If you’re a parent, you probably have two favorite jobs in the whole world- photography and parenthood. They’re filled with emotion and can be rewarding yet incredibly stressful at the same time. There is no exact handbook on how to do either perfectly. While you will not see my name on a New York Times bestselling parenting handbook, I did write a New York Times bestselling business book for photographers. If you’re feeling pulled in too many directions and spread thin I have some tips for you.
- Set up an environment for “mom you” and “photograph you” to succeed
Most likely, you’re running your business from home. You might be thinking that your house is a wreck. You have kids, toys, school papers, every kind of thing all over the place. This is why it’s important for you to set up a dedicated area for “photographer you” to work. I don’t want you to run your business from your bedroom or dining table or any kind of shared family space. This is inefficient and it also provides no boundary between work life and home life. I’ve known photographers who transition a closet into a perfect home office. I’ve used a big armoire cabinet to hold my computer and all my work stuff so that I could physically close the doors at the end of the day.
- Be all in, but one at a time
If you’ve ever tried to multitask work and family at the same time, you know that it’s hard to put your best efforts toward either. It leaves you feeling burnt out, like a failure, and a lot of feeling that you’re disappointing the other person or business. The key here is to be purposeful with how you spend your time. At the beginning of the week, set your office hours and look at what needs to happen. Write down when you’ll be working, when you’re doing a schedule and plan for that time. Having office hours will help you treat your time like a business.
- Set aside time to transition from “work mode” to “mom mode”
Take the first five minutes of your work time to listen to a song or a meditation that gets you from whatever mood and state you’re in to where you need to be for the state you’re shifting into. Consciously recognize that you are leaving work mode and step into mom mode in a great state. Remember how grateful you are for the humans in your life. And then bring that feeling of accomplishment and joy with you into your mom mode.
Being prepared and respecting your photography business will do so much toward helping you feel like you’re actually rocking this mom thing and this business owner thing.
