wake up everyday faced with a growing business and a busy family requires all of those skills, and a positive, growth-focused mindset is really the only way to survive and thrive!
What’s Your Mindset?
Which mindset do you currently have? Ask yourself these five questions:
- True or false: There are no mistakes, just lessons to learn.
- True or false: Learning doesn’t end when you finish school.
- True or false: We make our own luck.
- True or false: I can do anything I set my mind to.
- True or false: It’s better for me to do something on my own than to take a handout.
Answering “true” to all of the above means that you have a growth mindset, and even though every day might not be good, you probably find the good in every day. If you answered “false” to any of these, it might be time to reevaluate your perspective. Who is going to believe in you if you don’t believe in yourself?
How To Cultivate A Mompreneur Mindset
When you’re wearing many hats, like running a business while raising a family, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and like you never have the time (or energy!) to tend to your personal development. Unfortunately, if you don’t carve out the time to care for yourself and align your mindset with your goals, you run the risk of burning yourself out. That’s where a growth mindset comes in. By believing that you have what it takes to do hard things, striving for growth, and valuing learning experiences, you empower yourself to do your very best, despite sometimes feeling overwhelmed!
If a growth mindset doesn’t come naturally for you, that’s okay. Do-it-all mompreneurs recommend the following five strategies for successfully improving your mindset, prioritizing personal development, and avoiding burnout.
- Forget about perfectionism. Sometimes, we give 100% just to have something flop. Your goal should always be progress, not perfection. Make one more sale than last quarter. Finish one more deliverable than last week. Check one thing off your to-do list. Your life is not going to look like anyone else’s, especially not that of a high-ranking CEO who barely sees their family. Your “best day” is going to look different from everyone else’s, and that’s okay! Drop the perfectionism, stop comparing yourself, and focus on #2…
- Reflect with gratitude. Take a moment, right now, and think of something you’re grateful for. Now… think of something about yourself that you’re grateful for. You can’t pour from an empty cup, so give yourself the praise you deserve! You are the one creating your own successes, overcoming barriers, and making your (and your family’s) lives better. The best way to motivate yourself is to pause and reflect on how far you’ve come. Celebrate goals, big and small, and squash the voice in your brain that tells you you have to be “perfect”.
- Take time for yourself. Celebrate your successes everyday. Call it self-care: a “reward” can be as luxe as a mani-pedi, or as laid back as a home-cooked dinner. Whatever it is, remind yourself that you deserve whatever it takes to make you feel good and relaxed.
- Never stop learning. Mompreneurs and CEOs alike agree that personal and professional development is a life-long process. Learning leaves you inspired, curious, and filled with new ideas. Read a book, listen to a podcast, or attend a seminar related to your field.
- Stick to your goals. The most successful people are constantly setting new goals and reevaluating their past goals. Having fresh, exciting goals can keep you motivated and on track, while evaluating past goals for relevance and attainability keeps you from feeling overwhelmed or burned out.
These mindset tips will not instantly change your life. There’s no overnight fix. They won’t magically transform you into a supermom/supermompreneur. But the point is, that you’re already a supermom. These five small adjustments will just help you step into your potential, take control of your attitude, and harness the power of a positive, growth-focused mindset so you can recognize your own successes.