As an employee, when you take time off from work, you can delegate to coworkers or simply pick up tasks once you return. However, as an entrepreneur or solopreneur, it isn't always that simple.
I definitely want to be able to take time to bond with my baby and also take the time I need to heal after my birth experience. However, it's's definitely challenging not knowing what my days will look like and not wanting my business to flounder in the meantime.
Here are some of the things I'm doing to prepare:
Being Realistic
The first thing I did when building out my plan was thinking about how much time I really needed to take. If I was being my normal optimistic self I would have said 2 months! But I know that I should take this time while I can. Baby arrives end of September so 2 months puts me around Thanksgiving, with the holiday season spanning a good portion of this time I found it probably made sense to give myself until the new year to be fully back to "business as usual" or whatever that is going to look like with a baby.
Lay Out All "Must Get Done Tasks"
I looked at my "must get dones" and then determined how many of each I needed to complete. For instance, how many podcast episodes are between September 20th and January 1st? How many blog posts would need to be published before the new year? Getting this all down on paper gives you a more clear sense of what need to get done in advance, what can wait, and what you might want to still do during "maternity leave".
Implement Automation
For some of the items on my list, I wanted to implement automation to keep things going. Are there items you can automate or outsource during your leave? For instance, can you use Planoly or other automation tools to make you life easier while still getting content out there? Who knows, this might actually be an aspect of your business you choose to continue after leave!
Game Plan
If you plan on taking time off, thinking about what you want to do once you are back. Will you launch something new? Will you be able to make money in between? Creating a game plan will make you feel more secure and confident in your decisions.
Leave Room to Play It By Ear
You are going to be going through something completely new and you have no idea what that might look like. So be okay with playing it by ear, maybe you'll want to still dabble in parts of your business during leave, because that keeps you sane, maybe this is a new way to engage with your clients/audience.
Give Yourself Grace
This isn't going to be stress free or easy, but this is the ONE CHANCE you get to spend time with your new little one, take advantage of every moment.
What do you wish you had known as an Entrepreneur going on leave?
xo,
Taylor
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