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Ready to fix overwhelm and reclaim joy in your household as a stay-at-home or business-building mama? Today’s post is for you! Grab a cup of coffee, do your dishes, or whatever suits your fancy as we listen in on today’s topic.

Through multiple moves (5 houses in 13 years!), doing the mom-life, and having a deep-down desire to start a business, Maria Kemery of placeswecallhome.com shared her journey of starting and stopping businesses, finding what works to best serve her family, and settling into a business that brings joy and builds her up as a mom.

 

Wondering How to Start Creating an Intentional Mom Life?

Consider Maria’s advice…

 

1. Think Long-Term

Being a mom is enough. But if you’re someone who strongly desires to have a business for yourself, don’t get distracted with thinking about how it’s going to take time away from your family in the short term. A lot of women spend time doing too much right away and getting stretched. It can be stressful starting out.

But when you get on the right path for the right kind of business, the long-term benefits outweigh the stress from the beginning.

Make a list of what having a business would mean for you personally:

✔️ Will it challenge you in a good way?
✔️ Will it teach you to be a better mom?
✔️ Will it provide financially while giving you flexibility?

Think about your family legacy as well! Even if you’re not necessarily leaving a financial legacy, what will it mean to your kids to give them an example of diligence and a hard-working attitude? Your model as a mom can help your kids to be successful in whatever they choose to do! Keep your eyes on the destination!

 

2. Just Start the Business

You don’t need to refinance your home, get a storefront, or have a ton of social media followers to get started. You just need one product, or one customer… just one! Start small. Go at it with a plan and be really intentional with your time. Don’t get sucked into “feeling productive” by doing a bunch of things you don’t need to do. Do the things that will actually move your business forward.

 

3. Release Yourself from Mom Guilt

Maria’s advice that I absolutely LOVED and implemented immediately in my own family was this… focus on connecting with your children at three key times throughout the day: right when they wake up, when they haven’t seen you in a while (such as after school or activities, or after you get out of a call), and right at bedtime.

You can use that knowledge to kill your mom guilt. You don’t have to feel bad or guilty if you don’t play with them all day, you can connect with them in quicker but REALLY meaningful ways.

✔️ Look them in the eyes and ask them questions.
✔️ Listen to what they say to you.
✔️ Hugs and affection! Make them feel loved and special.
✔️ Give them what they need at these three key times and they will FEEL loved and cared for!
✔️ Have time to work your business without guilt because you know you met them at those times when they needed to connect with you most.

If you haven’t made space with your kids – this a great first step. If your mind is typically elsewhere, you can DECIDE to really intentionally give them that time.

4. Optimize Your Household for Joy

Walk through your typical day and look for hotspots – we all do the same things over and over. What are your stumbling blocks, what’s tripping you up, holding you back, making you mad or frustrated in your day? Look for patterns of when you get upset. What is triggering it? What do you hate doing, love doing?

Once you have an idea of what’s going on, get an outside perspective from someone who can tell you where you’re missing the mark. Maria works with moms in this way to work through what they can change or an idea to try to make that process easier, or plan your week or day better so you don’t have stumbling blocks holding you up.

Optimizing your household is something that sounds daunting, but once you start – even ONE thing that becomes easier in your daily life – adds up to more time that you can spend on doing what you love!

Watch the Interview to be Encouraged and Build Confidence in Starting Your Business

If you don’t have time to watch the full interview, here are some highlights. Be sure to bookmark this page so you can watch it in its entirety later!

2:42 – Maria’s Story
11:45 – Your Business’ Impact on Family Legacy
15:04 – Advice for Starting a Business
18:56 – Tips for Household Management
21:06 – Meal Planning, Shopping, Cooking Tips
23:44 – Tool Recommendations
26:45 – Personal Development Recommendations

Resources Mentioned in This Video:

With Intention with Desirae Endres – Podcast about streamlining homes, schedules, and lives. Most people battle in their households because they just have too much stuff!

(You can grab a FREE book coupon when you use one of the affiliate links below!)

The Whole Brained Child by Daniel J. Siegel – 12 Revolutionary Strategies to Nurture Your Child’s Developing Mind

Simplicity Parenting by Kim John Payne – back to the basics of what your kids need or don’t need, with step-by-step decluttering

Final Thoughts

It might be a little scary to put yourself out there. AND it can feel overwhelming when you’re already in the mom trenches of daily life.

But if you have that desire to grow a business in you and it’s not going to go away, go for it! Take the time to figure out what kind of business works for you and keep it flexible with life’s many seasons. Keep focused on intentionally being with your kids when it counts, and streamline your household to keep stumbling blocks far, far away. You got this, mama!

Please leave us a comment if you enjoyed this post! We love hearing from you!

Connect with Maria Kemery at placeswecallhome.com