Alarm goes off at 6am. Even 5am.

You reach over and are tempted to hit snooze. 

It’s day 20 of 31 for the month and there is so much to get done. Goals to meet. Client deadlines. Kids to raise. Relationships to nurture. You’re tired. 

But who’s got time to be tired, right?

Bills to be paid. School functions to attend. Meetings to be held. Presentations to complete. Laundry to be washed. Offers to be made. Dinners to be fixed. 

The list of to- dos for women are already long enough, but your list of to-dos as a female entrepreneur makes it even longer.

The satisfaction of getting all the things done and to standard drives you to skip lunch, rationalize not taking the nap that your body is screaming for and even schedule another meeting when you have 3 already on the calendar. The desire to keep building your business and get more clients makes you ignore the obvious wear and tear to your most valuable asset. 

YOU!

80% of women can say how important self-care is but only a third actually do it. Why? We have a natural instinct to carry the weight of the world on our shoulders and not ask for help lifting the bag. Is that you? Women also tend to believe that our work can only be done by us (if we want it done right). Which translates to “done my way.” Or we feel like we should be able to carry all the things. 

We all know that is not true! But acting on what we know is not as easy as following what we believe or what comes naturally

When you get irritable and anxious you will likely blame someone else or something that didn’t go right instead of the real culprit which is not pouring enough into you. But I want to share with you some things that will help you not get to that point so easily in the first place. 

Here are 5 ways to honor yourself while building the empire. 

1. Plan out your day.

Reduce the mental overwhelm by knowing what is on the agenda for the day. Everything has a time slot just like at home, everything has a place. Imagine how relaxed you feel in a nice clean home. That same feeling comes when you have a clearly planned out day. There are 24 hours in the day. Assign tasks to those minutes and hours including home stuff.

2. Take frequent breaks.

Take time to breathe (schedule it in the day), be still, soak in what you’ve already done at that point in the day. You’ll feel more energized and accomplished- preventing you from taking on more in the day. Practice some breath work. Boxed breathing is a great technique. Or a simple meditation. Either of these can be found with a quick search of YouTube.

3. Set clear boundaries. 

Saying yes to something is saying no to something else. Remember this. Star it! Scheduling another meeting, lunch date or zoom takes away the time you planned for you and your family. Create the balance and space to make more time for you in your day. 

Contrary to what you think—you don’t have to do everything; HECK, you don’t even WANT to do everything!

I mean wasn’t becoming a grown up all about getting to do what you want to do?

Which brings us to #4

4. Do things that you enjoy.

Explore your hobbies and interests. I know time is not in excess but – using your scheduled plan you can see the free time that you have available. Block an hour every other week for those singing or dance lessons, try out ice skating or pottery. Just because you are building an empire doesn’t mean that you cannot be your own person anymore. Yes, your business is your baby, but staying connected to who you are will ensure that the business continues to grow.

Last and definitely not of any less importance,

5. Get in a community. 

Find your tribe of women who are growing, thriving, learning, and loving all together. As the saying goes you are of product of the people you hang out with. Are you with women who welcome struggle and business? That don’t value themselves or their time? Be mindful of who you are around. You want support and encouragement, but you also want a friend that will say “go take a nap, you’re grouchy.” If you’re looking for a community of women who are learning to love life right now, join us on Facebook here. 

Implement these 5 steps into your busy mompreneur life to make sure that you are honoring who you are as a human, as a woman first. Loving the life that you are creating for yourself, and your family is the most important thing at the end of the day. You are the unique piece of your business. Without you things would not run the same. This is why it’s vital that you take the time and energy to really pour into you and feed your soul with the things that nourish you. You do that by consistently practicing the steps listed above. You are worthy! You are valuable. You deserve the best! 

Take care of the biggest driver in your business, in your life; the same way you would take care of an important piece of equipment in your business. Take care of YOU!

Which of these 5 steps can you do better at putting into practice? When can you start? 

You can find Shaunda on Instagram @livefullerwithshaunda or at her website – www.shaundanicole.com