A mama who definitely means business, author and award-winning ‘mumpreneur’ coach Antonia Chitty has inspired many a mother on a mission to work for herself in a way that fits in with family life. A mother of three, Antonia’s books include Family Friendly Working and The Mumpreneur’s Guide. She also writes regularly on parenting children with Special Educational Needs and blogs at Family Friendly Working. Nonstopmama got out of her pjs and tried to appear as professional as possible to catch up with Antonia.
Do you think there is a growing interest in mothers pursuing a working-from-home, ‘cottage industry’ dream?
Yes – lots of things have contributed to this. Last year, ITV’s Mumpreneur competition showed thousands of women at home that they could have a business. And this year’s Business Mum Week and Mumpreneur Conference have brought women together locally and nationally. There is nothing like meeting up with others in the same situation as you to spur you on. Plus, the credit crunch has led to redundancies and made it harder to find jobs, so there is more incentive for people to start their own business too.
Your book Family Friendly Working tackles many of the challenges of combining a career with family head-on. What made you write it?
This was the first book I pitched to a publisher, and it is really down to encouragement from another mum who runs her own business that I did so. I’d worked with so many inspiring women who had changed their lives and I was really keen to spread the message that there are lots of family friendly working options available to parents who felt stuck.
What are some of the key questions you would ask the mother who longs to make their own-business vision a reality?
My first question: what makes it different? If your business idea is similar to lots of other businesses, it is harder to make it succeed. My second question: have you got a plan? It is easy to get a business idea and much harder to put it into action. Creating a plan can help you work out all the stages involved and be realistic about how long it will take you to achieve each stage and what resources you will need.
For mums working from home, do you have any advice on not letting work seep into family life too much?
Work out when you can work. Set hours that suit you, and do have a way to switch off. If you need to work in the evenings make sure you have one or two evenings free for family time. And book in time to look after yourself – whether it is coffee with a friend or a luxurious bath, make sure you recharge your own batteries.
Do you try to stick to some sort of routine yourself?
Yes – I always do some work in the morning while my youngest sleeps. I find this is a good time to work through emails. My middle child is at nursery 3 days each week but Tuesdays and Thursdays we do things like swimming, going to the park and the library. I divide up the rest week so a couple of days are for clients and Friday is for book writing.
Can you share any strategies for keeping calm and focused on an especially crazy day?
Writing lists, planning, and staying on top of emails – I try to avoid letting a backlog build up!
What are your tricks for de-stressing and making the most of downtime?
Take time off for days out with friends. Get really involved with playing with the kids when you are playing with them … it is a great way to relax and much better than playing with one eye on the computer!
[...] A mama who definitely means business, author and award-winning ‘mumpreneur’ coach Antonia Chitty has inspired many a mother on a mission to work for herself in a way that fits in with family life. A mother of three, Antonia’s books include Family Friendly Working and The Mumpreneur’s Guide. She also writes regularly on parenting children with Special Educational Needs and blogs at Family Friendly Working. Nonstopmama got out of her pjs and tried to appear as professional as possible to catch up with Antonia. … more [...]